ridiculous analogy of political parties

My father, a strict Republican, forwarded the following chainletter to me. It's his attempt to prevent me from voting for Obama.

A young woman was about to finish her first year of college. Like so many others her age, she considered herself to be a very liberal Democrat, and among other liberal ideals, was very much in favor of higher taxes to support more government programs, in other words redistribution of wealth. (Does this last sentence sound familiar? Obama said virtually these exact same words to Joe the Plumber).

She was deeply ashamed that her father was a rather staunch Republican,a feeling she openly expressed. Based on the lectures that she had participated in, and the occasional chat with a professor, she felt that her father had for years harbored an evil, selfish desire to keep what he thought should be his.

One day she was challenging her father on his opposition to higher taxes on the rich and the need for more government programs. The self-professed objectivity proclaimed by her professors had to be the truth and she indicated so to her father. He responded by asking how she was doing in school.

Taken aback, she answered rather haughtily that she had a 4.0 GPA, and let him know that it was tough to maintain, insisting that she was taking a very difficult course load and was constantly studying, which left her no time to go out and party like other people she knew.

She didn't even have time for a boyfriend, and didn't really have many college friends because she spent all her time studying.

Her father listened and then asked, 'How is your friend Audrey doing?'

She replied, 'Audrey is barely getting by. All she takes are easy classes, she never studies, and she barely has a 2.0 GPA. She is so popular on campus; college for her is a blast. She's always invited to all the parties and lots of times she doesn't even show up for classes because she's too hung over.'

Her wise father asked his daughter, 'Why don't you go to the Dean's office and ask him to deduct 1.0 off your GPA and give it to your friend who only has a 2.0. That way you will both have a 3.0 GPA and certainly that would be a fair and equal distribution of GPA.'

The daughter, visibly shocked by her father's suggestion, angrily fired back, 'That's a crazy idea, how would that be fair! I've worked really hard for my grades! I've invested a lot of time, and a lot of hard work!

Audrey has done next to nothing toward her degree. She played while I worked my tail off!'

The father slowly smiled, winked and said gently, 'Welcome to the Republican party.'

If anyone has a better explanation of the difference between Republican (McCain) and Democrat (Obama) I'm all ears.

Now don't get me wrong- the author of this chainletter makes a very good point. I am often annoyed when I work hard in school and do poorly, while other kids slack off and get A's. However, I refuse to compare grades in school to wealth in society. Sure, there are those people who work hard to become successful. But there's also those stuck-up lazy rich people that have merely inherited a fortune from their wealthy ancestors.

Of course, the inverse of this is also true. Many people live in poverty because they are too lazy to find a job or get a decent education. There's also so many people leading impoverished lives because the economy is so poor. I was very angered by this biased chainletter because it is degrading towards the lower/middle class.

Point: people need to consider others before forwarding such a biased chainletter. Thanks Dad. You've convinced me to vote for Obama.

wow

I haven't written in here for awhile. I've been so caught up in every aspect of college- social scenes, procrastination, choir, midterms.

I'm really stressed. College is harder than I thought it would be. I'm not here to vent about my life, though the temptation to do so is a bit overwhelming.

However, I'm not a middle school Myspacer, although sometimes I feel that way in this competitive and mixed-up life I call college.

I'm eighteen years old, yet I am not an adult. I am not a child. I am somewhere in between. I am still growing and I still have much to learn.

What have I learned so far in college?

1. People change. I barely recognize some of my former best friends. It's sad. And sometimes I wonder if I'm the one changing.
2. School requires effort. I was spoon-fed in high school. I actually have to take initiative to get things done.
3. I must reward myself after accomplishing a task (not before).
4. I must still have fun in the simplest ways (i.e. playing board games, running around in a field, taking pictures of the fall leaves, staying up late)
   

So here I am. Growing, but not quite growing up just yet.

I am content with that.

musica

As of yesterday, I am now a member of the University Singers. According to their website, this choir is primarily comprised of music majors. I noticed this when I walked into Glidden Hall for my callback. The room was filled with mature and developed voices.

It sounded SO BEAUTIFUL! I had so much fun just to sing with a choir again. I thought to myself that I wouldn't be too upset if I didn't make it- I enjoyed the experience of putting myself out there as a freshman (and a non-music major).

So now I have 18 credit hours. I think it will be worth it though. I'm now involved in something constructive, and I hope to meet many amazing people.

I'll keep you posted on it.

my future starts now

I'm making a change to this blog.

I am a freshman at Ohio University in Athens, and I was accepted into the well-renowned E.W. Scripps School of Journalism last October. Upon reading my confirmation online, I began to scream with joy. My parents rushed downstairs with horrified looks on their faces, only to be greeted by their oldest daughter jumping up and down shouting "I GOT INTO SCRIPPS" continuously.

I have just realized that I've never reacted like that to anything before in my entire life. Yes, I was overjoyed when I made the cast list of my first high school musical. Yes, I ran through the halls of my high school when I discovered my acceptance into the symphonic choir. Yes, I have posted many outstanding report cards on my fridge at home in Richfield.

But that particular October day marked the beginning of something huge. And I knew it, too. It's a bit scary actually.

Speaking of which, I attended my first Journalism 101 class today. I can honestly say it has been the most interesting class I've sat through thus far; it totally pertains to my future. Prof. Stewart told all 300 (that's a rough estimate) of us that our futures "start now". This statement frightened me. I've only been at OU since Friday and I feel so settled in already. However, it's still a huge adjustment from my sheltered high school bubble in northeast Ohio. I think this will ease as this week progresses further, and as I get more involved on campus.

So Prof. Stewart (or anyone else who happens to read this), I'm just letting you know that I am serious about journalism. I'm stepping out of my bubble, I'm meeting people, I'm willing to join imPRessions and other organizations.

My future has just begun.

alanis morisette

Me, my sister, and Lauren were driving to pick up some late night sushi and an Alanis Morisette song came on the radio. I made the comment that I wish I could be her because she "does whatever the hell she wants". And it's true; she speaks her mind and doesn't care who's listening.

I'm taking a stand (finally) about a number of things lately. I find myself getting angry, which is oddly refreshing. I'm taking matters into my own hands and not giving two shits about what other people think is best for me. I feel it.

rainy day pondering

I wonder if two people can truly be happy with one another forever.

I hope so.

ten cuts, no shavings

So I just returned from a WONDERFUL final week at camp. Very chill, perfect weather, lovely staff. I feel like I've grown even closer with staff, including day camp.

We ventured to this random wood carving museum in Middle of Nowhere, Ohio while a majority of us were hungover. I was exhausted, so I fell asleep in one of the movies. But the other movie about Mooney Warther (the wood carver) had so many good quotes, including:

"I sees it in the wood"
"Ten cuts, no shavings"
and the magnificent plier tree.

Aside from that, I felt like I finally got to enjoy camp on my own terms. I tie-dyed, I hiked, I fished, I boated. I embraced everything about that place and loved it.

Today Jacquie and I went on an adventure to get our traguses (that hard part in front of the inside of your ear) pierced. We ended up with piercings, a loss of gas, a lot of turnarounds in Akron, and bellys full of delicious Metro Burger. I am satisfied and I don't think I will be getting any more piercings. I sure as hell am never going to get a tattoo. I can't deal with something that permanent, and my parents told me they would kill me.

Now I am ranting. I need to go organize my stuff and return to Akron tonight to visit Kelsey. It will be good to catch up on things.

blah-g

So looking back on yesterday's post, I realized that... it sucked. Sorry.
Since I am more mellow today and not as hyped up on, uhm, caffeine/anxiety, allow me to go into more detail about my experiences at camp.

As I mentioned before, I work at CYO Camp Christopher. What exactly is it, you ask? It's a Catholic resident camp for boys and girls between the ages of seven and sixteen. We have seven one week sessions per summer, although most kids only attend one of these sessions.

Now before you start making stereotypes about camp (like we're religious freaks or something of the sort), let me just state that you're probably wrong. I camped for five years, I've been on staff for three years, and in all my experience I have never felt pressured to believe anything- except for the fact that camp is the most beautiful and serene place on Earth. It allows me to grow in so many inexplicable ways and meet a diverse group of people.

We don't pray all day. We don't read the Bible all day. We don't restrict campers to one religion. We sing songs and teach kids to love each other. We read quotes from pop songs and Dr. Suess books and Gandhi. We listen to The Beatles or Bob Marley or Disney soundtracks.

It's awesome.

Aside from all that, this summer was my first as a full time camp counselor. Which is ironic because I spent half of it in kitchen, but hey- I love food. I love free time (which you get A LOT of in kitchen). I love Sherry (the head of kitchen).

However, I also loved working in close contact with kids. I had a lot of tough situations to deal with this summer, including a death threat. My very first cabin this summer consisted of sixteen 12-year-old girls... and me. Alone. It was intimidating, but whatever. I was fine until I came back from roving (monitoring another cabin) to discover that my one camper tried to strangle another girl with a headband.

That was scary.

I had been so stressed out from the entire day that I just started bawling in front of my friends Melissa and Chelsea. But the situation was dealt with, the girl was sent home, the other parents were notified.

After all that, my mom told me "Well Gina, if you can handle that, you can handle anything this summer".

You're probably thinking "That sounds like an awful job! Dealing with difficult situations and lots of young kids? How much do you get paid?" I've heard that all before, and my response has always been: "It's worth it."

I don't do it for the money (okay, it's nice though... with the little money I make). If I did it for the money, I would go get a job at Subway or something like any other student.

I do it for the experience of helping kids have a fun and memorable summer. I do it because I too have a fun and memorable summer, filled with so many inside jokes and crazy stories.

Not to mention, camp staff is notorious for being:
a) cigarette smokers (which I am not) and
b) borderline alcoholics (...potentially).

My favorite cabin of the summer was named Junipero Serra. It was the second youngest girls cabin and they were SO GOOD. I was a bit nervous at first to have a younger group of girls, but more nervous to be working with Belen, a foreign exchange counselor from Spain.

However, Belen was flippin sweet and the girls all loved her. I loved her as well. We had a group of six Spanish counselors (including Belen) come from Spain to work for five weeks at camp. They were sweet. There was Belen the sporty one, Elena the beautiful one, Maria the flirt, Alberto the... tanner?, Javi the goofball, and Vasili the ninja/artist. Yes, I did say ninja. He did flips and shit off the walls (literally) of the dining hall... it was unreal.

But what was so unique about Vasili was his history. He was born in Russia and was adopted at the age of 9 by Spanish parents. He and his brother moved to Spain without knowing any Spanish, but they managed to become nearly fluent in about nine months.

That just makes me feel like a lazy ass. I mean seriously, I took Spanish for four years and I am not even close to being fluent.

I guess the best place to stop being lazy would for me to get off this computer. I'm quite glad to be returning to camp tomorrow. It will help me bide some time before I leave for school, and I'll get a chance to hang out with Jacquie (one of my best friends) and some other camp people that I won't see until next summer. Womp.

viva la vida

So I decided make a blog. I know, I'm a huge dork, you don't need to tell me twice. I figured since I'm a journalism major I should start writing...

The question is, about what?

I thought the best place to start would be my summer. I'm a camp counselor at CYO Camp Christopher (camping at its finest! Oh wait, we changed the slogan to "growing in nature, community, and spirit). This place is my home, my love, my life.

Wow I sound like I'm in a cult. Seriously though, I had a fantastic experience there this summer. I feel like I've grown so much. I'm going back on Tuesday for old people camp (which I've never worked before), so that should be interesting.

As I write this, I feel jittery and my hands are shaking a lot. I think I am addicted to coffee. I had an I.C. caramel from Panera today, which is the first coffee drink I have consumed since Tuesday, and my nerves are going haywire.

I've felt like this a lot this summer. Jumpy, unsettled. Maybe I just need to be at peace with something. I find that peace at camp, but hopefully I will find it at college as well.