High on Life

One does Heroin, another does Meth, and a third does Acid. All of these are equally destructive drugs that are gaining in popularity among American teenagers. Over half of all American 12^th graders have reported to have used marijuana at least once during their lifetime. These drug users end up with many different problems including increased rates of depression and suicide. I am questionable to why the government continues to allow such a serious problem. All of the officials know that teenagers are constantly exposed to various illegal substances but there have not been any major advances in trying to stop it.

Being a teenager myself, I have been around drugs, and I will continue to be surrounded by it until the government puts a stop to it. The advertisements only influence the use of drugs, or most of them at least. I am unaware of what people find so special about these various drugs. If the only reason that teens continue conforming to the life of a druggie is to feel the high, then I would have to say that they are ridiculous. What exactly are they getting high for? Are teenagers using these psychedelic drugs to get high on life, and to make themselves feel more valuable?

As time goes on even more sources of drugs are being discovered by wealthy dealers. It will be interesting to see what the world in like in the future in reference to drugs and their uses. Tolerance will eventually come to a zero and people will die from their uses in large numbers. I am hoping that something is done to get people off the idea that drugs are essential to life. There are other ways to get high on life, by just simply living, now we just need to find them.

Disney Stars

Engaged in my homework, I sat in front of the television today, looking for something to watch. I pushed the up button past the news, past MTV, and then again past the discovery channel. I really had no clue what I could put on, that would neither distract me completely nor bore me miserably. Suddenly I came across a channel that I have grown to know quite too well. As a young kid and even into my teenage years I constantly watched the Disney Channel, with their wide assortment of classic television shows. Again I chose to stop on this channel and tune into the partially started Life with Derek. For some reason I think that I will always enjoy a part of watching these kiddy shows; they are funny and cute.

One thing that I can not help but wonder is the idea that little, really young kids tune in to watch these same shows that a 17 year old is watching. I am not sure if this is bad on my part or theirs. The fact is that these shows are not always the best at teaching good lessons at life, most are, but there are definitely some that will never be. It is doubtful that these children fail to realize some of the sexual references that are presented right in front of them. Many parents just secretly hope that what they are seeing happen on television is having no effect on their young children.

Since I was 8 years old the shows that you commonly find on the Disney Channel have really changed. No longer will you find Smart Guy or Even Stevens, but now you find more inappropriate shows that are projected for older children. One such show is Hannah Montana. I have to admit that I have found myself sticking to an episode once or twice, but I would still say that the events it involves are not suitable for young ones. Plus you hear about this same, Hannah Montana performing at concerts and doing inappropriate acts that do absolutely nothing for her self image. These children are watching her, believing that she is doing the right thing, when really she is an actress who has no real life problems. These people that young kids watch on Disney Channel are not really real, they are made up. This makes me believe that this channel is questionable material for the growing children across the world.

Pump Up the Jam

As an athlete, I have always wondered why we use certain types of music to “pump” us up. I get images in my mind of girls with their faces buried under their hoods with tiny strings attached to their ears. Crouched in the dark athletes crave the idea of listening only the songs of their choice, not the voices of other people. I am definitely one of these people who rely on the various playlists to get me pumped up for my race, but that doesn’t keep me from wondering why I am that way. It is weird to think of where such an interesting idea first originated from. I am not sure if we just caught on to a piece of history or if it was since created with the rising intensity of sports and the increasing popularity among them.

Depending on the type of person that you are, the music genre tends to vary somewhat. Some prefer the original gansta rap songs that get your adrenaline and heart rate up. Others like the religious songs that encourage them to fight and believe in all that they can do. Some people are attracted to hard rock where the earsplitting rhymes can get your heart jumping up and down, literally. Finally there are the people who enjoy the slow, country, tangy music; the songs that help you find deeper meaning in yourself.

While some people enjoy the loud bangs of instruments and high screeches of music, some people find their inner selves by simply sitting in complete silence. I think that we use music as a way to connect to something so that we can then feel like that one song was meant for us. (everyone has thought this) When we hear these specific songs, they encourage us, push us, and get us anticipating the future.

I wonder if it is simply the concentration that allows these songs to get you pumped up, or if it really has no correlation. Really I am quite unaware of how you can measure “pump” and whether there is a set number for being either pumped up or not. The problem is that the entire situation varies depending on each individual person and their needs. This is a topic that will go through controversy for a long time but I do believe that there is something else behind music. It is there to entertain us, distract us, and possibly pump us up.

Maybe we all incorrectly attribute music to pumping us up but that doesn’t disprove the ideas that music serves as an importance in sporting events. Why do baseball players have walk up songs? Why do arenas play music during the commercials and time-outs? Music has a huge importance. All of this does not mean that there are not other ways to get pumped up, but for the time being, let the music pump up the jam.