Volleyball: a Sport for Lazy People

When most people think of volleyball, they think of it as a sport for unathletic people or for just girls. Those people are far far away from the truth. To truly succeed in volleyball ,you need to have hand eye coordination, strength, speed, some general athletic ability, and the mental mindset to keep trying and get better.

Volleyball is not just a sport for girls. There are definitely many stereotypes for girls which is the thing that makes me most annoyed. For example, I hate hearing things that are like you probably just play volleyball because you want or have to play a sport. The truth is that a majority of volleyball players throughout high school and college are definitely girls, but when you get to the professional or olympic level many boys play volleyball as well. One of the main reasons volleyball is a female dominated sport is that many high schools or colleges don’t have enough interest or funding to support volleyball. In the fall, high school volleyball is in season, along with football. For some statistics on why volleyball is played more by women, click Here .

Volleyball is presumed as easy, because it seems like you just need to pass it up and over the net. In volleyball, you need to know how to pass, set, and hit. Passing is probably the most basic part of volleyball, but it is also the most challenging. If your feet are in the wrong place, or you aren’t low enough, the ball will schank off of you arms or platform and won’t go to the target. As you get older, you need to pass the ball perfectly every time, in order to have the best chances of winning the point, or the game. Setting seems easy, but it is hard to master. You need to use both of your hands to set, and they have to move simultaneously for it not to be called a double. Hitting, the coolest part of volleyball and the position that probably gets the most credit seems easy, but timing is everything. You have to set up your approach and start at the perfect time so when you jump you are able to hit it down well. For people to say “you probably just play volleyball to say you play a sport” or “volleyball is so easy”, I would like to see you try and play at a high level. When I play with my team, everyone will make some mistakes, and I think that it's good to help and encourage people so they won't make the same mistake twice. I definitely like when people don't tell me what I did wrong when I miss a pass, but say something nice so I can forget about it and do better next time.

To sum this up, I am trying to say that volleyball is way harder than it looks. You need to put in tons of effort to succeed. If you don’t play volleyball, DON'T say it’s easy. You wouldn’t know. I play volleyball, because I enjoy it and want to get better so I can play at a high level like this. I have been playing for four years, and compared to other people I kind of suck, but I’m just gonna keep trying my best and have fun.

Sources:

https://www.athleticbusiness.com/College/boys-and-mens-volleyball-participation-continues-to-lag.html

Images:

Image #1

Image #2

Image #3

Videos:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Yew6w8aFS4I

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A0YLF3_cwp4

Runners high

 







I am a competitive track/xc runner. Many people's when they here the word running mind's go immediately to pattering around a track gasping for breath in a effort to trim off a few pounds or the much dreaded PE mile run I however am not in that school of thought nor am I a runner because of as people put it the runners high supposedly some natural high one can achieve thru running. Quite honestly I do it for the thrill of competition to me there is nothing more exiting then a cutthroat Sunday afternoon 5k belting  mile after mile out against my rivals. But if I just did it for the competition on one might ask why is soccer of football not competitive enough why must one run mile after mile just for the sake of crossing the finish first. The answer is this all my young life I played almost every common sport imaginable but no matter how much effort I put in I was left wondering why there was always that one kid who could score more runs swish more threes and never mess up a penalty shot. Then finally discourage by performance in sports I let myself get talk into a mile race. the gun when off and that race I put all my effort and will into it and for once it paid off. I thought to my self that I had finally found the perfect sport instead of the winner being the one who new the most skills in running the victor was the one who wanted in the most. And that is why I partake in a sport that is other sports punishment running.

https://www.runnersworld.com/high-school/thats-why-i-run

Sync or Swim?

When some people see synchronized swimming they don’t think much about it. They may think, “Oh that looks so easy, they’re just floating there.” That is where they are wrong. Synchronized swimming may look flashy thanks to all of the makeup, sparkles, and sequins, but it is a lot harder than it looks. You just see what’s happening above water, not all of the hard work underneath. One basic thing you learn is called sculling. Sculling is an arm movement that helps keep you, and especially your legs, above the water. Something that people incorrectly assume, is that we can touch the bottom. We are not allowed to touch the bottom, and if we do, we get a penalty which makes our score lower. At big competitions, there are underwater cameras to see if we touch the bottom. Synchro is a extremely small sport, and there’s barely any swimmers, making it hard to fund competitions. For competitions we have fancy suits we call routine suits. Those are the sparkly, bejeweled, colorful suits you may know. Along with the routine suits, we must wear makeup so that the judges, the people scoring us, can see our faces. The worst part, in my opinion, is something called knox gelatin. Knox is basically unflavored jello that we have to put in our hair, and it can only come out by a really hot shower. We use knox so that our hair can be slicked back without getting in our face during our swim. If you want to learn more about what we wear for competition click here . All of that stuff is just for show, but the hardest part is happening underwater. Synchro is basically running a marathon, while upside down for half the time, and holding your breath. Still easy? Synchronized swimmers train incredibly hard and let’s not forget that it’s in the olympics. Synchro takes incredible strength, speed, flexibility, time, and endurance that takes many years to master. Synchro is also dangerous , many people get concussions including myself. Not only that but two of my teammates have broken their toes by kicking someone else’s leg or back. We have to swim very close to each other, and so getting kicked is a daily thing. No one notices if someone gets kicked because we have to put on our brave faces and keep going like nothing happened. Now that you know more about synchro, I hope you appreciate it a little bit more. It’s not all about what’s on the surface, but what you can’t see.

Images: http://i.pinimg.com/originals/96/26/50/962650962ec30aec2cf9e579d8095d56.jpg , https://i.pinimg.com/736x/d6/6d/86/d66d86d95012ed7ffc24bbe9456f69fa--synchronized-swimming-water-aerobics.jpg

Knox: http://www.nydailynews.com/sports/olympics-2012/gelatin-olympic-hair-product-synchronized-swimming-article-1.1134057

Concussions: https://www.nytimes.com/2016/07/19/sports/synchronized-swimming-concussions.html?_r=0

The Difference Between Guitars and Ukuleles

The difference between the guitar and ukulele is mainly size, the number of strings, tone, tuning, and usage. The original guitar was much like a ukulele with the size and string count the same. If you think about it, the ukulele came before the guitar although the guitar is seen as an older musical instrument relative to the ukulele. Also, the standard size of a guitar is 3'4''. That is huge compared to the standard 1'8'' ukulele size. The picture on the left shows an electric guitar which has 6 strings. Another difference is the usage and tone. The ukulele is more known to use a lighter, silkier tone which is suited better with some styles of music like light music, folk music, even sometimes used in country, soul, or alternative. 

The guitar is used in many other types of music such as rock and roll, pop, alternative, grunge, hard rock, metal, soul, country, folk, and others. It is used in those because the guitar can have a ranging sound from grungy metal to light and soft. It can be distorted and changed with pedals and amplifiers or you can change it by your way of picking of using your finger. My personal preference is guitar because it can be heavier with more drive and more accessible notes. The picture on the left is a ukulele which has four strings. One final addition to the guitar is that there are many types of guitars. There are acoustic, electric acoustic, electric, resonator, steel, archtop, flamenco, and twelve string guitars.

https://www.thetoptens.com/most-popular-types-of-music/

http://www.voicesinc.org/ukulele-vs-guitar/

Singles vs. Doubles

As we all know there are differences between many sports. A big deal for many different people is the difference of team sports and single player sports.

There are pros and cons for each type. Let’s take tennis for an example. You have the option to play single and doubles.

Doubles

As I have played both there are a few changes. For me to start a big one is having to rely on another person to make half of your teams shots. It also can create great friendships between two players. In the heat of the moment having another player can be useful. Playing singles versus doubles tennis is like playing two different sports. Not the actions that you do but the psychological part of the game. If you miss a shot chances are you will get yelled at. Or maybe that's just my experience with doubles. A Great thing that comes from playing sports with a team is just getting a sense of teamwork. Teamwork is good for both sports and just social interaction.

Singles

In singles you don't have anyone to blame bad shot on and you also have a lot more pressure on you. During a match there is much pressure on you but when you hopefully win you feel 10 times better. For the most part people start with singles because it is better to learn the moves and the different strokes.

For both parts of the game it is a great game regardless. Both doubles and singles are great for you in multiple ways. As we all know sport are good regardless of your brain. So I encourage everyone to start up a sport singles and doubles.

Through an artist's eyes

...The Fine Art of Procrastination

So, procrastination. Apparently ‘the ultimate barrier to a good education experience’ or something like that. The cause of stressful all-nighters, almost falling asleep in class, and the inevitable misspellings and stupid mistakes that end up in the project completed at 1:00am. But these are symptoms of a first or second time procrastinator. I myself happen to be an expert procrastinator so I have refined my putting-it-off-until-the-night-or-even-morning-before-it’s-due skills.



 I have been told countless times by my parents, exasperated friends, and even my 9 year old brother, that I should stop watching Netflix, or running around outside, or having FUN, and just suck it up and do it. But I think it actually takes incredible skill to write a 4 page essay (that was assigned two or three weeks ago) in only 1 hour at 11:00 at night. The final result can actually be surprisingly good. Because for experienced procrastinators such as myself, some pretty good writing and ideas come from the delirious final hours filled with the glow of the computer screen, the ticking clock, and late-night snacks that are the results of extreme procrastination.

 The idea that a huge, enormous project is due tomorrow morning, and I only have a couple of hours to complete it, somehow spurs me into action, the ‘I really have to get this done NOW’ type of action. If you are given a real, legitimate time limit, it is much harder to succumb to meaningless distractions, such as your phone, and just finish the task at hand.

When working on a project you have procrastinated on, you may find yourself getting small rushes of adrenaline, and also randomly pumping your fists and shouting “YES!” when you finally turn the project in.
I mean, it really feels good to turn in a project that you just worked really hard on for a solid two hours, and  barely made the deadline for turning it in versus turning in a project 2 days early that you spent little amounts of time on until it was done, so when you finally turned it in it was like “Oh ok so that’s done now. What’s next.”



Another positive side effect of procrastination is not really having to worry about the project until the very last minute. Personally, this reduces my stress about school. I mean, I can have weeks of not worrying and watching TV, and rock climbing, and having fun in exchange for a couple of hours of really intense stress. I think it’s worth it*. Procrastinating can also kind of boost self-confidence because you're able to say “Hey, I know I can do this two week project in an hour and still have it turn out well” (however you can only say this if you continually pull off procrastinating). Whether you procrastinate or not, always know that the option is open**, should you find yourself wanting to watch the new season of Stranger Things, or play Capture the Flag at night, or even just have a thoughtful discussion with your family or whatever.
Taking into account that I’m writing this very late at night (procrastination), thank you for reading my blog!



*Note: Procrastinating should only be done if a project is individual. Procrastinating on group projects is not recommended because it may lead to angry classmates/teachers/parents/everyone.



**Other note: (This one is for all the teachers) Only procrastinate if you are at least 85% sure you can turn the project or homework in on time, and done somewhat well.

***One more note: Procrastination may come with side effects such as getting a horrible grade, being really tired, and having mad/exasperated people asking you why you didn't finish it earlier.

-MC

For another view on procrastination click this link (video): https://www.ted.com/talks/tim_urban_inside_the_mind_of_a_master_procrastinator#t-831739 

For a more scientific view click on this link (article): https://www.realsimple.com/work-life/life-strategies/time-management/procrastination OR on this link (another article): http://share.upmc.com/2015/07/the-science-behind-procrastination/?doing_wp_cron=1517467571.2776761054992675781250

Burger Experience

Burger Experience

    Has anyone ever asked you what your favorite food is? I mean I know I have.  Like me you most likely did not have your answer off the top of your head (or in it at all during that time) and were caught off guard, but deep inside your brain you formulated and got an answer. My answer is the burger (and I can’t think of why anyone would chose any different.) Most likely you have experienced the exquisite taste of a perfectly cooked (perhaps not) juicy, medium rare paddy with the ludicrously marvelous melted cheese encasing it (and of course any other kind of ingredients you would like). Just imagine the slightly crispy bun crunching beneath your jaws, just imagine dipping the fries into the fire truck red catsup. I also bet that you have had the bogus burger, the false nasty dry fast food burger (if not, good for you.) As you might have found out I LOVE BURGERS!!! They are the world's greatest creation (besides the porta potty.) Part of the magnificence of the burger are the combinations of the condiments, my personal favorite is fresh onions, crunchy lettuce from an non gmo farm, crispy tomatoes, non colored cheddar cheese and fries with truffle oil. Part of my obsession with burgers is the inability to consume them often leaving the taste always exotic in my mouth, I eat burgers about once a month and driven by my lust I gulp it down, I never learn. Growing up in Portland on the eastside was a lucky break for me, the options of food was not limited (although not unlimited either) and there was a great choice for burgers. My personal favorite is Little Big Burger ( hear is a link to their site http://www.littlebigburger.com/.)  Little Big Burgers burgers are small but tall and anything but bad, they have fantastic fry sauce that has a tinge of heat but not to much and the space is friendly to all cultures ethnicities and religions making it a place for all people. Although Little Big Burger is very good the place I had my very favorite burger was at my friends house, the thing that makes this burger so good is that most of the condiments come from their own backyard also my favorite part is the over easy egg on it, the egg comes from their neighbors chickens. Despite the fact that I find Little Big Burger the best burger shop I have ever went to their are still many different burger places that are still astounding. Some of these include Killer Burger (https://killerburger.com/,) Lardo (http://lardosandwiches.com/) and In and Out Burger (http://www.in-n-out.com/#close.) Some Burger places I dream to go to are AU CHEVAL,

THE COZY INN and HOLEMAN & FINCH PUBLIC HOUSE I hope this blog has inspired you so when the next time you go out for dinner to ask, beg,

plead, implore for a burger.

The Importance of Representation of Mental Heath in Mainstream Media

At around 3:50 pm every Tuesday, I go to a tan building on Flanders Street. I enter the first office on the fourth floor. I flip a rewired light switch and wait. At exactly 4:00pm nearly every time, I am greeted by my therapist. 45 minutes later I’m either out of the office and in the car, or, once every four weeks, I sit in that same waiting room again, waiting for someone else. At exactly 5:00 pm nearly every time, I am greeted by my psychologist, who has given me a prescription for 10 milligrams of Prozac to take once a day. I’ll save you the googling and go ahead and tell you it’s an antidepressant/antianxiety medication, but if you want to know more, you can find information here. Although this entire process may sound strange or foreign for you, (or perhaps not; I don’t wish to make assumptions), it’s a routine for me.

I’ve noticed something, however. Whenever I tell people what I just told you, I get two reactions: surprise and pity. To be honest, I never quite understood why. To me, taking meds and going to psychotherapy weekly isn’t strange at all… it’s normal, even. I guess the prospect of being totally normal and able to function properly is as crazy to me as the thought of not being normal to other people. I, in part, blame this on the portrayal of mental illness in the media.

When a TV show or movie has a character that has a mental illness, I find that oftentimes, unless done very carefully, instead of raising awareness they create a sort of oversimplification, or romanticization of them. This is, as it would be expected, a problem. Take the show 13 Reasons Why, for example. Even though people praised it for bringing to light the struggles of depression and the effects of suicide throughout a community, there were concerns. Reports of “copycat” suicides started cropping up (Link to an article about that here .). People started complaining that images and scenes in the series were disturbing and potential triggers to others who had suffered or were suffering from mental illnesses. On the other hand, one could argue that it shed a light on a dark, yet very important topic.

For a long time, I wasn’t sure if I should say something. After all, any time I met someone who was depressed, they always seemed to have it worse than me. Even when there were characters in books and movies who were mentally ill, they always seemed to not want to get help. It didn’t make sense that they would be so against it when all I wanted was to get better. It made me feel like I was faking it, that I had made up this problem for attention. Oftentimes, people who live with mental illnesses are portrayed as not wanting to get better, as actively fighting against taking meds or going to therapy. To me that just seems stupid and dangerous. It makes it feel like you’re doing something wrong when you seek help, which is exactly opposite the case.

I guess what I’m trying to say is it’s important to know that you’re not alone. Although sometimes it might feel that way, and although everyone in the magazines and on TV look perfect, they’re not. There are people out there who know what you’re going through. Help is there if you need it, and don’t be afraid to seek it.

Resources:

National suicide prevention hotline -you can talk to a trained worker confidentiality in emergencies.

The quiet place project -a great resource to stop destructive thoughts or actions and to help you calm down.

7 cups -free online counseling (This shouldn’t take the place of professional help, but can be a valuable resource for a number of things.)

New Sport, New Challenges

         This year, I started playing basketball for my School. I decided to play because so many of my friends were trying out for the Middle School teams and it would be a fun experience. Much to my surprise, I made the “A team”! Although I play basketball at lunch and I’m okay at it, I had never played in an actual basketball game with a referee and a timer. A couple of practices in, my coach started talking about zone defense, the full court presses, and complicated offensive plays. I was so confused! Thankfully, my friends who play club basketball came to the rescue and explained the strategies of team basketball. Even now, halfway through the season, I sometimes need to rely on my friends if I have a question about a play. (rules of basketball HERE)

          Another challenge in basketball is my size. I am one of the smallest kids in my 7th grade class. It is super frustrating for me to be so much smaller because it is hard to defend the big guys. They can just run me over and there is nothing I can do to stop them. Even when I put up arms over my head, they can just shoot the ball right over me. In games, I have been playing the point or shooting guard position, which works for a small person since I defend all small guys. Also, if I shoot, I’m afraid that my shot will get blocked. I’ve already been stuffed once and it was not a good feeling. I’m having fun playing basketball while learning the game with the help of my friends.

The World is Changed--annual revisit

This post kicks off our annual exploration into the power of social media on a deeper level.  As we begin year five of Revolution! it seems appropriate to revisit and update the information.

The opening line from Peter Jackson's Lord of the Rings trilogy seems an appropriate title for the first Cultures Revolutions blog post.  Our class at Catlin Gabel School in Portland, OR is setting sail on a unit called Revolutions!.  We are studying the period from the Enlightenment to World War I.  Along the way we will study revolutions in science, industry, politics, society, information, and agriculture among other topics.  Students will be blogging about topics they wish to study more deeply or just pique their interests. They will be including relevant links and images in their posts.  Additionally, they will be commenting on one another's posts in thoughtful, deep ways.

Audio Code Demo

The Audio Player Code thingy