So recently my family has jumped on the entertainment bandwagon and got an account with Netflix. I think it’s been one of the best things to happen to me since…sliced bread (I hope someone laughed at this corny joke). I hate admitting it, but I’m such a TV junkie – yes I am that person who still keeps up with Glee and The Office and Parks and Recreation, and more. I catch myself getting excited when I hear a new season is coming back (a.k.a. the summer season of Pretty Little Liars is June 5th for any fans out there) and then I quickly don’t say it out loud so people don’t judge me on how obsessed I am with television shows. But back to the original point of the post…NETFLIX. Since I’ve gotten this incredible creation, I’ve wasted my time watching Breaking Bad and scary movies instead of studying for AP tests and finals..admit it, you guys have done the same.

Here are the television series and movies that I have seen through Netflix…

BREAKING BAD 

This is my absolute FAVORITE show from Netflix. My sister has seen all of the seasons and has been pushing me to watch it until I finally did – I should have listened to her earlier. This show stars the dad from Malcolm In The Middle, Bryan Cranston, who won the 2010 Emmy Award for “outstanding lead in actor in a drama series.” From IMDB.com, they summarize this thriller’s plot…

Informed he has terminal cancer, an underachieving chemistry genius turned high school chemistry teacher turns to using his expertise in chemistry to provide a legacy for his family… by producing the world’s highest quality crystal meth.

I am a sucker for drug shows and books (as sad as that is) such as Intervention and the series Weeds, so this show was just my cup of tea. I would seriously recommend this show to anyone though, not only with the entertaining plot line, but with the amazing acting in it.

WORKAHOLICS

So of my closest friends recommended that I started watching this show, and thank goodness that I listened to him. I’ve only seen the first season and can’t wait to watch the second one (I need to finish before the May 29th third season premiere). This show is about three best friends who live together, work together, and party together, in a nut shell. Sounds pretty boring, right? WRONG. It’s freaking hysterical. That’s really all I can describe it as…funny as hell. Here’s a trailer for all of those who want their lives to be changed.

THE HUMAN CENTIPEDE 

I’m sure everyone has heard of this infamous movie due to it’s disgusting and twisted plot line, but for those of you that live under a rock, IMDB.com describes it as…

A mad scientist kidnaps and mutilates a trio of tourists in order to reassemble them into a new “pet”– a human centipede, created by stitching their mouths to each others’ rectums.

 I really don’t know how I feel about this movie (especially because there is a sequel with even a bigger “human centipede”). It’s very very very very very disturbing and made me feel uncomfortable throughout the whole movie, but I still couldn’t stop watching it. I’m not sure I would recommend this to anyone, but I’m kind of glad that I got to say that I’ve seen it. If you guys can handle this gore then you should watch it, but it’s definitely not for the faint of stomach.

So even if you don’t like any of the three movies/shows that I would recommend, I would still recommend getting a Netflix account because there are soooo many options to choose from and it can totally help you on procrastination.

Birdy's Album

Since Mr. Earhart does a weekly post on his favorite music, I thought I would join the bandwagon and make a post on my recent obsession with an up and coming artist.

Her name: Jasmine van den Bogaerde, stage name being “Birdy”. She’s only 15 years old and has already been on the top twenty UK Singles Chart. I was looking at the free iTunes section and came across her song Without A Word (which is one of my favorites of hers). I listened to the preview and thought to myself “Why not? It’s free.” As soon as I listened to it, I immediately listened to it on repeat for about…the rest of the day.

She reminds me of a mix between Regina Spektor, Ingrid Michaelson, and a little bit of Adele’s soulful quality. Birdy plays the piano as she sings which makes her about 1,000,000 times cooler. She has such a feminine tone to her songs (obviously) but it’s just so sweet and enjoyable to listen to. Most her album, self-entitled ”Birdy”, consists of covers such as Skinny Love by Bon Iver, 1901 by Phoenix, and Shelter by The XX.

Elizabeth Hourahine, a song critic on the website mobbly.com, says

“The fact that she’s a young teenage girl still at college shows in this album, because you can hear how raw and vulnerable the music is…She creates, yet again, a more mainstream sounding song than the original song had by throwing in all instruments from the start…Her melodic and delicate style is something that’s very identifiable and shows potential to grow.”

Becoming famous from her most well known cover Skinny Love, Birdy was recognized on the Ellen Degeneres Show!

So if any of ya’ll who are actually reading this post want to go check her out, please do! It’s totally worth it.

Halloween is a holiday celebrated by trick-or-treating, attending costume parties, carving pumpkins, apple bobbing,visiting haunted attractions, telling scary stories, and watching horrifying movies. All of these activities collectively make Halloween my second favorite holiday (Christmas being an obvious first). I always catch myself getting overly excited about this day, but I can’t help that I love to celebrate a festive fall holiday by dressing up and receiving candy from my neighbors. For example, this Halloween I was invited to a thrilling pumpkin carving party, where my friends and I showed off our “talents” by carving and painting pumpkins. (below is a slide show of the fantastic pieces of artwork). This 2011 Halloween, I was a character from the incredibly entertaining show “Pretty Little Liars”, with the assistance of two other friends of mine being the other characters. To make this most recent Halloween even better than I am making it sound to you, I proudly admit that I, being clearly over the age of a socially acceptable trick-or-treating age, went aroundthe neighborhood yelling “TRICK-OR-TREAT” for the last year. You can either judge or be jealous, but the only thing that matters to me is that I had a great last year of “being a kid”.

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Forgetful fathers: an alliteration that was the topic of my raged-filled afternoon. Seeing how I had a dentist appointment at 3:00 p.m. today, my dad was supposed to pick me up at 2:40. The day before both my mother and myself reminded him that he had this responsibility, seeing how he’s old (I can say that because he’s my dad), forgetful, and doesn’t have a cell phone (I know, it’s the 21st century and he doesn’t have a phone…how does he live?). He agreed, while also telling me he wanted to go to the gym and workout while I was at my appointment. But as 3:10 rolled around, I reluctantly came to the conclusion my dad had forgotten about me, leaving me stranded in the Anderson student parking lot.  As I furiously ranted to my mother, I realized that my dad was probably at the gym, gracefully swimming laps while I was frantically panicking. To make a long story short, I missed my appointment, angrily raved about my father’s mistake, and learned that everyone should have a phone.

However, this anecdote isn’t about how easily you can forgive a father when they sound so apologetic, it’s about how when someone gets into such an habitual way of life, other tasks can be completely forgotten; as if everyone had a specific guideline to follow, where other assignments seem unimportant. Just as this forgetful father exemplified in this horrifying situation.

dad-pleads-guilty-to-leaving-son-in-car

Human’s are habitual creatures. When a person does an activity on a consistent basis it becomes apart of their nature, where if we don’t do it we  have that weird feeling as if we had forgotten to do something. If there is a task to be completed, or a favor asked, people go out of their daily routines to accomplish this, stepping out of their regular schedule (for example, my father pushing his gym workout back to pick me from school to take me to my appointment, or Kesen Hu dropping his son off at daycare). This being said, I completely agree with Williamson County District Attorney John Bradley’s statement.

“We need to start recognizing how many distractions there are in our lives and how when we yield to those distractions they sometimes put children around us in danger.”

Distractions, like a cell phone call, are what caused a little boy’s death. Hu’s human error and simple obliviousness caused immense greif and regret for not only himself, but his wife and unborn child. A tragic event like this reveals how, even with forgetfulness and distractions as obstacles, one should constantly be aware of their surroundings and not live on their own daily path. I can’t even imagine how horrible Hu felt after realizing his fatal mistake, seeing how this would affect the rest of his life.

Now the punishment of Hu’s crime was a questionable decision. berman-hasnt-kesen-hu-suffered-enough-262173.html

There was some controversy surrounding the charges brought against Hu because his negligence was an accident. But, Bradley said the Texas Legislature passed a statute several years ago that mandates holding parents accountable…Part of Hu’s punishment will be to create a public service announcement for parents warning them of the dangers of leaving children in cars. He also will be required to do 60 hours of community service and will be on two years’ probation. As a part of his probation Hu is prohibited from using any electronic device, including a cell phone, while driving a vehicle. He also is not allowed to drive a vehicle with a child in a car without another adult being present.

http://www.hope4kidz.org/news/texas/TX_08182011.html 

Even hearing about this story makes me sick to my stomach, so I can’t imagine how Kesen and his family are coping with this detrimental incident. But I do believe that Hu should be punished for his unforgivable mistake, even though some think his grief is punishment enough. This still doesn’t make up for the fact that he (unintentionally) killed his flesh and blood. I think the punishment they instated to Hu is reasonable, not to mention the added fact of his mental suffering. Here’s another case of the same dreadful situation. 

I know that my pathetic story of being forgotten by my father and becoming stranded at my high school doesn’t even remotely compare to the tragic story of the Hu family and the lose of their child, but both scenarios illustrates the range of events that emphasize human flaws. The daily routines that blind people’s surrounding environment can only be ruined by distractions, pushing them off of their everyday “path”. Humans don’t even realize this horrible trait until reality slaps them in the face and teaches them how to sufficiently be aware.