With the election season almost over, relief is just around the corner. No more angry, non-factual political ads; no more cable news ignoring U.S.-Russian Relations plummeting; and of course, no more stupid comments like, "They're rapists", "What is Aleppo?", and "The Basket of Deplorables". But, in these last Nine Days, we have important decisions to make, on the local, state, and federal level. Since all of the people running for president this year have, to put it lightly, flaws, perhaps try and focus more on the congressional elections taking place in your state. Let's be honest, Congress has hardly gotten anything done over the past several years. They are gridlocked politically. Unless we start paying more attention to those many elections, compared to the election of one individual, we will run our country into the ground. Congress has the power to write laws, declare war, and overrule the president. So why does it matter if we get a criminal or racist into the White House? Even if the President vetoes a bill, Congress can overrule the veto with a 2/3 vote. So please, elect a congressman or congresswoman that will do what you want, not what the future president wants. As Ted Cruz put it, whether you agree or not, please, "Vote your conscience". So this November 8th, I urge you to do two things. 1) Do some research on your state's candidates for the House and the Senate, and make wise choices to vote for more independent individuals. 2) Duck and Cover!!!
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My school is one of the many across the country that is now in debt. Naturally, budget cuts are being made that not everyone agrees with. Although the German language program has not been cut, many students, including some taking a German class, say it should be, because it's not useful in America. And although this may be the case, in an increasingly shrinking world, due to the Internet and the rise of social media, learning foreign languages are increasingly more important.
First of all, if you want to go into a background of science, German will likely be important to you, as it is the second most common language used in science. It is the third most commonly used language on the internet. Above all else, it's the most commonly used language in the European Union. The German language is also ranked fifth as the language of published books, annually. With all of this, how can you still believe the German language won't help people at all in their lives? So, I've been up to a lot lately and quite busy, indeed. I spent my last Sunday, the 9th, writing a list of Presidents for a world I am setting a book in. I spent half of Saturday, the 8th, painting, and before that eventful weekend, I had a lot of tests and exams.
But, let me reach out to any fellow writers out there, or even anyone who has to write a lot of essays for a class. Let's admit it, we all have a difficult time writing something. By that, I mean some of us have a difficult time describing a setting, some of us have a difficult time writing dialogue, etc. Over the next couple of months, I may occasionally throw in a blog post about how to improve your writing skills in some specific areas. So, since dialogue can be found in a lot of forms of writing, I'll write on that subject first. I was excellent at describing a setting and pretty good with plot lines this time last year. However, dialogue was something I just couldn't get down. Somehow, I came up with an excellent idea that I thought would fit best in the format of a TV Show. So, I started writing a TV show. Of course, it isn't airing, but it does have a nice plot line and I share episodes with a few friends. Throughout writing a TV Show, I've had to learn the importance of dialogue. Of course, Television is more than just dialogue, but it's more prominent in television than in most books. Books are filled with descriptions, whereas on TV, you don't need description, you just see it. People are also always talking about showing, not telling, a story, through dialogue or how a person acts. Writing a script for something helps with that, too. So, long story short, if you struggle with dialogue, but you're really into this writing thing, or simply want to get the best grade in your class, try writing a script for something. Anything. A screenplay for your favorite book might be a good place to start, or better yet, create a short, 5-minute skit that's remotely funny. If anyone tries this, I'd love to hear how it went, and if it helped you with your dialogue-writing. So, this last Saturday, the 8th, I spent my afternoon painting a landscape. I've gotta say, it went better than I expected it to, but there is, of course, always room for improvement.
Before I begin, let me say this: This isn't going to be a blog post on anything stupid, this may sound cliché but it isn't. This is an important issue that needs to be addressed. And I realize many of you are going to disregard it and say it's an over dramatic post, saying I don't really understand the world. But I do. It's why I'm good at writing. It's why people come to me for advice.
The point is, every day, more and more people are becoming stressed, depressed, or even harming themselves. The reason isn't entirely important. But, in a sense it is. Recently, someone in an engineering class I'm taking asked the teacher, on the topic of equations for mean, median, range, and stuff like that, why we need to learn about it, when we'll always have a calculator, since he's never away from his phone. My first thought was, 'Are there really people who never leave their phones down or at home?' Now, I know I'm a young adult, and I'm writing this post on my phone, but I go on walks or on trips to the store without my phone. It stresses me out sometimes. People text me, expecting a response. Then they keep texting like I'm on it doing something, getting angered when I don't answer. I've gone full days without my phone before, and they've been some of the best and worst days. So over the past few days, thoughts have been turning around in my mind. Spending time with one of the men I'm named after helped guide these thoughts quite a bit, too, but nonetheless, these thoughts have dawned on me. Information is constantly at our fingertips. We could get up-to-the-minute traffic in Bangladesh if we wanted it. Politicians have always been dirty, but technology no longer gives them time to cover up their mistakes. Knowing this, we hear many more sad and depressing things, since, as humans, we tend to care for and worry about people in need. It's human nature, no matter what you believe in. Therefore, in theory, don't sad things stick with us longer than happy things, if we're engineered to care for one another? So, on another note, it's 2016. The year of acceptance. But, for every person that accepts, there is a person or two that rejects. The end of slavery didn't just happen. America didn't just happen. We have to fight for things. We can't just have the idea that things just happen, because they don't. Everyone in America has heard the saying, "You can be whatever you want to be", but we forget the second half: "If you work for it." Perhaps this is why we're so linked to our cell phones, doing nothing with our time, because we expect things to happen. Also, if we expect things to happen, we get sad when they don't. This has to have happened to everyone at at least one point in life. It's happened to me, and yes, I've been devastated, for the time. It's also human nature to give our hopes up. But there's a difference between working for something and getting failure, than not doing anything and still getting failure. Perhaps this his is why people are more depressed than they've ever been. Because more than ever, we expect things to happen, and they don't. Just some words of wisdoms, my two cents, if you will. Take these words how you like. But at least pay them some attentions and thought. Well, it turns out life has gotten the better of me, with the busy times of school. I thought I should get one more post in before the end of September. However, having family in town, I am reminded that everyone has had busy lives. I have been interviewing my elders a lot lately, prying away any possible information about their childhoods and family before them. I've been told of rough times and great times; first cars and first televisions; first homes and first cars. The list goes on and on. However, a word of advice from one of the men I'm named after: You ougtta keep records of stuff, because someday you aren't gonna remember it.
I know this post wasn't much, but I feel like it deserved a place on this website, since its message is clear. |
AuthorMy Name is Eddie Schweikert. I am an animator, author, artist, and friend. You will hear about many of my latest ventures here. Archives
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