What's Really Breaking the Lakers Apart?

     Everyone knows that this season in the NBA has proven to be a difficult one for the Lakers. People can blame things like the change in the coach, the change in the team chemistry, or the overall bad energy because of all the recent losses. However, according to an article named "Who Ultimately Will Win Between Kobe Bryant and Mitch Kupchak?", all-star Kobe Bryant blames the Lakers' manager, Mitch Kupchak for creating rumors of Pau Gasol's trade, which has caused negative energy in the team. Though this may be far-fetched, it is exactly the type of rumor that is eligible of disrupting a team's chemistry.
     Kobe needs to shut his mouth and do what he does best- win games. He is in charge of the aspect of the Lakers, and Kupchak is in charge of the management section. Kobe wanted out of the Lakers a few years back, and after Kupchak refused to do so, the Lakers won two championships. Kobe wanted Bynum to leave the Lakers for Jason Kidd, that did not happen, and Bynum proved to be a great attribute to the team. The point is that Kobe may be in control with what happens on the court, but Kupchak needs to control the business off the court. When they stop interfering with one another, the Lakers might start to win.

Jazz Music in the 1920s

Jazz music is known today as one of the most sophisticated forms of music that dates back to times of the prohibition. In the 1920s, it was predominantly becoming the way for African Americans to express themselves while being accepted into the society at the time. Jazz music became the platform of rythmic music but also had an impact on classical music. Great jazz musicians such as Louis Armstrong, Duke Ellington, and Benny Goon erred from this time period. However, it was not looked at with such optimism as people had hoped.
Many people of the time viewed jazz music as a terrible noise that was ruining the values that the older generations had set up for the people. People said that it was so annoying that it bothered their nerves. Some even claimed it had the power to scare the bears away! Despite these claims, people still listened to it willingly. Jazz music in the 1920s had an influence on Big-band style swing jazz.

Bombs Hitting my Family's Hometown

     An article in the Huffington Post from February 10, named "Syria Crisis: Bombs Hit Security Headquarters in Aleppo" stated that 28 more people were killed, among them being government workers and members of the military. No one is taking the blame for all teh anti-regime acts going on in Syria. The governent says that it is the "terrorists" that are against President Bashar Assad who plan all these attacks in attempts to overthrow the government, but the "terrorists" say that the government set off the bombs themselves to destroy the opposition, and make abti-regime activists look bad by framinf them adn saying they want to overthrow the government. It seems as though no one will ever find out who teh true aggressor and the true victim is.
     Whoever is attacking is targetting the innocent civilians, in any case, which is the worst threat this uprising has to offer. Earlier on this week, China adn Russia vetoes teh U.N.'s resolution attempt to overthrow Assad, and therefore, teh Syrian citizens are stronglyagainst those countries at this point of time. Russia vetoed the resolution because Syria supplies them with weaponry. This selfish act of rejecting a resolution that could help end a potential emerging civil war is teh reason why Syrians are saying, "Russia is killing our children. A conference wil be held on February 17, where Assad's ruling Baath party will attempt to calm the uprisings. However, it seems as though Assad is trying to attack as many rebel-concentrated areas before getting to thdate of this conference in order to wipe out however many he can before he has to formally stop. It happend in Homs a few weeks ago, it has moved on to Aleppo, and it must stop before any other innocent people are killed.

Nature Observations...We Should Do This More Often

     It is 12:15 PM and I forgot to do my blogs again. I hear running footsteps in teh apartment from my balcony. I hear the rolling of wheels, most likely from a valise of some sort. My predictions are true, because I see what looks like a couple running to what is probably their apartment, after a trip from a faraway, carefree land. They are back to face the hearsh reality of what their life is, not at that relaxing vacation spot. I hear the chirping of crickets from my balcony, which looks very beautiful by the way, especially at this hour. It looks as if my balcony was captured from a scene in Tuscany, with flowerbeds on teh railings and a pot overflowing with pink flowers above my head. It seems perfect outside, but the glass door leading to the inside of my house ls me see the image of my sister sitting and vegetating on the couch, with flashes of light hitting her face from the television ten feet away in the otherwise, dark room. I would much rather be out here than in there. Thanks for assiging this blog Ms. Kirkman.
     I taste the rosemary plant that is directly by my side, and it tastes tangy and reminds me of sweet potato fries from Granville Cafe. Why does everything come down to food in my head? That and basketball, which reminds me that I have a game tomorrow, a very important game. I am going to give it my all and work collectively with my team to ensure success, whose fate only lies in our hands. I cannot see what I am writing because it is so dark, and I am beginning to think my bladder is getting weaker because I just moved my position and peed a little. I will google things that strengthen my bladder later. As the half hour is coming to an unfortunate close, I see a petal from the flower pot hanging above my head fall onto the table that I rest my feet on. A piece of the whole has just left its home. I guess that is what all life comes down to. Dropping away from your comfort zone into a cold, unforgiving place, such as this table. Learning to adapt is the turning point, though, which is why I just placed this flower petal into the soil of the flowerbed laying beside me to act as a compost to new life from its newly finished life.

Some Lives May Not Be Worth Saving...(I'm not a bad person, I sware).

     Sunday morning I had arrived an hour early for scouts and had nothing to do, so I decided to walk to Starbucks. There, as I was waiting for my chai tea latte, the New York Times newspaper caught my eye. I knew I had to pay a dollar for it, but I gathered all my courage, and aloofly walked out of the coffee shop with an overpriced drink in my hand and a "free" newspaper under my arm. In it, I came across a very intersting article named "Rescuing the Birds Many Hate" by Alex Vadukul. This article explained how there is a group of activists in New York that call themselves the "New York City Pigeon Rescue Central", whose main interests are saving the injured birds that seem to be ignored and maligned by those around them. In the article, a story is told about one of the main members of this group, Jennifer Dudley, a forty-four year old woman, who "saved" two birds she encountered who she named Skipper and Lulu, who eventually ended up dying. A fellow member's words of wisdom on the situation were, "At least he's safe now, that's what matters."
     My response to this article is what were the editors of the New York Times thinking when publshing this ariticle? I could think of at least fifty other subjects that would make use of the half page article that this one wasted. God created animals. God created humans. God meant for everything to eventually die. Accept this fact. What good is it serving to the world to take a pigeon to a hospital to be examined and cured? As far as I know, that pigeon is not going to be very beneficial to the rest of society, nor is it going to make a difference in the balance of the universe. Time, money, effort, and man-power should not be wasted on those things that will be of no benefit to us or anything else that surrounds us. Even after the treatment, the bird dies. I understand that these actions are put into affect because of good intentions, however, saving a few pigeons every year will not change the world in any significant way, especially in a city like New York.

Am I Going to Kill Myself?

     As terrible as this may sound, I find myself closely resembled by Willy Loman's character in the book. Though I'm sure many people will write that they are related to the characters Happy or Biff the most, I know that deep inside, we are all Willies trying to survive in this harsh world. I would like to believe that the world is not as bad as it seems, and that I will be as successful as I want to be in the future. I want to achieve my own dreams, just like Willy did. I do work hard every day in order to achieve these dreams, and I do my best to stay focused on accomplishing it. The only thing I hate is that Willy cheated on his wife, and that is the main difference between us.
     Though the acceptance of the truth can prove to be difficult to me, I like the fact that I still dream. Too many people have accepted the misconception that their dreams will not come true, and that dreaming will get you nowhere. Yes, I may not end up in the WNBA, but that does not mean that I cannot have the pleasure of envisioning that I will be as successful one day. I would like to think that this world is capable of being kind and forgiving. I remain optimistic in viewing Willy's perception by seeing the light in what he may have seen, instead of believing that he is just an ignorant coward unable of accepting the truth. He is merely trying to be happy. Though I may not be as ignorant of the truth as Willy, and though I do accept the reality of situatons, as much as it may pain me to do so, I still do have that little bit of hope, that little bit of belief in childish dreams' existence in me, and I would not give that up for anything in the world. After all, Walt Disney's vision of Disneyland was laughed at when he mentioned his brilliant idea of creating it to others, and it stands in it's glory today, pointing the finger to all that doubted it's existence in earlier years.

Death of a Salesman SOAPST

     Death of a Salesman is a play written by Arthur Miller set to take place in the late 1940s. This time was a time of reformation and innovation, as well as a time of struggle. Set to take place right after WWI, Death os a Salesman is surely an accurate and clear depiction of that time. The speaker of the book, as well as the main character, is Willy Loman. Willy Loman is a salesman who travels around a lot for his work. However, despite his past successes, he is not doing so well lately healthwise as well as financially. Stretches of this can be seen in the book when he is caught talking to himself due to various reasons such as his stress from work and not being able to pay off his insurance bills.
     The strory takes place mostly in Willy Loman's house, in New York, NY in 1949. Some scenes in the book can take place in other places also, like in his boss's office, or with his mistress in Boston. The audience of the story can be the reader. However, since it is a play, when it is being performed, it's audience can be the spectators sitting in the crowd to watch the play. The purpose of the story is to informteh audience about Willy Loman's family and the situations of that time. Also, the purpose can arguably be to entertain the audience with an interesting story. The subject of the story could be reachign the American dream, or the acceptance of reality compared to the denial of the truth. The overall tone of the story is modest,  but sad. The book in itself was a very good book in my opinion, and thought the first fifty pages went by slowly, the rest of the book was a breeze to read.