To Infinity and Beyond

Back to the Future, Indiana Jones, Pirates of the Carribean, Lord of The Rings and Spiderman all have one commonality; trilogies,but none of these trilogies come close to comparing to the most recent completed triology; Toy Story. As a kid I remember watching Toy Story 1 and being amazed at Buzz Lightyears awesome features, laughing histarically at the little green aliens and being terrified of the toy destroyer, Sid.

Stopping at Toy Story 1 wasn't enough for the Pixar filmakers. Over the next years, more and more Pixar films came out such as; A Bugs Life, Monsters Inc., Finding Nemo, The Incredibles, Cars, Wall-E, Ratatouille, and Up. In 1999, the second adaption of Toy Story hit the screens and as a kid I remember getting excited to see the loved characters from Toy Story 1 again. Toy Story 2 did it for me and I didn't expect another Toy Story to come out,but it wasn't until last summer that yet another Toy Story came out. When Toy Story 3 came out, I was there, in the front rows on the opening day. I have never been more excited for an animated film in my life.

I'm sure that a lot of my generation can relate to the Toy Story trilogy and appreciate it for what it is. Andy, Woody, Buzz, Slinky, Mr. Potato Head, Ham, Rex, and many other loved toys were basically growing up at the same time we were. They came to life on our screens, fought through peril with Sid, Stinky Pete and Zurg and 'grew up'. Now that the Toy Story adaptions are over I appreciate them more for what they were. Thank-you Pixar filmakers for making Toys, Fish, Monsters, Rats, Cars, Superheroes and Love come to life on my TV screen. There is nothing like sitting down and watching a good Pixar movie with a bunch of friends no matter what age you are!


"The CLAAWWWW" - Little Green Aliens
"You are a sad, strange little man, and you have my pity" - Buzz
"You ARE A TOY! T-O-Y TOY!!" - Woody
"I don't like confrontation!!" - Rex
" Ages 3 and Up; it's on my box, ages 3 and Up! I'm not supposed to be babysitting princess drool" - Mr. Potato Head
"Highly explosive...keep away from children. COOL!" - Sid

Silently Struggling

In the United States alone, around 10% of the population of 18 years and older struggle with depression. I wrote a paper on depression this week and the statistics were profound. People really struggle with depression and as sad as it is to say, it's an increasing problem. Most people who have this struggle don't like discussing it with others, but there are a few who do seek help. I commend them for their determined action to tell others about their struggles.
Recently, a lot of my friends  have been struggling. Their struggle has been different than usual though. It has been silent. To get you to relate to what i'm talking about it's like when you see your friend in the hall, ask 'how are you' and they respond 'good' ,but you can see in their eyes or with their body language that something is wrong. As a friend  you don't want to pry so you just kind of brush it off,but the truth is; we all need a little boost here and there. You don't necessarily have to spill your guts out to anyone,but if that's how you roll than go for it.  I have found that giving someone a quick word of encouragement, praying for them or doing something nice for them can go a long way.
We all have struggles, so that's nothing new, so if you see a friend that's down or struggling, go the extra mile. Give them a hug, a joke, an encouraging word, say a prayer with them, or invite them to hang out and just have a good time. Showing God's love to others goes a long way.

Have You Ever Wondered What a Smashed Coin Looks Like?

Recently I've been having a major problem with procrastination. Sometimes I look at my long list of homework and think it will just do itself,but obviously that's just foolish thinking. My new strategy to conquer this problem of procrastination is doing my homework in the afternoon. It seems as though everything exciting happens at night and I have a really hard time saying no to my friends who are throwing candy, birthday cake and streamers in my face asking to hang out.
With softball starting I have to start using better strategies to manage my time or else I'll be a smooshed coin on a railroad track by the end of this semester. That won't be the case for me. I'll smoosh this procrastination to the railroad track before it ties me down and smashes me.
Peace and blessings.

Electrons and Protons

Why is it that one negative comment, gesture or person can ruin a perfectly good day? A day can be going so smoothly and then BAM someone says something that completely tips you over. I think it's sad that a simple little comment can effect someones entire day, week, month, year, or even a lifetime. Why can't we take that negative energy and somehow turn into positive energy? I think we can. We don't have that much to complain about. Next time you get a negative thought or someone says something negative to you think of something good that's happened to you in your day, a good memory, a song, or a funny joke.

I've realized that seeing a positive person is such a refreshing thing,but in our society today we have a tendency to shoot down the person who brings us up. Instead of bringing them down, we need to follow along with them. Get on board the positive train and take a ride. It may make your life a whole lot easier!