So, I arrive home from school the other day, and my brother immediately says to me "Guess what??? Chuck Norris can speak Braille." "Uh," I replied, "like I'd care...." At first I thought it was a mean response, but that was before I knew what was coming. For the next hour, I heard nonstop about the "Texas Ranger" and about his seemingly God-given abilities. Frankly, it sucked.

However, I was intrigued nonetheless. This wasn't the first Chuck Norris joke I'd heard this year, and, honestly, I wondered if this sudden obsession with the Jackie Chan of the Wild Western World was indeed great enough to be infiltrating my own home. So, I went online and google searched "Chuck Norris." I received 2,270,000 results.

So why the sudden hype? The answer's simple: Chuck's hot. The chicks dig Chuck for his looks and his body. The guys dig Chuck for his wicked, signature round-house kick. Quite frankly, the guy's just plain awesome. And he's a Texan. So he's sure to be a big hit.

Regardless of the guy's "hot-ness," I still think the hype about him is dumb. I mean, come on! How many of you have actually seen an episode of "Texas Ranger"????

"The Interpreter of Maladies"

As I've been reading this book for Lit. Circles in English, I am growing more aware of the different cultures that make up our country. I am gaining a stronger respect for the many different immigrants from the many different backgrounds, and am actually taking a greater interest in the different minority groups.

It's been interesting, as we've been reading and discussing this book in class, to note that many of my group members dislike the book for the often depressing short stories that make it up. Yet, as we analyze the material, and dig a little deeper, we all are gaining new knowledge and coming to a greater understanding of the trials of being an immigrant to America. It's really quite fascinating. And frankly, I'm loving the book more and more each day as I apply some of its concepts to my travels abroad, and to the experiences of many people around me as they've traveled. I find it very interesting to learn about the cultures presented in the book and I strongly recommend reading it if you are interested in better understanding different people from a totally different background.

But as I've been reading, I've noticed that most of the Americans in the book often set up a barrier of willful ignorance that blocks them from the new cultures they are coming in contact with. It almost seems as though they are trying to make the "other" people conform to their society and their culture rather than being willing to integrate the new ideas, cultures, and beliefs into their world. I wish I could say that that depiction was totally stereotypical, but I'm finding in my own life that it really is not totally unrealistic. Many Americans do refuse to adjust their lifestyles to meet the needs of other cultures, instead believing that the new people need to completely change their lifestyles around.

Honestly, I think that's wrong for us to do....

I think that adjustment needs to be made equally. I think new immigrants need to be willing to adapt to the American culture, and I think Americans need to be more flexible with their own cultural and societal background. I mean, the entire history of our country and the unique culture we've developed are mostly attributed to immigration. America has always traditionally been a "melting pot." And frankly, it still is. The day we stop incorporating new people with new ideas coming from different backgrounds and different cultures into our society will be the day when we lose our unique identity in this world as the true Land of Opportunity.

Time for a good read.

Have you ever got that sudden urge to read rather than play a computer game or watch TV? Well, I am going through one of those sudden stages now. I have this great book that I want to finish reading, but I'm beginning to get so absorbed in it, that I'm putting off my homework even more. Now, I know to some of my readers I might sound like a terd, ranting about wanting to read a book instead of doing something else...but the honest truth is that I kinda want to kick back and relax.

In my many years of playing computer games and going to movies, I have noticed something very peculiar. It seems to me that the imagination is much more capable of growing and expanding when it is being invested in a good read, as opposed to it being spent on a computer game. Sure, computer games are fun (who doesn't enjoy playing the Supreme Ruler in a game like "Civilization," or "Age of Empires?"), but it honestly seems like the brain is much more capable to think creatively when it is left to ponder the world of literature. In the gaming world, you play the role the gaming designers tell you to play, but in the world of books you can be whomever you want to be. You can imagine yourself as anyone of the characters, or you can imagine yourself as a completely different character. You can even make your own private adjustments to the story, and manipulate the ideas until they fit your personality type and your creativity. It honestly seems to me that reading a single book expands your creative horizons a hundred times more than a thousand hours on the computer, Xbox, or Nintendo DS. It's really quite a unique experience that most people wouldn't trade for a lot of opportunities to fiddle around with "electronics."

Anyhow, back to my dilemma...school seems to be getting in the way of my reading opportunities, and my sudden hunger for a creative fest...and honestly I'm bummed out. With so many other books and assignments I have to read and do, I'm realizing that I may not actually have another chance to sit down and have a reading marathon for several more weeks when we finally hit our Summer Break.

Hopefully it comes sooner than later.........

Sushi.

I LOVE sushi. What can I say? It's some of the greatest stuff in this world! I could seriously eat it all day long, nonstop.

So why then do so many other kids detest the stuff? The ingredients themselves are not that bizarre, and you can get so many different combinations! I don't get it. Rice, sea weed, avocado, cucumber, sometimes carrot, sometimes crab, sometimes raw fish, sometimes shrimp...and the list goes on.

Well, the reason so many kids don't like it is because it is not American. And there seems to be a belief out there that sushi is only sushi when it has raw tuna in it. Well guess what, there is such thing as a vegetarian roll, or a roll with other stuff that a lot of kids would be surprised to discover that they actually liked! Sushi can come in a HUGE variety of tastes and combinations. It's great! So kids need to buck up their courage and actually go to sushi bars with my two only friends who will eat the stuff (I think) and myself. We get lonely going to those sorts of places with just the three of us!

Wake up America and try something a little different.

Mohawks are beginning to take to my liking....

Why? Cause last Friday I got more "stares" from girls during our school's break for lunch than I think I've ever gotten before. It was totally wicked awesome...and my clothes sucked. I looked like crap wearing a jersey two sizes too large for me, and I was stuck wearing church shoes cause I left my other tennis shoes at home. Pretty much I looked terrible...except for my mohawk (that I totally did in the dark without a mirror) and the gold streak along the top. My head looked great. And I had so many girls checking me out- even ones I don't know! It was sweet, but totally bizarre. Maybe I'll wear my hair like that more often....