Tuesday, May 12, 2015

Story Attempt

One of my all time goals is to become an established writer in one way or another. The thought of writing books has crossed my mind, but I never really get around to finishing what I start. I haven’t really gotten around to writing a meaningful story from start to end. There have been random snippets or short stories that I have attempted writing based on random prompts for pure entertainment. But I haven’t written something that I could say was “a start”. But then again, anything counts right? So one day, a friend of mine showed me a writing competition for a story. The general concept was to write a story that goes against the norms of society. I don’t really remember where I was going with this, but this is the closest I’ve gotten at investing myself in writing something real. It won’t get me anywhere to just keep my attempted writing to myself, by doing so I’ll just be at a stand still of some sort. So here goes nothing. Here is my attempt at writing a story. I didn’t get farther than an introduction.

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Every morning I wake up to a twisted reality that has become my atmosphere. Life wasn’t always like this, not mine anyway. Here I am standing in front of the mirror, cup of tea in hand contemplating my outfit. As my wide hazel brown eyes scanned over my loose auburn curls, my black turtleneck sweater on black jeans, accompanied with black flats, and accessorized with a simple red pendant, I sighed. I like the comfort of dark colors, especially in the winter. Everything seems normal so far, doesn’t it? But you see, where I’m from, that surface image of the way that people live is nothing more than a show to cover up the twisted, shallow, soul crushing truth.

Oh, how I miss the days where I would be defined by what I did. If only people took the time to see what I am capable of. Somewhere along the line the value of a person fell lesson actual values and lid more on the materialistic taste that has taken over.

As a woman, I am nothing without the labels. That is what the human race has succumb too, especially in this society. I want nothing more than to be able to move people through my words, but I don’t exist without the labels. How could I ever expect people to hear me if they can’t even see me?

Today is somewhat special. I’m applying for a public column position in a well-known local magazine – Extravagant – it is the go to source of what people accept in this community. Even though it is kind of a long shot, it’s worth trying. The opinion section of the magazine has articles that advise people on how to think of their surroundings; whether it is people, clothes, food, places, anything really. During the last issue there was a revolting article on how a woman’s grace comes from her ability to balance herself on Louboutins. I still remember this one exert:

“Grace is amongst one of the most prized characteristics of a woman. A woman without grace is an individual unworthy of admiration. Christian Louboutin’s new collection has set the bar high this season! Any woman able to strut the streets in these beauties is a woman with high grace and elegance! What do you think ladies? Do you think you have the grace it takes?”


I winced at the thought of how ungraceful I would be perceived in my plain black flats. It’s not that I have trouble in heels; I just don’t find it necessary to wear them if I’m planning on running some simple errands.

Eleven Minutes - Book Review



“Eleven Minutes” is a fiction novel written by Paulo Coelho. The novel starts off with “Once upon a time, there was a prostitute called Maria.” Right away, Paulo Coelho pulls his readers into the novel with an oxymoron twist at the start.

Maria is a beautiful, young, Brazilian woman. The story follows Maria throughout her life. Maria spends her childhood in a rural village. There she gains some experiences with boys; however, she never really figures out how to deal with love, boys, and sex.

During her younger years she becomes convinced that she will never find true love. Instead she believes that “love is a terrible thing that will make you suffer”.

One day, she finally saves up enough money for a trip to Rio de Janeiro. There she was able to experience the larger and wider world. During her trip she meets a Swiss businessman who came to Brazil in search of young beautiful Brazilian women to dance at his club in Geneva, Switzerland. Maria signs a contract, deciding that it was fate that brought this experience to her, and that perhaps it would help her find love and adventure.

Instead of fulfilling her dreams of finding fame, fortune, and love, Maria finds a different fate. She ends up working as a prostitute. As time moves on, Maria moves further away from love, as she grows more fascinated with sex.

Maria sets a day to return home, and decides to continue working until she has enough money to leave and start a new comfortable life. As time passes Maria grows more distant from the innocent girl in search of love that we meet at the start of the novel.

Maria keeps a diary where she writes her thoughts on love and how her journey has changed those thoughts. At one point she writes, “I need to write about love- otherwise my soul won’t survive.”

Eventually, Maria grows a depressing view of love. But that view is put to the test when she meets a hansom young painter. It is then that Maria has to choose between her path of darkness, and risking everything for the possibility of finding something more sacred.

Paulo Coelho sensitively explores the nature of sex and love. Through the novel “Eleven Minutes” he invites the readers to come to their own conclusions through facing their inner demons and embracing their own “inner light”.

Coelho makes great use of imagery to vividly describe the soul of a prostitute, her sexual encounters, and her professional and personal frustrations. The language used is also simple and direct which aids to the sensitivity of the subject. By using these techniques, Coelho is able to write an attention grabbing drama on the quest for true love.

“Eleven Minutes” includes sensitive topics that are not suitable for children. The novel is a great read for young adults especially. It focuses on inner demons and desire while playing on the personal desire to find true love – which is found in almost everybody.

I would recommend “Eleven Minutes” for people to read. It is the very first book that I can remember pulling me in from the first sentence. The oxymoron that Paulo Coelho used to start the novel was genius. Apart from that, it shows a more human side of professions or actions that people might not understand. With that said, it also embodies a general topic that I believe everyone finds themselves involved in. Everyone has their inner demons and their quest to find something real – in this case “true love”. Through Maria’s experiences and her thoughts on love, she manages to shed a different light on the issue. She manages to give love a whole new spiritual meaning that makes it worth looking for…and all the more devastating to lose.

Wednesday, May 6, 2015

Salman Khan - Interim Bail for Two Days

Salman Khan, the famous Bollywood actor was sentenced to jail after killing a homeless man in 2002 in a hit and run. After his arrest, the Mumbai high court granted him interim bail for two days. The case has been ongoing for the last 13 years.

Khan has been behind multiple homicides. He ran over five men sleeping on a pavement in Mumbai, killing one.

Salman Khan was driving without a license while intoxicated during the time of the accident.



Khan constantly denied being behind the wheel during the time of the accident. In April, Khan’s driver, Ashok Singh, admitted to driving and hitting the sleeping men. He said that he lost control of the SUV when a tire burst. Salman Khan’s lawyers also press that the actor had not been drinking any alcoholic beverages during the day.

Salman Khan has had various events with violence and alcohol in the past. He has also been imprisoned for different reasons throughout the years.

Bollywood studios could loose millions if they have to cancel filming movies that Salman Khan is assigned to. There are several films aligned in his future acting career. Previous movies he has acted in rank the top 10 movies in India.



Global carbon dioxide levels over 400 ppm

The record of carbon dioxide concentrations in the atmosphere reached an all time new high. In march, scientists measured the levels and said that they reached a new “milestone” for global warming.

For the first time, there is over 400 parts per million (ppm) of CO2 in the atmosphere.



This is a key indicator of how many gases people are putting into the atmosphere. And now the levels are skyrocketing.

Lead scientist on Noaa’s greenhouse gas network, Pieter Tans, said “This marks the fact that humans burning fossil fuels have caused global carbon dioxide concentrations to rise more than 120 ppm since pre-industrial times”

Later this year, World leaders are due to meet in Paris for a UN climate summit later this year to try and cut countries’ carbon emissions and avoid dangerous global warming.



Baltimore Riots - Youth clean the streets

The city of Baltimore erupted in violent protests after the death of Freddie Gray under police custody. The violent protests resulted in fires, injuries, and Maryland being called under a state of emergency. The director of strategic planning and policy stated that there were 144 vehicle fires and 15 structure fires so far.
Nearly 200 people have been arrested.

On April 12, 2015, Freddie Gray, a 25 year old African American man was taken into police custody for having a switch blade. He then fell into a coma due to a spinal injury, and died on April 19, 2015.



His death resulted in protests. At first the protests were peaceful. By April 21st, hundreds of people were in the streets peacefully protesting Freddie’s death.
On April 25th, the protests took a violent turn.

The protests sparked in other cities across the country.
Many people tweeted about the protests with the hashtag #purge. It is a reference to a movie, which all crime is legal for one night a year.

Today, as opposed to continuing the protests, the streets were quiet as people surveyed the damage over the last few days.


The youth took to the streets to clean. Pictures on social media show the youth cleaning the streets as the National Guard stands by.