It's been a while since I have written one of these and I've been thinking a lot about a few things. One of my favorite celebrities at the moment is Darren Criss, and I've taken some of his ideas and put a few spins on them.

There are plenty of close minded people in the world, but there are also many, many, open minded people. There are in fact more open minded people in the world than there has ever been. It's now acceptable for people to do things in today's society than would have ever been possible in any society. Yes, there is still a plethora of idiocy that plagues the world, but more and more knowledge is being circulated every day.

One hundred years ago to this day, in 1912, the idea of any sort of cellular device, namely an iPhone or Android, would seem incomprehensible. To turn that around, 1912 was the year the Titanic sunk. People before 1912 thought that a great ship such as the Titanic would never sink. The world has come a long way since 1912, indeed.

Humanity faces many problems now--our supply of fossil fuels is disappearing, diseases that are complex and produce horrifying results are being found, and the world is becoming more and more populated day by day. We have so many great things, though. We have beautiful works of creativity, we have amazing results of intelligence, and we have incredible ideas as to how to solve our problems.

The world has lost many geniuses; Albert Einstein, William Shakespeare, and Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart are no longer with us. There are plenty more geniuses that we no longer have as well, such as Vincent Van Gogh, Edgar Allen Poe, and Carl Sagan. There are however, plenty of people now who could be considered geniuses. There's Stephen Hawking, Steve Wozniak, Stephen Fry, and Steven Moffat. There's also many people I personally consider geniuses such as JK Rowling, Johnny Depp, and I'd even consider Darren Criss to be a genius too.

The one thing all geniuses seem to have in common is the urge to find, create, or produce something. That something could be a piece of music, a story, a mathematical theory, or even a philosophical theory. There are even a few different dictionary definitions for the word genius.

1) unusual mental ability, 2) a natural talent, 3) exceptional creative ability, 4) someone who is dazzlingly skilled in any field, 5) someone who has exceptional intellectual ability and originality

I believe every person I named above fell into at least one of those definitions. In the end though, genius is just a label.

That brings me to a good point. Labels. Any time someone calls you anything you dislike, or like, for that matter, it's only a label. Treat it as an actual adhesive label; you can simply peel it off if you want.

Today in my English class, I had a quite depressing thought. There have been billions of people who have died over the years. Most of them won't ever be remembered, many of them didn't even reach their dreams. A good number of them probably had miserable lives. This is why it is so amazing for us to live in the society we do today. We don't all have equal opportunities to be famous or remembered once we perish, but it's a good deal more equal than it used to be. So please, do what you like to do, you never know when it could pay off that you were one of the few people who liked something.

Christmas

Christmas break started on Thursday for me, and yesterday I spent the day with my nieces and nephews. I always love spending time with them because it gives me hope in humanity. Today though, I started thinking about something.

My mother and I went to the store this morning to pick up a few things. The salvation army people were there, and there were posters about donating money to make Christmas great for people who need help. That made me think about Christmas.

Everyone loves Christmas as a young child, the joy about thinking about Santa and all the presents you will receive. The thing is though, even at that age, people are teaching children the wrong thing. Whenever I found out the Santa and the Easter Bunny were just mythical creatures, it caused me to question God, which still to this day, none of my questions have been answered. I have a younger cousin who is going through the same thing ever since she found out about Santa last year. Is Santa really the best way to teach children about giving?

Since Christmas is supposed to be about when baby Jesus was born, why was Santa Clause even made up at all? Shouldn't it be that maybe Jesus brings the presents? Why do we get presents on the day that baby Jesus was born? Shouldn't we do something that celebrates his image instead of indulging ourself on things that we probably won't even use after a month?

Christmas is being used as an excuse to get rid of selfishness. You are allowed to make a list of everything you want and not feel guilty about it. Then, we you do happen to feel guilty, you can donate to a cause that only campaigns around CHRISTMAS.

Maybe I'm wrong, but I think that there are people who are starving the entire year, not just at Christmas. I also think that there are homeless people, and people who are suffering the ENTIRE YEAR. Poverty happen 365 days a year, not just at Christmas time.

Also, for all American Christians who think that it's against Jesus to say "Happy Holidays," we live in the United States. This means that we have the freedom to ALL religions. That's what the United States is supposed to be about.

Jesus would not have said, "Merry Christmas," anyway. Jesus was Jewish, for that mean person who told me that Jesus was English, not Jewish, the other day at school. If a person is Christian, then they should be trying to follow Jesus. Let me assure you that Jesus would have indeed, said "Happy Holidays."

If you want to be a good person, don't just be a nice person at Christmas time. Be a nice person all the time.

People can be so mean. I just don't understand it at all. What's the point of making someone feel inferior just so you can feel superior? And if you are going to be mean to someone, at least have a legitemate reason to. A while ago these two people who are quite popular, are Christians, and everyone pretty much likes, did something to one of my friends.

Most of my friends are the ones who are different than everyone else. No matter how "weird" someone is, they still need a friend. The two people wrote him a letter from a "secret admirer." To this day, they still make fun of him and laugh about it.

I saw these other people making fun of the way someone walked. The person couldn't see them, but it's not the point. You have no idea what is going on in someone's life. Maybe they have a physical disability.

The thing is, no matter how many anti-bullying laws that are passed, nothing is going to make a difference. People are still going to do things just to be mean. It makes me lose hope in humanity.

If Michele Bachmann gets elected president, I am disowning the United States. I will find a way to move to Canada I don't think I could deal with this country any longer.

I was watching this video of her where she was answering questions from people. This one high school girl asked her was would she do for the LGBT community. Bachmann said that she would not do anything because all Americans should have the same rights. She said that by passing special laws for the LGBT community, she would be giving them special rights.

I can think of a lot of things in the US that do not distribute equal rights. For one, the fact that it is easier to go to college for an atheletic activity than it is for someone who is quite smart with a high IQ. That's not fair. There also aren't equal rights for religion, even though the first admendment says so.

If a Muslim woman and a Christian woman walked into a store where I live, the Christian woman would be treated like royality in comparison to the Muslim woman. As far as fame goes in the US, it doesn't fare equally either. Someone who can't sing but is very attractive, will become more famous than a rather average person who sings extremely well.

Also, Michele Bachmann said that she would make it so that Christians could pray in school. She said that Muslims were permitted to pray at school, but not Christians. THERE ARE OTHER RELIGIONS BESIDE CHRISTIANITY AND ISLAM, thank you very much. And I also know that if a Muslim starting praying at the school I go to, they would be yelled at and cursed out.

As soon as someone makes it okay for religion and school to be interwoven, the US is going to decrease in a drastic matter.

Bachmann also stated that she wanted to do away with the federal education district. She said that school should be able to make their own rules, it should not be someone sitting in a desk far away who gets to do that.

Yes, voting is good, but that would affect me because where I live is primarily Christian and Republican. Most republicans are not for public education. A lot of Christians around here are not for science. There you go. The rest of my public education will be ruined.

Barack Obama for President!

I finished NaNoWriMo! I wrote 50,163 words in the month of November! I think that is the most I have ever written in my entire life. I am so glad that it is finally December. I love December! It is my favorite month besides January. Some things that decrease my faith in humanity that have happened over the month:

1) Someone called me stupid. I said, "I would challenge you to a battle of wits, but I see you have come unarmed." Then they called me weird. "It's Shakespeare," said I. Then they asked me who that was.

2) I was in gym this morning and we were talking about words and there were these words that were homophones. I said, "Hey! Those are homophones!" Then someone else goes, "Why are you afraid of gay people?"

3) People sound so stupid when they try to talk in a fake accent. I mean, English people do not go around saying "Ello govna!" That would be like saying that because I am Southern, I go around saying, "Hey y'all, want some fried chicken?"

4) Your blood is not blue! It is red. You have red blood cells, not blue ones. Your veins only appear blue because of a delusional appearance.

5) Britain and England are not the same thing. Britain is an island that includes Wales, Scotland, and England.

6) There is no such thing as a "sensory organ" in our brains that makes us yawn. We yawn because of it being an involuntary action that dates back to the early evolutional times.

7) Thanksgiving is NOT a Christian holiday. It is an American holiday, and we have freedom of religion here in this country, even though it seems as though that is not true. You are allowed to be Christian, Muslim, Jewish, Shinto, or athiest if you choose.

8) Buddhism is not a religion. It is a way of life.

9) People who have addictions are not necessarily freaks. They might not have that addiction by choice.

10) A nerd is not someone who is just friends with teachers. Nerds are typically friends of teachers, but that is not a requirement. Nerd have to be, you know, like smart and stuff. Well, and they kind of need to be excited about things.

11) Not all athiests hate Christians, in the same way that not all Christians hate people who aren't Christians. Stereotypes aren't cool.

I got my best time in PE today for the mile run! I got 9:42. I also did a push up! I've never been able to do a push up before!

Happy All Hallow's Eve! Today doesn't feel like Halloween to me at all, but then again, what does Halloween feel like? It is quite dreary outside today, though. It's raining and it's about forty-five degrees outside.

We watched this movie called 'Something Wicked This Way Comes' in my English class and got into a discussion about Halloween. Somebody beside me said that Halloween is just an excuse to dress up like idiots and eat candy. I'm not dressing up like an idiot and neither are any of my friends. I'm being Carl Sagan, my other friend is being Albert Einstein, and my other friend is going to be Amy Pond from Doctor Who.

By the way, did you know 'Something Wicked This Way Comes' is from Macbeth? I love Shakespeare! He's so cool.

Speaking of the weather, we're playing rugby in my PE class. I really don't like rugby. It's just not fun for me. I'd rather run a mile or play soccer. Anyway, she made us go outside on the football field so that we could practice or dropkicks. A dropkick is when you throw the ball on the ground, wait for it to bounce up, and then kick it through the goal posts. They are used for scrums and something else. Anyway, it was forty-three degrees and we were outside in shorts. I like the cold, but my hands were turning red.

For PE, we have projects. One of them was to make a CD full of music we work out to. My CD is full of songs about Doctor Who and quarks. I even have songs about anglerfish and monkeys.

Tomorrow is Nanowrimo! This will be my third year doing it and I really want to finish. I've kind of planned out my story a little. It's about a society that has lied about everything. I predict it will be fun.

All I see today are people in winter boots and campflauge. It's about fifty/sixty degrees outside. Yesterday, when it was even warmer outside, people were wearing heavy winter jackets. My dad said it was because of the weather change, but I wore a short sleeve shirt yesterday and I was completely fine. I guess I'm just strange, well I know I'm strange. I'm told that I am repeatedly. But, yeah, it's fine. Anyway:

1) I can sing the periodic table of elements. It's a song by Tom Lehrer. I memorized it this past summer when I decided I should do something useful with my time. Yesterday, I was at the hospital, visiting a family, and my Grandmother made me sing it to the nurses. They were surprised.

2) I have never watched any Disney movie. I didn't watch them as a child, and I have them all now, I just wouldn't prefer to watch them now. They slightly bore me. I mean it's fine if someone else likes them, I just don't understand why people still talk about princesses and talking mermaids. The Lion King might be acceptable if people actually read Hamlet first.

3) In PE today, we had a free day. Sometimes I bring my iPod, like I did today. One of my friends (the pagan/athiest/agnostic one) and I listened to Beatles songs all class long. We sang 'All You Need is Love' out loud. I was shocked at all the unkind looks we were being given. Is it so bad to sing a song about love and compassion? Somebody told us to shut up with some very unkind words because the Beatles were all drunk and high and they wrote their songs while they were high. The only song I know of the Beatles that might be like that is 'Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds,' and that is just a theory.

My friend that sings the Beatles songs with me is having a Halloween party and she invited me and two of my other friends. One of them is going to be Jaques Cousteau, another Albert Einstein, and I am going to be Marie Curie. This is going to be such an awe filled day!

Seriously? Are football and other humans the only thing people can talk about? I mean, I understand the football part, but talking about other people? It's ridiculous. My conversations usually tend to be about religion, philosophy, books, music, people like Carl Sagan, and many more. I never usually talk about people or use that as my main conversation trigger.

Today, I was asking people their opinion about their religion. People really seemed to enjoy my questions. You know, because they all like to tell you how their point of view is correct. They all like the thought of being the one who helps you find the path to Jesus. When they ask if I'm Christian, it's just better to say yes, rather than to explain my point of view about the matter or religion. That usually seems to start an argument. Even the Dalai Lama said that if someone finds comfort in their religion, you shouldn't try to change that.

The main question was about determining how a person goes to Heaven or Hell. Someone said that they didn't believe in Hell; God was too nice and too forgiving to ever send someone to Hell, even if they did the "unforgivable sin." Most of the other answers seemed to revolve around repenting your sins and following Jesus. One person said, "You can't be a bad person. You have to be a good person." Well, how broad. One baptist gave me a long list of things: go to church, ask for forgiveness, be nice to others, never sin, always say blessings, and pray often. I was going to ask my Jewish teacher her opinion of the matter but I didn't have time. These opinions above are protestant views.

My next opinions consist of: two athiests (one that believes in a higher power, just not a God), a Shintoist and a Catholic. The Catholic said that he didn't know about the above question (what determines whether you go to Heaven or Hell), but that he thought God was light, just light. Another friend of mine said that his answer made complete sense. It does, if you think about it. One of the athiests said that they didn't know, which technichally classifies them as agnostic but I didn't say anything. The other athiest said that while they believe in a higher power, they don't think that there is such a thing as Heaven or Hell. The Shintoist doesn't believe in a God (god), nor does she believe in Heaven or Hell.

A last friend of mine called themself a religion I can't remember what it's called, nor can I find it on the internet. He said something very interesting though. "I feel like all humans are perfect and are only looking at one field of view. Then, there are the few like you and I, the ones who see the truth, the ones who look out to the side." I thought that was an amazing response.

Meanwhile, I'd like to comment on the stupidest response I recieved today. It was from a Southern Baptist, and I recieved quite a lot of stupid responses from Christians. Most of these just blatantly annoyed me. "You can't think about it, because then God won't be true anymore. That's a sin! We shouldn't have no science either. It just proves God wrong and he doesn't like it!" Yes, the person actually said the double negative. She actually said it out loud and all. Like, with her voice very loudly, so everyone could hear her. My stress level tends to get quite high around Southerners who can't talk with correct grammar.

Let's return to the stupid response I recieved. So, if I'm a Christian, I'm not supposed to think about things? We're not supposed to study science either? What? I'm sorry, but I don't think that's what God (god, gods) wants. Why would he have given us brains if we weren't supposed to think about it. Now, not believing in science, that's even more ridiculous! No, we can't just get rid of it! If we do, I'm seriously abandoning the Earth. I will find a way to figure out where all the aliens are and beg them to let me and some of my philosophical friends live on their planet.

I'm not an athiest, I'm not Christian, nor am I any other Abrahamic religion. I would consider myself to be Buddhist, but I don't know if I qualify for that. I do think that Buddhists are the most correct in their theory of karma and reincarnation. Anyway, I once heard this British guy talking about the 10-pound note featuring Charles Darwin's face. The American dollar has "In God We Trust" on the back. He said that the UK trusts in a guy that actually existed, whereas the US just believes in God. I'm not saying it's not good to believe in your religion or your deity, but it's also not good to just trust in faith alone. My Shintoist friend, when I told her this, said, "Even if you believe solely in God, you still look both ways before you cross an extremely bust street."

I don't understand why people always talk about religion being boring and how people drone on about it all the time. I've been asking people their opinions about their personal religion all day and I have honestly had a great day! I find it quite interesting to listen to opinions other than my own. How else would our minds grow?

Also, I have one last point. In my science class, we were talking about Democritis, the guy who 2500 years ago, first theorized about the atom. My teacher said that it made her think that he must have not had a real job, and just sat around thinking. I do like my science teacher, but that thought just completely makes me shake my head. Thinking, if nothing else, is most certainly a "real job." Everything we do, everything we think, everything we write or read, was thought up by someone or something. I'm writing this, and the English language was made up by someone, as was the computer I'm on, and this website. It was all thought up first.

This picture, or rather quote, although I'm not an athiest (just an unknown religion) sums up everything for me: