Self-defense

Self-defense

Grace pointed her .22 at Bobby. With determination, she fired the gun. Bobby dropped to the ground. Blood pooled around his lifeless body. Standing over his body, Grace smiled. As she dropped the gun a wave of cold washed over her. He deserved it she was sure of that, but that did not stop the panic that was setting over her as she realized that she was going to jail. Maybe she could claim self-defense. There are records at the police department of what he had done to her. All she would have to do is tell the police that he broke the restraining order, and that he broke into the house. 

            Grace dialed the police. “911 what’s your emergency?”

            “YES! My ex-husband broke into my house, I have a restraining order against him, and he broke in.”

            “Is he still in the house?”

            “Yes, but I shot him, and I think he is dead. I thought he was going to hurt me, he broke my arm the last time he was in my house, and he kept threatening me.”

            “Okay ma’am, the police are on their way.”

Grace started pacing. The police are on their way. I just have to stay calm and everything will be fine.  

-zombiegirl

Fads V.S. Trends

Fads:

Okay, so Here are five fads I see all of the time.

 

1.)The Duck Face

  

The duck face is probably one of the most ridiculous fads right now, just because EVERYONE is doing it on Facebook. This fad has come out of people trying to create profile pictures. It does not look good. On top of being a silly way to take a picture to be "sexy", it also has created people doing other things to make fun of it. It's kind of like those pictures people used to take of themselves for their profile pictures that they took in the bathroom, and the flash was on and etc. It hopefully will go out of fashion soon, but it may last for a while and spawn something worse. But the more attention we give the longer it will be popular there is even a website devoted to hating the duck face, and the following is an article from the New York Times about the duck face, it's called "Duck Hunting on the Internet".

http://www.nytimes.com/2011/05/26/fashion/duckface-photos-on-facebook-draw-backlash.html

2.) T.V. Shows about Drugs

Okay, fist off I just want to say that I love both of these shows, but this is probably a fad. Breaking Bad  is a great show, but for those who haven't seen it, it is about a high school teacher who gets cancer and decides to start cooking meth. That is the show in a nut shell, why is this on t.v. if as a country we are so against drugs.

 Weeds is another T.v. show about drugs, the lady looses her husband, and instead of getting a real job she decides to sell marijuana. Each of these shows has content that is defiantly a trend in society, drug use and all that, but the fact that it is on t.v. and it isn't Intervention or a show like that it seems to be a growing fad, and may become a trend.

     In an article from ABC news, the topic of how this may be confusing to children was up for discussion. Because it does send a mixed message to children/teens (people most influenced). O n the one hand you have people telling you to "rise above the influence" and the other hand it is almost glorified by movies, television, music, clothing and much more. But like the article says, it isn't up to the media to educate people, its up to the parents/families.
http://abcnews.go.com/Health/story?id=116947&page=1#.UGUbr1HT0Vk 
                                          
                                      3.)Pillow Pets
I LOVE Pillow Pets, unfortunately it is just like Beanie Babies, a fad. I begged my boyfriend to get me one, I wanted the unicorn, he finally did, and not even a day after that they came out with the rainbow unicorn pillow pet. I know what your thinking I'm a grown woman, why did i make such a big deal and end up getting both unicorn Pillow Pets? Well two reasons, one I'm a spoiled brat, and two I thought they were cute, and also cool, because "it's a pillow, it's a pet, it's a Pillow Pet". But really I have no idea why they are so popular, and I couldn't find anything that explained it, except for that they are "soft and cuddly", other then that i have no idea, maybe it's because they are a gimmick to sell stuffed animals.
 

  http://ezinearticles.com/?What-Are-Pillow-Pets?&id=5533220
                                         
                                             4.) Memes
This fad, I didn't totally understand until I asked my little sister. I only asked because I kept seeing them on Ifunny, she explained that they were pictures that stayed the same (that had meaning)  and with captions that changed, based on circumstance. I looked it up, and I'm still not sure if that is a correct definition, but I got the gist. Its actually, " A "meme" is a virally-transmitted cultural symbol or social idea." Anyway, Memes are always changing, and some go out, others come in. They are constantly changing, but I have a feeling they wont be popular for very long.
   http://netforbeginners.about.com/od/weirdwebculture/f/What-Is-an-Internet-Meme.htm 

                                          5.) YOLO

YOLO? Really, no kidding. YOLO stands for you only live once, and people are getting shirts with it as the logo, hats, jewelry, and even getting it tattooed on. I have absolutely no problems with tattoos, but to get something tattooed on that is from a song, that is a little bit much. And there are Memes dedicated to YOLO, It's kind of ridiculous. An article from Washington Post even said that the President is using YOLO. It is kind of like the updated version of Latin phrase that was made popular by Dead Poets Society, Carpe Diem, Seize the Day, You only live once.

 

  http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/arts-post/post/yolo-the-newest-abbreviation-youll-love-to-hate/2012/04/06/gIQA3QE2zS_blog.html
                                               Trends:
                                                               And Now 5 Trends

                                          1.) Energy Drinks

            

Yeah, I know what your thinking but hear me out, it is true energy drinks haven't been around long, but I would consider coffee the first energy drink, or the original Coke-a-Cola (with the cocaine). Energy drinks are very popular, and I think as a society we have become dependent on them, I know I am. Unfortunately that burst of energy we get from them doesn't last long, and that's where we get addictions, people who can't get through the day with out drinking their 3 Red Bulls. It really has become a large part of many peoples lives because as a society, we are over tired, over stressed, and over worked, on top of the addiction factor, this will not disappear anytime soon. 

http://ezinearticles.com/?Why-Are-Energy-Drinks-So-Popular?&id=4084448

                                   2.) Smart Phones

I freaking love my Iphone, and I really feel like I would be lost with out it. And I think a large majority, if not all smart phone users would think they would die if they had to go back to a normal flip-phone. Technology is always expanding, always changing getting better, so sure I won't have my Iphone 4 forever, I will always be able to have a smart phone. Better and better and better. Until we can't create anymore. Unfortunately this may not be a good thing for us.  Yes it makes our lives easier, but it may be hurting us in other ways. It may be dangerous on the roads, hurting family communication, etc. So how/ when will we know what the long term affects are?

                                     http://www.squidoo.com/smart-phones-ruin-society
                                    3.) Eating Disorders

Unfortunately, this is a growing problem. Now I am defiantly not judging anyone, I'm being honest, I had an eating disorder, while in high school, I wanted to be very thin like the other girls in my school, and like the women on t.v., I wanted it so bad, so I stopped eating. I know, totally dark, but I advocate for people with eating disorders to get help, because it IS a problem, and their are people who can help you. I'm not saying you'll ever be all better, I still struggle with food, but understanding the problem and fighting. It is better then dieing from it, but back to my point, this is a trend, and everyone needs to be aware of it. Because it isn't just people who stop eating, or throw up after they eat who have an eating disorder, over eating, constantly dieting, and it does not just affect women. This trend needs to go, and I think the only way that will happen is if people educate themselves, and advocate.

http://www.nimh.nih.gov/health/publications/eating-disorders/complete-index.shtml
http://www.anad.org/get-information/about-eating-disorders/eating-disorders-statistics/

                                    4.) Celebrities

Movies are defiantly a trend, but it seems like watching stars are also a trend, or keeping up with what they are doing, how they live, their scandals and so on. If you ask someone on the street, nine times out of ten, they will be able to give you a list of their top five celebrities they follow. Twitter and Facebook have made thins even easier, because now you can know what their eating when their eating it. Sometimes that stuff gets a little disturbing, I heard on the radio the other morning that someone was trying to sell Elvis Presley's soiled underwear. Gross. But as disturbing and gross as that is, this is one trend that is just going to keep going. And it is possible that this is because we like to "hero worship", and we also love to watch other people's lives, it's kind of like going to the zoo. Looking through the glass, seeing if they are like us.

 

http://technorati.com/entertainment/celebrity/article/the-sociobiology-of-hero-worship-or/

                                5.) Embarrassing Videos

America's funniest video, Tosh.O, Ridiculousness, YouTube, what do all of these things have in common?
Embarrassing video, that's what. For some reason, sending in/ putting up videos of pain, fear, and funny animals is a trend, and its only getting easier. We can watch it on t.v. or search almost anything on the internet (YouTube), and you will find a video about it. I kind of like that this is a trend, because if I have a question about how to do something, there will be a video about it. Awesome right? I can't really find anything on why this is popular, but maybe it is an extension of number 4, the opportunity to become famous, how ever slim, is there.

-zombiegirl