Detour

Stranded As school was dreadfully approaching the following week, my boyfriend and I were struggling to decide what to do for the weekend. While we can still go out on dates and spend time together, the majority of my time during the school year is spent fixating on academics while maintaining a job on top of that. Gabe and I wanted to do something adventurous that we wouldn't have the chance to do again for a while. Then, Gabe had an impeccable suggestion. He recommended that we should go…

Heroes come in all shapes, sizes, cultures, ethnicities, genders and backgrounds. While some heroes slay dragons, die in battle, or pull a sword from a stone, others fight cancer, protest for civil rights or being a single parent. All heroes go through the same phase whether in life or in a well written novel. They face challenges, gain a mentor, falter, overcome opposition and return back home. This cycle is called the Hero’s Journey, an eleven step outline to become a hero of any story. In the…

camps,” he suggested. “After finding our womenfolk safe, we will return here to help you continue the attacks.” Arminius thought for a moment before answering. “Thank you, father,” he said firmly, yet with kindness. “As always, you show wisdom in your ways; right now, I’m only seeing ultimate victory not its additional cost. I’ll pray to the Gods that you find Thusnelda and the rest of our women safe.” “Should the gods be willing, they will see all of us reunited soon,” Segimer said, fondly.…

CNN battlefield footage rendering A10 attacks or Apache helicopter mini-guns liquefying the enemy troops. Arnold Schwarzenegger and gangbanger movies have the same effect on us, as does a crushing football tackle. It's the rush we desire rather than detour around. We love to see others suffer because it makes us feel powerful, invincible, and…

Richard Taylor, an ethicist said, “Contemporary writers in ethics, who blithely discourse upon moral right and wrong and moral obligation without any reference to religion, are truly just weaving intellectual webs from thin air; which amounts to saying that they discourse without meaning (Ethics, Faith, and Reason 7).” Does this effect that religion is the only way to explain morality? Friedrich Nietzsche would argue that morality itself wasn’t necessary. Merce Cardus said, “Envy is –…

American poet Billy Collins (born 1941) has worked to craft a poetic art that is accessible without being sentimental or crass. Named poet laureate of the United States in 2001, Collins became the public face of American poetry and embarked on an ambitious effort to insert poetry--not the teaching of poetry so much as the raw material of poems themselves--into American secondary schools. His own books have enjoyed a rare combination of popular and critical success, selling tens of thousands of…

Finally, Platoon serves as a nightmarish vehicle into the brutal experience of the Vietnam Hell. Historical Context and Platoon As American involvement in Vietnam dragged on through the late 1960’s and the body count spiraled upward, morale sagged in many sectors of the U.S. military. Many units suffered from internal tensions, the crippling and terrifying environment, drug use, unwillingness to fight, and the sense that the war was for nothing. Also, there was no doubt that battlefield…

Traveling to a foreign country in eighth grade, surrounded by my carefree friends instead of overprotective parents marked an important milestone in my life. Having the opportunity to hang out with my friends with the freedom to decide what we want in Beijing, China is an experience I’ll never forget. It’s always nerve racking as a kid when you have to leave the safety of your dependable parents and place your trust in your teachers to make sure you don’t get lost or thrown into jail in another…

Cicero: Laulius de Amictia “On Friendship” In present time, a friendship is often known to be a valuable thing in life, a friend is a gift that is cherished for those who have good friendships. A friendship is shown in various ways and has different meanings a friend is a friend who is someone outside your family who you can trust and rely on. In history there have been alliances between countries, in which it could have extended to having an acquaintance or even as a friendship agreement…

physical location, and somehow be scattered through the city. The distance that exists between people and their surroundings have to become tangible, to establish a relationship between people and building. It would be great if people are like: “Lets detour, to see how the building (city, square or building, whatsoever) is behaving today”, to really feel the connection and influence they have established with their surroundings; the city should be the city of their dreams. Curiosity…