Community Television Show Characters

I'm a good judge of character. I'm actually very good at interpreting certain traits and a person's character. But everyone has a side where they hide or behave differently when not around them. For example, you wouldn't behave the same way around your mother or boss as you would your childhood best friend would you? Maybe you would/could but sometimes people behave with a better control or show a little respect, depending how the relationship is. Besides the latter point a show I've been watching for the past year are reruns of Community the television show. Community is centered around a study group in Greendale Community College. It is a comedy and one reason I like the show is not so much for it's humor because it has it's hits and misses. But for the characters. The characters and the sociology behind it

Not the protagonist because each their own but the focal point is in how they socialize with one another based on the script but the leader of the pack, the alpha male, the numeral uno, the captain of the ship, the header nigger in charge, El Jefe, not really but sort of is Jeff Winger. He is a tall, athletic white male. He used the gift of gab, word or persuasion to be a good lawyer but didn't have the actual degree. So being ousted as a lawyer, he went back to Community College to see if he could get his degree. What makes Jeff a good lawyer? Again, he is the alpha male type but it's because of his strong 'Id' (Sigmund Freud's psychic) but his Super-Ego is in check to save him. His rational keeps the group together when there are arguments. He has Father issues and his persona comes from lack of attention when he was younger.

What are the key points in the way we behave in general in society: reward, acceptance (with that popularity or class status from friends, family, people we associate with). What if the last criteria does not matter, if a person is selfish or hedonistic prioritized and lacks a proper Ego...madness.

The second characters are Troy and Abed..."in the morning" (inside joke/pun for those who watch and are a fan like myself). Troy was a football star in High School but he faked injury in order to avoid the stardom or responsibility or whatever the reason, basically he avoided change or growing up, he was afraid of something. What is it about this psychological effect that we procrastinate? We put off things and are scared to handle/act on things we want or need achieving. Abed is Troy's right hand man, they compliment each other very well. It would seem Abed's character is like Spock from Star Trek, or like a humanoid robot. His fundamental actions are based off movies and television shows. That is also what many of the show's plots and references are based off of. Abed's brain switches into fantasy land sometimes: cartoons/animation. Between the two, they are like kid's, adult portraying characters that have not grown up and adapting to Community College life and those around them while still playing scenarios in their own fantasy world.

The last male character in the group is an old Pierce Hawthorne (played by Chevy Chase). He has good amount of money from a family business. He's old school racist and that's where the jokes come in. They use his old age to play old people jokes like faking a heart attack to get out of situations he doesn't want to be in. The group will exclude him from activities because he does terrible things and not very politically correct. He is not really the antagonist because he doesn't play the center villain in the show but he does sometimes and other times the outcome is that he is the hero.

I don't believe either females in the group play a center role, they all have their own important social importance in the group but Annie Edison is the supposedly innocent member of the group played by the super sexy Alison Brie. Her character is of a young semi-naive Jewish Caucasian girl. A girl that has the characteristics of an achiever. In studying this concept, certain children are brought up in a Eugenic family, usually parents that emphasize or use guilt to make their offspring achieve high status as adults. Being Asian myself, I know many Asian parents that emphasize on this principal. But Eugenic parents fall under all races because all parents want their kids to grow up with a better class status, some just are stricter at emphasizing than others. It's really a personal goal to achieve but it can also be pressured to.

The second female character in the study group is Britta Perry, the actor who portrays Britta is also very attractive. Britta is a rebel, fight the power, green peace, animal saving, environment activist loving character. In one episode she is depicted in her younger self with purple hair. In another episode she helps support Abed in fighting his father who is pushing Abed to study some form of medicine, I believe dentistry instead of Abed's focus on videography. What makes a person a rebel against society? I am. I can answer a few of those questions. I don't like conformity. I just don't fit in some formal structures. I never had parents that were strict. I don't like limits. I believe limits set safety and rationality but hinders growth and development. Those are my reasons, what are yours for breaking the law or not following the rules?

The last character of the study group to describe is Shirley Bennett. She is a highly devoted Christian woman. She values the Christian religion highly with acting on principals that resist the sins that surround her. I know these characteristics first hand for I was a devoted Christian myself with friends and family just like Shirley Bennett. I am not going into details on theology or religious thoughts here. However, I will state that religion is mostly inherited or marketed. Depending on where you're from, the type of religion is not a choice. And how strong your belief is is like love, how strong you feel about it, it can be built from hate, sorrow or need. It is a way of life because it is part of ones life. God is not a being that just pops into an average person's day (that would be a miraculous moment, it takes a miraculous reason to devote) and then word spreads, a believer will pass the word on. You are either the first hand person to encounter the miraculous or the one inheriting, being marketed the word, how far you take it is your own. Atheist rely along the lines of the Big Bang theory (not the television show, the scientific theory) or Quantum Mechanics. Life defined by a deity or science, what controls the creation or movements of the universe, the things in it including people. I pray and I believe in science. Who's to say God didn't make science. Who's to say due to lack of understanding science we believe in God, prove it. God has never appeared before me nor has science of man fully been discovered. I know where I stand in faith. Everyone has the right to their opinion. Only in lack of mutual acceptance and understanding will these Holy Wars never end.

Nothing to summarize, just pointing out Characters in a Community.

J'ai Obtenu Cette

"Ridin' through this world, all alone
God takes your soul, you're on your own
The crow flies straight, a perfect line,
On the devil's bed, until you die

Gotta' look this life, in the eye"

-Intro song to Sons of Anarchy


I'm a fan of the FX network's show Sons of Anarchy because I am a fan of being a bad boy and I like motorcycles. Though, logically, detrimental acts have their reaction. Those who live detrimental lifestyles have those reactions catch up with them and that lifespan is shortened. J'ai Obtenu Cette is the title for this weeks episode and it translates in French to supposedly: "I Got This". In a previous episode one member of the motorcycle club, Tig Triger, killed the daughter of a big time crime boss, Damon Pope. In retribution for the death of Damon Pope's daughter, Pope wanted Tig's head but Jax wasn't ready to give him up. So the temporary alternative, by the order of Pope, was to have one out of four motorcycle club members locked up in jail die instead, because someone had to die in revenge for his daughter's death. Opie stepped up and died. Opie is the right hand man (since childhood) of Jax Teller (current President of the Sons of Anarchy Motorcycle Club Redwood Original). Whose fault was it? The one who caused the catalyst: Tig Trager or the one who ordered one of the four to die: Damon Pope. In an outlaw world someone had to pay for the death of Pope's daughter, that was Opie and someone had to pay for the death of Opie, the choice for Jax was Tig or Pope. Jax's decision was to follow and give up Tig or change the course of the game, lesson 1. The J'ai Obtenu Cette is meant for Jax's unsaid way of killing Pope, the man issuing the rules: to follow. But in real life, revenge in this savage manner, killing another person, there are more serious consequences.

"To be, or not to be: that is the question:
Whether 'tis nobler in the mind to suffer
The slings of arrows or outrageous fortune,
Or to take arms against a sea of troubles
And by opposing end them. To die, to sleep,
No more, and by a sleep to say we end
The heartache and the thousand natural shocks
That flesh is heir to: 'tis a consummation
Devouty to be wish'd. To die, to sleep;
To sleep, perchance to sleep - ay, there's the rub:
For in that sleep of death what dreams may come,
When we have shuffled off this mortal coil..."

When you are young the curiosity of what will happen when you rebel against the rules and regulations of your parents, in most cases, your answer is disciplinary action or punishment. That is the same case when you are an adult, so why do adults do it? Shouldn't they have already learned from the lessons of childhood, if they were fortunate to be present? Three answers to the previous questions. The first answer is the good, morals and love are no longer there or never was. The second is since they have little or nothing to lose, since the love is not there, the end is what they embrace and their selfish view is all that matters or focused on, their actions on others do not matter. A third view is that they have no understanding of right or wrong, it's just not there. Negative actions are based on ignorance or a lack of a positive. But if you have something there, even a little love, care or morals (a conscience), (something my old pastor said:) you cannot serve two masters: walk either in the foot steps of good or suffer the consequences.

Sons of Anarchy is a mind trip of drama for those that like the bad ass life, kind of like the television show All My Children was to house wives. Sons of Anarchy has extreme violence but it is not without a good mix of scenarios or examining the consequences of a detrimental lifestyle.

A few notes from this week's episode:

---The old lady of Jax is having a moral conscience to go good for the future of their children rather than to stay with the motorcycle club, she gives him an ultimatum to go with her or stay without her. But her love for him had her act on a situation earlier which stopped her from escaping that lifestyle. It was stated in a conversation earlier in the episode between Jax and Nero Padilla (Jimmy Smits) that letters Jax are writing are for his son to read only, just like Jax's father had wrote... for him? Jax has an opposite intent than his old lady, to continue the lineage. Lesson 2, this episode showed Jax's old lady (Tara) and Clay (the mischief causing former President) getting arrested, taken out of the picture. The recently assigned Vice President (Bobby Munson) of Jax takes off his V.P. patch because Bobby doesn't like that Jax is turning out to be too much like Clay. Jax says "maybe I'm not so different". It would seem at the end of last seasons finale, the portrait was of the new leadership: Jax and old lady at the helm of the table, but at the end of this episode is of a portrait of Jax Teller and his mom (Gemma Teller, Katey Sagal). What this few second freeze frame indicates is that the Queen bee influencing the hive is not the new game changer, Tara, but with certain individuals that cause road blocks in the club out of the way, the lineage remains, Gemma.

---This character Juice is weak, how can you whimper, cry and fall to demands of anyone else (even under manipulation) if you choose to join an organization known for bad deeds, e.g. a motorcycle gang. Juice reminds me of the movie Savages where this young guy is watching over Ophelia and he feels sorry for Ophelia being kidnapped and shows her compassion. The young character in Savages is shot because "it didn't work out, you're too sensitive". Lesson 3, in the game of being a bad ass is that you do not crumple, if you enter the game of death, you should be ready to die or take what comes at you. If you feel you no longer wish to be in the game, you better take care of loose ends, and toughen it out until the window opens.

---This television show is bullshit because these are staged plots, anyone taking this show for more than it being entertaining with action, violence, drama and acted scenarios is suffering from delusions, please refer to my first paragraph. Life doesn't go as planned, period. There was a part of the show where in order for a plan to work out Tig Trager had to be caught off guard, with a gun in his hand and be turned over to Damon Pope. The show had Tig put his gun down when Jax was pointing his at Tig and screamed. But what if like a true rebel the plan didn't work out for Tig to put down the gun, instead raise it and shoot at Jax.

---Lesson 4, in the game of being Sun Tzu, sorry I mean being a bad ass, you have to be smart like Jax, conniving with your plans. Like in war, the game of being a bad ass, respect your enemies because if they don't kill you, they can teach you as much as they can hurt you, just like your friends. Just like how Gemma betrays Clay, you have to watch a few episodes to understand that Gemma and Clay were in supposed love, what happens in this episode? Gemma didn't back him no more, the new one for the Black Widow is Nero or is it her son.

---But sometimes you have to keep life interesting.


Not exact wording...

Gemma: "Do you want to be with me or not"
Nero: "I don't know if I can give you everything you need"
Gemma: "What do you think I need?"
(Something is said about love)
Gemma: "Only men need to be loved, sweetheart"
Gemma: "Women need to be wanted"

Peg Bundy, I mean Gemma is back in position of Queen (or Black Widow) of the bees, for now. First it was with Clay, but he's out, now it's her son. She also has Nero in her webs.

Game of Thrones

Been busy with ventures outside the job, so with timing and many focuses on my metaphoric plate I have not had the time to blog.  Though deterred by, writer's block, I mean blogging block, I still sign in to try to update once a month.  Like a good US Marine Corp soldier who believes in loyalty and honor, when the chips are down and valor is dead, you still finish the mission and bring the troops home.  That is what loyalty means, when the chips are down and no longer favorable, or in this case deterred, you are still dedicated.  The meaning of honor is that you still uphold the principle(s).  Entertainment and relaxation comes third on my agenda, after a year and a half on waiting for HD televisions to become better and cheaper, I now have a Samsung HD LED LCD 3D and after watching shows like Game of Thrones in HD, I can't go back to regular television.  Game of Thrones first aired in April and I watched the first episode and I think it's very good.  I haven't watched every episode but the ones I have watched, I've liked. It involves conflicts internally and between kingdoms.  Keeping the summary short, because I think when I was posting about the television show skins, I over described in detail.  History already themed that the kingdoms were already in conflict and the Targaryen are now allied with the Dothraki.  I watched up to where Khal Drogo had fallen and burned with the witch and as Daenery walked into the flames to only come unharmed with the three dragon eggs that were put on Khal Drago's side, life for a life was the magic spell.  The Targaryen's enemy is the Kingdom of Winterfell.  The Kingdom of Winterfell have their own problems besides the simplicity of going to war against an external enemy, they are conflicts within.  It would seem betrayal or deserting this Kingdom has a penalty with your head being chopped off, no matter who it is.  Good reminder to stay loyal.

skins - 10th - Eura; Everyone

Michelle and Stanley are by a waterfront eating ice cream.  Abbud is enjoying himself with his new fount love, Daisy, but I think it's more about sex since he's playing with a bunch of condoms.  Chris is still living in the tree house and cleaning himself off in the morning with some wet naps, instead of a normal shower.

Eura, Tony's sister, comes downstairs to find parents are talking about Tony.  Her father says "He just lies up there all weekend. No noise. No getting up in my face. No undermining my authority. I'm, telling you, Renee, it's creeping me out."  It seems he's taking rejection and being ostracized from all his friends badly by hiding.  Eura strips down to her underwear and takes some kind of cream from the fridge and just pours it over her head.  That scene was just crazily hilarious.  Her parents just ignore her.  It's like they are so focused or oblivious, they don't even have peripheral vision.

Cadie is telling false stories again, her psychologist or therapist negotiates for her to tell a real story, original around 70%, she's says something like 40% and it was negotiated to 50%.  This episode elaborates why she is telling these fairy tale stories.  It may be the reason she is seeing all these shrinks.  She asks Dr. Rich if he likes her.  Dr. Rich responds "what's not to like", she is simply happy with that.  Eura is up next, but Dr. Rich says he'll be doing reports until Eura is ready to talk.  In a later scene after she kisses Stanley outside the house, she goes back to the therapist.  The therapist is ready for the 50% real story now and asks what her issue is.  She's not ready to tell her truth story.  She responds "I don't want to know what's true. I don't know if I can take it."  Stanley is the issue. Their relationship is only a story.

Back to Michelle and Stanley at the waterfront.  They say it's peaceful without Tony but a bit boring.  Michelle asks about Stanley and Cadie.  He explains he's growing out of humiliation.  He leaves to meet Daisy for help with a creativity project.  Michelle would really like to see Stanley's creative side.  After Stanley leaves, Eura shows up.  Michelle tells her it's not nice to follow people around.  Seeing that her brother is suffering being ostracized, Eura gives Michelle a letter that reads:

"I've never been here before so I'm not sure what I'm suppose to say or do. Trying to think of what I can say to you. Don't run away from this. Unless we try, it's going to be something we look back on, like when we soul danced in your club that night and you wanted me right there. Don't say you didn't want me."

Michelle looks at the back of the letter and there is a drawing of Tea.  Michelle says "You should look a little closer kid. This isn't me. You must love the little bastard."  Michelle tears the paper that is already ripped and a piece floats in the water.  Eura runs off.  She enters Tony's bedroom, Tony's laying there in the dark.  He tells her that Michelle sent him a text message and told him what she did.  He tells Eura she should not have done that. He also says "No, I don't want to talk about it."  She sits in her room as if contemplating this situation.  The lyrics "I believe you don't deserve my love" plays.  Eura leaves the house at night.

In the creativity project, Stanley is playing the guitar with a song he made up.  As he sings to Daisy, he explains that if he doesn't get an "A", he will fail the semester and if he fails the semester, her will fail the year.  If her fails the year, his mom will keep doing the trainer or some guy at the gym and his dad will go into an introspective state and hang himself.  Daisy asks about Cadie and tells him he needs to send signals to her.  Daisy shows Stanley the look.  The look is this wanting sex trance but in like outer space, not being in reality.  The mesmerized look of being in love.  Physically her eyes are moving in rapid directions.  Stanley with a frozen look on his face replies "Um... Wow. That's pretty good, actually."  Daisy replies "Self-expression, man"

Come back from commercial and a Realtor is showing Abbud's father's house to a potential buyer that climbs the tree house to find Chris, who is living there, naked.  The buyer falls from the tree house.  Tina is away, later Chris and Abbud break into Tina's apartment so Chris has a place to stay.  We find that Abbud's father may have lost the potential buyer because of Chris.  We also find that Abbud is Muslim and from Bangladesh.

Tea is following Betty because I think Tea still likes her.  Betty is still upset and ask her did she clear her "clap", the Chlamydia.  Betty also states she has an appointment to fix her broken ankle.  In another scene Tea enters Betty's room in the hospital.  Betty goes "Look who it is, Ms Clitoris... They gave me a shitload of drugs."  Betty comments that she still hates Tea because Tea is a bitch who screws boys and just doesn't give a shit.  But Betty is drugged out.  Tea responds "You're wrong, Bets. I try."  Betty says "Screw it. Screw everything. I want you in here. I always want you in here."

Stanley is watching old videos of him and Michelle playing prince and princess.  He gets an instant message from Cadie and she is outside.  But so is Michelle standing in the near distance, Michelle is holding a six pack and what looks like a bag of snacks.  Stanley greets Cadie asking where Warren is; Cadie then responds "Warren went... Wyoming... because it's warm."  Cadie wants Stanley to make real decisions about their relationship, she kisses him, while Michelle is watching.  Michelle leaves, but then so does Cadie and Stanley goes back in the house.

Tony is speaking to Tea on the phone when Tea is apologizing for making Tony love her.  Tony does, he says he loves her.  Right after they disconnect, he gets a text message from an Unknown Number showing "took ur lil sister... she's a fighter hahahahahahahaha"  He goes to the bedroom and she's not there.  (A poster hangs there that shows Lolita.)

Tony goes to Stanley's house and asks for help to find his sister.  They eventually all end up at Tina's place even though there is still hostility amongst them due to their social issues, as Tina is still gone.  Chris has broken in earlier and is now residing there.  They are being informed Eura is missing.  Michelle states "call the National Guard" out of sarcasm.  Stanley shows Michelle the text "Cum get her ass. Dare u"  The text message says don't bring the cops and they discuss the police will not be involved.  The last text message comes in with a symbol on it, it's identified by Chris as a Techno club.  They all go.

Tony gets into a fight and is bleeding from the head.  After the fight Michelle finds Tony and Tea holding hands, when discovered they quickly let go.  Her shirt reads "I'LL SLEEP WHEN I'M DEAD", written in with a marker.  Stanley just entered VIP, as he searches, he finds Eura.  Eura is on the screen and Tony calls their dad, who both freak out.  Stanley says to Eura "That's pretty mean... What are you doing here?"  Eura finally speaks.  And she is just as potty mouth as the rest of them.  The first words you hear from her mouth are "Is he here?"  Stanley responds Tony is there and so is everyone else.  She asks Stanley "What's he doing".  Stanley replies that Tony is going crazy.  She comments "Good. Got out of bed."  Stanley says to her that she is the only person in the world Tony really really loves.  Eura tells Stanley that he never understands anything.  Stanley confirms "No, I don't"  She calls Stanley a stupid dildo and says "He looks up to you... It's you he loves"  She explains "Tony came to you for help didn't he?"  He asks what happens now.  She says "Tell him I'll see him back home"  Stanley asks her where she stayed last night.  Eura points to Cadie, just standing there.  Cadie tells Stanley to go crazy and see what happens (to express himself).  Stanley picks Eura up and gets on stage to tell Tony.  Only security takes Eura away leaving Stanley on stage in front of the crowd.  Stanley grabs the microphone and starts to repeat "Shout, shout, let it all out, these are the things I can do without, come on, I'm talking to you, come on"  The drummer gives him a beat to his rock lyrics.  Cadie comes in after his solo: "In violent times... You shouldn't have to sell your soul. In black and white... They really, really ought to know"  Duet: "Come on... These are the things I can do without... I'm talking to you... Those one track minds... They took you for a working boy... Kiss them goodbye... You shouldn't have to jump for joy."  The crowd loves them and so does the rest of the skins crew.  They did it as good as Tears for Fears.

Abbud says to Daisy the opposite of what he means.  He tells her that he doesn't love her because of the previous agreement on mindless sex.  But he does and asks her how can  she expect anyone to feel mindless over her.  He's in love and when you are in love you find qualities about your mate no one else sees.  She gives him the signal look.

Tony and Eura are driven home.  As they are grounded, Eura finally says "Good night, mom".  Her mom is shocked.... "She spoke"

Tea lays next to Betty in the hospital, the lyrics "will you stand by me and just be friends" play.

Stanley and Chris are walking back to Stanley's house, since Stanley's dad is away, Chris will be staying in his room.  Chris vomits and while he does that, Stanley sees Michelle sitting on the stoops.  She asks him "Truth? You'd do anything for your friends... no matter what he's done... is it the same for me... do it now Stanley."  They kiss.  The lyrics "I look in her eyes and what do I see... She smells like flowers and taste like butter" plays.  After a few minutes Chris comes along and shouts "Porn stars!... quit boring me... let's party."

(Flash scenes of all the characters from parts of the show and their real names)

Tony - James Newman
Tea - Sofia Black-D'Elia
Chris - Jesse Carere
Cadie - Britne Oldford
Stanley - Daniel Flaherty
Abbud - Ron Mustafaa
Michelle - Rachel Thevenard
Daisy - Camille Cresencia-Mills
Tina - Anastasia Phillips
Eura - Eleanor Zichy

---This was a really good episode for the finale of skins - Season One - American (US) version.  The expressions on the actors were pretty good.  Like I said in another post, kill the critics' bad reviews.  The show is entertaining and fun to watch.  Season one introduced all the characters and their interaction with one another.  Though Stanley was introduced as a stoner who never cared.  This episode shows that his friends made him the man that even Tony looks up to.  Michelle is no longer with the jerk Tony, and is now with Stanley.  It shows why Cadie is seeing therapists, she's looking for love, real love but not willing to deal with it's real pains.  So she tells stories, could be the reason she is on all those meds and seeing all those therapists.  Tea commits a little to Betty.  Tony is still in love with Tea.  Eura finally speaks.  Abbud got Daisy.  Chris is still the party man.  Tina is away after the Chris incident.  They left out, "Cool Teacher", Dave.  They should have at least fit him in this episode for his fifteen minutes.

Light Up

Cigarettes made of gum was a neat little enticement for kids that saw real smokers and wondered what smoking was all about or to imitate smoking.  You would blow on one of the gum cigarettes and a puff of fake smoke would come out and that was it.  The fake smoke was probably a powder of starch, flour or sugar.  Then you would unwrap the paper and put the gum in your mouth and chew gum.  Those boxes of gum cigarettes resembled the the real thing so much.  I bought those once or twice as a kid for like a dollar or two at my local candy store.

Hypocritically, when I see a girl smoking, I can tolerate it, but think it's a disgusting and dirty view on how she approaches her health concerns.  I bought my first pack of Newports in 1998.  Since 1998, I've switched to Marlboro Menthols.  I have always considered myself a light smoker.  It use to be that a pack would last me a few days to a week.  In between that time, I've cut down even more so because of the knowledge that cigarettes affect the health and especially the lungs in bad ways.  I would experience minor periods of coughing.  I noticed as I exercised or even went jogging it had effected my breathing when I use to smoke more frequently.  Since my smoking reduction, my breathing has improved dramatically.  I never even did what others say as two packs a day or even a week.  When I feel the urge, I'll grab a pack and it will last a month or two or I'll try to find a "loosey" when I don't feel like spending the $9.00 and up on a pack.

By 2005, I stopped smoking completely and wouldn't pick up on it until recently.  Back in 2004, when a bunch of friends went for Korean buffet in New Jersey, I was anticipating a new eating experience because I had never been to a Korean buffet before.  The experience was really good.  It was the first time I smelt like meat after leaving a place, disgustingly good.  A friend of mine lit up a cigarette in the restaurant and my reaction was "what is this guy doing?"  It would be that in New York City the smoking ban had been in full effect since 2003.  Restaurants, bars and in any other public indoor establishment, in New York City, no longer allowed smoking.  New Jerseyans did not have that ban yet.  It would seem residents of New Jersey would not have felt that ban until 2006.  Starting May of 2011, smoking will be banned in beaches, parks or other public outdoor areas.  You cannot smoke within 25 feet from any federal building.  You can still smoke on private property be it the owner allows it.  But even that ban has come into question if it can be allowed in private apartment buildings.  If the board votes or owner bans smoking in the lease, a smoker would not be allowed to smoke even in his or her private apartment.  And that is the simple outline without going into detail of which property, which tenants and will it involve lawyers (or how much the fine will be imposed).

I believe smokers have the right to experience the sensation of taking a whiff of death.

I was watching Cigarette Wars on CNBC the other day and the image of cigarette farming zoomed right into my television set.  I always knew that, yes, part of what goes into cigarettes are just leaves of "tobacco" with other fillers.  For the first time, CNBC brought a up close and detailed view on the foundation of the industry, ten months with the farmers came with seeding, harvesting, and curing until it was time to sell.  On Cigarette Wars it said that some of the top Kentucky growers have lost 25% of their harvest.  One reason is that top tobacco companies like Altria (the parent company of Philip Morris - Marlboro), Lorillard (Newport) and R.J. Reynolds (Camel, Kool and Winston) are buying from the farmers less due to slumping sales.  Why are sales slumping for major tobacco sellers?  In addition to all these bans, there are ads from www.thetruth.com showing the negative side of the smoking industry.  Michael Bloomberg who appeared on Cigarette Wars states that his reason for the bans and increase on sales tax: health cost.  In history class I learned that in war an embargo is a good way to defeat the enemy.  Bloomberg's and other cities government war on rising medical cost in part due to smoking is being fought with this embargo.  The anti smoking campaigns are helping also.  You can spread information, but there's nothing better than having power act on it.  A billion dollar industry versus it's health concerns.

I could have put the sequence of topics from the documentary in order as how it was broadcasted but this isn't describing Cigarette Wars, though I'll take a few interesting topics from the show and use it as a source.  The documentary illustrates the tough times of trying to raise and sell the  tobacco crop of the Furnish family.  They grow a type of tobacco called Burley which roughly can sell for approximately .60cents to 1.30dollars a pound.  An acre of land of soy or corn can profit $300 but tobacco four to five times that much.  Though like farming any other product, mother nature comes into play, employment depends on profit margins and of course demand.  One point noticed from the documentary was that on interviewing one of the tobacco farmers was that he was asked how he felt about planting a crop of death?  He answers that he separates that idea from feeding his family.  Bloomberg's response on that, is that they should be farming something else.  Thus part of the documentary showed that the family legacy of eating off the crop of death is that they had to diversify their farm.  The furnish family is not only diversifying but going international because in European countries smoking is not only a way of life but that market is good.  American grown tobacco is safer and better but not as cheap.  The 25% on average left over unsold at about 30 to 40 thousand pounds being auctioned for At .60cents to a dollar a pound won't bring in much profit margin to cover expense and labor.

---By 1970 there was already a ban on advertising cigarettes on television or radio.  Movies and print still gleamed it as an appealing thing to do.

---Smoking cigarettes is a good starting point leading into other things like cigars, chewing snuff, bidis, hookahs and once you tap into a drug like marijuana then what else is there?  Cigarettes do not have to necessarily have to be purchased already in boxes for you.  This girl I knew showed me that bags of tobacco can be bought without additives or flavors (more natural) then go get some cigarette paper and roll your own.

---In psychological perspective, smoking was a recreational or ceremonial activity that lead it to being more of a chewing gum or watching baseball past-time.  Just something to do, like during war or the image of being cool in the 1960s when the cool or bad boy image was in style, along with the sleek hair and flashy cars.  The physiological side is that cigarettes contain much more than just tobacco.  The additives to cigarettes cause other health risks.  Smoking thins your blood vessels (as well as arteries) and damages your lungs.  I've heard of people that smoke to relax and it calms them, why, I don't know because smoking makes your heart work faster and reduces the oxygen in the blood.  But in the long run thinning the tubes that move your blood can cause a heart attack and stroke, not to mention possible risk of inhaling carcinogens that can cause cancer.  Is the risk of leisure and image worth the effects, I think choice to do so is worth the risk.

This photo is the first image on my blog self taken that I did not Google.
It's four packs of unused matches from my collection.

skins - 9th - Tina

Terrible!

I am referring to this episode.  I am also referring to the events and topics that took place.  The view is from the alley way in between two houses.  A garbage truck drives pass; a few seconds later a little girl in a pink outfit on a pink bicycle rides by.  The camera zooms into a tree house.  Tina is being humped.  Tina and Chris are having sex when she bumps her head against a shelf, they stop.  She mentions that it's her birthday and she is twenty three years old.  (For someone age twenty three and already having a job as a teacher is not bad at all.  When I was twenty three I was just out of college and still working the job I had from college.)

Abbud is outside and says his parents are gone but there's blueberry pancakes.  I guess since Chris is now homeless, he takes residence in Abbud's tree house.  He's standing there, at the base of the tree house.  Tina comes down from the tree house.  As she is climbing down she is trying to deny she just had sex with Chris by saying Chris's grades are suffering and she is there only for tutoring.  Abbud says to Tina that it's okay, he already knows.  Abbud says he saw the whole thing with a great view from I believe he said his room or roof.  Tina worries and tells Abbud to not tell anyone or she will rip his tongue and shove it up his ass; she also offers him a grade "A" if he doesn't tell.  Abbud says it's a deal and they shake on it.

Skip to another scene showing her in her apartment leaving when she meets her neighbor Evan.  She begins to tell him it's her birthday.  She is flirting with him by telling him a fish stick joke.  She pushes the panic button on the key fob as they enter the parking garage in their building and her car alarm goes off.  Evan turns it off for her.  She begins to make a gesture by leaning up against the car in acting helpless.  She says that would come in handy if someone were to assault her and have her pinned against the car.  Evan replies "You don't have to worry about that being me, I'd at least like to take you to dinner first".  She says "I'd like that".  Evan replies "see you around".  When she gets into her car, she says "He's cute".

Come back from commercial and Tina is grading papers.  Daisy Valero has a subject on "Interpersonal Relationships".  The one by Chris Collins is sexually explicit and is titled "How I'm Going To Bone You Tonight".  She reads it and is getting all worked up from the description.  Dave interrupts her reading and manages to read the title but she grabs it back.  Dave "The Cool Teacher" is now slightly flirting with Tina, but in a creepy way by showing stalker-like pictures from the internet of houses she might live in.  Dave is also showing her a model of a toy train that is motorized, a Jenson 75.  Dave says it might be a good "how we met" story.  She goes to another classroom where Chris is messing around with a science project.  She says to him "we have no future, we cannot see each other any more".  He doesn't just take it straight forward and says something like "sure we will, everyday in class, that's what's great about High School".

During a fire drill Stanley is smoking weed outside and Tina just finished having a brief talk with Michelle and Daisy about how Stanley pulled the fire alarm to avoid tests.  Tina approaches Stanley and says "Stanley I'm right here", meaning why is he smoking the joint when the teacher (authority figure) is right here.  Stanley gives her the joint and she looks at it as if she were going to smoke it or totally shocked not knowing what to do with it.

Come back from commercial again, Tina is sitting with Michelle in the cafeteria eating.  She ask where is Tony.  Michelle answers she doesn't care where the "dickwad" is.  They are discussing about her relationship with Tony.  Tina says Tony is too young.  Tina says she should forget about Tony and go for someone older (Hypocrite!).  Michelle ask if Tina has any friends or teacher friends her age.  Tina answers no and teacher's don't count as adults because teachers hang out with students so much they are infected with something that prevents then from reaching adultness or adulthood, I believe is what she commented while chewing on a red fruit by foot.  At this point Dave comes in with a pair of lock clips because the train he was showing off earlier was stolen.  He says they killed "Nice Dave".  He comments about a full body search.

(Too many separate scenes)

She's walking down the hall when Principal Turner comes up behind her and wants to talk, it seems for the past two months the grade's of her students have been dropping, that is what the principal wanted to talk about, but Tina is now worried that word might spread about her relationship with Chris.  She gets nervous trying to explain that Chris had no home, but she then realized it's for nothing.

Tina is in class and trying to quiet down the students but they don't, Michelle does it for her.  Tina isn't in her right mind right now.  When Abbud refers to her as Slippy, she freaks out and says "It's Ms. Nolan".  She leaves class and pulls the fire alarm, just to escape after another student asks her about a test she was suppose to hand out.  Outside of school where everyone meets to escape the fire alarm.  Another student shouts to her something about a foot long.  Tina, I mean Ms. Nolan, goes to him, holds him by the arm and asks him what he means by that.  The students says he heard she bones students and he might have a chance.  She lets go, looks at Abbud and confronts him saying "you promised not to tell".  Abbud says he did before he promised, so technically he didn't break the promise.  She finds the rest of the "skins" crew knew also and asks why they didn't tell her.  They say they love her and she is "one of us, Tina".

She's still trying to break up with Chris because she fears losing her job.  During different scenes in school, She finds Dave searching through lockers for his stolen train.  Dave finds a letter or journal about sex involving sausage and mustard.  She tells him people's relationships are private.  Dave asks her if they are still on for tonight, he still doesn't get it, no.  She mockingly says yes, she wants him to come over and bounce her baloney pony and to bring mustard.  She's now driving home and sees Evan walking home because his car broke down.  Since it's her birthday, to say thanks, the least he could do is pick her up on her offer to go to dinner.  They end up going for burgers.  She asks if it's a date and he doesn't answer.  He just says she says "like" "alot".  She says she just doesn't hang with adults much.  She advances him for sex opening a glove compartment full of condoms.  Evan is depicted as a stand up type of guy with ethics.  He doesn't want to have sex in the car parked in a strip mall, "it's so High School".  It looks like he finds it cheap.  He leaves the car, leaving her with a look of "damn! or crapola!"

She comes home to a call from Chris who she is trying to brush off by saying "we need to cool things off, we need to stop seeing each other".  But when she walks into her apartment, there are kids throwing a surprise party for her.  During the party, the kids trash the place and Chris sees Tina doesn't like it, so he ends the party.  Meanwhile, Cadie is backed up by Abbud and Daisy "cockblocking" Tony from Michelle.  Tony asks why Cadie hates him.  She responds she doesn't hate him, just like she doesn't hate any other natural disaster, like Tsunamis or Tornadoes.  When everyone is gone, Chris asks Tina if she is pissed.  Tina says to Chris she hates herself for because she has gone too far.  He gives her a gift but it's in the bedroom, where Abbud and Daisy are having sex again.  Abbud and Daisy leave.  The gift is the stolen train.  He did it to make her smile.  She would have preferred flowers.  They have sex.  Dave shows up and enters the apartment, the door is not locked.  He took the previous mock remark for real.  He finds the place with one of the pictures he fount from the internet, in which Tina responded to.  He finds the stolen train when he enters the bedroom, it crashes and Dave screams "Why?".

Chris is in the car with Tina driving.  She stops the car.  Chris asks her about the selling wieners in Nebraska idea.  She does not like the idea of making a life selling hot dogs in Nebraska.  She says "You and I are the hugest mistake I made ever", she tells him to get out.  Chris says "no, I love you" "I don't want to grow up".  Tina replies "it's a crush" "I do" (want to grow up).  Chris says she's lying, Tina responds "Am I?".  He leaves the car and she drives off.

Next morning in class, Dave enters with police officers pointing "that's her", she believes it's over the toy train asking if this is a joke, but the officer says it's for statutory rape, the words child molester is heard being said.  All the students call out Ms. Nolan and bring out their cell cameras.

She's sitting in jail and she asks herself "What am I doing here? My parents took me to Nebraska once as a kid".  She remembers the smell of the corn, largest wooly mammoth and walking through the corn fields.  "Oh My God".  Her cellmate is shitting right in front of her, she goes: "that is gnarly, I'm going to hold it in no matter how long I'm in here".  She also comments that there's no toilet paper.  She asks her cellmate what is she going to wipe her ass with.  Her cellmate looks at Tina's skirt, Tina then looks also with a shocked and scared expression.

Tina is being interrogated and asked if she has carnal knowledge of having sex with a seventeen year old (Chris).  She is suppose to stay away 500 feet and she has already been fired.  Then they question Chris giving him a baby doll to question him where she touched him.  He says she blew me, blew me off.  They question Stanley (who thinks it's awesome, he didn't know), Abbud then Dave, next.  She doesn't get ratted on because of stupid answers they give.

She is free and goes to say bye to Evan, she tells him by state law she has to inform him that she is a sex offender.  She says she's going to her parents.  Evan responds to her that she's not suppose to tell him, she is suppose to tell her new neighbors.  Even goes "Oh, weird" "Good Luck".  Tina says "Bye".

Final scene is Tina gets flowers in her emptied apartment.  The card reads "call me if you were lying".  She looks at her cell.  She deletes his number from her phone and puts it face down on the counter.  Chris is looking at his phone also.  When she doesn't respond to him trying to contact her, he throws the cell phone away.

---It's depicted as Tina is one of those adults that still isn't grown up yet.  She doesn't act or make choices like an adult (twenty three).  But I believe this experience will improve her decision making in the future.  By ending this part of her life, she has already shown that she wants to change and group up and act like an adult.

One more American Version of skins - Season 1 - Episode 10

skins - 8th - Daisy

Hooters!


It's actually a Busty Bacadillo that Stanley and Abbud are eating in, at least that's the logo on the shirt of Daisy who is currently a waitress.  She is making money for her ambition.  After work you see her come home to a building complex.  She enters her apartment then begins to clean off the dinner table, does the dishes and puts away the cash she has made into an envelope filled with cash already in it.  When those chores are done, she goes in to check on her sister, Didi.  Didi is listening to music.  Daisy tells her sister to correct her wrong homework questions.  Didi is listening to a peer rapping and she starts to rap; Didi raps well.  At this point, their father, Ham, comes home to find Didi rapping and tells them to cut that out.  He disapproves of her rapping.


I am admiring Daisy for her errand running responsibility side, because I also had a job when I was 15, but my money went to sneakers.  And I sure as heck didn't come home to take care of chores.

Skip to the next scene, they are sitting at the dinner room table and Ham checks that envelope that Daisy has put cash into.  It seems that envelope full of cash is Ham's mailman salary.  It is to pay the bills and rent.  He tells his daughter, he doesn't need her working and adding to his labor.  He tells his daughter to keep the money, save it for your college fund.  Daisy tells her dad that she will be using that money for The Conservative Music School.  An album comes out and Daisy is looking at it, the artist on the CD shows "Lucia Lucero" in smaller letters "with Ham Valero".  It turns out Lucia Lucero is Daisy's mom and her dad, Ham, both used to be pianist.  You see Daisy leave the apartment late at night to go perform in a band, at like little blues spot (my first live music show was also at a little blues spot).  She plays the trumpet.  Another band member, Farley, is an old friend.  Ham does not want that life for her daughter and grabs Daisy's horn after the performance is over.  Two comments come from Daisy to her dad: "bend my horn, I'll leave and I'll never come back" and "it's no wonder she left you".  He let's go and she storms out of the blues venue.  Farley explains the only difference between Daisy and Lucia is that Daisy cares about people more, other than that she plays the trumpet well.

Daisy is sitting by the harbor contemplating why her father is on her case about pursuing music, when Abbud comes to talk to her, as a friend should come and talk to you when you're down.  During the conversation, Abbud provides a small empathetic comment about his religion that answers Daisy's comment about rules and silence.  In part of the conversation, Daisy offers Abbud No Strings Attached, "mindless gratification" sex at the harbor.  Abbud is absolutely in joy of this and never stops in pursuit of it thereafter.  They go back to Daisy's place but their plans are interrupted by Didi's party.  At the party Didi is rapping and Tony's sister, Eura, is there making out with another boy.  Abbud stops the party by going on the microphone shouting "Police! This is a raid.  Everyone stay where you are."  Everyone leaves and of course the clean up was done with the "skins" crew of friends as "cavalry".  It's 1:30am and her father comes home at 4:00am in the morning.  She says something like "you guys should get the bug out of your asses", she's referring to the Chlamydia, "and help me, you owe me for all that I've done for you guys", something like that.  It is true in all the other episodes, she was not in the center of any of the crap that went on but a mediator.  Earlier in this same episode, she was the mediator between Tea and Abbud, in which she actually became the backfire target of Tony who stepped in and overheard Daisy's comment of the whole friends and sex triangle relationship.  Tony tells Daisy she works too much, and doesn't play enough.  Teen drama!

On the second attempt to have sex Abbud is waiting for Daisy outside her building and Daisy says her sister comes home in 45 minutes, he reassures that it is plenty of time.  They enter the apartment making out but they didn't realize her father is there.  Only her father doesn't even notice, his head is down and not facing the door.  He is distraught over his broken Brennerman piano.  The Brennerman piano is broken from when Didi had her party, in which Daisy helped clean up so nicely after her sister.  Her father asks how this happened (how the piano broke) and Daisy takes the blame for her sister by saying "she had a few friends over".  Seeing the Brennerman is broke, he tells Daisy that he will be taking that money she put in the envelope earlier (in which he gave back).  The money will be taken out from the money she has been saving for the "dumb-ass audition" referring to The Conservative Music School audition fee.  Daisy runs to her room.  Daisy's dad says to Abbud, since he was standing there, to "Beat it, kid".  Abbud doesn't and with a nasty look on his face, tell's Daisy's dad that he is wrong to do that, "Daisy would never leave you because she loves you too much and she knows you can't take it.  Why don't you grow up".  Instead, after that comment by Abbud, Daisy's dad leaves.  Abbud goes to Daisy's room and grabs the money so she doesn't give it to her dad.  They have sex.  Afterwards you get an awkward vibe.  Abbud says "I'm going to go", she says "sure", "mindless sex, right", they both say it.  "Allah Akbar"

Cadie is doing better and is with Warren, they catch up with Abbud, Chris, Daisy and Stanley for just a little on the basketball court.  Cadie sinks the ball into the basket without even looking, saying something like she pretends the basketball is super heated energy and the hoop is God waiting.  This scene made no sense, except maybe to continue on that Cadie has been release and doing well with Warren.  Stanley peace out.

Farley and Daisy are sitting at the Wheatley Wing of The Conservative Music School.  They are waiting for their turn to audition.  The school staff calls her and she goes in, he tells her to pay the deposit at the end of the hall and ask her which piece she will play.  Daisy says Mozart and starts but then stops and says "Sorry, I can't do this", the guilt from her father has stopped her, she leaves without even beginning her performance.  Farley is still sitting there after Daisy has left just enjoying the music when Daisy's father comes in and they talk.  Farley explains "you're a lucky guy postman... kids like that, you better believe it".

Her dad comes home and Didi leads her dad into the living room, there sits a replacement piano, it's not a Brennerman, because Daisy could not afford it.  The piano is a Luber.  He says the Luber is a mighty fine instrument.  He mentions something about needing the money for the rent, Daisy responds with an expression like oh the rent.  He opens the lid to the keys and ask Daisy, if she has her axe, she says "Always".  She sits next to him facing the opposite way while Didi looks on.  It sets a mood for a happy family moment but also a sad one.

Contrary to the other "skins" characters, Daisy Valero has a more structured family life though of course, like every family, has issues.

Two more episodes left of "skins" Version U.S. - Season 1

skins - 7th - Michelle

Spidey Pig, Spidey Pig.  Sorry was watching parts of The Simpsons Movie before "skins" (US Version) the seventh episode came on...

The show starts out with the skins crew in Pacha, oh I forget they are in Baltimore... make it Sonar.  Michelle is screaming to Tony that she loves him, but he can't hear her because the rave or nightclub's music is too loud.

The next morning Tony wakes up in bed next to Michelle at her mom's house.  She goes to the kitchen and asks her mom: how do you know when you stop loving someone?  Her mom replies something like: when it get's complicated and smelly.  I didn't catch the precise wording, I was making a snack.  Her mom is no longer with the child molester from the previous episode.  She is now with Jackson, I mean Jason, Jackson was someone else.  It's already plotted that Michelle's mom is a whore who hates when they get "clingy".  Later she is no longer with Jason, she is with Rick (who she gets rid of to show that no man tells her what to do, to show that she is not dependant on any man) then later going on a date with her OB/GYN.  She explains to her daughter, Michelle, that's her problem, you love.

Prior to this scene, Michelle has visited the same OB/GYN for an exam.  Michelle and her mom share the same specialist.  While in the school cafeteria Michelle gets a call being informed she has Chlamydia.  Michelle freaks out and physically drops Tony to the ground, their friends look on, especially Tea who is looking on with a look of "Uh Oh!".  One of the great parts to the acting in this show is that the facial expression of these characters are liked stoned out until the time to give that subtle hint of expression on an issue that just occurred.  Michelle is now taking Doxycycline.  Michelle is informed through Daisy that not only is Tony sleeping with the girl from the All Girls School recital but several others from the school they are attending, though she left out Tea (maybe she doesn't know).  Michelle is at this point shown as oblivious or just didn't care that her beau was cheating on her.  The school counselor that Michelle has also states that her grades are all "C"s and "D"s.  The school counselor analyzes it as Michelle's bad grades are due to her popularity status, keeping up with her boyfriend and worry on appearance, ah High School nostalgia.

In Michelle's defense, Stanley confronts Tony by taking a swing at him in the bathroom; Tony moves and Stanley slams his face against the stall wall busting his nose.  Stanley still cares for Cadie, upon web cam conferencing he finds that Cadie has been released from being institutionalized and is now with a Warren.  Michelle enters class calling Tony a "Douche".  Tony in return calls her by the nickname she hates "Nips", it made her livid.  She screams out that he should put a sock in it (his penis) and screams that all the ladies should be careful because Tony has a serious case of STD.  She physically gets up and goes over to Tony and upon returning she storms and knocks Tea's purse down to have the very same Doxycycline prescription fall out of Tea's purse.  Tea has a look on her face of guilt and runs out of class.  End the scene with Michelle sitting alone concentrating on her work.  In the next scene: the upside for Stanley is Michelle comes to visit Stanley to show some love after finding Tony is a cheater.  It's fount in this episode that before Tony came into the picture, Michelle and "Stanny" (his old nickname) were really good friend, thus so to have a prince and princess relationship.  But Stanley messes up by having an American Pie "too soon" moment on Michelle's visit.

When Michelle finally goes home Tea is waiting there, this is the second visit.  The first Michelle did not know, but after spilling the Doxycycline, on this visit Michelle knows and they speak to each other.  But it's mostly from Michelle's angle.  She goes "You didn't think I notice, but I did notice.  Tea this is actually the first time I ever seen you cry" (In a sarcastic angered wicked witch tone), she goes into the house and slams the door.  Tony visits and as if Michelle were foolish again to accept the apology, he states we should get back to together, "you love me".  She does not confirm.  After they have sex, instead she goes "I want you to leave and never come back, leave the keys." Tony asks then what was this?  She replies, "you're STD compatible".  Tony goes "don't do this" and she replies "it's you who loves me.  good luck with all your shit".  In the Final scene, Michelle is with Tea's lesbian lover, Betty.  Betty introduces the Chinatown bus to Boston for thirteen dollars and they are off.  "a place where they can be left alone and no one will bother them".

NC17 means No One 17 And Under Admitted by the Motion Picture Association of America's Classification and Rating Administration.  skins is rated MA, Mature Audiences.  It would seem I'm not the only one watching it because I have seen several reviews on it including the Entertainment section of http://www.nj.com/ and http://www.wetpaint.com/.  All the details I have written about does not come from any other site, just me watching.  It would seem before I even took initiative to just write about skins, it already hit the spinning fan with heavy reviews.  In the February 7th 2011 issue of New York Magazine compared it to Glee with teen drama Gossip Girls (shamelessly when I first heard of Glee, I said what is that?).  "Don't write off "skins" just yet it's got greasy, amoral potential." "By the time this essay comes out, you'll have been through the full hype cycle for MTV's Skins twice, whether you like it or not. Even before the teen soap opera aired, it had been designated the moral outrage of the month, with the Parents Television Council accusing MTV of making kiddie porn,..." I never liked daytime soap opera like All My Children but skins intrigues my neurons.  Previously before "Michelle" was "Abbud".  Next on episode eight of the ten: "Daisy".

skins - 6th - High in the Wild

The show starts off with the four male characters Abbud, Chris, Tony and Stanley singing a mock Canadian anthem in front of a Canadian mountie.  They are making fun of the Canadian anthem, essentially Canadians.  I don't understand why some Americans ridicule Canadians, is it because there are so many French colonized areas, I understand the American dislike toward French views and opinions toward Americans.  Is it also that Canada has not ever played a large role in history, battle-wise, too neutral a country?  I know in modern times, their export of technology has played a larger role in American business but besides that what else are they known for maple syrup, scenic nature and hockey players?

The skins crew is on a class trip to Canada, where they have to pass customs security first.  The male customs agent is looking at seventeen year old cleavage, I mean, wtf?  Stanley smuggles some marijuana up the buttocks over the border and an anal check only because it was hinted that Abbud (the Indian or Middle Eastern toned complexion) character might have a bomb up his fanny.  They are on route to a camp called High in the Wild, who is lead by their self labeled "cool teacher" on the first name bases, Dave; Dave has already been to this camp himself as a youngster in which he experienced being a man in non-civilization (the wild).  In my time we called our teachers by Mr or if appropriate Miss or Mrs. then surname.  Dave is a teacher who is not your average teacher, he is out there in loony-land creating a positive beyond exceptional outlook or comment for and from every situation, including in this scene where they hit a moose.  He is super optimistic about leading the skins class of students into the wild (A camp where they have to climb a pole to symbolize defeating low self esteem and promiscuity.  Each get jerseys with a number on them where they have to earn their names back).  During one of the scenes you see the four male characters running away from Brown Paw (the camp host, Dave's spiritual guide and discipline mentor) who is assigning them camp duties.  They run from camp duties and are out in the forest looking for something that will make them "high", they find mushrooms and begin nibbling on them.  Chris catches a toad and all four take turns licking it in different parts.  They all start vomiting.  The girls also want marijuana but they are less adventure prone in finding it except when they find two gay camp counselors smoking it and they join in.  Tea sketches well.

The focus of this episode shows Tina (the other teacher chaperone) finally showing some affection toward Chris because in the other episodes Chris has been hinting affection toward her but she is hesitant because of the teacher and student relationship.  She is also fearful that she could lose her job over it.  But she has always fount him sweet because he treats her with affection.  In this episode she finally gives Chris a kiss as she resists and is revolted by the come ons of her peer Dave.  As Dave (the first volunteer) is climbing the pole, Chris pretending as by accidentally in the oxymoronic act of purposely with intent swings the safety rope and drops Dave about 40 feet.  Tina is happy and so is the skins crew for what Chris did.  The second topic involves Tea and the other lesbian girl.  Betty likes Tea, but wants a relationship.  Tea is interested in Betty but not for a serious relationship.  Abbud is in love with Tea (plotted in addition from the other episodes).  When Abbud tries to kiss Tea, she winces away from Abbud and Tea says something like "I'm not built like that".  But later on Abbud finds Tea having sex with Tony.  Tony ask was it better this time, she responds, "no Ton', no".  Abbud feels rejected; he then calls Tea a "fake" (lesbian) and later falls from the pole as he over reacts in a conversation with Tea (both on the top of the pole).  She later explains to Abbud she loves him, but in a tone only as a friends.  Abbud apologizes for what he called her before and responds the same: "I love you too... alot" (but his was a response in sincere romance).  She explained that she did it because there is this connection with Tony (male) is why she did what she did it (even though she is a lesbian).  Maybe she's bi-sexual.  Tea is a likable character it seems.  (Hell, I like the idea of lesbians also).  Abbud is then whisks away in the last scene by a crude version of an ambulance. 

I don't think this episode was worthy of writing about because it did not have good subject matters beyond character description, just did so to stay in tune.

skins - 5th

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skins - 3rd, 4th

I admit that in High School I admired one girl, maybe two but not at the same time and no others.  The girl I dated as a Senior in High School was a friend of a classmate.  I was in class, forget what subject, this girl who never paid me any attention dropped her pen to the left of me.  In High School we have these tables in which you can only exit out of your seat from the left because the tables had a arm rest where it blocks exiting to the right.  The only way she would be able to pick up the pen is to lean over and stretch to pick it up or get out of her seat and walk to my row to pick it back up.  I picked the pen up for her.  She smiled and it started with her saying hi to me every once in a while.  One day after school she said hi again and we started talking with two of her other friends.

A show I use to watch growing up was The Wonder Years, skins is the complete opposite end in contrast.

I hate when I am hanging out, oh wait, I am an adult now, I hate when I am socializing and my peers point out a girl and pressure me to go over and say hi.  I use to have no problems doing it when I was younger but now I am older, less flirtatious and a little more inhibited.  There is another reason why I hesitate sometimes.  I am particular about choosing my mate, I am looking for someone that will compliment and accept my unique character and then thus I in her.  So, I hate when I am pressured to make a connection when I don't feel it's right, maybe even if it could move to something good or she is very attractive.  Any case, if I find someone right, I think I can move on my own will, not someone aiming my focus for me.  I like what I like, not what someone else thinks I should be liking.

The American version of skins is in it's fourth episode on MTV.  The third episode focused on Chris Collins, he wakes up with a big boner that will last throughout the episode because of some pills.  He comes downstairs to find a wad of money left by his mom in an envelope that has a label addressed from a utility company.  They count it and find it's a thousand dollars or more.  The question presented to him by Tony is: "How are you going to spend it?".  The answer in the next scene is a big party, the next morning he can't even afford to pay the pizza guy the full amount due.  He tries to sell some of the electronics to make some money but eventually sells a wheelbarrow, but instead of accepting cash, he trades for drugs.  His mom has some issues and left.  His dad who he later tries to visit wants nothing to do with him.  It's fount out during this scene he has an older brother, Peter Collins, who has died, Peter Collins was the good child.  It seems that the family has been through some turmoil.  He's left in a messed up house with graffiti and even the toilet has been taken.  The worst part is, there's a stranger in his house who kicked him out.  He's lucky to have his friends and a teacher he is crushing on who later takes him in.  In the end you see him taking some more pills, estrogen pills.

The fourth episode focuses on Cadie, a girl who is seeing many psychiatrist being someone who seems to be having mood issues and has a psychological issue with pigeons.  Through all her psychiatrists she is getting prescription pills, some are for her depression.  When Cadie was originally introduced into the skins crew of friends, she was supposedly set up to help Stanley lose his virginity.  This episode is now giving a little more detail into her character.  The first three episodes and characters also has the a similar introduction, she is waking up to her home life.  Her mom in the episode makes a comment that "feelings are not real" and she makes her daughter feel her ribs, displaying she is thin or in good shape.  Her vanity is engulfed in beauty, right now being in a television show based on that, beauty.  Cadie's father has his total interest in animals.  He hunts them and seems like a taxidermist.  Cadie is being used originally to vouch Stanley is not a virgin and now for her access to pills.  That's what she gets invited to this party for, her pills.  As if that were not bad enough, she finds it out through Tea.  What's even worst is she then gets molested by an old pervert but she willingly allowed it out of emotional sadness when she finds out that Stanley is not her love, boyfriend.  That idea that she had Stanley as a boyfriend was one of the only thing that made her happy, it helped snap her out of her mood issue a little.  In a parallel topic: Stanley is still in love with Michelle not Cadie, Tony's girlfriend.  Tony is still obsessed over Tea from episode two when they had there connection.  After Tea took a mood enhancer from Cadie's pill supply, you see Tony glaring at Tea making out with another girl.

---It's interesting what brings someone's attributes to our forefront, I'm not even talking about love.  Just what does bring their traits to our attention?

---Kids and even adults associate with others based on what you have and use others for what they have.

---The media does not do well to help on the topic of child abuse because the media opens up the subject or idea to those that would not have this in their minds, causing the topic to be more widespread to those that would have not have that as even a considered thing to do.  From the last year of Elementary School and throughout Junior High School, I walked home alone, not once did it occur to me that I would have to deal with such a issue that would traumatize a kid.  So it is understandable that a kid would not know what to do or know how to react unless an adult helps them or they would not bring out the issue until they were an adult.

---Yes, watching this show, though it was not like this for me growing up, brings me back to moments in High School, which I enjoyed.  Drugs weren't even an issue until High School and even by then the "Just Say No" slogan worked, it was in my brain.  Though I did have my first beer before High School, at the age of thirteen or fifteen.  I had two supportive parents though both worked and I would only see my mom until 10pm or later and my dad twice a week.

---The interesting terminology that came out of the episode that raised my eyebrow like The Rock (Dwayne Johnson) were two phrases: Hetero-normative and Gender-Coercive.  The Asian looking girl that was kissing Tea said "this party is so hetero-normative" and "your friends are totally gender-coercive".  These words are not simple words of the day meant for progressive vocabulary learning, but words of the neo sexual deviance wave.  My un-politically favored opinion is that homosexuality is not a good thing because without the hetero-normative part, there would be no more normal production of offsprings.  There's also the normative part of me that does not want to see two men in sexual acts, maybe two women (it's arousing).  My view is still hetero-normative and I do not want to be desensitized.  There's been a liberal movement trying to coerce culture into accepting non-hetero-normative ways as being okay.  That is completely okay because differences have the right in freedom, but do it in your own place, don't intrude on my place.  The gender-coercive part I understand, after all I am Chinese and knowing the government of the country my father came from, has the one child policy.  If you were restricted to only have one child with severe enforced punishment for not obeying, would your choice for an offspring be male or female.  In Chinese society, the male is considered strong, not just physically but as someone that can bring home the bacon, a provider.  The male preserves the surname in Chinese culture, the surname is an important lineage because it sort of describes your ancestry.  In Chinese culture the female is considered to have a role of wit, beauty and home maker, even though in the manufacturing era, like the American manufacturing era in the early-mid 1900s, women are making their way to the work place and some are gaining grounds on better rights.  In China, the ratio of men outweigh women and the gender-coercive side sometimes involves extreme measures to get a boy.  But the way she implied it is there is no difference between a guy and girl, which is neo sexual deviant thinking, no thanks.

---I like the show.  Kill the critics.

skins

The snow fall in New York City this 2011 winter so far is about, what, six already?  I wasn’t really counting but I believe two of them hit us pretty hard.  In all this snow, I have been taking the subway because it’s better to leave the car where it is and take mass transit.  I can move it because I shoveled it out but no one else on the street seems to be moving their car, they're still covered and surrounded by snow.  If I drive my car and when I come back, I'll lose my spot.  I don't have a driveway.  I was watching the news that people have been leaving their garbage can to reserve their spot in front of their house, after all it is reasonable for whoever's hard work to shovel the area out to retain the spot.  How fair is it that you leave for even five minutes to the grocery store and the spot gets taken, unfair.

I saw ads for it twice, on the subway trains, is the only reason I wanted to check out the new MTV series called “skins”.  Originally I thought it was going to be about some teenage reality series with a bit more baring skin or something like that.  “skins” is a remake from a running hit show from the UK version of “skins”.  The first episode leads to I guess one definition of the name of the show: marijuana skins, rookies (more knowledgeable users use a bong or pipe because you get a better "high" from the fumes than smoking it).  In part from when they were going to smoke some marijuana in the SUV they stole at a rich kid's party, but searching for some marijuana skins they start moving around and accidently sink the SUV they stole in a body of water.  I say one definition because there is also the rated PG barring of clothing in the show.  It’s said to be about a show illustrating what teenagers really do in today’s times in High School, in this version is specifically plotted in Baltimore, Maryland.  The main topic of the show is sex: this episode focuses on one of the characters losing his virginity, now in High School, this topic is at the top of the agenda list.  The show begins with the main male character getting out of bed working out and viewing a nude neighbor, he then notices I guess is his sister coming home from a party with no shoes, clothes hanging off her and eyeliner washing down her eyes.  He blares the music as a distraction so his sister can come in unnoticed by their parents.  The rest of the beginning scene involves him messing with his father by purposely hogging the bathroom and locking the door so his father can't get in, later his father says something like: "you think I'm your bitch"?  Dysfunctional family at it's best.

The second episode of the American version of "skins" (2011) focuses on a teenager, named Tea, played by Sophia Black D'Elia who is a lesbian on the show.  It's been a week since I watched, so the part where I remember the show starting off is in class when Tea is staring at a guy in front of her, that, or dazing off. Unknowledgeable about her sexual preferences I assume she likes him, then another girl in front of Tea looks back glaring her way.  They make eye contact.  When class ends, a note lands on the other girl's desk, Betty; the note reads something like: "Northern Soul".  Scene flashes forward: you see Tea getting into a club with a fake ID that looks nothing like her, but bouncer lets her in.  Inside are all teenage girls dancing with some hip foot work for their age.  Betty shows up, they dance and in a one, two three scene you see Tea and Betty kissing and then with some vivid lesbian sex scenes.  A few other scenes from the show I recall include: the male main character, Tony, is set up on a date with Tea by their fathers not knowing all the details of their children's lives, Tony and Tea actually know one another from school, so I guess they play along and find that both their parents have mob connections.  They hang out on a playground Merry Go 'Round drinking Vodka talking a little more personal on a one to one level involving their sex lives.  Eventually in the heat of the moment they get so into each other that they have sex.  The funny part in the three seconds sex scene that past by when it ended is a comment by Tony after Tea starts laughing is: "normal girls like it"; and the other scene worth writing about involves a conversation between Tea and Tony, where it was addressed that Tea's father probably gave up being a top mob member after his "family disowned him", in order to pursue love with his wife, Tea's mom, possibly for marrying a Jewish wife.  This last note, along with some other plots in the episode shows the contrast between Tea's father and Tea who is not after commitment. -Play and Dance to: Wade In The Water by Marlene Shaw - Album: Anthology

So this is the depiction of today's youth via the view of MTV: marijuana smoking and liberal leaning to the left sex.  I mean we all chased after sex in our High School years, but I don't recall it being like this.

Criminal Minds - Haunted

"There is no witness so dreadful, no accuser so terrible, as the conscience that dwells in the heart of every man." -Polybius


In formal affairs sometimes it's better not to discuss personal issues because in formal affairs business is the name of the game.  Personal issues sometimes gets into formal affairs.  It's reasonable that associating with people, being human, we make friends and become close to those who we relate with.  But that's the thing, there are those people who actually care about you, whether it's about you or their own personal nature, and those that will use your personal character or things happening in your life as a weakness against you.  They will use your human side against you or question it, some people balance it well.

Aaron Hotchner is still rebounding from his confrontation with Foyet, reasonable because trauma to love is personal, unfortunately to Hotchner it is also job related.  Foyet was a serial killer that became personal to Hotchner, who succeeded in killing Hotcher's wife but missed his son.  In this Haunted case, Hotchner makes a considerably reckless viewed move, probably because he is still in a post traumatic state or more so emphasized on saving the boy, by seperating himself from the team when he enters the house alone.  He puts himself in between the lines of the "Hollow Creek Killer" and his son Darrin Call who has been psychologically effected by his father's crimes. Darrin Call is now as an adult coming back to kill his father (But Darrin is hallucinating; he kidnaps a young boy who has not reached adolescence believing the young boy is from Darrin's past, Tommy, who he has helped escape).  One member of his team, Morgan questions Hotchner's leadership with Rossi because a leader should not be so reckless in action (those you micromanage may); his old colleague Rossi defends Hotchner with an explanation of trust.  The ironic thing is Morgan would have done the same thing, he has in previous situations. Agent Prentiss (another colleague) is seen at the end discussing with Hotchner in metaphoric relation about the case with a personal issue Hotchner has.  The topic is if you have nothing to lose, your actions can be reckless.  Agent Prentiss, in regards to issues with this case, reminds Hotchner he still has his son. Hotchner is left standing in the final scene standing alone in a dim dull room alone, staring as if into a deep yonder, at what should be a wall cut off by the scene.