There is this tradition that me and my cousin do every year. We take a road trip to Omaha Nebraska. We go to Omaha because every year we go to the College World Series and it is always a blast. We usually go up on a weekend that the tournament is going on and we will stay with my uncle and just hang out and go to games. The atmosphere is always great because you have teams there from all over the country and it is just an awesome place to be. It is just loud and to be there for the championship is very exciting because when whatever team wins they always do a dog pile at the pitchers mound and the stadium is going crazy and you just get the goosebumps it is so fun.

Brand name clothing these days is quite crazy. In today's world it is all about the brand name and what everyone else has. Like the saying "You gotta keep up with the Jone's" well that saying is very true. With everything out there such as images, you have to look hot and sexy so that means you have to have brand name clothing. I will admit I have alot of brand name clothing but I do not wear it because everyone else has it, I wear it because it is very comfortable and fits really well. Another thing I do is I am a smart shopper because I am very tight with my money so I only buy from the clearance rack. I see it the most with the young teenage girls, because I have a sister that is 15 and trust me she is all about image because it is the age she is at. They do a good job at putting that image out there though because they sure draw alot of attention and get customers to buy their product, so they must be doing something right.

So every year there is this day after Thanksgiving called black Friday. It should be considered a holiday because it basically is as big as a holiday. It is rediculas, truly it is. It gets so hyped up and everyone gets so excited because they think you can get these killer deals, which I am not arguing with them there are some really good deals but for the most part the deals are not the greatest they are just alright. I know where I am from there is this mall called Jordan Creek and it is a huge mall. I went this year at midnight when it opened for black Friday and it was absolutely rediculas how many people were there. I had never seen so many people in my life waiting to shop. You walk into the mall they have free hot chocolate and live music playing, it is insane. I am the type of person that has no patience what so ever that is one thing that I could not do is be around that many people and wait in those kind of lines. I mean they might as well call it black Friday holiday or something.

I think a great thing to do is pay it forward. I have a friend that works at a Starbucks back at home and she said that one day someone paid it forward by buying the order for the person behind them, and that trend continued for about 50 cars. I find that amazing that that is still around these days. I think it is great that people are still willing to give for others and be a part of the cheer of the season. It is awesome when you do great things for other people because you feel so much better about yourself because you probably made their day or touched their life in some way. I think over break I am going to start some trend like this or at least try to because I am a giving person and love to make a difference for people. Christmas is my favorite time of year because I love buying gifts for people, and seeing people happy. Plus if the trend gets popular enough you would feel even better because you know that it was you who started the trend.

As a college freshmen I was told to try to get involved in lots of different things to make you a well rounded person. So I tried to get involved in this program called BRUSH, but it fell through but I plan on doing it next year along with other volunteer work. I was involved in BRUSH which is beautifying house and whatnot around the Maryville community. I thought it would be a really good organization to do considering I enjoy helping people and making a difference for people. Unfortunately it fell through because there was a lot of confusion that went on. The purpose of it is mainly to just help people out around the community that don’t have as much as we do or are less fortunate than we are. You paint houses and just help people out in the community that need help. It is a very good thing to do and I think everyone should do it because it is a great thing to do and you feel better about yourself knowing that you made a difference in affecting other people’s lives.

Music has played a huge role in my 18 years of life so far. Whether it is from listening to music with friends, family, or co-workers it has been there and played a huge part. It has played a big part in times that are happy and times that are sad and you would rather forget, either way music has played a part in it. It is those times where you are at a funeral when a really sad song plays and you can’t help but to just let it all out and start to ball your eyes out. That song that was played will stay with you the rest of your life, every time you hear that song you will think of that instance where you heard it at. At the same time you could have the complete opposite effect, such as a wedding where you want to hear really good and happy songs. You will still get the same effect of people at weddings where you get people that cry as well but they are crying tears of joy not tears of sadness.

This past summer was probably the best summer of my life. Life was perfect, I had the perfect job, the perfect friends and just living the life of an 18 year old. I think it was the best summer ever because everyone got along with everyone because we all realized that it was our last summer before we left for college. I had the ideal job with my friend because we worked whenever we wanted and made bank. We would do random jobs for his grandpa or his uncle and then they would spread our name around and we would get hooked up more. We had our own hours and made about $20/hour. Every day I would hang out with my friends and we would go to the pool or just hangout at someones house, no matter what it was it was always eventful and so much fun. The highlight of the summer was when four of my friends and I took a road trip to Indiana where my friend owns a lake house. That was flat out awesome, best week of my life probably. We would go tubing almost every day, eat amazing food, just all hangout with each other and chill at the end of the dock and talk about life. Then we all left for college and it was sad but absence makes the heart grow fonder, and I knew that they would always be my friends and that I would see them over break and what not.