I Apologize:

To my follow tumblrers,

I realize that I have been absent from tumblr this past week but I promise to return again in the coming week. I have had exams these past few days and I couldn’t make it to the computer and I hope you accept my sincere apology.

- Signed

P. C. O’Brien

Too Cool Tuesday: Studying

The trend of the weeks involves reading, writing flash cards, and trying to stay sane: STUDYING. To help you study, I found a quick tip:

When you’ve decided on a manageable amount of work, consider how long you need to study it. Most people can really concentrate for about 45 minutes — after that you’ll probably want to take a short break. If you find yourself getting distracted and thinking about other things as you study, pull your attention back as soon as possible. Remind yourself that when your 45 minutes of studying are up, you can take a 15-minute break.

From Teens Health

Good LUCK with finals everyone.

Saving Saturday: SoWa Holiday Market

This Saturday, today, is the 7th Annual SoWa Holiday Market at the Cathedral of the Holy Cross High School Gymnasium. Visit the website to find out more about the vendors. The admission price is 5 dollars per person and the market will open at 10 AM and close at 6 PM. The gym is located in a great shopping area, with little South End stores close by and some tasty restaurants as well. I highly recommend going, I will be there with my parents (they are visiting from Connecticut). Have a wonderful winter weekend.

Written Wednesday on Thursday.

Olga Lengyel, lived in the city of Cluj during the 1940s. She worked alongside her husband, Miklos, at the main hospital and the couple had two sons, Thomas and Arvad. Before World War II, the Lengyels lived a bliss filled life, but that came to a tragic end in May of 1944.

In my Holocaust Comparative Literature and Film class, we read chapters from the anthology, Different Voices: Women and The Holocaust edited by Carol Rittner and John K. Roth. The book combines the testimonies of several women into one powerful guide through each woman’s experience. 

Above: Olga Lengyel

Olga Lengyel’s “The Arrival” (Chapter Five), made the deepest impression on me, because it represents a moment that all Jews faced during the Holocaust or the Shoah. In the editors notes before Lengyel’s piece, they state that 1.4 million Jews lived in Romania and Hungary before the war and after, 500,000 Hungarian Jews were slaughtered and 270,000 Romanian Jews suffered the same brutality. What struck me the most, beside the death of 770,00 human beings, was the way in which every Jew entered the camps in the same manner. Left or Right. Death Instantly or Death Postponed. “The Arrival” by Olga Lengyel details the selection process. The excerpt from Different Voices is about Lengyel’s arrival and the decision to send her children with her mother in the opposite line as her. She and her mother were told to go right, Thomas was sent to the left with the old and young. The selector asked if Arvad was older than 12, she demanded he was not. He went to the left. She then asked her mother to go to the left and join the children. She lived, they died. Right meant life, left meant death. How could she ever know and yet, she will never forgive herself.

I had persuaded my mother that she should follow the children and take care of them. At her age she had a right to the treatment accorded to the elderly and there would be someone to look after Arvad and Thomas.

“My mother would like to remain with the children,” I said.

“Very well,” he again acquiesced. “You’ll all be in the same camp.”

“And in several weeks you’ll be reunited,” another officer added, with a smile. “Next!” 

How should I have known. I had spared them from hard work, but I had condemned Arvad and my mother to death in the gas chambers.

I think everyone should these four pages. It will change the way you make decisions, it will make you a better human being.

“We have to prevent similar atrocities from happening again. People should come together the moment there is danger. Endangering one group means endangering all of us.” - Lengyel

Too Cool Tuesday: Not Cool, Political Sex Scandals

In my journalism history class, we learned that the Nixon Watergate Scandal became the point in which the media and political officials no longer interacted with each other in an unguarded fashion. The politician no longer went to the bar with the journalist. The public relations person built a stone wall around the politician from that point on, undoubtedly to minimize bad press. 

But on Tuesday, December 7, 2010 the wife of former Senator John Edwards died. Elizabeth Edwards was 61 years old, the mother of four children. One child died in a tragic car accident at the age of 16. While John and Elizabeth Edwards were technically still married, they were separated. The separation came after Mr. Edwards admitted to having an affair and fathering a child with another woman.

This trend, infidelity in the political arena, has generated many news stories throughout the decades. Bill Clinton, John F. Kennedy, Larry Craig, Eliot Spitzer, Gary Hart, and Thomas Jefferson are all men who got caught up in the power of politics and committed unfaithful acts. John Edwards joins these men, but it saddens me when you think of all the families forever changed by these scandals.

Today, I want to honor Elizabeth Edwards. She wrote on Monday:

You all know that I have been sustained throughout my life by three saving graces — my family, my friends, and a faith in the power of resilience and hope. These graces have carried me through difficult times and they have brought more joy to the good times than I ever could have imagined. The days of our lives, for all of us, are numbered. We know that. And yes, there are certainly times when we aren’t able to muster as much strength and patience as we would like. It’s called being human. But I have found that in the simple act of living with hope, and in the daily effort to have a positive impact in the world, the days I do have are made all the more meaningful and precious. And for that I am grateful. It isn’t possible to put into words the love and gratitude I feel towards everyone who has and continues to support and inspire me every day. To you I simply say: you know.

Bad press may always be hard to minimize, politicians make mistakes and sometimes they result in a sad fate. I mourn that Elizabeth had to suffer, both cancer and her true loves unfaithful acts. May she rest in peace and may politics remember the victims of infidelity and cancer.

Savings Saturday: Can anyone beat Starbucks?

Two Dunkin’ Donuts stores are located on the Boston University campus. Five Starbucks stores are located on campus. And one McDonalds is located in the area.  

McDonalds may not compete directly with Starbucks and Dunkin’ Donuts, but it has introduced the McCafé area in most retail locations. The chain now serves coffee, lattes, frappés, smoothies, and hot chocolate at much lower costs than Starbucks and Dunkin ’ Donuts.

The 12 oz Strawberry Banana Smoothie at McDonalds not only saves you money, but it also saves you calories when compared to the Starbucks Strawberries & Crème Frappuccino. The smoothie has 210 calories and costs less then two dollars. The frappuccino has 370 calories and cost more then three dollars.

The McDonald’s McCafé Frappe comes in Mocha (560 calories) or Caramel (550 calories) flavorings. The may save you some money, but both have more calories than Starbucks Frappuccinos. The Starbucks Frappuccinos also have Mocha (370 calories) and Caramel (390 calories) flavorings. (Note comparison is made between 16 oz. size beverages)

If you want a fruity flavor, head to McDonalds. But if you want a coffee based drink, the decision is yours.

Pay more and save calories at Starbucks or pay less and maybe pack on a few more pounds at McDonalds (Just walk to West Campus and you can burn off the extra two hundred calories). Tell me what you like best?

Free For All Friday: Gift Week #4

The above shoes, made by Sperry Top-Sider, are the Men’s Bahama Chukka Boot. They retail for $80 and can be found online. While these shoes might not be for everyone, I like the updated design and style. The high-tops allow you to wear low socks and the cloth laces are much easier to tie than the leather laces on the classic top-siders. They look great with jeans or khakis.

Written Wednesday: Hope by Emily Dickinson

Hope is the thing with feathers

That perches in the soul,

And sings the tune—without the words,

And never stops at all,

 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

And sweetest in the gale is heard;

And sore must be the storm

That could abash the little bird

That kept so many warm.

 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

I’ve heard it in the chillest land,

And on the strangest sea;

Yet, never, in extremity,

It asked a crumb of me.

Living life with hope that tomorrow will be great, or this world will only become better, is what makes me breathe easy. Have HOPE and you will have joy in life. Even if it is your darkest hour, hope will provide security.

Too Cool Tuesday: Glee, love it or hate it

The FOX Broadcasting Company hit gold when they launched the show, Glee, last year. Now in its second season, Gleeks (the term used for Glee fans) everywhere have devoted millions of hours and dollars to the series. The show revolves around a group of high school outcasts (who seem to popular to be considered outcasts) that break out in song while in glee club. Will Schuester, Rachel, Finn, Kurt, Mercedes, Artie, Tina, Puck, Quinn, Brittany, Santana, Mike, and Sam comprise the club. While the show may be to complicated to explain in detail, the format is simple. The club meets everyday and sings and then a few characters break out in song throughout the show. There are guest stars and in a recent episode, Chris Martin’s wife, Gwyneth Paltrow demonstrated that her husband is not the only singer in their family. Look for Glee on FOX every Tuesday at 8 PM. You might like it or you might hate it, but the trend leans toward love.