Gilly's Up and Coming

This next blog post I will be 'criticizing' a fellow classmate, Kyle Gillam's blog, "Gilly's Up and coming. Specifically, I wanted to take a look at his post titled "Madeon is a 'Force of Nature'".
          One of the biggest passions that I have in my life is my love for music. Specifically I thoroughly enjoy Hip-Hop and occasionally techno and electronic music. This blog is perfect for me because the genre that is covered in Kyle's post's is my exact type of musical taste. I love all of his posts in the blog, but the specific post I am going to talk about is involving a young talent that I don't know much about.
          Madeon is an artist that I only have heard about 2 songs from, which is very odd because I usually have the habit to listen to artists by their albums. Gilly's Up and Coming really let me know what this young artist is all about. I was impressed with the specifics that were put into the research on this artist and how clear and readable the post was.
          The job that is supposed to be done in informing and entertaining an audience is done very well. Before reading this post I 'knew of' Madeon, but now I know a little bit more about him and am motivated to look further into his music and story. Thanks Kyle!!
         
         

Rocking Out.

All throughout my early childhood and high school, I took part in all kinds of musical activities. These included; piano lessons, jazz band, wind ensemble, and playing in a youth group band. I would call myself generally talented in music when it comes to percussion instruments and the piano, however, there is one instrument that I have always wanted to be able to play at an advanced level and that is the guitar.

          There once was a time where I did own a guitar and have tried to learn it, but I honestly gave up after multiple failed trials in practicing. But now I realize that quitting will never get any of the items on my list completed and quitting isn't an option. This is why I am bringing this small goal from middle school back to be on my bucket list.

          Why do i want to learn the guitar? I find the guitar to be an extremely interesting instrument that is so difficult to play. This difficulty is also a bit of my motivation to be able to play the guitar. In a lot of cases, the difficulty of a task motivates me and drives me to complete the task. Another reason and maybe the primary reason i would want to learn to play the sweet sounds of a guitar because of the love that I have for the sound. One of my favorite types of music is acoustic and original acoustic versions of songs and being able to play my own would be the greatest feeling.          

On Top of the World

          Nature is a mysterious and magnificent thing. The raging hurricanes that can pummel cities, or the beautiful snowfall that changes any landscape into a sparkling wonderland. At times, we don't appreciate weather, like when it is raining on the way to class, or too hot to think without sweating. However, there are plenty of times, at least in my life, that I appreciate a sunny day or fresh snowfall. This brings me to my next item on my bucket list that weather plays a huge part in.

          Since I was a young teen, I have loves the sport of snowboarding. The thrill of the ride, calming sessions and breathtaking views will always stay with me for the rest of my life. There are thousands of places to snowboard around the world, but not many have been rode before. There are some mountains that are only accessible by helicopter, and that is how the truly passionate snowboarders get there and it is called heli-boarding. Heli-boarding is a very extreme sport that requires a lot of skill and this is where the beginning of my process to check 'heli-boarding' off my bucket list. 

         I would consider myself a pretty good snowboarder, but I am no match for the steep slopes of a mountain at 10,000 feet above sea level. First, I would need to generally get more advanced at snowboarding and become more than just a 'natural'. next is the specific training that comes with heli-boarding.

          At the elevation that heli-borading exists, there are avalanches, bone chilling weather, and various other natural dangers. There is a weeklong class that is taught to train for and know how to deal with these problems. After knowing all you can about the process, there is only fun left in the experience. 

         At most ski resorts, one 'run' from the top of a ski lift varies from 5 minutes to 30. The view is always fairly scenic, looking out across the different runs and the rest of the resort and its inhabitants. When you step off of a helicopter to begin your run, you will not finish riding for hours. But, most importantly, there is no other human life where riding happens, a moment to truly take in the beauty of the nature that is surrounding you. Snowcapped peaks, beautiful glaciers, and breathtaking landscapes are wherever you look. 

          Heli-boarding one of the most thrilling and beautiful things that can be done on this planet, so there is no doubt that I would love to check it off the list as soon as possible. 

          

Avery's Bucket List.

There was a story published about a year ago about a father that made a blog for his daughter giving her a bucket list. Why did he do this? Because 6 month old Avery was born with spinal muscular atrophy type 1 and her chances of living were slim.her father, Mike Canahuati, made this bucket list on a blog and a facebook page containing some items to be crossed off the list:

• Wake up smiling.
• Have a bad hair day.
• Ride in an ambulance.
• Get picked up by a fireman.
• Meet a fan.
• Talk to mommy & daddy.
• Eat a cupcake & a Blow Pop.
• Play with Play-Dough.
• Play a practical joke on someone

Sadly, Avery passed away April 30th, 2012. But the story of her Bucket list and short lived life will always be remembered.

     

     I think that this is an amazing story to relate my blog to. A bucket list really oragizes what we want to do in our lives before its over and we never know when our lives could be over. Avery didnt live long enough to even be able to write her own bucket list. Im writing about items on my bucket list because I want to achive as much as I can before my time is up. And these are more than just things to go do on the weekends or durring the summer. In order to Travel across ireland or coach a lacrosse team, I need to finish college to get a good job and pay for the opportunities that I have made for myself. To finish up this post, I want to refer to the simplicity of Avery's list; have a bad hair day, Meet a Fan, talk to mommy and daddy. Avery didnt get the chance to do these things and we did. Take advantage of every day to do what you love to do.

 

 

Here you can see Avery's Story.

 

 

Coaching Lacrosse.

There is a blog that I came across about coaching Lacrosse. This blog refers to all age levels of coaching and the best ways a coach can make their team the best it can be. The Sport of lacrosse has been a passion of mine since I started at the age of 10 years in the fifth grade. This passion can be included in my entire life, however there are only a few options past collegiate lacrosse. This includes major league lacrosse, a sport that pays very low for a professional level sport, and coaching. Coaching is something that I would love to do at any level of age and that is why coaching the sport that I've loved for so long is on my bucket list. There a few main reasons other than that this sport itself means a lot to me. First, this job would also fit very well with my initial career plan of being a high school teacher, because it is common for high schools coaches to also teach at the school that they are coaching at. Another reason is to simply pass on the favor that all the coaches that I have had gave to me, and thats the love of the sport. Lacrosse is more to me than just a sport, it is a sport that has bought me so much about relationships and brotherhood. The coaches that have mentored me through each year have been men that I will remember for the rest of my life and I want to give that feeling to the next generation.

Here Is The original blog "Coach B's Lacrosse Blog"
Coach B's Blog

Across Ireland.

There has always been something about a road trip that really gets me excited. The sights, the experience, and the knowledge that can be gained bring total joy to my heart. This video is of a professional "trial rider", Danny MacAskill, riding at multiple locations across the United Kingdom. This video does not directly compare to this item on my list, but is close. In this short film, Danny is only traveling in reality only a few hours around northern UK, but my journey to cross off the list is to travel across Ireland, the country of my great grandparents and a place filled with natural beauty. There are multiple ways that I could go about traveling across a county, and both would have their separate positives. The first way I could set off on my journey, is with a car full of my best friends. The happiness I have on just a one hour ride with my friends couldn't match up to a much longer journey. The already strong relationships that I would be able to build with these boys would be unreal. the other option, and at this moment my main option of traveling is alone, and without a car.
            Hiking has been a passion in my life for the last 3 or 4 years and I believe that it can really help someone realize the beauty of the world and what is in it. Hiking across Ireland by myself could be extremely fun for many reasons. One would be learning a lot about myself. Some people take their alone time to think and evaluate life. I would be doing a lot of thinking on my lonely walks across the plans and foothills of this beautiful country. Another positive of traveling alone is to build relationships with the people you see. I would call myself a social person and this would be taken full advantage of the meet as many new people as I could.
           So, why Ireland? Initially I just wanted to visit because I am of Irish decent and would like to see the country where my ancestors lived. But, as I look at pictures of the landscapes and architecture found in some places around this massive island, there are beautiful sights to see all across the country.
             This item on my list is one that could be difficult to achieve due to the cost of flying and travel. However, this would be a good test of how passionate I am about completing these goals and searching for the true meanings of life and happiness.

Bucket Listin'

Most people go throughout life knowing what their dreams would be and the lives they want to live without putting all of the effort they could have put into achieving these goals. If this list of things are the events, places, and activities that would make your life the most joyful it could be, why not pursue them as much as possible? I am writing a blog on my bucket list because I believe that writing down all of these goals of mine will help motivate me to actually achieve them. Whether it involves my current social life or climbing a mountain, I want to see what I can do to check it off the list. This blog is not only for myself but could help inspire others to explore the world and all of the opportunities it has to offer.