Semester Essay#4: Television Mono

Prompt-8: Research shows that the average American watches as much as six hours of television each day. Do you think this is too much? Write an essay convincing readers to spend less time in front of the TV.

Television is one of the most popular forms of entertainment. It not only has news channels, soap operas, and cartoons, but it also has movies, reality television, Spanish shows, Korean shows, comedy shows, music videos, and sometimes games. Television is one of the most popular inventions in America and the world. Since the start of its popularity, Americans watch as much as six hours a day watching television. This is an unhealthy matter to Americans of all ages because it can cause many physical and mental problems. Americans should spend less time in front of the television and more time interacting outside.

Watching too much television can cause obesity. A person will watch his or her favorite television show. In the middle of it, he or she is caught up by TV commercials. The TV commercials can advertise unhealthy foods, such as candy, chips, and soda, which will lure the person to eat this “treat”. The person will only eat the junk food and continue to watch his or her favorite show. He or she will never leave the couch and end up watching the show in his or her sleep. After that, the person repeats the cycle.

The amount of time someone spends watching TV can take away a good social life. Especially for the younger generation, television can affect a child’s brain development and sociability around other children and adults. “According to the Kaiser Family Foundation (KFF):

·         Two-thirds of infants and toddlers watch a screen an average of 2 hours a day

·         Kids under age 6 watch an average of about 2 hours of screen media a day, primarily TV and videos or DVDs

·         Kids and teens 8 to 18 years spend nearly 4 hours a day in front of a TV screen and almost 2 additional hours on the computer (outside of schoolwork) and playing video games.”

(http://kidshealth.org/parent/positive/family/tv_affects_child.html)

Children tend to be more aggressive towards other children and adults because they see too much violence on TV shows. They become unaware of the real world because they assume that the violent acts and risks illustrated by TV characters are true. This causes many misleading messages that can confuse a child. A child will imitate what they saw on TV and use the TV character’s behavior as a way to interact with other people.

Television can have its good uses with moderation. Parents can use it to educate children about different life lessons and complicated subjects such as sex and drinking alcohol, although, they have to be mindful of the television ratings (e.g., TV-PG). It is fine to watch some entertainment with your friends and family or even by yourself but make sure watching television doesn’t become too much of a habit. Watch, at most, two hours of television and then immediately turn it off. You do not want to miss the fun that is outside your doors.

Bibliography

Gavin, M.L., MD. How TV Affects Your Child. Oct 2008. Website. <http://kidshealth.org/parent

/positive/family/tv_affects_child.html#>

Changing of Plans

Coming Soon.

My Ideal Vacation

Imagine this. As I land on foreign soil away from home, I open my eyes and peer through the airplane window. I see the beautiful mountains iced with snow at its peak far away in the distance. I walk down the stairs of the airplane and I see a beautifully historical city filled with fascinating architectural buildings, parks, rivers and bridges. As the sun's rays beam down to penetrate my skin, I quickly apply sunblock all around my body and my face. I walk down the stony roads and pass by many markets, restaurants, clothing and shoe stores, and souvenior shops. I take a taxi and I am led to the other side of the foreign land. This part of the land has incredibly soft, room temperature sand that sinks my feet onto the top layer of the cold wet beach sand. Yes, now I am at the beach. I hear a peaceful breeze gently brushing against my arms and legs. I feel the gentle kiss of the moist air refreshing my lips to a new salty taste. The oceans sparkle in the daylight showing off its beautful clear blue waters. I walk again towards a grassy area. I rub my feet back and forth between the blades of grass and I lay backwards. I am on top of this small grassy cliff and look at the sky above me. I close my eyes and breathe in the succulent air that opens my lungs and all other air passageways. After a few minutes, I open my eyes. I take out my notepad and pencil from the back of my pants pocket and draw from memory the places and scenery I have seen.

Obesity

Obesity is a result from many personal and societal problems. Obesity is an unhealthy condition that can lead to another result: death. This death-related condition can be caused by peer pressure, over-eating and sometimes heredity. Peers can consist of your classmates, your friends, family members, or anyone that you work with or around. Peer pressure is something that occurs almost every minute of anyone's life. You might be pushed to do ungodly things and that amount of stress can cause you to eat excessively, just like anyone who ends up smoking or drinking to relieve all the pain. This kind of pressure can lead to over-eating. Once you eat large portions, you can never stop eating that amount of food. Next thing you know, you might have heart failures and mobility issues. Lastly, obesity can be caused by heredity. Yes, traits are passed down to the child and so forth, but this can be prevented with a simple procedure: healthy exercise and healthy eating. Obesity can be prevented by just changing your usual habits. Keeping a healthy lifestyle that fits your body type will help prevent obesity and stop eating those fast foods that appears on every corner every single day.

Two People of Different Interests and Background

Two people of different interests and backgrounds could become unlikely allies like a male or a female could become unlikely friends. It's the opposite attraction that makes two completely different people come together. Two people with different backgrounds and interest have more things or options they can explore and eventually find something in common. Otherwise, people who are the same can get bored with each other and end up separating in the long run. When I travelled to Australia and New Zealand this past summer, I hanged around my fellow delegates that had a different background from me. One was Japanese; the other was Korean; and the last one was Chinese. The four of us clicked very well and on every trip we would always make goofy jestures and laugh hysterically on random thoughts. After the last day, we all contacted each other through Facebook and email reflecting on all the adventures we had and complaining on the college process for senior year. On the trip, I didn't hang out mostly with African Americans not because I don't like them but the fact that I knew I would bore myself with conversations I have similarly heard back at home and City Honors. Working or hanging around with different people expands your knowledge of certain cultures or interests and brings around more connecions outside your usual home area. Hanging around the three Asians at Australia and New Zealand allowed me to learn different games and even helpful tips for applying to college.

Semester Essay #3: Reality Television

Prompt #20: Today, there are more and more reality shows on television. Do these shows make good television? Why or why not? Explain your answer using specific reasons and examples.

In today’s society, there are more reality television shows than the news or any shows that illustrate and tell informative information. The reality television is a form of entertainment within the younger generation, but some of these shows have writers in their staff that conducts the script for the “actors”. Not all reality television shows are real but they are perceived as if every “character” showed their “real” feelings and every situation that comes up at a certain location happened “intentionally”. Although these shows are entertaining, they do not necessarily make good television.

Many reality shows broadcast a lot of drama and violence. It is another “he said, she said” bunch of junk. Drama, action, and violence seem to be the only thing that grabs the viewer’s attention. This makes the United States a barbaric country. Many people want to see someone beat up, scratched up, and slapped around. Again, it’s a part of the entertainment that makes the viewers watch it even more and create even more suspense.

Reality shows are a bad influence to the younger generation. Even though they censor the curse words that appear in almost every sentence of the characters mouth, children and teens still know what that character has just blurted out. When children and teens see this kind of behavior, then they start to act exactly like the characters of a certain reality show. This can cause more violence and drama in school and around their peers. It is as if reality television is their “role model”.

Reality television is like virus that spreads to other kinds of shows and movies. Now, there are the news such as Fox 11 that uses scandals and gossip to make their news updates more fascinating. News broadcasts use this outrageous propaganda in order to boost up their ratings and gain a larger audience. What was once honest news became a disgraceful paparazzi chat. People now are only interested in the dirt behind the news than the true pure facts of honorable or dishonorable situations going on in ordinary citizens and the government.

It is okay to watch some type of entertainment once in awhile, but there is too much drama and unnecessary violence that leads towards a selfish society of idiots. If it’s going to be a reality show, there shouldn’t be on the credits “script writers” or any kind of writers. Many reality shows are creating a corrupt society of innocent children and teens committing harmful acts towards another individual. A corrupt society will create a more violent nation.

Imagery: Picture of Desserts

The colors I see are lemon yellow, chocolate brown, strawberry pink, fruity Skittles sprinkles, and white whipped icy cream. I can hear the corny ice cream truck music of "Pop Goes the Weasel", the cold breeze swooshing against my warm body, and a choir singing, "AHHHhhhhhh..." The desserts create a smooth, calm feeling that puts me into a dream and hunger. I feel joyful, calm, happy but I also have a crave and addition to a succulent tongue-slobbering smoothie or some fruity drink. I can taste the mouthwatering, crispy luscious ice, the crunchy, gooey chocolate fruity caramels and the sweet cherry on top. Now I'm thirsty. Don't you think?