Conclusion: Thank God It's Over!

     The blogger experience was really good. There were themes that were more fun than others, and times when I thought that I was never going to finish, but overall it was great. What I like the most about this project was thinking that I don’t have to take a final test because that is lame and boring. Besides the final test, I think it was something completely different and original. I think what really stand out from my mini-essays is my sincerity and that, also, I tried to make some topics a little bit funny. I enjoyed talking about myself, my interests and exposing my crazy mind. If I had the chance, I would definitely do the project again for the next semester.  

*My song through all the blogger experience.*

Five Steps For World Domination

World domination is not an easy task, but it’s not impossible. If you are interested in conquering the world, follow this five simple steps, it is easier than you may think. When you take over the world you’ll need a catchy and remarkable name, for example: Dr. Evil (Steven Powers), or Locki (Avengers). If you have an uncommon and cool last name, like Hitler or Napoleon, you won’t need to create a cool name, because you already have one. The second step is building an army; it can be a fan base, or to create your own minions. This step is really important because, as much as independent you could be, you will always need someone manipulable and stupid enough to give their live for yours. Always remember: Use emotion for the many and reserve reason for the few. It is imperative that your persona has a trademark, something that makes you stand out from the crowd, and it could be a mustache, a scar, a birth mark, your style, etc… If you still can’t think of anything singular or striking, just imagine yourself as a Halloween costume, how would you like people to remember your appearance?

     The fourth step is the most important of all: the scheme. You must ask yourself: how would you like to take over the world, and what will you do with it once is yours? The scheme, should always remind a secret. You do not want to get caught without having reached the climax of your world domination, and you do not want copycats stealing your ideas. And last but not least, the powerful and glorious secret weapon. Yes, you need one, because in case the scheme gets into jeopardy, you can always threaten to destroy the world if your enemies don’t do as you say. But let’s be honest, you just want to rule the world, not kill yourself trying. So, why don’t you better put the evil weapons aside and go for plan B: ask for those 100 billion dollars!

Education: "I am Malala"

     Education is supposed to be for everyone, regardless of race, sexual orientation, nationality, skin color or sex. Unfortunately, in some parts of the world this does not happen; going to school is a continuous battle, and the life of who wants to learn is put at risk. This was the case of Malala Yousafzai, a Pakistani girl fighting against the Taliban for the right of female education in her country. In Pakistan, some Islamic extremist groups do not allow girls to educate because women, according to their beliefs, were born to serve their husband, take care of the house and the children; and not to educate themselves. Malala began writing a blog for the international broadcast BBC, where she wrote about her experience has a schoolgirl in Pakistan, she was just 13 at the time. This was a really dangerous mission for her because if the Taliban knew about it, they could kill her and her family. In her blog, she relates how these extremists bombed schools, threatened parents and girl students, and killed those who opposed them.

      With the support of her parents, Malala continued with her battle, and it became very public. The Taliban did not like this, so decided to take action on the matter. Malala gained international recognition when an individual of the extremist group shot her in the head when she was taking the bus back home. It is said that the armed man came in and asked: "Which one of you is Malala? Speak up, otherwise I will shoot you all", after identifying her, the man shot her in the head. Fortunately, Malala survived. The news went all around the world, and a hospital in London offered to cover all the expenses. After a year in recovery, Malala decided to use her new found fame to call for worldwide access to education, and wrote a book known as I Am Malala: The Girl Who Stood Up for Education and Was Shot by the Taliban. Her work was recognized in 2014, when at the age of 17, Malala received the Nobel Peace Prize, and became the youngest Nobel Prize winner. 

Donnie Darko

One of my favorite movies of all times is Donnie Darko. This movie, set in 1988, is a psychological thriller of 2001, starring by Jake Gyllenhaal, Drew Barrymore, Patrick Swayze, Maggie Gyllenhaal, and Jena Malone. Donnie Darko (Jake Gyllenhaal) is a boy with supposed "daylight hallucinations", who is awakened in the middle of the night, and led outside, by a man wearing a giant rabbit costume, known as Frank, who tells him that the world is going to end in 28 days, 6 hours, 42 minutes and 12 seconds. In the morning, Donnie finds out that a jet engine crashed into his bedroom and no one, not even the investigators, know where it came from. After all this, a series of mysterious events occur in Donnie’s community, leading him to save the world, and to a tragic ending. Donnie Darko received mixed to positive reviews from the critics and became a major cult following film.

This film means a lot to me because I feel so related to it in the sense that I would like to be Donnie Darko. He’s this really weird kid that nobody understands with a normal life, and suddenly his life becomes interesting. I would like that to happen to me. Besides, this movie portrays a religious-scientific conflict, like for example: Tangent Universe (The parallel Universe that most of the film is set in) and the indirect question of  “Is there a divine entity that makes the mysterious events happen?”. This movie could be so hard to comprehend that wed sites explaining the plot and the ending have been created, and I would be lying to you if I tell you that I understand the whole film. I like this movie because is a challenge to me and because is so symbolic. I just love the darkness and the mystery that entails. Every time I watch Donnie Darko, it feels like taking a time machine, going back to eleventh grade and seeing myself writing in every paper sheet and desk “28:06:42:12 That is when the world will end.”