Back again with new music for the month of December, enjoy!
Stay Tuned for music updates next month.
Could I ask you to look a little closer, beyond Hollywood and tiktok?
Not going to lie, before this particular trip, you were by far my least favorite city. I hadn't seen you in your true light and honestly, I don't think many people do.
You deceive people with your Hollywood lights and impressive financial district. The proximity to sun-soaked beaches and piers keeps the focus off of what's actually there. Could it be that you don't want to acknowledge the less-than-presentable parts of the city?
What if I asked you to walk just five blocks from the financial district into the heart of Skid Row? How would you respond? Would you be afraid or could you learn to recognize the fear that dwells in the own eyes of a young man without a home? Can you say, "Oh those people just want handouts," when you already demand so much for yourself? Would you just shrug and say, "Oh, I''m sure someone will take care of it", even if I told you 85,000 people in your city do not have a home?
Could you believe me if I said that many people you encounter on a day-to-day basis are finding it difficult to scrape by? When the end of the month comes, many mouths are open with bellies aching to be fed.
Would you look at your city in the eyes and apologize for not looking directly before?
When you see the woman sitting alone on the park bench, bring her water.
If you see hungry children feed them with food and compassionate love.
The next time you see a man who has been dealt a worse hand than you, don't assume he is a drunkard.
Step into the stories of your own city. Walk the streets of Compton and see the light bursting through. The light that paints houses and makes them new each week. The light which explodes from Faith Inspiration Church where the congregation prays for powerful changes. And although they are the last people who should feel the need to pray for President Trump, pray humbly and genuinely for the leader of this country.
Love your people and talk with the people in your borders. Don't turn away, invite in. Don't just give money, give time, a life-giving word, a smile.
Don't brighten Hollywood's lights,
Work harder to end a larger fight.
Stop focusing on the amount of your wealth,
Pause for a moment and care about this great city's health.
In the dog days of summer, Odyssey's creators are here to keep you entertained!
Can you believe it's almost August? Even though summer break is winding down, Odyssey's response writers are keeping you entertained with hot new articles. From travel advice to Netflix recommendations, there's something for everyone! Here are the top three response articles of last week:
5 Things You Have To Do In TokyoThere is so much to do and see in Tokyo but here are five things you can start with!
This is a response to My Trip To Japan.
7 Netflix Shows and Series to Consider WatchingTaking a look at the fun yet critical lenses of television today.
This is a response to Films In The Spirit Of Summer.
Summer Activities That Will Make You Appreciate The Little ThingsFun summer ideas that you can do anywhere and will give you the right mindset to conquer the colder seasons ahead.
This is a response to 15 More Summer Activities To Cure Your Boredom.
We are constantly moving. I don’t know what that looks like for you, but for me it means both physically and mentally. For the past two years, I have often found myself having to pack up boxes and move them into, or out of, places. I would say that somehow this has become, on average, an every six-month project. I have lived in many different places, met many new people, and have fought for what I know is true in different ways at each of them.
I have also constantly changed, myself. God has used the places and the people surrounding me to strip me of my pride, teach me freedom, and present a new understanding of pure joy. Every day, I am challenged to take part in sweet sanctification with gratitude. Some days I fail at surrender. I am messy. I am inconsistent.
I am constantly moving. I am constantly seeking, inconsistent in emotion, weak, and tossed by the winds. I go from place to place, I recognize my changing spirit. I am constantly moving, but in this I rejoice: God is constantly God. He is constantly present. He is consistently good. Oh my, and this life is not about my finite, wandering self. If it is about His glory alone, I am grateful to rejoice in the freedom that is His unwavering spirit.
When I am broken, tossed to and fro, Jesus has the same love for me as He did yesterday and will tomorrow. When I am changing, when my scenery is changing, when I am packing boxes, or when I am chasing after the wind -- God has never quit chasing after my heart. “Our weakness is a vessel for His goodness, and our flaws a canvas for His grace.”
Our changing hearts have been ultimately made new by a constant one. His love follows you consistently. Rejoice! Jesus is better. Jesus is the same yesterday, today, and tomorrow. Jesus is good yesterday, today, and, undeniably, will be tomorrow.
The summer of my junior year I had the opportunity to go to Greece with a group of my classmates. It was a ten day trip through EF Tours taking me around Greece. We visited Athens, Turkey, Santorini, Crete, Mykonos, Rhodes, and Paros. The experiences and memories I made in these ten days was something I will never forget.
While I was in Santorini without cell service, of course, my card was denied. I had souvenirs ready to be bought and I had to pay for my tram ride back down. The worst was realizing I could not buy the souvenirs and I would probably never be back there again. I also had problems paying for everything on the cruise; after multiple calls to my dad it had finally worked out. Thank god he always has his phone on him.
In Turkey, I learned how they make rugs. It is absolutely amazing. There was all kinds of rugs from bathroom rugs to huge area rugs. They were extremely expensive. The coolest thing was when we sat down and a man started throwing rugs around and it would change colors. It was something I could hardly believe. I still don't understand how it happened, but it was crazy.
Each place we went had tons of market shops all over the place. I walked along each store, but tried to keep my distance. I learned if you get to close they will suck you into the store and annoy you until you buy something. It is extremely frustrating for someone who tries to be overly nice.
While walking through the streets, I was extremely aware of how awful some people had it. There were mothers with no money begging on the sidewalks, again looking into their eyes was very sad, so I tried to avoid them. Because of this, I had been warned about pickpocketing many times. I could hardly walk for ten minutes without making sure I had everything.
The most frustrating and exciting part about this trip was seeing all of these amazing buildings, but not having your family to share it with. You can't even text or call them to show them the amazing architecture. I loved having this experience all to myself, but hated it at the same time. I really missed my family, but I started to be with my friends more and more each night.
I went on this trip with tons of people I knew of, but I was not super close with any of them. After multiple hours in airports and on planes I was close with everyone. It was like our own little family. Each night we had dinner together and traveled through the cities together. When we arrived to our cruise ship we had rooms next to each other and spent a lot of time together. We saw amazing places together and had a lot of laughs.
Traveling to Greece was scary and exciting at the same time. If you get a chance to go there, it is a must. The islands are absolutely gorgeous, unlike anything I have ever seen. Over time I learned a lot about my travel pals and had shared so many experiences with them. I would give anything to be back on the plane flying to Greece. I miss having fish bite at my feet at a store, I miss walking along the cruise watching the sunset, I miss seeing all of attractions and learning about the culture, but most of all I miss the time spent with all of my friends.
Across the country, many people have mixed opinions about the use of nuclear energy. The oppositions have arguments ranging from waste disposal to radiation effects, when most of the claims are fueled by false or inaccurate beliefs. The fact of the matter is, nuclear energy is vital to powering our country. There are certainly some incidents that have happened in the past that have given the nuclear industry a bad name, for instance Chernobyl, Fukushima, and Three Mile Island. The NIRS has an article with their Top 11 Reasons to Oppose Nuclear Power, with six of those reasons containing connections to nuclear waste. Now, while nuclear waste has been a huge topic of discussion since 2011 when the Yucca Mountain nuclear waste repository site was closed due to the end of Federal funding. Finding a new way to handle the waste has become a prominent discussion within the field, but has also been mentioned to be a political problem as well.
Most who oppose nuclear power believe that wind and solar would be the best replacement. Realistically, this is a bold belief and is financially not very ideal. Energy Reality Project posted an article called “Let’s Run the Numbers,” comparing nuclear energy to wind and solar:
“It would cost over $29 Trillion to generate America’s baseload electric power with a 50 / 50 mix of wind and solar farms, on parcels of land totaling the area of Indiana. Or:
It would cost over $18 Trillion with Concentrated Solar Power (CSP) farms in the southwest deserts, on parcels of land totaling the area of West Virginia. Or:
We could do it for less than $3 Trillion with AP-1000 Light Water Reactors, on parcels totaling a few square miles. Or:
We could do it for $1 Trillion with liquid-fueled Molten Salt Reactors, on the same amount of land, but with no water cooling, no risk of meltdowns, and the ability to use our stockpiles of nuclear “waste” as a secondary fuel.”
Basically, it would cost $29.25 trillion to power the U.S. for 60 years, in about 35,135 sq. miles of 500 wind and 500 solar farms. In comparison, it would cost $2.94 trillion to power the U.S. for 60 years in about 1.95 sq. miles of 50 AP-1000 reactors; alternatively it would only cost $1 trillion to power the country with Molten Salt Reactors.
Ultimately, it is unrealistic to believe that wind and solar could power the country on its own. Yes, it is a reliable form of energy, but the country just does not have the money or space to take that step. Now this is not to say that wind and solar aren’t necessary, because they are. Every energy source is going to have byproducts, but each source is going to have its own quality that makes it imperative to powering the United States.
The positive to nuclear is that is green clean energy that can work 24 hours a day, seven days a week, 365 days a year, while other forms of energy are intermittent. Denise Ingoe, a woman on the Mid-Atlantic Fleet Assessment Team for Exelon, stated, “You need to have base load (constantly meet demand) electricity to ensure grid stability…You need to have the base load capacity to ensure the grid is stable so there are not brownouts or blackouts. Renewables are also needed and can help meet environmental goals when they are available to supplement base load generation.”
Utilizing the participation of both renewables (wind and solar) and nuclear would be the most effective way to sustain the country on its energy demands. Each day the nuclear field is gaining knowledge, and the United States has one of the strictest, if not the strictest, restrictions and regulations on the nuclear industry. Nuclear energy is vital to the growth and sustaining of the United States.
Songs About Being 17
Grey's Anatomy Quotes
Vine Quotes
4 Leaf Clover
Self Respect
1. Brittany Morgan,National Writer's Society
2. Radhi,SUNY Stony Brook
3. Kristen Haddox, Penn State University
4. Jennifer Kustanovich, SUNY Stony Brook
5. Clare Regelbrugge, University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign
