Tech Week: [Tek Week]-noun. 1. A sustained amount of time when a select group of actors, technical assistants (“techies”), directors, and assistant directors engage in the final, long week of preparation for a show or theater production. 2. A very strenuous time in a drama kid’s life, usually associated with uncontrolled shouting, break-outs of pimples, attempted school skips, the pulling of hair, the practice of witchcraft, loss of sleep, drowsiness, heartburn, indigestion, upset stomach, and diarrhea (hey, Pepto Bismol!). Synonym: Hell Week.

The description above isn’t far from the truth. This week is Hell. Sort of. It is basically Hell. That’s better.

But hell would be a very good synonym for this blood-pumping, hatred-inducing week because the stereotypical hell would be a Tech Week. Or that we’re all just a bunch of juvenile teenagers and wanted to call the worst week of the year something vulgar and cool. But that’s not the point; it just plain sucks.

It just happens so fast. It’s like the weather. It is fine one second; sunny, blue sky, fluffy clouds and a hint of laughter everywhere you go and then BAM. The sun melts into a pale moon and the blue sky turns an opaque grey and there are shouts of rage and disagreement everywhere while it’s raining disappointment upon every open mouth.

To me though, I don’t think it’s the activities and the things we get done during the week that make it so horrible. I think it’s the stress and the high blood pressures mixed with loads of caffeine. So that put into a combination sandwich of doom makes everyone very snappy and moody the entire week.

Not to mention we have to stay in the auditorium until 10:00 at night to try and get in every single possible ounce of time to create the masterpiece that is a high school drama production. We only have one week to do it and half the people there think we’re going to fail and not make it in time. Including the directors.

It just makes everyone tired and comatose and sleep-deprived so they fall asleep in school and do badly that week.

The drama department at Middletown High School always seems to love it anyway despite the large amount of time-consuming, energy-sapping work that is put into it. There is always the will to continue with the show and produce the best thing since sliced bread, which can never be reproduced by the way.

That and there are always high spirits as odd as that would seem. People are bouncing about on the balls of their feet dancing to the music to the latest song that is being practiced or kids are running around performing odd jobs for their jobs or positions while joking with friends and just enjoying the highly stressful week that is Hell.

I personally love the chaos. I love seeing everyone run around yelling and screaming and seeing the hustle and bustle of everyday, or last minute, theater life. It makes me smile, knowing that I am a part of such an event and knowing that I do things that are integral to the creation of the play (which by the way is “Grease,” come and see it)

It’s the thrill of the fight, the excitement of a show that is coming up and is almost upon us. It motivates us to do more and do our very best in what we are doing. I get through this stressful week by my friends. They are my life-support system for this week without all the annoying chirps and bleeps. They help me stay sane and relatively calm and collected like my usual suave self (that’s a joke).

I think that’s also what drives the show. The actors, the techies, the directors; it’s not the set or the idea of the show or the audience when they come and see it. It’s the people that participate in it. It’s the actors, one of the biggest parts of the show because obviously without them we would have no show, just a bunch of techies running around lifting things, which is a show nonetheless.

We have the directors, the adults of the play. They make sure that we all stay in line and act “mature” and make sure that the play goes as scheduled and that we all do things correctly and are able to put on a fantastic show. Plus, they buy us food on Tuesday.

And then, last but certainly not least, (and to me the most important “interchangeable-part” of the play) is the techies. We, as I am a light techie myself, control the play. Literally.

We have ultimate control over the livelihood, the progress and the remarkableness of the play. Without the techies, there would be no play. No lights to light up the actors, no sound to let you hear them, no outfits or music. The stage would be dark, the lights would be off, the sound would be off and the set wouldn’t even be built without us; the worker ants of our little colony give the fruits of everyone’s labor.

It’s the people. The people make the show. The people are the elements that make it move and speak and animate it. They are the heart and soul of the show and they are the heart and soul of Tech Week. They make it run. They keep it alive and going with every single day that goes by, it goes by because the people that are involved have the will to continue with what they have come so far to achieve.

This is the real definition of Tech Week.

“And it’s times like these when we all need to hear the radio
‘Cause from the lips of some old singer
We can share the troubles we already know.”

- “Sad Songs Say So Much” by Elton John

This song, written by Bernie Taupin and Elton John, really speaks volumes about how songs can help a person through hard times.

I could name countless times when Elton John and Blind Melon have helped me feel better emotionally, or have just helped me calm down after getting rather hot headed about something.

I find it amazing how much music can change a person’s emotional state. I can go from listening to Claudio Sanchez of “Coheed and Cambria” sing of all the pain and suffering he will bring, and switch to Cat Stevens (i.e. Yusef Islam) sing of love and peace. This dramatic switch is my typical listening manner, but when I am experiencing an extreme emotion I stick with one or the other.

Sometimes, when angry, I will listen to hardcore music if I wish to sustain my temper, or sometimes I will listen to soothing song, maybe even opera, if I wish to cool down.

Its just one of the best feelings when you feel a certain way and you listen to a song and the words describe almost spot on how you feel. It makes one feel like they are not alone as many of us feel sometimes and makes them feel like someone understands them.

People have their favorite people to listen to when they feel a certain way. I personally can listen to Elton John in any mood, and with Blind Melon it just seems like they’ve hit the nail on the head with the crazy emotions teens have.

For any emotion in the world, there is most likely a song to describe what it feels like; to describe pain, shame, joy, and insanity. So, in the words of Elton John:

“Turn them on, turn them on
Turn on those sad songs
When all hope is gone
Why don’t you tune in and turn them on

They reach into your room
Just feel their gentle touch
When all hope is gone
Sad songs say so much.”

Everyday I have to get my little brother from school. I have to walk my butt from my nice comfy house all the way to his stupid elementary school, and then walk back. And on the way back I have to resist the temptation to just start screaming.

Now, the inane temptation to scream isn’t because of the long walk in the cold or burning heat, but it’s that almost every single little child there has a cell phone; they’re just talking and talking or texting on them the whole walk back.

Don’t get me wrong; I love kids. But these kids shouldn’t have cell phones or texting or any other implement that goes along with a cell phone.

Why would they need them? It’s not like they have lives somewhere else in the world besides school and sitting in front of the TV melting their brains. They don’t have jobs, they don’t have cars so they can’t drive anywhere, they can’t go anywhere in the first place because of their age, restrictions and limitations, they don’t date or have emotional connections to other girls or boys their age – well, at least let’s hope they don’t, because then they might need their pituitary gland checked – and they basically don’t have lives in which they would need a cell phone.

A child doesn’t actually obtain a life that involves the use of a cell phone until at least high school, because that’s when they start to become more independent and start to go out and do things on their own.

It just sickens me to see the child population of our country be so defected and diseased by these little hand-held devices. It poisons them into thinking that wherever they go they absolutely need a cell phone, and that’s not true at all.

But that’s what’s happening. Our children are learning about a tomorrow that revolves around technology and cell phones, and they’re learning it from the most influential sources of all; their parents.

Our parents are the people who teach us, tutor us, grow with us, and are the people who we look up to every single day of our lives. We see them talking on cell phones and always having their cell phones wherever they go, and we see that that’s okay. Since they need them all the time, we need them all the time.

I’m not going to lie, I have my cell phone with me constantly and it’s always on and waiting. But I don’t live off of it; I don’t need it to survive. It’s not a necessity at all.

I just look around and see all these kids that seem to live off of their cell phones. These little, tiny, munchkin kids who walk around with both hands readily on their cell phones waiting desperately for their parents to text or call them.

Like I said earlier, it’s the parents who do this sometimes. They give the kid a cell phone because it’s easy to get a hold of them, simple to use, and cheap for them to pay for.

But what’s so hard about going to pick up the child or just being able to know where the child is most of the time? It’s like a tracking device for the parents’ laziness.

I just don’t see the point in giving something that technologically advanced to a child who hasn’t even gone through puberty yet, much less knows what a text is, and who probably hardly uses a phone to begin with.

It’s so pointless. I know I may seem freakishly redundant by now, and I know I am, but I just don’t get the point. Children under the age of ten at the least don’t need a cell phone at all. They just shouldn’t have one. It’s not productive and it’s useless for parents to be wasting their hard-earned money on a child’s cell phone, and it’s useless for the child do have it because they don’t need it.

The United States has the greatest health care system in the world. Anyone with a serious injury or illness has a greater chance of survival if they are in America.

Reforms are needed to keep the quality of health care in this country while making it more affordable for everyone. The Obama-care bill accomplished neither of these; the bill addresses accessibility and does nothing to control cost.

Compare the current state of health insurance reforms in Maryland with those of Obama-care. Obama-care promises health insurance to everyone, regardless of their current medical conditions, with community-based rates and requires everyone to purchase it. Small employers in Maryland have had these same provisions for sixteen years, and premiums are rising twice as fast as the national average.

Furthermore, Maryland already has a high-risk pool as required by Obama-care. For years now, any Maryland resident who has wanted health insurance could obtain it with no questions asked, so accessibility is not an issue in our state. However, we get to pay the increased taxes and fines levied by the bill to support the rest of the country.

Despite the ease of obtaining health insurance in Maryland, we still have 750,000 residents in our state without health insurance. Of the three quarters of a million without health insurance, one-third qualify for public assistance and don’t apply. Another third earn enough to afford insurance, but choose not to purchase it. The objective is to make health insurance more affordable for the one-third in the middle that earns too much for public assistance but not enough to afford converge on his own.

Health care reforms that do not address cost are irresponsible. Health care reform that works should include physicians, insurers, legislators, and consumer groups all working together to keep what works with our system and make health care more affordable for America.

We’re sitting, we’re standing, we’re moving, we’re working, we’re running, we’re sweating, we’re standing, we’re jumping, we’re seeing but not agreeing, we’re thinking but not calculating, we’re hearing but not listening, we’re feeling with no emotion, we’re never tiring and never ending. We’re machines.

Everyday is the same old routine, whether you are a student who wakes up at five in the morning, goes to school till around three in the afternoon and then stays up the rest of the day doing homework, a college student who goes to school everyday but also has to steady out a part-time job to pay for the college you are attending, or a proud member of the working class society who also has a redundant schedule that repeats day after day.

It’s never ending, this mechanical flow. Every day is a complete rerun of the last, and nothing changes. It’s a never-ending cycle of nothing but lack of life.

Humans are machines, plain and simple. We are always doing something, rarely just relaxing or doing nothing. And when we are relaxing and doing nothing, our minds are preoccupied with the thoughts and emotions of the real world which conflict within us in constant turmoil and never leave us alone.

There never seems to be enough time to stop concentrating on the troubles of life and relax and forget, if only for a little, how complex life can become for so many people.

According to a study by the National Sleep Foundation, “The average employed American works a 46-hour work week; 38% of the respondents in their study worked more than 50 hours per week.”

Where’s the time to sleep during this work week? That is almost an eight hour work day for five days, sometimes even six when people work on Saturday.

The only time people seem to relax for even a little bit is when they sleep or take naps. When one goes to sleep, his mind shuts down and it can relax a bit because it doesn’t have to do anything for a whole night. The conscious mind becomes the sub-conscious mind and it works through no effort at all. And this lack of effort is called our dreams.

Our dreams are the gateways to other worlds, real or not. And they can be either quite relaxing or even more troubling than real life. We have those really sweet dreams where everything is fine and comfortable, and you enjoy them because it takes you away from what you have been concerned about.

But then there are those horrendous dreams where all the dream focuses on is what the real life has thrown at you. And that is a sure sign that what you are focusing on in the real world has consumed your thinking too much.

There have been rumors that the number of days that are currently in the weekend (two) might be changed to a three day weekend.

To me, this would be absolutely perfect. I know there’s a five day work week and everyone’s used to that, but it would help a lot to have even one extra day to relax and get all the ailments from the work week out of your system. You know, give us a little time to recharge our batteries and oil out our kinks.

But really, let’s be serious. Would we all stop this routine we’ve so mechanically gotten used to? Some people never stop working and some never start, but if something could change, would we have the guile to follow?

I say no, we wouldn’t. We are too ingrained into our routine to do anything else besides what the routine entails and follows. People are afraid of change, so why change?

But the whole point of this random topic is that people never seem to stop. They don’t slow down and review or think about what they did or about what they’re about to do.

We should all just slow down and relax for a little while. 

I like being able to use the Internet. I really do. I like to be able to check my email, watch stupid videos, browse Wikipedia, or do any of the numerous other things available on the web.

But a small group of people might be changing that.

A recently leaked part of the Anti-Counterfeiting Trade Agreement (ACTA) could put a halt to that Internet that I love so much. The ACTA is an agreement secretly being proposed by numerous countries to curb counterfeiting actions by criminals

The leaked digital chapter of the super-secretive ACTA agreement defines the results, for criminals and various accomplices, with copyright infringement.

Now, I may not know a ton of legal-ese, but I know enough to understand the gist of the document; if you infringe copyright, you are in trouble.

Not only does the document try to stop copyright, but it strikes right at the heart of the issue – if an Internet service provider receives “legally sufficient notice of alleged infringement” (a letter from a company saying a person at a certain IP address has infringed), and no “legally sufficient response from the relevant subscriber,” the ISP will either remove material or disable access for the appropriate individual.

Now, I want you to take a step back for a minute – a company will send a notification to an ISP saying a certain person has infringed. The “accused” must indicate that the accusation is false, either through a mistake or misidentification. There is no time limit; there is no set wait time. This is a massive problem.

For people who don’t infringe copyright at all, they should be fine. If a company doesn’t have a reason to send a notification, there is should be no reason to worry. Should.

But what if a company sends a mass notification asserting that multiple IPs are infringing; I might be one of the people who are included in the list of IPs. I’m not infringing, but if my neighbors are, my ISP might shut off my Internet – that is, unless I respond to the notice within a very short time, anything from two seconds to two years.

And this isn’t that the ISP wants to shut you down – you are too valuable as a customer. It’s that if they don’t, the government will start bringing them to court under facilitating copyright infringement, so they must comply or take a great risk.

In the end, a company shut you out of the internet if they want if this agreement passes. We can’t let that happen.

Suspicious minds have become an epidemic in America. The cause varies with each case.

The media frenzy has taught many people to believe that their significant other is being unfaithful. Tiger Woods with his score of mistresses and Ted Haggard and his male prostitute are two great examples – people I never expected of being unfaithful. I’m not the only one who was surprised.

However, celebrities aren’t accurate examples of everyday people. I have more faith in love than do most of the tabloid magazines in this country.

The gossip is one fuse that has ignited the suspicious behaviors of Americans. All this talk is used to sell magazines while some people use suspicion to spread fear and to control people.

A case of this being Liz Cheney, former vice-president Dick Cheney’s narrow-minded daughter. Recently she produced a video informing and scaring viewers about “The Alqaeda Seven.”

Accoring to Cheney, some of the lawyers who defended prisoners of Guantanamo Bay in court are secretly Alqaeda operatives. What a conspiracy – these people are obviously spies for doing their job that they were assigned.

The Cheneys are famous for depriving rights to people in this country, i.e. torture during interrogations, taking away of basic rights, and this most recent attack on people who merely wished to do their job.

Somehow, there are people that believe in everything they are told. It is a poison in this country that is spreading like bamboo. Fear and suspicion are strangling the country.

People are afraid of the “socialistic” president Obama. The majority of the socialist programs in the country have been around long before him.

Fear is the reason many Americans carry firearms. A life lived in fear is a life wasted. With that being said, a large percentage of Americans are wasting their lives.

I believe that humans at heart are good, but it is their environment that disrupts behavior. People also start out being trusting for the most part. Once again, outside influences change people to be less trusting of everyone, from strangers to lovers.

It is no surprise then, that FDR famously said, “The only thing we have to fear is fear itself.”

Recently, I watched a movie that is quite dated. It had many actors playing journalists and everyone was hard at work. I realize it is a movie; however, it still seems like people “back in the day” worked much harder than people do now.

That old saying, “Workin’ hard or hardly workin,’” comes to mind here. It seems like Americans used to work very hard and now they are hardly working.

I look around the room and see my comrades barely working, and it just seems rather pathetic how far we have come, yet how far we have digressed.

Maybe people are chatting, which I would have no problem with IF there was work getting done, but it seems like they just don’t care.

This is the usual case, but since our usual teacher isn’t here, it has gotten pretty bad. I will admit I’ve started to slack but I am trying to stop.

Anyway, it seems like America is just a shadow of its former self. The youth expect everything to be done for them. Part of it is technology, but I think it is mostly the child rearing.

Parents give their kids what they want much too often. A kid asks for a lot of money, and the parents reply, “Here is two hundred dollars Suzy, go have fun!”

Kids want what they want and they want it now. I was taught to wait and that work pays off. My parents are one of those few “true Americans” that float around, because of how they rose above what they knew as “the norm” and how they wanted something more.

I know plenty of people who work hard. Two of my closest female companions are the hardest workers I know, but there are plenty more that aren’t exactly hard workers.

Maybe it is all based on how a kid is raised, reliance on technology, or maybe some unknown factor. I just know that there is a decline in work ethic.

Many people’s ancestors had to work hard to come to this country and survive. It just seems like they would be disappointed with how things have turned out.

Today a lot of people disrespect their elders because they know so much, so they must obviously have a lot of experience in life?

I don’t know what wrong with my peers, but I do know that unless they change their attitudes, it is going to be a long life working with this generation.

Gay members of the DC community were finally able to apply for a marriage license beginning March 3.

I believe this is sensational. The fact that the gay and lesbian community can finally express their love and make it “official” is an inspirational thing.

Although I am a straight woman, I am fully supportive of the gay and lesbian community. I don’t believe homosexuals should be penalized for what they believe. Men and women should be able to practice anything they feel is right, even if it is rejected by society.

I am a strong believer in God, and although His word preaches the opposite of what I believe, I feel people should be allowed and not punished for doing what they want.

I am not, however, saying that participating in illegal activity is okay. Certain activities are frowned upon and punishable. One can not vandalize a public building just because they feel like it.

Same sex marriage is hurting no one, though. I say, get out there and be proud of who you are. Don’t be afraid to be who you want to be. Show your true colors. In the words of Dr. Seuss, “Those who mind don’t matter and those who matter don’t mind.”

American Idol; the only show were the participants, ranging from lawyers to salon artists, have the same dream – to become the next pop-singing phenomenon. Their fate was once determined by three of the most well-known experts of music; Randy Jackson and Simon Cowell, both music producers, and Paula Abdul, one of the most famous recording artists of the ’80s.

That is, however, until Abdul left Idol after being refused a major pay increase in her contract. Apparently, the $2 million Abdul earned last year alone on American Idol was not satisfying enough, so the pop sensation quit one of the most popular American reality TV shows.

Abdul’s absence, however, is not the most surprising factor of the new season; her replacement is none other than the famous talk show host, Ellen DeGeneres.

When the news of Abdul’s replacement was confirmed to be DeGeneres, the television-watching American public became divided against whether or not DeGeneres was qualified to perform a role such as a judge in on a music show, when DeGeneres has had limited, if any, musical experience.

DeGeneres defends herself by saying that she has no intention of treating the contestants as they would be treated if judged by a real, musically-based judge such as Cowell or Jackson. She instead states, “I’m not looking at it in a critical way from the producer’s mind. I’m looking at it as a person who is going to buy the music and is going to relate to that person. So I’m hopefully going to be that voice of what we’re all doing at home.”

DeGeneres has also noted that she is a huge fan of Idol, and has watched almost every episode since the program began.

In other words, DeGeneres is an everyday Idol fan, with one huge difference; she is known by most of the population for her talk show, “The Ellen DeGeneres Show.”

It’s a great idea to have a judge that is not totally submerged into a musically-centered world and can relate to the American people, but not any person deserves the chance to be a critic on a show that truly helps the contestants bloom into more professional and talented performers.

An American Idol judge should at least be experienced with music. DeGeneres may be an immensely popular talk show host and beloved by the American public, but there basically is no reason at all for DeGeneres to star as a judge who will aid in the determination of which talented hopeful will become the next singing sensation.

American Idol may be under criticism at the moment for DeGeneres’s new spot as a judge, but has certainly not lost its wide population of followers. In the future, DeGeneres will hopefully prove herself to be not only a talk show host, but of a worthy and knowledgeable judge that America will not resent as being the newest Idol judge.