Inside a High Schooler

Junior Year Schedule

chris.praley@gmail.com (Chris) — Sat, 22 Aug 2009 20:33:00 +0000

I got my "schedule" in the mail a few days again (I put schedule in quotes because it only tells me the classes that I'm taking, not the periods or teachers, unfortunately). Here it is!

First Semester:

AP Physics B

AP Biology

AP Language and Composition (English)

AP US History

Linear Algebra

Walking Wellness

Second Semester:

AP Physics B

AP Biology

AP Language and Composition (English)

AP US History

Linear Algebra

CADD II

There isn't much change from semester the first to semester the second, but I'm excited to work hard!

Top Chef and Project Runway

chris.praley@gmail.com (Chris) — Thu, 20 Aug 2009 14:17:00 +0000

Last night was possibly the best night of Top Chef ever! It started with the season premiere Top Chef Las Vegas - which I loved - followed by the season finale of Top Chef Masters - which was also grand.

Top Chef Las Vegas was a packed episode, and although I disliked the challenge (pick your vice and put it on a plate), the chefs seem to be very talented. It will certainly be a close finish this year. Top Chef Masters was equally entertaining. The final serving of food brought back so many memories of past season watching Harold, Ilan, Hung, Stephanie, and Hosea sit down to eat dinner. The food looked exceptional, too, which is so strange compared to "normal" Top Chef, where the judges always have something to complain about.

In other news, PROJECT RUNWAY RETURNS TONIGHT! I couldn't be any more excited right now. Unfortunately we can no longer "watch what happens," but instead we have to, er, does Lifetime even have a slogan?

Back to School

chris.praley@gmail.com (Chris) — Wed, 19 Aug 2009 18:08:00 +0000

It's been well over a month since I last blogged and for good reasons too; summer isn't very inspiring. Some people put pressure on themselves to have a wonderful summer. Live life to the fullest they say. But summer is not about that. It's having stressless days and nights of fun. In order to achieve that, I figured that I should stop doing everything that could ruin my fun, one of which being this blog. And, as you can see, I'm BACK!

Unfortunately, another thing that I decided to wait to even start is my summer assignments. I've got 3, one that's long, one that's hard, and one that's long and hard. Considering I'm taking 5-6 AP classes this year (depending on how you look at it), I'm super lucky, but still, I'm in way over my head.

School starts on August 25th for 11th graders in public schools within Anne Arundel County, and despite how extremely early it is this year, I'm excited to get back into the swing of normal high school life. That does mean all of the drama, headaches, and restless nights will be back as well, but I'm looking forward to working hard this year. I'm still unaware as to how this will all work out (pun intended), considering I'll be swimming 8 practices a week, working my butt off at school, dealing with math team, and organizing fundraisers (which will be explained in a later post!).

I may have to *gasp* cut down on Facebook.

Nawwww! That'll never happen!

An Eventful July 4th

chris.praley@gmail.com (Chris) — Sun, 05 Jul 2009 14:42:00 +0000

Please excuse my inability to take good pictures of fireworks.

My pool is over a hundred years old, so it's very, very traditional and conservative. Every year for Independence Day, there is a catered lunch free for all members. Some go to eat on the water, some go to eat by the poolside, some, like me, go to eat at the lifeguard table with all of the teenagers, half of whom are working for the day. 4th of July is generally the busiest day of the year for the pool, and 5-6 guards are on schedule (we typically have 3 guards working at most).

It's a bittersweet occasion: I get to see more of my friends all at one time at the pool, but the pool is very crowded, and unfortunately this led to disaster. A bunch of dads decided to play basketball with kids half their ages, in 90 degree heat, the optimal time for heart attack, which happened. Halfway through a game, a dad collapsed, and his heart stopped. I was down at the clubhouse, a good 100 yards away, when I saw a bunch of the lifeguards that are on duty, running towards me in the clubhouse. I quickly got out of the way to let the guards grab the AED and some ice. The guards ran back up to the basketball court, where CPR had already begun. Luckily, there is 5 members at my pool, all present, that are doctors. If I wanted to have a heart attack anywhere any time of the year, it would be 4th of July at my pool.

9-1-1 was dialed, and a fire truck and two ambulance trucks arrived at the scene in no time. After a shock from the AED, the injured man started breathing again, and a heart beat could be felt. Minutes later, he was talking.

Moral of the story? Well there's two. Always, always, always have an AED in public places. In Maryland, it is not a requirement, but they prove to be ~~very helpful~~ essential, and I think that they should be required. Additionally, know your limits. And this applies beyond the physical world. Always know your limits, whether it's dealing with stress, exercising with others, or being an old fart.

iPhone!

chris.praley@gmail.com (Chris) — Thu, 25 Jun 2009 21:35:00 +0000

My iPhone finally made it to my house after stops in Shenzhen, China; Anchorage, Alaska; and Indianapolis, Indiana. First thoughts:

AWESOME!

This is probably the coolest thing I've ever purchased (second most expensive). I'll be sure to write more about it later.

Additionally, I looked up my SAT Subject test scores. I was pleasantly surprised. Perfect on Math 2! (Exactly what I need if I want to get into MIT.)

Today is a grand day.

Trying To Get An iPhone

chris.praley@gmail.com (Chris) — Thu, 18 Jun 2009 14:41:00 +0000

The most recent adventure in my life is trying to get an iPhone. As you've possibly read before, I currently own a Samsung Glyde, and I hate it. Half the time I'm trying to use it, the touch screen becomes a nuisance, and it turns itself off constantly.

Because of this, I decided that getting the iPhone would be much better idea. I have loads of Apple products within my home, including an iMac, and eMac, an iPod Touch, a 4th Generation iPod, and two iPod Nanos. They are all extremely reliable products that work very well. I'm very happy with how they work.

Unfortunately, I currently am part of a family plan on Verizon, making it cheaper for my family to have cellphones. However, my plan is month-to-month, meaning I can cancel my plan at any time I wish.

Hopefully all of this will work out!

My Final Paper for English 10

chris.praley@gmail.com (Chris) — Tue, 16 Jun 2009 22:09:00 +0000

I had a very uninspiring day today, so while cleaning up all of my files on my computer, I thought that you guys would possible want to see my writing skills. Here is a research paper about the religion, or lack thereof, in Catch-22 (you'll have to bear with me about the formatting. Sorry MLA!):

The Absence of God in Catch-22: How Characterization Depicts Religion

Religion is one of the most altercated subjects ever. Disagreements cause more than simply an oral debate: violence usually becomes of it. From the concurrent attacks within India to the Crusades of the 11^th through 13^th centuries, religion has driven people to violent extremes. It is not surprising that Catch-22 targets religion, as the book is full of satiric comedy that targets many of the problems of today, from corrupt bureaucrats to the dehumanization of war. Joseph Heller certainly weaves his own religious preference into his classic book. The characterization of ridiculous characters in Heller’s Catch-22 conveys the belief that God does not exist.

The first incidence in which a character reveals the belief that God does not exist is when Colonel Cathcart abuses religion solely to gain political power, not to benefit those who use religion for emotional aid. Colonel Cathcart, like many of the bureaucrats stationed in Pianosa, is always looking for ways to get attention and get a promotion. He copies an idea that he read in The Saturday Evening Post, thinking that he will get some attention for it: have the chaplain give a group prayer before each mission. However, he asks the chaplain to change his speech to something more uplifting after hearing the last prayer the chaplain gave: “Haven’t you got anything humorous that stays away from … God? I’d like to keep away from the subject of religion altogether if we can” (192). Cathcart obviously does not care about the spirituality of his subordinates. He would never go out of his way just to help one of his men. Instead, Cathcart wants an impressive, tighter bomb pattern during the bomb missions. James Nagel, an Edison Distinguished Professor of English at the University of Georgia, has noted the same:

Cathcart’s logic leads him to an admission that ‘I’d like to keep away from the subject of religion altogether if we can and to the true object of him desires: ‘Why can’t we all pray for something good, like a tighter bomb pattern?’ But the plan for prayers is abandoned altogether when the chaplain reveals that the enlisted men do not have a separate God, as Cathcart had assumed, and that excluding them from prayer meetings might antagonize God and result in even looser bomb patterns. Cathcart concludes ‘the hell with it, then.’ (6)

Although Cathcart does not directly state that he does not believe in God, this scene in the book still reveals the belief that God does not exist because of the depression of Christianity. Government comes before religion in this case, and the way religious prayers are abused in order to gain bureaucratic achievement belittles the words of the Bible, the chaplain, and the entirety of the Christian religion. This scene is an indirect case in which the belief that God does not exist is conveyed in Catch-22, but the following scenario, a day in the life of Yossarian, is much more direct.

The characterization of Yossarian, the novel’s protagonist, also adds to the belief that there is indeed no God. After the terrible incident in which Doc Daneeka tries to prove that he is alive, and after the many deaths of his friends stationed in Pianosa, Yossarian has had enough and expresses his true feelings about God. He calls God a “colossal, immortal blunderer! When you consider the opportunity and power He had to really do a job, and then look at the stupid, ugly little mess He made of it instead” (179). It is not shocking to hear Yossarian so frustrated, so disoriented. Yossarian has made it his life in Pianosa to complain, to cheat, and to steal his way through the war, and his targeted attack on God is just one of the many forms of satire that Heller brings about. It is natural for Yossarian to complain about things as idealistic as religion, and he continues to do so in a quarrel between another character and him.

The fight between Yossarian and Lieutenant Scheisskopf’s wife also conveys the belief that there is no God. Lieutenant Scheisskopf’s wife comes to Pianosa to visit her husband as well as the other men on the island because of Lieutenant Scheisskopf’s lack of ability to sexually please his spouse. During a trip to visit Yossarian, Lieutenant Scheisskopf’s wife and Yossarain, both atheists, are debating the God in which they do not believe in. Louis Hasley, a professor the University of Notre Dame for over four decades, summarizes the situation nicely: “[T]he deity is likewise roundly vituperated by Yossarian … [I]n an adulterous visit to Lieutenant Scheisskopf’s wife (on Thanksgiving!), he argues with her about God” (2). Lieutenant Scheisskopf’s wife argues that the God she does not believe in is “a good God, a just God, a merciful God” (180). Yossarian, conversely, attacks God much more viciously:

And don’t tell me God works in mysterious ways … There’s nothing so mysterious about it. He’s not working at all. He’s playing. Or else he’s forgotten about us. That’s the kind of God you people talk about—a country bumpkin, a clumsy, bungling, brainless, conceited, uncouth hayseed … What in the world was running through that warped, evil, scatological mind of His when He robbed old people of power to control their bowel movements? Why in the world did he ever create pain? (179)

This ferocious attack easily exposes the belief that God does not exist. Yossarian once again exploits the logic of even having a benign God, explaining that if God were truly a benevolent force, he would not have allowed pain and misfortune to exist on this planet.

The chaplain is perhaps the book’s strongest symbol of religion, since he is the one person in Pianosa who does not engage in violent manners, as promoted by the Ten Commandments, and has dedicated his life to Christianity. However, after living about the torturously depressing island Pianosa, the chaplain begins to reconsider his feelings toward Christianity as well as religion as a whole, thus adding to the display of the belief that God does not exist. He begins doubting Christianity when doubting the validity of the Bible, shortly after being bossed around by Colonel Cathcart:

So many things were testing his faith. There was the Bible, of course, but the Bible was a book, and so were Bleak house, Treasure Island, Ethan Frome and The Last of the Mohicas. Did it then seem probably, as he once overheard Dunbar ask, that the answers to riddles of creation would be supplied by people too ignorant to understand the mechanics of rainfall? Had Almighty God, in all His infinite wisdom, really been afraid that men six thousand years ago would succeed in building a tower to heaven? (285)

The violence of the setting and patronization of the chaplain by nearly every character within Catch-22 has worn him down to the point in which he has lost faith in God and the religion he donated his life to The chaplain, as a symbol for God, displays the weakness of the words of God and the Bible. In addition, the chaplain is “described as being as much an embarrassment as Shylock in Shakespeare’s Venice” by Ann Crow, Assistant Professor at Havant College (2). It is an effective means of attack done by Heller in this case: his strongest symbol for religion and God in the novel is also the biggest outsider, the biggest humiliation of all the men about the island.

Once again, the characterization of the ridiculous characters of Catch-22 conveys the belief that God does not exist. Including religion, this book causes the reader to encounter current issues head-on as Heller deviously assaults them. This book sums these topics up very nicely: none of these topics matter when dealing with the reality of real life. Why should the words of one man affect the lives of all of us aboard the sole planet of life in this universe? Why would one man, who created all 6 billion people of Earth, create immoral suffering and pain? The answer lies simply within the plot of the end of the book: one should not yield to flawed issues as these. Avoid the situation and simply move on.

Works Cited

Crow, Anne. "Unlikely Heroes." The English Review Feb. 2005: 23-24. Thomson Gale. Literature Resource Center. Anne Arundel County High Schools, Severna Park. 2 May 2009 .

Hasley, Louis. "Dramatic Tension in Catch-22." The Midwest Quarterly Jan. 1974: 190-97. Thomson Gale. Literature Resource Center. Anne Arundel County High Schools, Severna Park. 2 May 2009 .

Heller, Joseph. Catch-22. New York: Simon & Schuster, 1996.

Nagel, James. Biographies of Books: The Compositional Histories of Notable American Writings. Ed. James Barbour and Tom Quirk. Columbia: University of Missouri P, 1996. Thomson Gale. Literature Resource Center. Anne Arundel County High Schools, Severna Park. 2 May 2009 .

Lifeguarding

chris.praley@gmail.com (Chris) — Mon, 15 Jun 2009 12:48:00 +0000

Being a lifeguard is possibly the easiest job I could have this summer. I may work ~~long shifts~~ very long shifts, but not much has to be done in the nine to ten hours.

The first part of the day is to clean the grounds. The "boat club," as some call it, consists of a pool, a clubhouse with bathrooms and a screened in porch, and a pavilion that is often used for swim meets and other social events. Additionally, the boat club resides on the water, overlooking the Severn River. I generally do toilets, sweep a bunch, and wipe down everything else with Chlorox wipes (which I strongly recommend).

After all cleaning is done, the pools needs to be vacuumed and the water must be checked for chlorine and pH. Chlorine is the most important thing that must be monitored. If the chlorine level drops to zero, the pool must be evacuated.

When everything is all neat and tidy, we wait until people come to swim, which sometimes does not happen for a long time. The members list of my pool mostly consists of old people, so there is rarely a large crowd of people there. When people do show up, we rotate sitting on the stand, 30 minutes on, one hour off.

Work is very easy. I couldn't be happier making money and even having a job, unlike most of my friends.

Learning Abroad

chris.praley@gmail.com (Chris) — Sun, 14 Jun 2009 01:08:00 +0000

Now that school is over and after reflecting over this past year, I realized that I don't really like Severna Park. It's hard and kind of ridiculous how much drama there is here. The last three weeks of school for me were extremely difficult and stressful, and it certainly burned me down.

Upon my little reflection, I remembered an idea that's been a recurring thought: going abroad for a semester of school. I've always wanted to travel abroad since I was little, especially since I've never left the East Coast before.

>The first country I considered is Spain, probably the "cleanest" of all Spanish speaking countries. I would certainly love the beaches of Costa Rica or any other country like that, but Spain is in Europe, and the culture change would certainly be thrilling.

The other country I immediately thought of was England. It would be much easier, of course, because I could easily speak English there. From England I gravitated to Australia, and I now am really pushing for Australia. I still am no where near committed to traveling yet, but I'm really looking forward to possibly doing this.

Any suggestions/info/stories/experiences you wish to share?

School is OUT!

chris.praley@gmail.com (Chris) — Wed, 10 Jun 2009 18:09:00 +0000

That's right. June 10th, 2009, is the last day of school for me. It's been a very long year, but I've certainly grown into a completely different person. My writing is way better, I've realized that I can do anything I put my mind to, and I moved up two class ranks. Life is good.

Just a little word of advice:

"Do what you like. Like what you do."

(PS now that school's out I'll be posting much more often. Sorry for the two week delay!)

It's My Birthday!

chris.praley@gmail.com (Chris) — Thu, 28 May 2009 01:25:00 +0000

Wooo! I've had a great day so far. Let's recap.

I woke up this morning, especially late, and I had to rush to take a shower and get to school in 25 minutes. It was amazing that I got to school no time. First period, I was informed that Linear Algebra will happen, and my favorite teacher I've ever had will be teaching it.

AWESOME!

Later, I went on a field trip where a small group of AP Environmental Science students, and we walked down to a local beach where we helped elementary school students plant grass and release baby eels (which looked like giant sperm more than eels).

AWESOME!

During the field trip, I checked my email on my phone, and I received an email with my gradesheet for a class that I had had an 83.9% in. I now have a 90.9%, which is an A.

AWESOME!

Because I got the A in the class, my class rank moved up two positions from 4 to 2.

AWESOME!

After school, I went to swim practice, where I made the set for the day, and after that my family (plus Mom Mom) went out to dinner at Carraba's.

AWESOME!

And above all, it's my birthday! I consider that an excellent day (anywhere from 4 to 6 "AWESOME!s").

A Cute Poem

chris.praley@gmail.com (Chris) — Sun, 24 May 2009 21:33:00 +0000

I came across this while reading the blogs written my MIT students, which can be seen here.

Anyway, this made me smile:

An MIT surveyor came upon the gates of Hell,
He looked the devil in the eye and said, "You're looking well."
The devil looked right back at him and said, "Why visit me?
You've been through Hell already 'cuz you went to MIT."

My Pool

chris.praley@gmail.com (Chris) — Sat, 23 May 2009 03:59:00 +0000

My pool, which I'll be lifeguarding at all sumer long, is opening tomorrow! The official opening ceremonies aren't until Memorial Day (Monday), but the pool will be able to swim in. However, it will most likely be less than 80 degrees fahrenheit, so I'll most likely be only sticking my hands in to check the pH and chlorine levels.

There's more to my pool than just swimming. It's officially a "boat club" (it resides along the Severn River), and lots of families, including my own, keep their boats in the water for the warmer half of the year.

The boat club was founded in 1906, which means it's celebrating its 103rd year this summer. It's a historic mess, shrouded with bits and pieces of history that can date back to the colonial periods.

To me, the boat club is a home away from home. It's been in my life since I was just a tot, and it's my summer escape from gossipy Severna Park during the summer. I can't imagine myself anywhere else during the months of June, July, and August.

Quote of the Day

chris.praley@gmail.com (Chris) — Sun, 17 May 2009 16:43:00 +0000

I haven't done quote of the day for a while now, but here's a good one. It's from a college student.

"It’s better to be pissed-off than pissed-on."

Catch-22, Again

chris.praley@gmail.com (Chris) — Sat, 16 May 2009 16:56:00 +0000

It's review time!

This year in Honors English 10, as a second semester project, we had to choose a classic book to read (plus or minus a few exceptions), and I chose Catch-22, by Joseph Heller.

It is a great book and very fun to read. The satire is hilarious, and I seemed to never find myself bored of what I was reading. Yes, this book is very long, but I enjoyed it the entire way through.

There is one single problem that I came across, and that's the fact that there's way too many characters. The book discusses a new character every chapter it seems like, and at times it gets somewhat hard to understand. However, towards the end, you've encountered so much characterization that a good bunch of the characters have become round.

I loved reading this book, and I'm excited to write a research paper about it! (Not really. Only, kind-of-sort-of.)

Don't Be Alarmed!

chris.praley@gmail.com (Chris) — Fri, 15 May 2009 00:17:00 +0000

Don't worry! It's still the same old Chris at the same old "Inside a High Schooler!" A new layout had been needed tremendously, but I've still got a few fixes to figure out, ~~starting with the header image, which I can't seem to figure out how to change...~~

Please provide some (positive) feedback! I'd really appreciate it!

They're Doing It Again

chris.praley@gmail.com (Chris) — Mon, 11 May 2009 10:27:00 +0000

They = my school's administration

It = destroying my education

The other day, I was informed that the math class I am signed up for next year has been dropped because only 11 people are signed up for it. The class was Linear Algebra, which is one step after Multivariable Calculus (kind of; it doesn't really matter when you take Linear Algebra but now is a good time for me). Anyway, I don't have a math class to take next year.

Well... I technically do. I can take College Algebra (a non-honors class that's easier than basic algebra) or AP Statistics, which is an alright class, but it's also number crunching. It doesn't require much thinking, especially when compared to Calculus.

We have no idea what'll become of next year. Community college may be an option, but since I'll be a Junior and not a Senior next year, that may not be possible. We'll just have to wait it out.

First Thoughts on The Fashion Show

chris.praley@gmail.com (Chris) — Sun, 10 May 2009 17:14:00 +0000

As an avid Bravo viewer, I love a lot of their shows. I love Top Chef. I love Top Design. I especially love Project Runway. It's by far my favorite reality show and possibly my favorite show ever.

So when I learned about the whole Lifetime mess, I was just as mad, upset, and hurt as all of you. Project Runway has been ruined forever, but we'll just have to deal with it.

Being such a fan of Project Runway, when I heard that The Fashion Show was coming to Bravo, I was upset. My first thought: "There's NOTHING that could EVER replace Project Runway!"

I thought about it some more, and then some more, and I realized that Project Runway was Bravo's and only Bravo's. It's entirely OK for Bravo to make something almost identical to Project Runway, concept-wise, after their baby was stolen. Certainly, there are some flaws about The Fashion Show. First, there is an extreme lack of talent. And, the person that has the most talent, Merlin, is the biggest jerk of them all. His attitude certainly hinders his talent.

However, there are some really great things about the show. First, ISAAC MIZRAHI! He's great. If there was a show about him going to Safeway every day, I'd definitely watch it. Also, FERN MALLIS! She's a wonderful judge. I always loved her on Project Runway, and she's great here too.

I'm looking forward to seeing how this season turns out. We'll have to "watch what happens." And who knows, maybe I'll start up my predictions again...

What's Your Favorite Color?

chris.praley@gmail.com (Chris) — Wed, 06 May 2009 01:09:00 +0000

Lots of personality tests ask what your favorite color is. Surprising, yes, but it can definitely reveal a bit of of your personality.

My favorite color? BLUE. I love blue. Especially light, calm blue. Nothing 'hot' or 'neon.' Ew.

Blue is associated with calmness and water, which is beautiful to look at, especially during sunset. I'm a very calm person. I never speak out of place. I'm very shy.

So what's your favorite color? Do you think it says something about your personality?

Test FAIL

chris.praley@gmail.com (Chris) — Mon, 04 May 2009 19:55:00 +0000

I know a whole bunch of people that would do this. Read this is you want to smile! (Click on it for a larger size if you can't read what it says.)

A Driving Update

chris.praley@gmail.com (Chris) — Sun, 03 May 2009 22:04:00 +0000

It's been almost 3 months since I got my learner's permit, and I have only 3 months left.

The things I'm good at:

perpendicular parking (everything but parallel)
turning
getting out of my driveway
4 way stop signs
intersections
three point turns
backing up
parking lots

Things I'm bad at/haven't attempted:

merging
highways
spontaneously having to do something (i.e. when I'm lost and have to make a random turn)
parallel parking

As you can see, I've got a lot of work to do!

New Layout

chris.praley@gmail.com (Chris) — Sun, 03 May 2009 00:22:00 +0000

It's been a long, long time since I changed the layout of my blog, and honestly, I'm bored of it. The colors are nice, but the symmetry is just blah. I'm going to completely renovate, so don't been alarmed if you see strange changes!

Also, if you have any design requests, I'm willing to listen! Instead of the media-inspired layout that I have now (meaning it needs images/videos to look nice), I'm aiming for a layout more dedicated to reading lots and lots of words.

The Samsung Glyde - A Review

chris.praley@gmail.com (Chris) — Sat, 02 May 2009 18:42:00 +0000

The Samsung Glyde is the phone I currently own. It was made approximately a year ago, and it is only sold through Verizon. I've got lots to say about it.

This phone is the worst phone I've ever had (this of course isn't fair to say since I've only had two phones, but my first phone was free. This one was $200.). It has many problems from the OS to the touch screen to the hardware design.

The OS of this phone is certainly fine, but it could be improved greatly, especially when paired with the terrible touch screen (which I'll get to in a bit). Some components with the OS aren't 100% finger-friendly. The buttons are too small from many parts of editing/making contacts, and scrolling down long lists is a just a big pain. The OS is terribly slow, and images display with half the quality of phones with cameras of the same quality (in terms of megapixels). Also, the gross gray of everything is just plain ugly.

The touch screen is probably the most annoying part of this phone. About 85% of the time it'll work, which seems great, but to put into perspective, 3 out every 20 texts I send become tirelessly annoying to send out because the touch screen won't sense my fingers correctly. Sometimes the screen won't even come close to being near where my fingers are touching, and instead it gets stuck "sensing" the bottom right corner of the screen.

The hardware has some issues too. However, and this is will probably be the only compliment you'll read in this review, the keyboard is very easy to type on. The buttons look great and are of great quality, with a smooth texture. Despite this, the back side of the phone, which holds the battery, comes off easily, too easily. If dropped from a height of 3 inches, the back snaps off.

All in all, this is simply a terrible phone. Please don't even think about getting it.

Asher Roth - I Love College

chris.praley@gmail.com (Chris) — Fri, 01 May 2009 19:36:00 +0000

"Music Friday" has now changed to "Put Up a Post With Some Music Every Fifth Post!"

This time: "I Love College" by Asher Roth

Take My Survey

chris.praley@gmail.com (Chris) — Wed, 29 Apr 2009 19:38:00 +0000

For IED, my group has to make a survey for a product we're making. Please take some time out of your day and take it for us. It'll take maybe 2 minutes. You can complete it here. Thanks!