Hurdles

You have now put countless hours of practice into the qualifier that gets you to regionals. On your mark…GO! You sprint as quickly as you can to the first hurdle. You jump, and then dart as swiftly as your feet can go to the next obstacle.

You’re almost finished the race when you think, “I have to surpass an obstacle. Oh no, an obstacle.”

An Obstacle |äbstəkəl|

(noun)

a thing that blocks one's way, prevents or hinders progress

The way I look at it, is that obstacles don’t have to be there, if what you see, doesn’t take your eyes off the prize.

Always in your life, you are going to find someone or something that interferers with your plans but don’t let that stop you. They are going to be there, no matter what, so imagine they’re not even there. Chances are that if you really try, just like a hurdle jumper, you can make it to the finish line without nockin' down a hurdle.

Obstacles are what you see when you take your eyes off the goal. So don’t let them intimidate you, or drive you way from your confidence that you will always have within yourself. Stay strong and erase those weak hurdles from your mind because we’re all mentally able.

i commented on Fiona's blog- Tims Vs. Starbucks

iTunes & LimeWire

“Hey mom, can you put on the radio?”

You just heard the hottest new tune this morning while driving to school, and you can’t wait to download it. However, you have to decide.

Should I use iTunes or LimeWire?

Lets start with LimeWire.

This peer-to-peer file sharing system allows you to download any song for FREE. Bonus…right? Sure, the song might be free, but there are downsides that come with that.

To begin, LimeWire could accidentally configure the software to allow access to any file on your computer, including documents with personal information. Such networks can lead to identity theft and lawsuits.

The ability of LimeWire to distribute viruses has also been a concern. Luckily, the much more improved versions of LimeWire have reduced that issue. Despite that, there are still chances of your computer getting infected.

Lastly, I know that it’s not fair to the artists. They work real hard producing songs and music videos that their fans will appreciate, and in a sense, we are getting their art for free. That’s selfish and dishonorable.

Lets move in to iTunes.

Well…what can I say? iTunes is the complete opposite of LimeWire. You have to buy the song (kind of the down side), but there are no chances of you getting viruses or getting your identity stolen. The list goes on, this time, if you buy from iTunes, you are being fair the artists. Plus the sound quality is better. You may not hear it with regular speakers, but with real good ones, you can tell the difference.

What it all comes down to is the price. If you’re willing to pay $0.99 for a song, pay it. That is off-course unless you want to put yourself at risk of identity theft or being called into Best Buy for a new computer.

In my opinion, iTunes is way better than LimeWire because it has a lot more to offer.

*I commented on Emily Vines’ blog- Chewing Gum