"Friended"

"You're the friend of a friend...sure.  (Accepted)"  Many of us find ourselves "meeting" people this way.  Though it often only means adding another name to your list of "friends", it can also give promises to a real relationship.  It seems to develop, like any other friendship, by exchanging common thoughts and experiences.  You begin to trust them and believe in their persona; articulate, outspoken, and witty.  Months go by and you start to think that this individual is worth actually meeting and look forward to the concrete friendship.  When that day finally comes, there's a quiet awkwardness when you realize that the person you thought you knew, wasn't that at all.  You find them to be short for words and have little to nothing in common, leading to disappointment.  All you can think is you'd been fooled and lied to, and come to despise the person.  To this day I wonder if our meeting had led to the end of our friendship, or if there was even a friendship to begin with.

                The internet does more than provide information, it also brings people together through social networks and online forums.  Through these sites a person can post their life story, views, and interests, but even with all of this personal information it's hard to say you know them after viewing their profile.  It would seem we're meant to build relationships off of these networks, and has thus affected  how we socialize, but one cannot say you're truly living the human experience when there's a lack of shared experiences, tones, and body language.  It's essential to our personal growth that we be able to meet and have a face to face conversation to get to know each other; no editing, no screen names, no solitude behind a computer, just real talk.

WC: 300

The Millennials

Also known as Generation Y, as defined in Generations by William Strauss and Neil Howe, is the best way to describe our college-aged students.  In succeeding Generation X, we are more familiar with technology,  the media, and communications though I wouldn't say that we were born into it and are consumed or completely reliant on those forces like the current children and adolescents.  We can also be seen as culturally liberal and would explain our general acceptance of older controversies such as same-sex relationships and race.  And like other generations we are scarred by tragedy, in our case 9/11.

WC: 99

One Park, One Community

Growing up in Pasadena, it was hard to avoid  Downs Memorial Park which serves as a landmark for the community.  It's hosted rock and country concerts, garden weddings, firework displays on Independence Day, and provides spaces to play sports such as basketball, baseball, and volleyball.  This park has brought the community together since the 70s and represents the American ideals and the local wildlife to the area.

It's located down the road from the local elementary, middle, and high school.  So it has quite an impact on the community's youth.  I myself learned how to ride a bike in this very park and would later run its trails for track and field practices.  The park often holds educational programs through the schools or clubs in the area such as the local Cub Scouts and the Garden Society.  There are also various holiday events held at the park such as the 4th of July fireworks and a Haunted Halloween trail through the woods.  Needless to say, this direct involvement with the youth also involves the parents and brings families together to rent out pavilions and have barbeques and picnics in the summer.

The park serves various functions to the neighborhood but they are all meant to bring people closer to each other and give us a chance to appreciate family time and our local environment.  Without this park's preservation, I fear that there would be even more emphasis on technology (TV, internet, etc.) and staying at home for our community's youth.

WC: 250

One Park, One Community

Growing up in Pasadena, it was hard to avoid  Downs Memorial Park which serves as a landmark for the community.  It has hosted rock and country concerts, garden weddings, fireworks displays on Independence Day, and provides spaces to play sports such as basketball, baseball, and volleyball.  This park has brought the community together since the 70s and represents the American ideals and the local wildlife to the area.

It is located down the road from the local elementary, middle, and high school.  So it has quite an impact on the community's youth.  I myself learned how to ride a bike in this very park and would later run these trails for track and field practices.  The park often holds educational programs through the schools or clubs in the area such as the local Cub Scouts and the Garden Society.  There are also various holiday events held at the park such as the 4th of July fireworks and a Halloween Haunted trail through the woods.  Needless to say, this direct involvement with the youth also involves the parents and brings families together to rent out pavilions and have barbeques and picnics.

The park serves various functions to the neighborhood but they are all meant to bring people closer to each other and give us a chance to appreciate family time and our local environment.  Without this park's preservation, I fear that there would be even more emphasis on technology (TV, internet, etc.) and staying at home for our community's youth.

WC: 249