Ski and Snowboarding

The other day I was asked if I skied or snowboarded. I said that I skied. Right after I said that comment, the person looked at me as if I was his parent. Quickly noticing this I then continued the story saying that I would like to learn how to snowboard in the future after making some money over summer. My statement seemed to satisfy him as his expression brightened up and cheerfully continued the story by asking where and when I would like to learn to snowboard. This is not the first time it happened to me. I never understood why we created this image that skiing is a parent thing or old people sport much like golf. I remember my parents telling me that they skied back when they were my age and it was the cool thing for them. Now skiing is just the opposite. Snowboarding is the new cool thing on the snow. It really amazes me why people care so much if one likes to snowboard or not. They care so much that I see movies where a skier and a snowboarders are racing together like in Johnny Kapahala: Back on Board in Disney channel. I find both skiing and snowboarding cool and have no problem with both. I suppose it is like the relationship between Rollerblade and skateboards or surfboards and boogie boards. I think we hate skiing because it reminds us of our parents and we feel the need to be different than them. Also it maybe just it is outdated for young people, like using a Windows 98 when one should be using Windows Vista. I will probably never find out for sure but all I can say is that I am glad I am planning on learning to snowboard. After I learn to snowboard, I can proudly say I do both rather than just skiing or snowboarding. Maybe snowboarding is funner than skiing or goes faster than skis. Someday when I am about as old as my parents, skiing will be the super outdated sport and snowboarding maybe the dieing sport much like skiing among young teens and a new sport will be replacing snowboarding.

Video Games

Video game consoles are very advanced nowadays. Games like Gears of War 2, Resident Evil 5, and Final Fantasy 13 make their characters and setting so real it amazes me every time I see one. I remember when I first saw Nintendo 64, I was shocked at how everything was crisp and 3D. Now that Nintendo 64 is nothing compared with the Playstation 3, Xbox 360 and Nintendo Wii. Graphics of some of the game is truly amazing and feels like one is watching a movie. Not only are the graphics realistic but the game play is advanced and is nothing compared with my first game console Super Nintendo. Now in today's gaming system, there are games that are very complicated like World of Warcraft which is a massively multiplayer online role-playing game that is very overwhelming at first. This game has continents, cities, forests, food, magic, all environment effects and setting, fantasy creatures and everything. It is fun to play but only after one learns to understand the hundreds of commands and spells. After the person learns to play, it starts to get exciting. Without learning how to play there is nothing one can do. As much as the games are advanced like World of Warcraft and many other games, people are always playing some of the "old school" games. I find these old school games more entertaining than today's games. A game like Mario Kart is simple and fun. Only objective of the game is to win a race. It may sound boring but it really isn't and they do not need to be a gamer expert to play. It is very hard to have a friend who never played games to suddenly pick up an Xbox controller to play Halo 3. He can try but he will probably be bored because of the complexity of the game. However games like Mario Kart, Mario Party and Bomberman are easy to learn and takes just few minutes to explain. Although I like the new games that are out, I prefer the old game system because of its simplicity. In order to have fun with some of the new games like World of Warcraft and etc, one must have skills which require time to acquire. Old school games are excellent when one is bored with couple of friends and have nothing to do. I recommend playing some of these old school games at least once.

Gifts

Mother's day is today and people are looking around everywhere for the perfect gift to their mothers. Whether it is a mother's day gift, birthday or Christmas it requires lots of difficult decision making. I know I struggle every time I have to go out to buy gifts for other people and it takes me a long time. I remember on some birthdays I just gave cash/gift cards because I had no idea what to get. To some people, I just committed a crime. I know people who go as far as saying that cash is the worst gift one can receive and have no though or feeling to the gift. It's better than receiving a coal from Santa Clause but I guess cash is almost as bad. But then what is a good gift? Am I suppose to buy the most expensive thing in the mall? Some people will argue that the gift's expensiveness does not determine how good the gift will be. However, brides receives a diamond ring on their wedding. If I'm correct diamond rings is one of the most expensive things in the mall. Although diamonds rings are expensive, it is the meaning behind the ring that makes it one of the best gifts to give to people. So should all gifts be something expensive and meaningful like a wedding ring? I think the key point in deciding the gift for anyone for any holiday is to think of the person one have to give the gift to. Whether the person is the person's mother, parent or friend it is always wise to think of what that person likes and find something that they will enjoy or love. I believe meaning is important than money. One can spend a couple dollars to make a perfect gift, if they thought through well. People always love handmade objects. I can never craft anything with my hands so I tend to buy a gift that I know will make them laugh for find some interest in. I am still learning the art of finding the right gift to people but I am proud to say that I no longer give cash to anyone I know as a gift.