Popularity and Unpopularity

You hear all those stories of cliques and the popular people. There’s a group of them in almost every school. And then, of course, there’s everyone else. Everyone else would usually fit into two basic categories: the ones who completely hate them, and the ones who would do absolutely anything to be a part of them. Luckily, that doesn’t happen all the time. When you are everyone else, there’s no median or go-between within the groups. When you happen to be a hater, you are disliked as well.

It’s seemingly simple, but it really isn’t. Also, the whole “You don’t like me? I don’t like you” concept makes for good drama. And when you’re a worshiper — well, you are hated too. There is something about the stalking and strange obsessions that turn the “in-crowd” to hatred.

Almost every teenager has been the victim and the predator — the one who taunts and the one who is humiliated. It seemingly can’t be helped. But those who are different, they must somehow have to be “punished” because that is supposedly the society of high school. And those who befriend the different (and are different themselves), are viewed as lower than the low in the eyes of judgmental teenagers.

And the social ladder is a frustrating thing. The popular students control the student body — or try to, at least, because some of the students believe they have had it with being mean to others. So, these students try being popular and nice simultaneously.

However, it’s not always like that. The ones below the popularity circle listen — listen and nothing else.

What do you think about popularity and being popular?

Full House: Little Shop of Sweaters

It’s Valentine’s Day, and Danny has bought D.J. the royal blue sweater that she wanted. D.J. puts on the sweater and goes to school. At recess, she removes her sweater so she won’t get it all sweaty, but after she puts the sweater on the ground, the school’s gardener runs over it with a lawn mower, and the sweater is shredded. D.J. doesn’t want Danny to know about this, so she and Stephanie go to the mall to buy a replacement royal blue sweater. However, the sweater is priced at $80 (and, as per the sales clerk, Julie, won’t be going on sale anytime soon, much to D.J.’s disappointment).

Stephanie sees a sign on the checkout counter that says, “Buy now, pay later.” Not realizing that a credit card is required to do what the sign says (or even how a credit card works), she grabs the sweater in an effort to help D.J., but this gets Stephanie accused of shoplifting. Stephanie tells D.J. the whole story, and D.J. decides to wear the sweater (provided that they hide all the evidence) while she and Stephanie go out for dinner with Danny.

The next morning, the girls return to the mall to send the sweater back, but the store clerk catches them upon the sound of the alarm and calls Danny, Jesse, and Joey. The store does not press charges on any of the girls.

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Stephanie: Hey, where’s your new sweater?
D.J.: (pulls parts of her now ruined sweater out of her backpack as she speaks) Right here... and here... and here.
Stephanie: What happened? Did it blow up?
D.J.: I was so stupid! I was playing soccer at recess, and I took my sweater off so it wouldn’t get all sweaty. Next thing I know, the gardener drives his stupid lawn mower right over my sweater.
Stephanie: Daddy is going to freak out.

***********************

Danny: Girls, I really like that you tried to help each other. (turns to D.J.) But why didn’t you just come to me when you were in trouble?
D.J.: Because I thought I could handle things on my own.
Danny: D.J., you always think that. But to be honest, you’re much better at getting into trouble than you are getting out of it.
D.J.: Well, is there any way to practice getting out without getting in?
Danny: Well, no. But once you get in, you have to come to me, or Uncle Jesse, or Joey and let us help you. Because no matter what happens, we’re always on your side.
D.J.: Thanks, Dad. (hugs Danny)

Tom and Huck: My Thoughts

In my mind, the 1995 Disney film Tom and Huck is very awesome, as well as very inspiring, especially for a fanfiction writer like myself, of course.

If there was one scene I wish had been in Tom and Huck, it would be this one:

Becky (Rachael Leigh Cook) gets separated from Tom (Jonathan Taylor Thomas) in the caves. Unfortunately for her, she runs into Injun Joe (Eric Schweig), who abducts her. As a result, Tom faces a dilemma: save Becky or keep looking for Murrell’s lost treasure.

Tom rescuing Becky was an important plot in the Nintendo video game “The Adventures of Tom Sawyer” where Tom dreams that he has to rescue Becky from Injun Joe’s clutches, as well as in “The Adventures of Tom Sawyer: The Musical”, where Injun Joe grabs Becky after Tom leaves her alone for a moment in McDougal’s Cave, where they have gotten lost.

I also wish they had made a sequel to Tom and Huck; in the sequel, Becky is haunted by visions of Injun Joe, which causes her to fear for her life. So, she enlists the help of Tom and Huck in order to get rid of the visions.

Anyway, I also like this speech given by Judge Thatcher (Charles Rocket) to the group of men around him:

“Gentlemen, my daughter Rebecca and Tom Sawyer are both lost in the caves, and Injun Joe has come back to take his revenge on Tom. Now be on your guard. Injun Joe has already killed twice. The sheriff and I believe that he will not hesitate to kill again.”

From my perspective, that speech is very awesome, as well as very brilliant and creative, too.

Full House: Beach Boy Bingo

D.J. ends up winning two free tickets to a Beach Boys concert in a radio contest, but then has to make a decision about who she brings with her. She wishes she could take her family with her, but, according to the rules of the contest, she is allowed to bring only one guest. 

Naturally, her dad Danny assumes that he will be D.J.’s choice, since he also likes the Beach Boys. But, much to Danny’s dismay, she selects Jesse instead, although she changes her mind later and tells Danny to go with Jesse (although Jesse changes his mind after a talk with Danny and tells her to go with her father). 

Danny says that D.J. is going to the concert. However, D.J. corrects him, saying that she isn’t going, since she feels it isn’t worth hurting someone else’s feelings.

“This concert was supposed to be fun. Now everybody’s either hurt or disappointed. It’s just not worth it. I’m not going.”

In the end, however, everybody is satisfied, thanks to some surprise visitors at the Tanner household.

Full House: D.J.’s Very First Horse

Wake Up, San Francisco is broadcasting an episode from a horse stable, where D.J. meets a horse named Rocket. She desperately wants a pet, and thinks that he will fit the bill. However, the only way that she will get him is if she has enough money to make the payments needed ($100) every two weeks, so she and her best friend Kimmy pool their money together in order to start making Rocket’s stable payments, without Danny knowing it. D.J. thinks he will not let her have Rocket unless she proves to him that she can handle the responsibility that comes with owning a pet. Her plan consists of secretly keeping up the payments for a couple of weeks, and then telling Danny about Rocket, as she figures that two weeks is enough to prove to Danny that she can handle the responsibility so he will not refuse.

When Kimmy blows her half of the money on shopping at the mall, D.J. cannot make the next stable payment. So, in a desperate effort to make sure she does not lose Rocket, she takes him to the house with her. Danny is shocked when he comes home and sees Rocket in the house. He tells D.J. to take him back to the stable. While there, D.J. bids him farewell, thinking that she will lose him. However, what she is delighted to discover is that Becky has decided to become Rocket’s new owner and make the stable payments, because she misses the times when she and her family had horses in Nebraska. Danny agrees to let D.J. help Becky take care of Rocket.

Kimmy: Well, I asked my mom about the horse.

D.J.: What did she say?

Kimmy: She said, ‘Kimberly Louise Gibbler, have you lost your mind?’ I didn’t really have an answer for that.

Full House: Tanner’s Island

Danny takes the Tanners and his co-host, Rebecca Donaldson, to Hawaii in honor of their second anniversary since becoming a family. Once there, however, Danny takes charge, being his usual controlling self, and marks all the families’ activities together on what he calls a “Clipboard of Fun.”

Among the various activities they do, he and the family decide to take an off-site trip to the Hawaiian island of Pua for a picnic and a Polynesian show. They stop for a rest on a (seemingly) deserted island. However, Danny realizes he did not tie up the boat correctly, which means that (for now) the family is stranded. Meanwhile, Joey thinks he is seeing an attractive hula girl, and Jesse and Rebecca have an argument about Elvis Presley (Jesse’s music idol), until they get over it in the end.

Thanks to a speech from D.J. after she gets their attention using a shell she finds near her feet as a horn, the adults set aside their differences, and the family builds a hut to stay in until they are found. That evening, Hawaiian inhabitants of the island find the gang and escort them to the Polynesian show on the other side of the island. It turns out that they really were on Pua, just the wrong side of it.

They end up dancing with everyone on the show. Joey, in fact, actually sees the hula girl he’d been imagining all day, and they both decide to dance together. At the end, Rebecca speaks with one of the musicians, and they’ve decided to play “Rock-a-Hula” by Elvis Presley, with Jesse singing lead.

Full House: Tanner vs. Gibbler

To celebrate Kimmy’s 12th birthday, D.J. plans a special party at the house with some of their closest friends.

When Stephanie slips up and mentions the surprise birthday party to Kimmy, Kimmy decides to bring her new karate class friends, Melissa and Nina, two older girls in junior high, to the party with her.

Upon arriving, however, all that Nina and Melissa want to do is invite a bunch of friends (presumably fellow party animals, such as ‘Duke’) over to trash the house, so when D.J. kicks them out for even thinking about trashing the house, Kimmy decides to abandon the party and go to the mall with them. This begins a feud between the two girls. With help from Jesse and Joey, D.J. and Kimmy end their feud, as Kimmy realizes that D.J. refuses to let her forget who her real friends are.

Meanwhile, Danny panics when he finds out that he’s been removed from his job as a sportscaster at the TV station. Luckily for him, it turns out to be a blessing in disguise, because the station has created a new local morning talk show titled Wake Up, San Francisco, and they need two people to host the new show. Danny is named as one of the hosts, while his co-host for the new show is Rebecca Donaldson, who had moved to San Francisco from her hometown of Valentine, Nebraska, many years ago, after coming off her two-year success in A.M. Omaha.

*************************

D.J.: I’m D.J. I’m glad you could make it.
Nina: We wouldn’t miss a party for our new pal Kammy.
D.J.: Her name’s Kimmy.
Kimmy: D.J., they wear lipstick. They can call me whatever they want.

Full House: The Miracle of Thanksgiving

When his first Thanksgiving without Pam arrives, Danny is determined to make the day extra special for his daughters. When Grandma (Claire Tanner) is unable to make it as expected, because a snowstorm up north in Washington has stranded her at her home, the men are inspired to make restaurant reservations. However, D.J. and Stephanie encourage them to have the traditional festivities at home. The results involve a burned turkey, a smashed pumpkin pie, and lots of tears. But the biggest challenge of all is how Jesse has not yet come to terms with Pam’s death.

D.J.: (as she and Danny walk into Danny’s room and sit on the small table in front of the bed) Dad, you don’t have to tell me. I know I ruined Thanksgiving for everybody.
Danny: You didn’t ruin anything.
D.J.: I let Mom down.
Danny: Why? Because of the turkey? D.J., Mom knew Thanksgiving wasn’t about turkeys. It’s about family, and being thankful for what we have. I’m thankful I’ve got you. You’re the one who pulled us all together tonight.
D.J.: You’re just trying to make me feel better.
Danny: Is it working?
D.J.: No.
Danny: You think you feel bad? I feel worse.
D.J.: You couldn’t.
Danny: Oh yeah? Wait ‘till I tell you what’s been going on. I felt so bad about your frozen turkey that I offered those ladies $200 for theirs.
D.J.: Dad, that’s crazy. You should have just told me the truth and given me the $200. That would have made me feel better.

Movies River Phoenix Should Have Done

My Thoughts on Pokémon

Everybody has a favorite part when it comes to the phenomenon known as Pocket Monsters (or Pokémon for short). For some, it’s battles and the strategies, while for others, it’s the Pokémon evolving into different and stronger forms, which is usually because of hitting a certain level, using an Elemental Stone, friendship, and time of day, among other factors. Me? I like all the aspects of the Pokémon phenomena.

So with that, here are my reasons for why I like Pokémon:

1) Cooperation

The game of Pokémon is quite complex, so talking with other fellow Pokémon fans, especially when comparing battle strategies, is a good idea when it comes to figuring out the game — and Pokémon is a good thing in that way, since it happens to be something that gets kids talking with each other. :)

2) Strategizing

Pokémon is a good thing for another reason: it teaches how to think strategically. Unlike some popular toys with little or no educational value, Pokémon is different in that it requires chess-like concentration and the ability to think ahead in sophisticated ways.

3) Lessons about Life

There are so many amazing examples of how this game teaches about life — and not just by quotes, either.

For example, in the games, there is a Pokémon called “Magikarp,” which is considered the most useless and weak Pokémon in the game. But after struggling, hard work, and determination, the Magikarp is able to evolve into an extremely powerful Pokémon known as “Gyarados.” The Pokémon was one of the most powerful in the Generation 1 games, defeating nearly everything in its path.

And that shows a good lesson there: if you don’t struggle, you don’t improve.

4) Reaching Goals

In Pokémon, the Trainers and their Pokémon learn that never giving up eventually pays off in the end. For the Pokémon, it’s learning to succeed, and that’s usually by practicing with their moves and doing well with them — basically sharpening old techniques and learning new ones. For the Trainers, it’s completing the Pokédex and battling other Trainers (sometimes in rematches). Like the old saying goes, “Practice makes perfect,” which is quite true, along with “If at first you don’t succeed, try, try again.” In other words, the more you practice at something (especially if it’s a talent you have, or something you simply love to do), the better you get at it.

5) The Importance of Rules

In order to be a Pokémon master, the player has to teach his or her Pokémon to follow the rules. It’s a basic rehearsal for life; if one follows the rules, they get rewarded (although there are exceptions, such as changing the writing rules when writing fanfiction, but that’s another story).

“The age-old theme of the journey is played out here, and one faces good vs. evil in the quest for the holy grail, i.e. becoming the greatest Pokémon master. This mirrors development — cognitive, social and psychological, across the life span. We all have monsters to keep at bay and mysteries or problems to solve throughout our lives.

“Pokémon provides a stimulus for learning and practicing life skills and other learning skills that will be useful later. Children are drawn to this challenge because of their very nature, needing to deal with their fears and vulnerabilities.”