English: perspectives essay
Slipping from Reality
My palms are sweaty, eyes locked on the flashing lights and colors, feeling blood run through my head, and my heartbeat quickening with every breath. What gives me this adrenaline, this energy rush, is not any sport or physical activity. Sometimes, it’s the danger lurking behind every corner as I traverse the rugged streets, and other times it’s the fear of making a bad call during a match-altering decision. And through all this excitement, fear, and anger, I feel content; even relaxed.
This is the magic behind video games: it thrills, excites, frustrates, and pushes me to my limit, but also soothes me. Video games, quite literally, take me to another world. I forget reality and focus my attention onto what’s on the screen, whether it’s 1492 Rome, on a dystopian planet, or a fighting arena. I can always leave reality and enter the world of fantasy, where new rules apply and contain unique sets of problems. But what relaxes me is the fact that while in this fantasy world, all my worries slip away through my fingers grasping on firmly to the controller. For just a moment, I can be free.
I think the social misconception that video games cause laziness or violence is absolutely inaccurate and, in fact, rather insulting. This mentality arises only from those who have never experienced gaming for themselves, only running off the assumptions that are formed from shallow observations. I cannot even name the hundreds of players I have interacted with over the years I spent indulging in these worlds, the countless friends whom I’d never have met without this shared obsession. The world of video games is far from empty or toxic. Take the time to explore it, and you will find a plethora of happy experiences and kind players who share the same exact excitement.
We may feel as though reality has a tight grip on us, one which we can never escape from and are forever doomed to walk down the correct path as deemed by social norms. But while others view our world from such a realistic lens and see me simply staring into a screen and pressing buttons, I’ve already slipped away.
(This was an essay based on a unique perspective that I hold that I would have liked to share on the radio station KQED.)
My palms are sweaty, eyes locked on the flashing lights and colors, feeling blood run through my head, and my heartbeat quickening with every breath. What gives me this adrenaline, this energy rush, is not any sport or physical activity. Sometimes, it’s the danger lurking behind every corner as I traverse the rugged streets, and other times it’s the fear of making a bad call during a match-altering decision. And through all this excitement, fear, and anger, I feel content; even relaxed.
This is the magic behind video games: it thrills, excites, frustrates, and pushes me to my limit, but also soothes me. Video games, quite literally, take me to another world. I forget reality and focus my attention onto what’s on the screen, whether it’s 1492 Rome, on a dystopian planet, or a fighting arena. I can always leave reality and enter the world of fantasy, where new rules apply and contain unique sets of problems. But what relaxes me is the fact that while in this fantasy world, all my worries slip away through my fingers grasping on firmly to the controller. For just a moment, I can be free.
I think the social misconception that video games cause laziness or violence is absolutely inaccurate and, in fact, rather insulting. This mentality arises only from those who have never experienced gaming for themselves, only running off the assumptions that are formed from shallow observations. I cannot even name the hundreds of players I have interacted with over the years I spent indulging in these worlds, the countless friends whom I’d never have met without this shared obsession. The world of video games is far from empty or toxic. Take the time to explore it, and you will find a plethora of happy experiences and kind players who share the same exact excitement.
We may feel as though reality has a tight grip on us, one which we can never escape from and are forever doomed to walk down the correct path as deemed by social norms. But while others view our world from such a realistic lens and see me simply staring into a screen and pressing buttons, I’ve already slipped away.
(This was an essay based on a unique perspective that I hold that I would have liked to share on the radio station KQED.)
physics: ROLLERCOASTER project
A physics project where we were instructed to create a rollercoaster for a marble. Our theme was "Facebook".
Boy's state participation certificate
Boy's State is a program in which 1000 of the state's top boys are chosen to participate in a 1 week long mock government, where cities are established within counties within the state. Within each part of the government, delegates are chosen as councilmen, treasurers, secretaries, etc. I was a City Councilman for Redding City, and my responsibilities included planning our city laws and infrastructure, cooperating with other cities in my county, and making sure Redding City citizens' needs were met.