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I don't play tons of video games, just a few computer games and puzzles things online. I really like board games and card games like Scrabble and Uno. I don't spend much time playing games probably half an hour or less. I don't really have tons of time to spend playing games and I don't like to waste money on things that I would only use once or twice, then totally forget about it.

The game I love to play at home is Harry Potter Quidditch World Cup. It is a computer game that is really really fun. You can play as any team, or character, not just Harry Potter. It is highly addicting because you want to win as many games and practice challenges so you can unlock trading cards and new flying moves. The more Quidditch games you win, the higher chance you have in going to the Quidditch world cup and play against a professional team. I can play this game for hours on end, when I have the time to spare. The graphics aren't that great, but it is high pace and can make a person go a little crazy!

Ever since a friend of mine introduced me to a first person shooter game Left 4 dead, I'd became attached to the game ever since. As a person who enjoys playing games during her free time, I like just about any game that catches my attention and turns me into an addict. I think playing games is a great way to learn and stimulate the brain. It can help improve awareness, strategdy, and thinking speed.

Recently in Engilsh class, my teacher Mr Allison, introduced us to a game called Ayiti. It was created to give students a glimpse of what life is in Haiti. The goal of the game is to keep your family alive while giving them a good education and job. The game was pretty hard to me at first, due to the fact that I've never really played these kinds of games before. The first time I played this game, my entire family died before it was third year. However, the second time I played, I improved so much more. My family was able to survive all 4 years and was able to stay healthy, happy, and smart !

When I was younger, I used to love games. Everyone around me was talking about the games his/her was playing. I still remember how crazy we went. If someone didn't know any of them, he/she would find no topic to talk with others. People usually associate games with something that makes students' grades drop or something that wastes a lot of time and money. Yet, recently I played a game called Ayiti: the Cost of Life. Compared to my favorite game, The Magic Sword & The Chivalrous Youngsters, Ayiti: the Cost of Life brought me a totally different concept of games.

    This weekend, I was in North Carolina on a college visit to North Carolina State. I had applied to their design college, and I was interested in knowing more about the school. I stayed with my aunt and uncle, who are very cultural and "artsy" as I like to describe them. Naturally, Saturday night rolled around, and after a busy day touring the college, all three of us were exhausted. We talked about what we should do after dinner, and suddenly my uncle's eyes lit up with an idea. "Let's watch Man On Wire," he said, " It's made me remember why I keep trying, and why I'm creative." This was such a big statement to be made about a documentary, and I was curious. I had heard Man On Wire was a great movie, and I knew it had received an Academy Award for Best Documentary, as well as some Sundance Film Festival awards, but I didn't know much else.

For about two hours on Saturday night I thought I was back in 6th grade again. You know, back when "having fun" didn't have to involve drugs, alcohol, or trying to "get some". The scene was a birthday party. A few of my close friends from East High who all had their 18th birthdays throughout December and January were thown a surprise birthday party at a local gymnasium. Probably around sixty kids showed up from a few different high schools; I didn't really know what to expect. I walked in and was immediatly hit in the face by a foam cube flying through the air. Surprised, I looked around and saw kids jumping on the trampolines, swinging around on poles, and doing flips into the foam pits - a nice change from the status quo which I'm used to encountering upon arrival to a party. I quickly took my shoes off, ran over to the trampoline, and exuberantly bounced myself into the foam pit. I was suddently bombarded with nostalgic memories of birthday parties at The Little Gym up in Foothill Village: balance beams, pizza, and cake!

 If someone asked you what was one thing you wanted to do before you die, what would you say?  The newly produced TV show The Buried Life has gone about asking this question to people all over the U.S. Four guys, Duncan, Ben, Jonnie, and Dave, have set out with a list of 100 things to do before they die, as well as the intention of encouraging others to go after their own list. 

Games. What a general term. When I turned 7 years old I got my first Play Station and I guess it changed my life. Usually half of the things I talk about with my friends are video games and if its not that, then obviously its about movies/film-making. I play games a lot during the weekends but not as much during the weekday. Mainly because I hardly have time for it during the week but when that sweet Saturday morning arrives, its game on for the next 12-13 hours non-stop. I own many gaming systems and my favorite console will have to be the PS3. I'm not really into the rest of the consoles out there like the Nintendo Wii or Microsoft's X-Box 360 because I've been a Sony fanboy for a very long time. 

This weekend when I visited Chicago, my mom and I were lucky enough to gain free admission into the Art Institute of Chicago museum. Granted, we arrived in Chicago late in the afternoon, so we only had an hour to run as fast as we could around the museum to try and see as much as possible. But if all of the amazing art we saw in that one tiny hour didn't make the run through worth it (which was not at all the case), at least one painting did. This painting was "The Rapidity of Sleep" by Yves Tanguy.

Courtesy of the Art Institute of Chicago

For a lot of teenagers, the trouble we stir at school, at home, or on the weekends is the result of just wanting to have a little fun.  Admittedly, we don't always think through our decisions to stir the pot, and that can land us in some pretty questionable situations. But come on people (and by people I mostly mean adults), they are some things that just aren't worth getting worked up over.