I found more insight on the issue of steroids in sports after I completed my next section of Juiced, by Jose Canseco. In chapter three, Canseco continues to describe his early experiences as a baseball player playing in the minor leagues. He describes that there were hardly any Cuban star baseball players at the time he entered the league as a minor league player. He writes that he had hardly made any progress through his second year in the minor leagues. Next, Canseco describes the passing of his mother. His mother's death was devastating for him, but her death also motivated him to become the best athlete and baseball player he could be given all of his resources. After describing his mother's death, Canseco describes the difficulties he faced when he played with the Oakland A's organization. They were racist in some ways and also did not treat him with respect because he was a lower round draft pick. Canseco considered giving up baseball when he felt unwanted, but a coach whom supported him helped him get back into baseball and keep fighting.
In chapter four, Canseco describes how steroids helped him elevate his baseball game. He became stronger quickly, and soon, he saw results on the field. He quickly joined the Oakland A's major league team and made an instant impact. As a result, Canseco became more of an icon with some people, specifically Cubans living in Miami, Florida. Canseco writes that he became one of the best athletes in sports through his steroid regime. He began to see the results he was looking for and would continue to find success.
In chapter five, Canseco describes meeting the woman who would become his first wife. He met her in a gym, and would connect with her later down the road. Meanwhile, Canseco describes his excellent rookie baseball season in the MLB. Despite being intimidated by the major leagues, Canseco broke rookie records along with capturing the rookie of the year award. He continued to develop as a baseball player as he became more disciplined as he gained more years in the league under his belt.
After reading this section of Juiced. I still believe Canseco should have never taken steroids. He tries to make the reader want to like him when he describes the passing of his mother. However, I still do not think he should have done steroids even if he did them safely and they made him a great baseball player. I also was somewhat surprised how quickly steroids helped Canseco improve. Canseco describes part of the effects of steroids to be positive mentally. I think the steroids certainly gave Canseco an edge when no one at the time knew about his use of the performance enhancers. However, I refuse to believe that he is justified in taking the drug even if he wanted to make his mother proud after her death. If I could give a message to all of my followers, I would say that cheating to achieve as certain accomplishment will never be as sweet as accomplishing the task clean. In addition, I believe illegal drugs like steroids are not necessary and are also immoral for me personally. Although I have cheated several times in my life, I will always strive to remain as honest as possible in everything that I do. In conclusion, I believe drugs or any other form of cheating should never be considered the correct option.
Monday, February 7, 2011
Another Game, Another Wake up Call
As I had posted earlier, I am competing in an intramural basketball league. Also as I stated earlier, this league is much more competitive than most people would expect. This week, my team, with a record of 1-2 going into the game, faced another talented team. Many of the players on this other team were former basketball players who made and played for their middle school teams. I thought we would still be able to compete with them though. Unfortunately, the game was a struggle from the start for our team. In fact, we lost the game with the biggest loss of our season with the final score of 40-92. I would like to say some of the blowout losses my team and I have faced this year did not affect our egos at all, but I would not be telling the truth. Honestly, I believe one or two of the players on the other team could play for Homestead team. In addition, there are several players that are playing intramural basketball this year that have played for Homestead's basketball team at one point or another in their high school career. I believe that we should create one more league to add to the two leagues we have now in intramural basketball. As a result, we could separate teams that are extremely competitive with moderately competitive teams. A third league would be available for teams that are uninterested in being extremely competitive and facing seasoned competition. In summation, I believe I may have a case for a new league that I should definitely consider telling the intramural basketball league managers about this idea.
"What's up?".... The Best Phrase to use with Peers?
Today, I was randomly thinking about a certain phrase that is commonly used. This phrase would be "what's up?", which is commonly used between people in school who are greeting each other. I personally have never been a fan of this phrase for a rather simple reason. Basically, I do not know of a proper way to answer the question. Sure, the phrase is basically used simply to say "hi" to a friend, but I still find that saying "what's up?", as an alternative can cause some awkward moments. When I respond to the phrase, I almost always say "not much," or "nothing." Many times, conversations can end after a person responds to this phrase with a simple answer, like "not much." Personally, I like to use different phrases such as "how is it going?", or "how are you?" The phrases may not seem much different, but I believe that these phrases open up a conversation better than saying "what's up?" Overall, I know people will continue to use the phrase "What's up?", including myself, but I will try to make an effort to use other phrases in situations in which I believe that other phrases will better open up a conversation with one of my peers.
Sunday, February 6, 2011
Reading: Juiced, by Jose Canseco (pgs. 1-38)
I officially began reading my second book that I will blog and analyze only a few days ago. I can already tell that this book by Jose Canseco will give me a different perspective, even if I do not agree with Jose's opinions. Jose's book, Juiced, details Jose Canseco's journey in life as a person and baseball player. The major topic Jose addresses in his book is the use of steroids, especially in sports. Canseco used steroids to improve his game when he did not believe he would make it to the next level of his sports if he did not use the performance enhancers. In the book, Canseco basically tries to tell his readers that steroids are not as evil as people perceive them to be in life.
In the introduction, Canseco immediately addresses the controversial issue of steroids. Canseco plainly states that he believes steroids are a reality that all people must accept. He believes that steroids will continue in the future and see a rise in popularity. He also believes steroids will improve every person's state of living and must be accepted in all of society as a new way of life. He also previews some of the content in his book, including some of his life experiences with other famous people. At the end of his introduction, he states that he hopes the reader will get over any biases they have over steroids after reading his book.
Next, Canseco describes his first experience with steroids in the prologue. Basically, Canseco previews the content of his book by describing his first experiences with injecting steroids with his friend. He describes the experience as difficult. However, he foreshadows to the reader that the steroids help him achieve some of his goals in life.
In chapter one, Canseco describes his general background as a child growing up. He was born in Regla, Cuba in July 1964, along with his twin brother, Osvaldo. He describes his childhood as a difficult time when he was growing up in Cuba with Fidel Castro in power. Canseco also states that he was never close to his father. He respected his father as a provider, but he never felt like his dad believed in him. He and his brother would always be criticized by their father. Canseco's father did help him get into sports and improve, but he hurt Jose's self confidence at the same time. Canseco always went to his mother as his rock. His mother was a truly kind person, and she would always protect Jose, even from her husband. At the end of Canseco's prologue, he describes his experiences with Tae Kwon Do. He states that this martial arts activity was something he felt he could achieve success with in life. Although he put the activity on hold, he knew he would come back to the sport in the future.
In chapter two, Canseco describes all of his early struggles as a child. He describes his personality when he was a kid to be soft spoken and not confident. He never wanted to do speeches in school because he was too afraid of talking in front of his peers. He also did not have many friends or talk to many girls because of his low self esteem. In his sports life, Canseco was pushed by his father to pursue baseball rather than other sports. His father helped him improve, but also took away his confidence in life. Canseco states that he did not play on the varsity baseball team in high school until his senior year. Canseco tells the reader that he always knew he had a knack for hitting the ball and possessed natural skills as a batter. He went on to have an excellent senior season, and was drafted out of high school by a Major League Baseball team in one of the later rounds in the MLB draft. However, Canseco still did not have confidence in his abilities. When he first played for his minor league team in Idaho Falls, Canseco experienced several difficulties. He almost died from alcohol poisoning during this time. As a result, Canseco has never been much of a drinker in his life. In addition, his baseball statistics were unimpressive with his first team. Canseco did not believe he had what it takes to play in the major leagues. At the end of the chapter though, Canseco states that this attitude was about to change.
After reading the first section of Juiced, I already feel that I am not on the same page as Canseco. Canseco endorses steroids right at the beginning of his book. He believes steroids can help everyone and they should and will be used by more and more people in the future. I personally do not have as strong as a negative attitude against steroids as some people. I do not believe they are quite as bad for people's health if they only use them as an adult and use them properly. However, I definitely would never take steroids as I believe they are morally wrong. We do not know the actual side effects surrounding steroid use. Personally though, I would not want to take steroids because I see it as cheating. I will always want to succeed in a sport through hard work and or natural skill. People who use performance enhancers think that they need an edge to get to where they want to be in their profession. I will accept where I am in any sport or area of athleticism. Even if I may feel dissatisfied with my skill level, I would never consider steroids an option. In conclusion, I still look forward to reading Canseco's interesting book, although we clearly have a difference in opinion.
In the introduction, Canseco immediately addresses the controversial issue of steroids. Canseco plainly states that he believes steroids are a reality that all people must accept. He believes that steroids will continue in the future and see a rise in popularity. He also believes steroids will improve every person's state of living and must be accepted in all of society as a new way of life. He also previews some of the content in his book, including some of his life experiences with other famous people. At the end of his introduction, he states that he hopes the reader will get over any biases they have over steroids after reading his book.
Next, Canseco describes his first experience with steroids in the prologue. Basically, Canseco previews the content of his book by describing his first experiences with injecting steroids with his friend. He describes the experience as difficult. However, he foreshadows to the reader that the steroids help him achieve some of his goals in life.
In chapter one, Canseco describes his general background as a child growing up. He was born in Regla, Cuba in July 1964, along with his twin brother, Osvaldo. He describes his childhood as a difficult time when he was growing up in Cuba with Fidel Castro in power. Canseco also states that he was never close to his father. He respected his father as a provider, but he never felt like his dad believed in him. He and his brother would always be criticized by their father. Canseco's father did help him get into sports and improve, but he hurt Jose's self confidence at the same time. Canseco always went to his mother as his rock. His mother was a truly kind person, and she would always protect Jose, even from her husband. At the end of Canseco's prologue, he describes his experiences with Tae Kwon Do. He states that this martial arts activity was something he felt he could achieve success with in life. Although he put the activity on hold, he knew he would come back to the sport in the future.
In chapter two, Canseco describes all of his early struggles as a child. He describes his personality when he was a kid to be soft spoken and not confident. He never wanted to do speeches in school because he was too afraid of talking in front of his peers. He also did not have many friends or talk to many girls because of his low self esteem. In his sports life, Canseco was pushed by his father to pursue baseball rather than other sports. His father helped him improve, but also took away his confidence in life. Canseco states that he did not play on the varsity baseball team in high school until his senior year. Canseco tells the reader that he always knew he had a knack for hitting the ball and possessed natural skills as a batter. He went on to have an excellent senior season, and was drafted out of high school by a Major League Baseball team in one of the later rounds in the MLB draft. However, Canseco still did not have confidence in his abilities. When he first played for his minor league team in Idaho Falls, Canseco experienced several difficulties. He almost died from alcohol poisoning during this time. As a result, Canseco has never been much of a drinker in his life. In addition, his baseball statistics were unimpressive with his first team. Canseco did not believe he had what it takes to play in the major leagues. At the end of the chapter though, Canseco states that this attitude was about to change.
After reading the first section of Juiced, I already feel that I am not on the same page as Canseco. Canseco endorses steroids right at the beginning of his book. He believes steroids can help everyone and they should and will be used by more and more people in the future. I personally do not have as strong as a negative attitude against steroids as some people. I do not believe they are quite as bad for people's health if they only use them as an adult and use them properly. However, I definitely would never take steroids as I believe they are morally wrong. We do not know the actual side effects surrounding steroid use. Personally though, I would not want to take steroids because I see it as cheating. I will always want to succeed in a sport through hard work and or natural skill. People who use performance enhancers think that they need an edge to get to where they want to be in their profession. I will accept where I am in any sport or area of athleticism. Even if I may feel dissatisfied with my skill level, I would never consider steroids an option. In conclusion, I still look forward to reading Canseco's interesting book, although we clearly have a difference in opinion.
Tuesday, February 1, 2011
Could we see a two day Week???
I have just received news that Southwest Allen County schools are closed for tomorrow. This closing makes the week at most two days long. If we somehow see another closing on Thursday, we could see an extremely rare, two day week. As of now, I am definitely hoping to see this two day week become a reality!
"Blizzard of 2011?"
I believe that the blizzard that is occurring as of this moment is certainly worthy of the title of, "Blizzard of 2011". Not only was Southwest Allen County closed for today, but closings for Wednesday and Thursday seem likely as well. I know I do not have countless years under my belt, but I do not remember a snow apocalypse quite like the one I am seeing right now. Although I would love having one or two more days off of school, I also want people to be safe in this weather. I would suggest staying home for all people in the area and only go out of your house if it is completely necessary. In conclusion, fellow students can enjoy their days off, but do not underestimate the power of this potential blizzard!
Reading: Coming Back Stronger, by Drew Brees (pgs. 275-303)
After I completed the final section of Coming Back Stronger, I feel that I have an excellent understanding of trials and triumphs. In the final chapter, chapter seventeen, Brees describes the playoffs leading up to the Super Bowl in his 2009 season with the New Orleans Saints. The Saints played all playoffs as if they had something to prove, defeating both the Arizona Cardinals and the Minnesota Vikings. Brees treasured the moment after he defeated the Vikings to qualify for the Super Bowl, but he knew he and the Saints had one more mission. Brees described how supportive the Saint's fans had been all season and leading up to the Super Bowl. Brees believed he had to win the game for the fans. Next, Brees described the buildup leading up to the Super Bowl. He participated in media day and also received some suggestions on the Super Bowl situation from some mentors of his that won in Super Bowls.
Moreover, Brees describes the Super Bowl itself. The game was back and forth for most of the Super Bowl. There were many key plays for the Saints, including a surprise onside kick recovery and an interception for a touchdown late in the game. In the end, Brees and the Saints were victorious. After the game, Brees described his initial post game reactions and his special moment after the game with his son, Baylen. Next, Brees described the parade which was located in New Orleans a few days after the Super Bowl. He described the parade in New Orleans to be larger than any parade for an NFL team in any other city would have been after the game. Finally, Brees described all of the events that happened after the big game. He received extra attention by media and several talk shows. He ends chapter seventeen when he describes the moment right after the game when he sees a friend, whom has a talk show, and he gives her a kiss after the win.
In the epilogue, Brees describes the goals for himself and the New Orleans Saints following their Super Bowl win. Brees states that he never will stop trying to acheive more and will continue to work to improve everyday. He gives a message to all of his readers to conclude his memoir. His overall messages to readers is that we not only need to accept adversity, but we should welcome adversity. Brees stated at the end of his book that he wanted readers to realize that their greatest victories can come from their greatest defeats.
After reading the final section of Brees's memoir, I could not help feeling a little emotional. Personally, Brees's words concerning defeat struck home for me. I realize that my greatest defeats have certainly led to some of my greatest victories in life. For example, when I lost a championship wrestling match in eighth grade, I was led by God to pursue other activities in life. I started to pursue other activities such as football, track, and weight lifting. I found success in several of these new activities. When I reflect on where I stand currently, I have no doubt in my mind that the problems I have faced in my life have helped shape me into who I am today. I know I have more work to do in my life to be the person I want to be in the end. However, I know that difficulties in my life will always provide a silver lining and shape me into a better person. Although it is difficult to see at the time, trials always seem to produce some kind of positive outcome in the end. In final analysis, I believe Coming Back Stronger is an excellent book that should be read by anyone who wants to learn about unleashing the hidden power of adversity.
Moreover, Brees describes the Super Bowl itself. The game was back and forth for most of the Super Bowl. There were many key plays for the Saints, including a surprise onside kick recovery and an interception for a touchdown late in the game. In the end, Brees and the Saints were victorious. After the game, Brees described his initial post game reactions and his special moment after the game with his son, Baylen. Next, Brees described the parade which was located in New Orleans a few days after the Super Bowl. He described the parade in New Orleans to be larger than any parade for an NFL team in any other city would have been after the game. Finally, Brees described all of the events that happened after the big game. He received extra attention by media and several talk shows. He ends chapter seventeen when he describes the moment right after the game when he sees a friend, whom has a talk show, and he gives her a kiss after the win.
In the epilogue, Brees describes the goals for himself and the New Orleans Saints following their Super Bowl win. Brees states that he never will stop trying to acheive more and will continue to work to improve everyday. He gives a message to all of his readers to conclude his memoir. His overall messages to readers is that we not only need to accept adversity, but we should welcome adversity. Brees stated at the end of his book that he wanted readers to realize that their greatest victories can come from their greatest defeats.
After reading the final section of Brees's memoir, I could not help feeling a little emotional. Personally, Brees's words concerning defeat struck home for me. I realize that my greatest defeats have certainly led to some of my greatest victories in life. For example, when I lost a championship wrestling match in eighth grade, I was led by God to pursue other activities in life. I started to pursue other activities such as football, track, and weight lifting. I found success in several of these new activities. When I reflect on where I stand currently, I have no doubt in my mind that the problems I have faced in my life have helped shape me into who I am today. I know I have more work to do in my life to be the person I want to be in the end. However, I know that difficulties in my life will always provide a silver lining and shape me into a better person. Although it is difficult to see at the time, trials always seem to produce some kind of positive outcome in the end. In final analysis, I believe Coming Back Stronger is an excellent book that should be read by anyone who wants to learn about unleashing the hidden power of adversity.
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