The Split

As I mentioned before, Klaus was one of the antagonists of “The Vampire Diaries” (TVD) but ever since his family was introduced, they basically became more popular than the main characters. Most fans found them more interesting (basically “cooler”) and this is not what the directors/producers wanted. Since they saw how popular these characters (Mikaelson family) became, they decided to create a TV show just for them. Once the fourth season of “The Vampire Diaries” came to an end, the TV show was split into two. Main characters of the Vampire Diaries (Elena/Stefan/Damon) continued filming TVD (the fifth season) while the Mikaelson family cast moved to a new TV show called “The Originals”. Most fans expected that both shows would fail after the split due to relationships between the characters. However, this is not what happened at all. Both shows are very successful and honestly far better in my opinion. They both have interesting stories and new characters that make the shows great. Even though I like both shows, I find “The Originals” a little bit better because Niklaus Mikaelson was always my favorite character. I feel like he finally got the spotlight he deserved. The only thing that irritates me is that they are both new TV shows which means that you can only see one episode per week.

Background on Klaus

In the previous blog post, I briefly mentioned Klaus’s relationship with his siblings and now I feel like I must explain the story behind it.

Klaus had six siblings. Four of his half-brothers are dead which leaves him with Rebekah (half sister) and Elijah (half brother). It all started when one of his brothers got killed by a werewolf. His mother (Esther), who was a witch, cast a spell that turned their whole family into vampires so that they can survive. Klaus’s father (Mikael) was very hard on him his whole life which is why Klaus constantly sought his approval. What we learn throughout the series is that his mother had had a child (Klaus) with another man. Klaus’s real father turned out to be a werewolf. Once Klaus triggered his werewolf genes (by killing a person), he started turning into a werewolf for the first time and his father realized that they were not related. Mikael’s plan was to have Esther cast a curse that will keep Klaus’s werewolf side dormant and then reject and abandon him. While his mother was casting the spell, Klaus killed her in retaliation due to his werewolf aggression. After that, everyone in his family scattered except for Elijah and Rebekah. They helped Klaus bury their mother and swore to “stay together, always and forever”. This is why the three of them remain together, even though they tend to argue and disagree a lot.

That was a lot of information to take in at once, I know. Hopefully, you now understand why Klaus has such a strong bond with his siblings.

My Favorite Character

What drew me into writing about this topic was my favorite TV-show character, Klaus (Niklaus Mikaelson). I find him very amusing and I tend to relate to him which is why I will use this blog to briefly describe him. He is one of the main antagonists in "The Vampire Diaries" and the main character of the new TV show "The Originals".  Just to clarify, he remains the same character, but "The Vampire Diaries" has split into two different shows. He is the strongest of the original vampires and is currently considered immortal. Therefore, he tends to be pretty arrogant. He is also very impatient and easily disappointed. One of the best things about him are his wicked lines. Pretty much everything he says sounds cool. He is played by an Australian actor, Joseph Morgan, and the accent only makes him sound better. Interesting thing about Klaus is that he acts very tough most of the time and doesn't have many friends because of it (he believes that love is a weakness) but on the inside, he feels very lonely and kind of abandoned. He argues/fights with his family (his brother and sister) very often due to his conceited personality and therefore makes it very hard for them to stick around. However, even after all of the trouble he has caused for his siblings, they are still with him because they all consider family to be the most important thing.

The Impact Of TV Shows On My Life

I love watching TV shows. I probably do it more than I should, but it's a habit that cannot be changed easily. Most of the TV shows, or at least the ones I watch, have hidden messages for us. They try to teach us something through characters and their experiences and I find this both entertaining and interesting. Another great thing about TV shows is that there is usually a character that I can relate to due to many similarities between us. This is why I will use this blog to talk about what I've learned from TV shows and how these ideas helped me through my life and also explain how and why I could relate to some of the characters.

Forced To Hand Write

I was told to hand write about the experience of writing. One sentence in and I was already hating it. I was basically forced to use the simplest words I know because I was not sure if I could spell the more complicated words correctly. I was two sentences in before making a mistake which then I had to scratch over/erase. This only lead to one messy-looking assignment and that made me sad. It's not that I'm unable to hand write, I just didn't do it in a long time, meaning I've lost my "touch".

I think that hand writing is like riding a bicycle. When I was younger, I'd ride a bike everyday so I was really good at it and I could do some tricks occasionally. If I was to ride a bike today, I would be able to do it, but I wouldn't be as good and confident and I most definitely wouldn't be able to do any stunts. I am sure that if I was hand writing regularly, I'd be way better at it.

What I find really interesting is the fact that Helen Keller, who was both blind and deaf, wrote so well. She had so many disadvantages but she didn't let that stop her. She would take much longer to learn a word and I'm not even going to mention the way she had to proof read what she wrote. She was definitely a very unique individual.

At the end of my hand writing assignment, I was very disappointed by the fact that I used so many simple sentences. I also repeated many words which also shows my lack of skill.

The Downside of Anonymity

        The number of websites where people can be anonymous is increasing nowadays. Websites like 4chan, where anyone can say anything they want without any consequences. There are many people who enjoy this additional privacy and the opportunity to express themselves. They enjoy it so much that they do not see the downside of it. The power of anonymity causes us to behave in a way we normally wouldn't and this leads to problems like racism and sexism. When we are anonymous, we feel like no one can stop us and therefore bullying is easier. There are also situations where people pretend to be different race or gender, while being anonymous,  just so they are not picked on.

Many people tend to abuse the power of anonymity once it is in their hands. For example, there was a tragic case regarding the website Ask.fm. A fourteen year old girl committed suicide because she was being bullied by anonymous users there. They were saying things like "go die" and "do us all a favor and kill yourself" and so on. Does the fact that we can be anonymous give us the right to say such things? No. Not when people can end up taking their own lives because of it. This was one of the more extreme cases, but the truth is that there are many bullies out there and most of them are very racist and sexist. Because they know that their identities are hidden, they don't think twice about what they are saying and therefore end up mentally hurting other people. These examples only prove that cyberbullying is easier to do while being anonymous.

Anonymity also affects our identities.  For example, there are many girl gamers that pretend to be boys online just so they are not the targets of sexist jokes. I have a girl friend that does exactly this. She was sick and tired of hearing "go make me a sandwich" comments that she now pretends to be a guy to avoid it. But by doing this, isn't she losing a part of her identity? She can't be her true self while gaming without getting harassed or mocked. Pretending to be someone else just to be accepted and left alone sounds ridiculous, but it is the current situation unfortunately.

Being anonymous gives us additional freedom, but it also has the downside of causing people to behave differently, mostly in a bad way,  leading to problems like bullying, racism and sexism. It is easier to be a bully and say hurtful things when your identity is hidden. Anonymity also leads to people pretending to be someone they are not and by doing so, it affects identities. If we are to allow such level of privacy and freedom, we must learn to be more careful of what we say online. Although you may not care what some anonymous person said about you online, there are people that do. After all, lives have been lost because of this.


Sources:

Girl committed suicide because of anonymous bullies
http://www.mirror.co.uk/news/uk-news/askfm-bosses-could-reveal-names-2143278
Cyberbullying and anonymity
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/randy-taran/cyberbullying-apps_b_3941599.html

Winter is Coming

I'm one of those people that like winter. Sure, it lasts long and it can be pretty cold, but it also means  that the big holidays are coming and everything looks better.  I prefer to admire winter's beauty while sitting in my cozy car.

So when winter came last year and the snowflakes were gently covering the asphalt, I got pretty upset. Why, you ask? Maybe because the trip to school took me thirty minutes longer than usual. It probably had something to do with the three different collisions on the highway. Also, to make things even worse, the driver in front of me was one of those guys who break intensely, and do so at the last second. People need to realize that when the snow falls, driving like you just came out of a fast and furious movie is not acceptable nor safe. This is why I usually leave a pretty decent gap between myself and the person in front of me.  There are many people, mostly teenagers, who believe that you are a better driver if you don't create gaps between the cars. They think that acting as if the snow has no effect on their cars makes them better or more skilled. For these people, I have four words. The laws of physics.

Some people even complain how they don't have winter tires, so it is harder for them to drive. Well I've been driving for a while now, and guess what, I've been using all season tires all along. I'm not saying that all season tires are as good as the winter ones,  not even close. The tests have proven that all season tires do no work in below zero conditions. However, I am trying to point out that what matters more is the way you drive, not the tires you have. If you don't have winter tires, that means that you have to drive extra carefully. The fact that this country has so many immigrants that are not used to these conditions only makes things harder.

Driving carelessly in the winter is the same as speeding. You can either be responsible and not do it, or you can risk paying  the price. The difference is that the price of speeding is nothing compared to the price of repairing the car after a collision. Not to mention that there is a risk of hurting other people in the process. Unfortunately, some people need to be hit where it hurts the most, their wallet, before they learn their lesson.