Essential Place In Strongsville

Westfield Shopping Town at South Park (A.K.A. The Mall)

The mall in Strongsville represents almost all aspects of our community. The main crowds attending this place on a daily basis are generally comprised of teenagers and families. On any given morning, however, one could arrive at the mall before the stores open and see a moderately large crowd ranging from middle aged folks to senior citizens doing their morning walking. On weekends and rainy days, the mall tends to become occupied with bored teenagers wandering aimlessly for hours. During the holidays, this shopping center is nearly filled to its capacity with people of all ages searching for gifts.

Prior to the construction of this mall just over 10 years ago, Strongsville had little to offer in the way of entertainment or shopping. It was unlikely to find people from other cities visiting Strongsville for a lack of anything significant. Now, having recently added a movie theater in addition to other reconstructions, the mall is more popular than ever. On any given day, one could find a person from another city or county and think nothing of it. Young people cherish it, older people accept its resources, and everyone else finds something to do at the mall in Strongsville.

Slang Dictionary

Dig (V.)- To like or understand

Doink(V.) - To steal, usually playfully.

Flick(N.) - A movie.

411(N.) - Information.

Foxy(Adj.) - Attractive.

Bummer(N.) - Used to denote general sorrow, despair, or disappointment.

Bust(N.) - To break up, arrest.

Sick(Adj.) - Cool or awesome.

Vibe(N.) - Feelings, premonitions.

Tight(Adj.) - Very good or excellent. Also (when describing music) the closeness in synchronization of instruments.

Proverbs

A bargain is something you don't need at a price you can't resist.

Ability can take you to the top, but it takes character to keep you there.

A budget is something we go without to stay within.

A calm sea does not make a skilled sailor.

A closed mind is like a closed book; just a block of wood.

A dog inside a kennel barks at his fleas. A dog hunting does not notice them.

A friend to all is a friend to none.

An optimist laughs to forget, a pessimist forgets to laugh

A penny saved is a penny earned, and a penny spent, is a penny enjoyed.

A person who makes no mistakes, generally makes nothing.

A poor person isn't he who has little, but he who needs a lot.

Horoscope For November 8th, 2007

Scorpio - Don't fret if the road to romance takes a detour today -- it will be for the best.

Aries - Nothing can slow you down today -- your energy is intense and terrifically bright.

Taurus - Wrap up projects as soon as you can today -- some exciting distractions await you!

Gemini - It's all about quantity today, so try to tackle as many different things as you can.

Cancer - Staying close to home is going to be best for your morale today. Obey your mood.

Leo - The focus in your life should continue to be on your relationships now, not work.

Virgo - Your own time is fluid today, but in a group you must abide by the majority rule.

Libra - There are very high energy levels in your creative sphere -- make the most of them.

Sagittarius - In the interest of maintaining group harmony, encourage people to compromise.

Capricorn - If something is worth having, it's worth working for. Don't be afraid of hard work.

Aquarius - Do not doubt the thoughts that are flying around in your head today. Trust them.

Pisces - All signs are pointing to a fantastic new beginning for you and a certain someone.

10-Day Local Forecast

Strongsville, Ohio - 2007

Nov. 7th - High- 39° F Low - 30°F

Nov. 8th - High- 46° F Low - 36°F

Nov. 9th - High- 47° F Low - 32°F

Nov. 10th - High- 50° F Low - 36°F

Nov. 11th - High- 53° F Low - 45°F

Nov. 12th - High- 57° F Low - 45°F

Nov. 13th - High- 53° F Low - 40°F

Nov. 14th - High- 51° F Low - 37°F

Nov. 15th - High- 46° F Low - 37°F

Life List

Some important events in my life...

1.) I was born at Southwest General Hospital in Middleburg Heights, Ohio on November 11th, 1990.

2.) In 1991, my parents and I moved from Ohio to Midland, Michigan.

3.) My first brother, Sam, was born on August 3rd, 1993.

4.) On March 18, 1996, my second brother, Spencer, was born.

5.) Later in 1996, our family moved from Michigan to Valparaiso, Indiana.

6.) After moving to Indiana, I met my soon-to-be long-time best friend, Matt, who lived across the street from us.

7.) In September of 1997, our family moved from Indiana to Strongsville, Ohio.

8.) I was given my first skateboard in the summer of 2001

9.) In the summer of 2002, I received my first guitar.

10.) I began high school in the fall of 2005.

My Introduction To Music

One day, nearly 6 years ago, my mother came home from a garage sale and told me that she had a present for me. When she opened the car door, she reached in and pulled out an old and tattered Vantek acoustic guitar with 2 strings missing and a broken bridge. With it was a faded brown and rainbow strap reminiscent of the early 1970’s. The fret board was worn and somewhat splintered, however, still very much playable. I was very excited to have obtained such an item and I was even more excited to get it fixed and restrung so I could begin learning how to play. One week and $20 later, I was on my way to an interesting new world of self expression and musical understanding.

For the first few weeks, I picked up the guitar every once in a while and figured out simple chord-less versions of songs I heard on the radio. Later that summer, our family went on our annual trip to Tulsa, Oklahoma to visit our grandparents. My uncle Mark, a musician and lover of music, drove up from Oklahoma City while we were there to visit us. With him, he brought one of his guitars and offered to teach me some things about music. I was utterly fascinated watching his fingers fly around the neck of the guitar, creating a beautiful sound. I couldn’t wait to be able to do the same.

My uncle Mark drew up an introductory guitar lesson in a notebook for me and I taught myself basic chords and blues progressions. Soon after, I began taking guitar lessons at the local music shop. I learned the basics of communicating music to other people and my guitar skills began to progress. I stopped the lessons after about 9 months, mainly because I couldn’t and didn’t want to read music. Over the next few years, I kept practicing and began to play more often. During these years I was also becoming more interested in the original geniuses of rock n’ roll such as The Beatles, The Rolling Stones, and Bob Dylan.

In the past two years of my life, my uncle Mark introduced me to songwriting and for my birthday, took me to a recording studio to record my music. Since I began writing songs, I’ve discovered an entirely new way to live. I see the world in a different light and I can no longer turn my mind off to the things going on around me. Music has taught me a tolerance for others and a love for enlightenment. Until I discovered music, I was unaware of any other goal in life other than to get rich in one way or another. The feeling one gets from playing music, however, greatly surpasses that of attaining any material wealth imaginable. Knowing this, I no longer feel pressured to become a successful businessman or other professions of the like. I am confident that music will take me down the path I wish to go, open up new paths, and provide a therapeutic safety net for me to land in should I fall from the path.

Rules To Go By

No one's life should be run by rules. No one should pay attention to rules when they are not necessary. The ideas and values that people follow and use to judge right from wrong are learned neither from teachers nor parents, but rather from personal experience. Figures of authority often present guidelines and open up doors to help people realize these values, but ultimately it is in the hands of the person as to whether or not they choose to accept these ideas as their own. These are some that I've chosen to accept:

Don't steal from others; Don't let others steal from you.

Don't believe everything you hear.

Don't do everything you're told.

Always keep your eyes open.

Never stop thinking.

Don't hurt others; Don't let others hurt you.

Don't try to hide from reality.

Don't close your mind to new ideas.

Thoughts and ideas are two very different things.

Don't speak too soon, don't speak too much.

Ignorance needs not be permanent.

Find things out for yourself.

Respect the world around you.

Don't regret.

Money is not synonymous with wealth.

Don't forget the past; Don't fear the future.

The fascinating thing about these values is that the list is endless and ever changing depending on what we go through as human beings. Nothing is permanent and there is no official right or wrong other than popular agreement. My list has grown and contracted in the past and will continue to do so as time proceeds. We, as humans, can only rely on what we know in the present and hope that our judgments will successfully lead us to where we want to be.

Where I'm From

I am from paint,
from Levi's and cassette tapes.
I am from the back yard,
cool and dry with dragonflies on the patio.
I am from the sunflower,
the cornstalks occupying recycled Indiana fields.
I'm from deadpan humor and brown hair,
from Robert and Moore.
I'm from the forgetfulls and the loving,
from respect your elders and respect yourself.
I'm from gospel readings and ancient hymns.
I'm from Southwest General and old world Europe,
barbecued chicken and spaghetti with meatballs.
I'm from the time lost in grocery stores to the time
lost in conversation.
The shoe box on the top shelf in my closet filled with
old drawings and photos immerses itself somewhere,
In the deep corners of my brain.
Careless appreciation and looking forward,
This is where I'm from and where I am going.

Works Cited

Rader, Walter. "D;F;B;S;V;T." The Online Slang Dictionary. 6 Nov
2007 .

Zwaan, Herman de. "One-Liners and Proverbs." One-Liners and Proverbs. 6 Nov
2007.

The Weather Channel "Weather for Strongsville." The Weather Channel. 6/11/07. The Weather Channel Interactive, Inc.. 6 Nov 2007.

"Yahoo!Astrology." Yahoo!Astrology. 6/11/07. Yahoo!. 6 Nov
2007 .