101 Things: Collin Tinen

1. I am scared of my future. I like to think everyone is.

2. But not scared enough to live in fear.

3. I have a beagle/collie mix and a black lab whose worst crime is vomiting on the carpet; pretty tame if you ask me.

4. Springfield, Missouri, born and raised.

5. I’m a pretty indecisive person sometimes.

6. My favorite color is blue or sometimes green.

7. I’m not the most creative person out there, but I think I make pretty good stories.

8. I’m the worst drawer/painter/illustrator I know.

9. I don’t have a single favorite song or genre.

10. Sometimes I draw just to laugh at how disfigured it came out.

11. I appreciate art’s beauty immensely because of my inability to replicate it.

12. As well as nature’s. Sunsets and skyscapes are the beautiful.

13. I’m called intelligent often, but sometimes I don’t feel like I am.

14. I’ve never been out of the state Missouri.

15. Science and math are my forte.

16. I have a 12 year old brother who is failing math.

17. Writing has always lingered behind math and science, and I frequently consider it as a future path.

18. My favorite movie is The Shawshank Redemption.

19. The pockets in my pocket shirts contain the secrets of the universe.

20. My favorite food changes depending on my mood, but the foods I’m always in the mood for are cookies and pizza.

21. Onions are the worst things to ever grace my tongue.

22. I love rollercoasters.

23. Others describe me as calm and unstressed.

24. Sometimes I think I come off as a really boring person.

25. I received 7 days of OSS in my junior year of high school for something I’d like to forget about.

26. My mother is the strongest person I know and will ever know.

27. I never fully appreciated family until it was gone.

28. I cherish what is left of it.

29. My brother replays movies and TV episodes nonstop; I don’t understand why that’s entertaining.

30. I’m a competitive person, but I’ve never won anything significant.

31. I’m about as lazy as a sloth. Or maybe a turtle.

32. All-nighters must be done in the namesake of procrastination.

33. I’m awful at public speaking.

34. I used to write and rap my own raps for a rap group composed of my best friends.

35. I listen to a wide variety of music; some of it people don’t expect me to like.

36. I browse the internet almost too much, probably too much actually.

37. The same goes with video games.

38. There are some things I wish I’d never seen on the internet, but there are some things that I couldn’t live without seeing.

39. I don’t like to pick sides usually.

40. I chose to be agnostic freshman year.

41. When I told my Christian mother, she cried and cried, fearing her religion and her values meant nothing to me.

42. I still engage in Christmas and Easter every year.

43. Freshman and sophomore years were the worst years of my life.

44. By the time I turned 15, both of my grandparents had passed, and my mom had divorced twice.

45. I’m stronger for it.

46. My nickname, KT, comes from an old Xbox gamertag I made in 6th grade by the name of killer tiny, which comes from the nickname Tiny, which only my elementary best friend called me.

47. I’ve always used music as an intangible emotional vessel.

48. I wish I never quit the piano.

49. I can’t remember the last time I actually cried.

50. I have an emotional shell that has only been through broken twice, which is probably a bad thing.

51. I think that the new digital age will bring with it incredible responsibility.

52. I am a liberal, though politics aren’t important to me in general.

53. I’ve never been a big reader, but of the books I’ve read I’ve enjoyed most of them.

54. Arts and crafts type projects are especially difficult for me.

55. I drink so much loose leaf tea that my cupboard looks like a gardening stockpile.

56. Every class I’ve taken at Kickapoo has left little impact on my life.

57. It’s the teachers that affect me.

58. I can’t remember what I wanted to be as a kid.

59. Sometimes I do well under pressure, other times I don’t.

60. I’m a pretty inconsistent person in general.

61. I hate my hair so much.

62. It’s thinner than paper.

63. I write letters to myself frequently.

64. I am almost pure Irish in ancestry.

65. I went to 5 different elementary schools as a kid.

66. Ever since then, I’ve stayed in the same school until my next phase in education came.

67. Sometimes I despise my talents.

68. Occasionally, and weirdly, I wonder what people (including myself) would be like as the opposite gender.

69. I regularly wish I could go outside of the city and to a place where there was no light to block out the beautiful stars, and gaze upward into near infinity.

70. My favorite seasons are fall and spring.

71. I hate extremities.

72. I don’t have an impressive track record at high school.

73. I typically wear the same set of clothes every week.

74. I’m still slightly traumatized from an old paranormal TV series on Discovery called The Haunting.

75. It is so melancholy: just as I was actually starting to like high school, love even, age has to come and rip it away from me.

76. I don’t have a dream or life goal.

77. I have nearly no direction in life, and sometimes I wish I had more direction.

78. But that’s the beauty of life to me, I just wish it lasted longer.

79. I once heard someone say that in a memory of a person, their voice is the hardest to remember.

80. That’s why I think if you remember a person’s voice, you truly cared about them.

81. A friend of mine once told me that chocolate is the way into someone’s heart. I would tend to agree.

82. I’ve idolized people I never thought I would.

83. I’ve made the most mistakes of my life in high school.

84. I have no regrets.

85. Comedy is one of the best things in life.

86. I think humor can be found in everything; whether or not it’s appropriate is debatable.

87. Sometimes I just don’t care.

88. The Netflix addiction is real.

89. Video games have always been a source of joy for me.

90. I remember in middle school my friends and I would always play Halo until the Sun came up on weekends.

91. I miss that, dearly.

92. We tried to do a very tedious, challenging sequence of events called the “Death Desert” in Halo. 5 hours in, one of my friends fell asleep, and we had to quit.

93. We tried again a couple months later, and the same friend fell asleep. Again. He was promptly crucified.

94. I hate my current job as a carryout for Price Cutter.

95. I’m only there to get a job at Starbucks with one of my best friends.

96. I’ve been there for 3 months: progress.

97. I love my car.

98. Money is something I think I manage somewhat well. I spend a little too freely sometimes.

99. The opposite of number 67 is true.

100. It is so melancholy: just as I was actually starting to like high school, love even, that age has to come and rip it away from me.

101. Oh well. High school has been a wild ride, and it went by way too fast. Such is life, the ephemeral rollercoaster. Thankfully number 22 is true.

Relinquished Innocence

 

Sometimes I feel old,
Sometimes I feel young,
But I've never felt
like my past self.
I'll never feel what it's like
to ride my bike for the first time,
to have no responsibilities,
to be so naive and innocent.
I'll never feel what it's like
to not grow up,
to not learn more.

That's adulthood.
That's human.
That's me. 

Where the Wild Things Are

Where the Wild Things Are

by Maurice Sendak
40 pages.

No author's biography provided.

The cover of Where the Wild Things Are shows a monster sleeping peacefully in a forest, next to a sailboat in a body of water.

The characters of Where the Wild Things include: Max, Max's mother, and the wild things.

Max's bedroom is the setting in this book, but it changes as Max's imagination grows a forest in his bedroom.

Summary:
One day, a young, mischievous boy named Max is sent to bed early without supper for causing trouble in his wolf suit. His bedroom morphs into a forest, and Max sails an entire ocean. He lands where the wild things are, and becomes the wild things' king,
but shortly returns home to find his supper waiting for him, still warm.

Does this book...

have animals as characters? yes
use rhyme? no
teach a lesson of some kind? yes
have monsters or creatures? yes
have adults as characters? yes
use humor? yes
have illustrations? yes
use color? yes
use actual photos? no
have a more sentimental/lovey tone? yes
lots of words per page? no
one word or phrase repeated throughout? yes

My favorite sentence from this book is: "And Max the king of all wild things was lonely and wanted to be where someone loved him best of all."

I think this book is appropriate for ages 3 and up. The only limiting factor for the younger side of the age spectrum is the scariness of the wild things. I think this book could be read at any age, I still love it as a 17 year old.

Even though I'm 17 now, I loved this book as a kid. I think I loved it so much because of the ending. Instead of maintaining his regal status as a king, Max sails back to his home, knowing where he is loved.

A Special Kind of Brew

Delicious. - Mr. Vigny

            I sat in my restful chair and viewed my cluttered desk, proud of how far I’ve come. I sipped my tea in pride and satisfaction. Its warmth and aroma always brightens my soul. Interrupting my daily moment of bliss, my assistant phoned my pager.

“Mr. Ellwood is here to see you,” my assistant notified.

“Send him in,” I muttered, excitedly and giddy.

            Mr. Ellwood would be the first visitor of my company in a long time. As we had previously appointed, Ellwood would be here to write a health report on our sanitation and cleanliness of our processes. The polished cedar door opened smoothly, and Ellwood crept in.

“Greetings, Mr. Vigny,” Ellwood said.

“Greetings, Mr. Ellwood,” I mimicked.

We shook hands and sat down into our finely leathered seats.

“As we have discussed beforehand, I’m here for your mandatory health inspection.”

“Yes, indeed you are, Mr. Ellwood.”

“So let us discuss my examination guidelines, procedures and the legal ramifications if your facility were to fail my inspection,” Ellwood proposed.

“Oh, Mr. Ellwood, how about we circumvent all that nonsense and take a nice little tour of my establishment?”

“Sir, with all due respect, I thank you for your offer, but I am not here to take a tour of your tea factory. I am here to review and approve your health and sanitation to our standards,” Ellwood sternly replied.

            “Please Mr. Ellwood, don’t be so standard. You’ve already explained to me your profession and I would simply like to reciprocate. Mr. Ellwood, I insist.”

            “Mr. Vigny, I’m not sure how much you have to explain. You’re a CEO of a company that simply makes tea.”

            “Oh, but Mr. Ellwood, my company and I are so much more than that, so much more.”

            “Why is that, Mr. Vigny?”

            “It’s much easier to show you, Mr. Ellwood. Follow me.”

Thus, Mr. Ellwood had begun his journey with me into the inner workings of Vigny Teas. We strolled out of my office and into the other formal facilities (offices, sales department, customer service, and other dull conventionalities). Soon it became clear that Ellwood was losing interest, but that was acceptable, for my favorite part of the tour was about to begin. Oh my, I just cannot contain my excitement. Ellwood and I happened upon a large, egg-like structure, the inside hidden by its chrome exterior.

            “And this, Mr. Ellwood, is where the magic happens.”

            “Magic?”

            “Yes, Mr. Ellwood, magic.”

            “Let us venture onwards.”

I opened the door to the giant chrome egg, revealing my baby. The Egg, as I call it, is the ‘incubator’, if you will, for my teas. Giant machines manned by dozens of workers grind, ground, and blend the spices of my teas into special blends. The same old aroma of must and rotting roots filled my nostrils with delight. Unfortunately, Ellwood did not share my sentiment for the smell. What an uncultured fool.  

            “What is that putrid smell?” Ellwood said, pinching his nose.

            “The fantastical smell is from roots and other natural spices that are blended into my special teas.”

            “Would you mind if I examined this further?”

            “Not at all, Mr. Ellwood, not at all.”

The door slammed shut, and my smile grew ear to ear. My eyes began to twitch with adrenaline.

            “What is going on, Mr. Vigny?”

            “I’m going to show you how we at Vigny teas make tea, Mr. Ellwood.”

            “What do you mean?”

            “It’s much easier to show you, Mr. Ellwood.”

I watched with trepidation as the health inspector was apprehended and eventually detained to a wooden chair by my employees. Ellwood began to struggle and panic, as they all do.

            “What are you doing?!”

            “As you put it earlier, I am simply making tea. My teas feature everything typical in your normal cup of tea, except for the absolute FINEST ingredient. There’s a reason you can’t find teas like mine anywhere else in the world, Mr. Ellwood.”

            “W-what?”

            “The ingredient, Mr. Ellwood, is you.”

As those sweet words escaped my mouth, Ellwood was taken away, screaming and squirming. I love it when they squirm. Anyways, onto the first stage of The Egg: the titanium grinder. Ellwood was tossed in, and immediately his bones cracked, splintered, and exploded into miniscule fragments. His cartilage, flesh, and organs churned into a red mush, dotted with his lovely bone sprinkles.

Forwards to the second stage: the mechanical grounder. The delightful red mush that was once Ellwood was ground up into a finer mixture, and features such as bones, cartilage, flesh, hair, etc. were filtered out. The only things left were the crimson organs, blood, and tissue.

The rest of Ellwood was placed into the final stage: the preserver. The riddled assortment processed through the machine into a dried conglomerate, similar to a leaf-like state. This is the final stage of processing. After this, Ellwood will be peppered into our natural spice teas, and distributed across the nation. Perhaps Ellwood will give that extra zest to our chai that it’s needed.

“You! Yes, you. Fetch me a fresh sample of our newest flavor,” I commanded a worker.

5 minutes later, my latest creation is ready to drink. I took a walk back up to my office to enjoy my innovative brew. I took a sip of the fragrant infusion and felt the familiar, marvelous feeling wash over me once again.  

Interrupting my secondary moment of bliss, my assistant phoned my pager.

“Our new client, Ms. Fournier is here to see you, Mr. Vigny,” my assistant notified.

“Ah yes, send her in,” I replied, awaiting my newest flavor. 

Mulling Over Music

        When you listen to music, what feelings/emotions does it evoke?
It depends on the type of music I'm listening to. I usually reflect the type of emotions that are exhibited in my music. This only differs with certain songs that remind me of memories. I listen to music a lot, so if an event or something happened while I was listening to a specific song, I will often tie that song to that memory, and basically relive that moment.
         How has your taste in music changed over the years?
My taste in music has altered drastically as my life has continued onward. During my childhood, my dad was the biggest influence on my musical tastes. We often listened to several 80s rock bands such as Judas Priest, AC/DC, Ozzy Osbourne, Motley Crue, and others. Around the time I started middle school, I began to deviate from the 80s style rock music. I migrated to alternative punk rock bands like Paramore and Green Day. In 7th-8th grade, I was introduced by one of my best friends to Eminem. From 8th grade to the end of my freshman year, I listened to almost exclusively Eminem. Then, in sophomore year, I found Mumford & Sons. I enjoyed this peculiar duo for all of sophomore year. Junior year is when I really started to branch out in music. I found several channels on YouTube that upload certain genres of music daily. Through these channels, I discovered a love for electronic music. Along with this, I took a liking to video game and movie soundtracks, and other rappers besides Eminem. Now, in my senior year, I come upon a new song every day. I crave them, and I'm always delighted to listen to a new song. Whether I like it or hate it, I never know what I'm going to get.
        Do your friends listen to the same styles of music as you? What do you think this means? 
Yes, my friends and I enjoy similar genres of music. Not completely, however. Some of us halfheartedly disdain each other for certain artists or genres. For most of my friends, we share alike tastes. I'm not entirely sure what it means to have friends who listen to the same type of music. Having similar tastes does help you bond better with your friends. I have met some of my greatest friends in certain situations where if music wasn't there, we might've not become so close. 
        Without music, my life would be...
Boring, lifeless, apathetic, dull. Without music, my life would be mute. Music accentuates my moods, my life, and losing such a motivational force would be detrimental to not only me and my life, but others' as well.
        What does music do for you that nothing else can?
Music picks me up. It grabs me off the ground, slaps me in the face, and says, "You can do this." It's a motivator, and it works like nothing else can. 

Some of my favorite songs:

Raindancer by Big Giant Circles

Let It Be by Blackmill

Cocoa Butter Kisses by Chance the Rapper

Everything's Good by Chance the Rapper

Time (Queensway Remix) by Chase and Status

Telegraph Ave ("Oakland" by Lloyd) by Childish Gambino

We All Become by Darren Korb

Hailie's Song by Eminem

 Not Afraid by Eminem

We Can Be Ghosts Now by Hiatus

On Top of the World by Imagine Dragons

Rescue Me by Insan3Lik3

Everything's Alright by Laura Shigihara

The Boxer by Mumford & Sons

The Cave by Mumford & Sons

Exile Vilify by The National

Afraid by The Neighbourhood

Take a Walk by Passion Pit

Witchcraft by Pendulum

Under the Bridge by The Red Hot Chili Peppers

King of Anything by Sara Bareilles

Save the World by Swedish House Mafia

Truth by Tristam

Waking Dreams by TwoThirds

Harmony by Vicetone 

Lyrics Shuffle

Saturday morning jumped out of bed and put on my best suit,

But I wonder where were you,

This must be love.

Got in my car and raced like a jet, all the way to you,

Down on my knees,

Can I have your daughter for the rest of my life?

Tough luck my friend but the answer is no.

You say I'll never get your blessing till the day I die,

Heartbreakers gonna break, break, break,

I'm gonna marry her anyway.

Teacher Q&A

Q1: What music or songs reminds you of your childhood?

Mrs. Wooderson (Librarian): Ring Around the Rosie, nursery rhymes
Mrs. B (Librarian): Particle Man by They Might Be Giants
Mrs. Odom (Mathematics Teacher): Beat It by Michael Jackson
Me: Old cartoon theme songs, including: Samurai Jack, Spongebob Squarepants, Courage the Cowardly Dog, Foster's Home for Imaginary Friends, and more.




Q2: Who is your favorite singer or group or song?
Mrs. Wooderson: Larry Norman, Billy Joel
Mrs. B: Iron and Wine, because they are relaxing to listen to after a stressful day. I get stressed easily, and they help me wind down.
Mrs. Odom: Train
Me: I don't have a favorite artist, honestly. I suppose I have a favorite artist to listen to during certain mood types, but even then there are multiple to choose from.




Q3: Which music or artist do you really dislike or refuse to listen to?

Mrs. Wooderson: Barry Manilow
Mrs. B: Rap, although some is tolerable.
Mrs. Odom: Vulgar rap, some Eminem is fine, though.
Me: I just can't listen to country at all. I'm not sure what it is, but I just hate it.

Movie ?'s

Honestly, it's difficult to decide on a favorite movie. Extremely difficult, in fact. If I had to choose, though, I would have to go with The Shawshank Redemption. The storytelling and narration in this movie is absolutely incredible. It's one of the few examples where the movie is better than the book. It is executed so well, and Morgan Freeman was the perfect actor to fill the role of Red. Doubling as a character and a narrator is right up his alley, and he does it flawlessly in this film.

I really just don’t care for the entire series of Twilight films. Maybe that’s just me being a guy, but it takes a lot for me to get through them. Another type of film that I share similar feelings for is adaptations of books that are unbelievably inaccurate.

I watch movies often. Most of the time, it’s on Netflix, but sometimes I do go to the theater with friends.

I don’t need much for movie viewing. I just need a comfortable seat and a beverage. Lighting doesn’t really matter to me. 
If my life story was made into a movie, it would be a pretty boring movie. I haven't done many extravagant things or been to great places. I have no idea what genre it would be, probably comedy.

Results

YOUR PERSONALITY

Take a look at how you scored on the Big Five personality dimensions below.
Your scores, compared with the responses of other people, suggest that you may be described as follows:

YOU ARE 25% EXTROVERTED.

You are introverted, reserved and serious. You prefer to be alone or with a few close friends.

YOU ARE 33% AGREEABLE.

You are hard-headed, skeptical, proud and competitive. You tend to express your anger directly.

YOU ARE 58% CONSCIENTIOUS.

You are dependable and moderately well-organised. You generally have clear goals and are able to set goals aside.

YOU ARE 100% EMOTIONALLY STABLE.

You are secure, hardy, and generally relaxed even under stressful conditions.

YOU ARE 67% OPEN TO NEW EXPERIENCES.

You are practical but willing to consider new ways of doing things. You try to seek a balance between the old and the new.


WHY YOU WATCH MOVIES

We have proposed 10 psychological uses for watching films.
Below are your scores for each of these 10 uses, and the relevant descriptions of the ways in which you enjoy films.

PLEASURE-SEEKING: 60%

NOSTALGIA: 10%

The “pleasure seeking” dimension refers to the extent to which you are a hedonistic movie watcher or choose movies because they make you feel good. Your score on this dimension is average or similar to most people.

Your low score on the “nostalgia” dimension suggests that you rarely watch movies in order to re-experience the past. Thus, you do not think of using movies as a means to re-live prior experiences. You are a person of the present, not the past.

CATHARSIS: 50%

AGGRESSION: 50%

The “catharsis” dimension refers to the extent to which you watch movies in order to feel miserable and suffer with the characters of the movie. Your score on this dimension is average or similar to most people.

The “aggressive” dimension refers to the extent to which you enjoy watching violent movies in order to release aggression or tension. Your score on this dimension is average or similar to most people.

ESCAPISM: 75%

SENSATION-SEEKING: 40%

Your high score on the “escapism” dimension suggests that you watch movies in order to escape or forget about reality – thus films provide you with the necessary distractions to switch off from everyday problems.

The “sensation seeking” dimension refers to the extent to which you watch movies on order to experience arousing or adrenalising feelings. Your score on this dimension is average or similar to most people.

ARTISTIC: 45%

INFORMATION-SEEKING: 50%

The “artistic” dimension refers to the extent to which you are interested in aesthetically driven, conceptual, and highly creative films. Your score on this dimension is average or similar to most people.

The “information seeking” dimension refers to the extent to which you are a curious and intellectual movie watcher. Your score on this dimension is average or similar to most people.

BOREDOM-AVOIDANCE: 40%

SOCIALISATION: 70%

The “boredom avoidance” dimension refers to the extent to which you watch films primarily as a means of avoiding boredom. Your score on this dimension is average or similar to most people.

Your high score on the “socialising” dimension suggests that you are more interested in the company of others than the actual movie; and that you rarely see the point of watching movies alone. Watching movies is a social experience for you.