Passion vs. Praticality

One of my peers, a fellow blogger, wrote a great post about pursuing her true passions in life, or pursuing a degree with more practicality. I have strong feelings about this post since I was in a situation like this myself. See what I wrote here

The Obsession with Fame

Have you ever noticed how much we obsess over celebrities? If you really think about it, it’s insane!! We buy magazines to read about famous people and what is going on in their lives. We talk about the latest gossip with our friends about who’s who in Hollywood. Now don’t get me wrong, I am very guilty about this. Just the other week, I bought a magazine because it had Matt Damon and Patrick Dempsey on the cover and I am a huge fan of both. But why do we do this?

When thinking about it, we always talk about famous people and how glamorous it must be to have that lifestyle. But in reality, how great is it? Sure, the perks tend to be lots of money, great clothes, top-of-the-line cars, huge houses, and famous friends. However, I was talking with my friends the other day and we all decided it would be a huge burden to be in the limelight 24/7. The paparazzi would follow you all of the time. There would be no privacy to this otherwise fantastic lifestyle. Some celebrities even go crazy because of this issue.

Well, after looking at the negatives, I would not want to be a famous person in today’s world. However, if we cannot become famous, we worship the famous to a very extreme extent. Take the infamous Brittney Spears for example. We have been with her every step during her mental break down because of the magazines and TV shows broadcasting the news. We sit, we watch, we gossip-it is an ongoing cycle.

I could talk about my opinion on gawking of the famous all day. However, that will not stop me or anyone else from finding out the next juicy gossip in Hollywood. So, why do we want to know so much about the celebrities’ personal lives?

The Purpose of Blogging

To me, blogging is a great experience. I blogged last semester and I learned a whole new way to write. I was forced to think very critically and open my mind to the world around me, not just my life as a college student. Posting comments to other blogs also forced me to think "outside the box". I had form opinions of subjects that normally I would ignore. Just like Andrew Olmstead, I enjoy being able to meet other people "virtually". It adds a sense of community being able to connect and share opinions with others we have not met. Sometimes, we are intimidated to say what we think due to the person’s status, looks, etc. However, through blogging, intimidation is not a factor at all.