Ireland

Summer, what some know as travel time and others know as time spent doing practically nothing. I know that I am going to spend nearly all of my summer binge-watching and running. Unlike most people in Park City, I go almost no where. The only other country that I’ve ever been to has been Mexico. In Mexico, I went scuba diving, swam with turtles, and went fishing. And while I had a lot of fun, I want to go to more places than just Mexico. I want to travel the world and see as many cultures as I can. So finally, for the first time ever, I will be leaving North America.

Courtesy of www. shannonairport.ie

I get to go to Ireland. Yeah, I know, you’re probably thinking “Ireland? What’s even in Ireland?”. But it’s actually really cool. A few years ago, my mom went on the same trip on her own. It’s a trip that our old horseback riding barn does every other year. On the trip, everybody goes riding in a big group through open fields and jumping over stonewalls. They stay at small bed and breakfast places, and ride on the beaches. 

The best part of the trip is that we will get to pick which horse we will ride. Willy, the man who leads the trip, has a pasture full of horses. Horses as far as the eye can see. Out of more than fifty horses, you are able to choose any one of them you want. And then if you don’t like the one you chose, you can just pick another one.

For years, my mom has been waiting until I was the right age to go. This year is finally my chance. So in August, I will be flying to Ireland to ride for two weeks. Leading up to the trip, I will waste away my summer. And I’m alright with that. I’m fine with being lazy for most of the summer, because at one point I will be in Ireland. 

To conclude, I’m not going to feel bad this summer for not doing anything. I won’t feel bad for watching Grey’s Anatomy all day long. Instead, I’m going to enjoy the time I spend sitting on the sofa or hanging out with friends. I’m going to spend my days unaware of the time and happy about not doing anything. Because at the end of the summer I will be spending my days exploring the country, and the city of Ireland. I’ll make up for the lost time, by having an amazing trip in Ireland. 

Blackfish

Courtesy of www.imbd.com

Recently, I watched the 2013 documentary called Blackfish. Blackfish is about Tilikum, a captive killer whale that has taken the lives of several people, addresses problems within the sea-park industry, and man's relationship to nature. I’ve learned a lot about SeaWorld, and my opinion about them has grown even stronger. Tilikum, also known as Tilly, is a bull orca currently living at Sea-World in Orlando, Florida. He has killed three people. 

The first person he killed was a 21-year old girl named, Keltie Byrne. Keltie was a marine biology student and competitive swimmer. On February 20, 1991, Keltie slipped into a pool containing Tilikum and two other orcas, while working as a part-time trainer. The three orcas quickly took her under water and dragged her around the pool. With an audience watching in horror, she surfaced three times screaming before she drowned. 

Daniel P. Dukes, a 27 year-old man, was the second person to be killed by Tilikum. The day before he was killed, Daniel visited the park, stayed after, and evaded security. The next day he was found dead over Tilikum’s back. The autopsy found several wounds, contusions, and abrasions all over his body. They concluded that Daniel had been drowned. They found no drugs in his system, but he entered the tank anyway.

The third person killed, Dawn Brancheau, created the most controversy. Dawn was a 40 year-old trainer, who had known what she was she was doing. After a show, she was petting Tilikum  when the whale grabbed her by her left arm and pulled her into the water. The other trainers threw food and nets into the water to distract him, but nothing could stop him. Dawn was eventually released from Tilikum’s grasp, dead. Afterward, SeaWorld stated that the trainer was pulled into the water by her ponytail. However, witnesses stated that the trainer was pulled into the water by her arm. Seaworld lied and blamed it on Dawn. Saying that it was an accident, and that no SeaWorld trainer should have their hair in a long ponytail. The autopsy showed that she had died by drowning and blunt force trauma. Along with those injuries, her spine was severed and she had fractures in her jawbone, ribs, and a vertebra. Her scalp was completely torn off from her head and her left arm had been severed below the shoulder. 

Dawn and Tilikum. Courtesy of  www.cbsnews.com

Finally, after all of these terrible events, SeaWorld was sued 75,000 dollars. They use pressure hoses to calm the orcas down and the platforms have guardrails. But Tillikum is still allowed to perform. Even after his aggressive behaviors, Tilikum is still allowed to perform. Not to mention, that his sperm has been used to create more than half of the orcas at SeaWorld. Possibly, making their genes just as aggressive. 

I think that SeaWorld deserved worse than what they got. They keep orcas in concrete pools away from their real homes. And in the past they have kept them in twenty foot deep pools, two small for them to swim in, and too dark to see anything. Causing these whales to become aggressive. SeaWorld should have been shut down, what they have done, is devastating. They are holding these creatures hostage, and saying that they like what they do. But, there has never been any reported injuries to humans caused by killer whales, in the wild. They are generally gentle, friendly creatures until we take them out of their homes, so that we can have one hour of enjoyment. I believe that it wasn’t Tilikum’s fault, it was SeaWorld’s.

Hold It Together, People

Many say that the most difficult quarter is quarter four. Most likely because quarter four consists of testing and is the countdown to freedom. You are so tired that you are ready to just quit school right there. But no matter what, we pull through and finish off the school year. And somehow we finish with grades that we can be relatively proud of. 

Courtesy of www.youtube.com

I believe that the fourth quarter of the school year isn’t the hardest at all. Instead, the third quarter is the most difficult. During the third quarter, we start to slowly give up. We’ve made it through more than half of the school year,  and most of us cannot do it anymore. It seems that school is the only thing there is, a never-ending painful prison. The days seem to drag on much longer than they ever had before.

Our grades deteriorate and we grasp at what little we have left. It’s like a steep ski slope on which we cannot find anything to grab onto. We get closer to finals and the tests that are really going to determine our futures. And we get closer to next year which will be even more difficult. Somehow, no matter the pain we are in, we push through and we cross the finish line to the fourth quarter. 

Each day, I think about spring break and summer. It feels as if spring break is just around the corner, and as if summer is only a few weeks away. But it’s not. We give ourselves false hope, attempting to distract ourselves from reality. Spring break isn’t for another two weeks, and summer not for another few months. All we have to do is pull ourselves together for one more quarter. Then we can be free. We can waste our days away watching Netflix, sleeping in, and disappointing our parents with our lack of activity. We will live stress-free. At least for the three months that we can. 

So as we are approaching the last week of the hardest quarter, I want to wish you all good luck. I hope that you all use what little strength you have left to finish this upcoming week. I hope your grades make you at least a little proud. And at the end, I hope the stress fades away and you can come to school with a clean slate. Then we can worry about the hour long tests we have to take, and how many days left we have until summer. Let the countdown begin.