Why the Pumpkin?

Why is the Pumpkin so popular during Halloween? Why is it the symbol for Halloween?

A few hundred years ago, the turnip was the symbol for Halloween. People used that for their decorations or any other thing associated wtih Halloween. During the Irish potato famine, a few thousand people migrated to America. Once they arrived, they found that pumpkins were more available than turnips. So instead of using turnips for Halloween they now started to use pumpkins.

Now pumpkins are the ultimate symbol for halloween, especially in America. People buy them or grow them themselves and carve faces into them or any other thing they find entertaining. Carving pumpkins (which is also a tradition brought to America by the Irish) is so popular that there are pumpkin carving kits. HAHA. Thats pretty cool.

Halloween

I never really liked halloween. I loved the candy. Obviously. But I never liked going door to door asking for it in the dark. I would much rather stay home and have my little brother do it. Then I can just take his candy.

Anyway, the most interesting aspect of halloween for me, is halloween in Mexico. That may seem strange but I can't get the fact that they have picnics on graves out of my mind. Over here it's just about candy. In Mexico it's much bigger, it's a national holiday. It is called the Day of the Dead. It is believed that on this day the ghosts of dead family members and loved ones come to visit. They celebrate relatives that have passed away and kids and candy are only a small part of it. Families go have picnics by the graves of their passed away relatives. They also clean their graves and decorate them with flowers and pine needles. It's a way of telling their dead relative that they have not been forgotten and are still loved.

The fact that Halloween is something much bigger than what it is here in America is something I find interesting. It's somewhat like Thanksgiving...except, no turkey. Graves and candy. Even so, there's still candy and it's a day of celebration!

Walking Dead

The second episode of the third season of Walking Dead came out today. It was freaking awesome. The group is taking refuge in an abandoned zombie infested jail (they had to get rid of numerous zombies) and they stumble across some of the old inmates.
The person that seems to be the leader of the inmates is an idiot, so things aren't looking so hot between Rick's (the main character) group and the inmates. They make a deal,  Rick's group takes half of the food that the inmates have and they help the inmates clear a wing of the jail.
After the inmates give half of their food to Rick and his group, they start clearing a wing of the jail. Since the inmates have been in the jail since the beginning of this "apocalypse", Rick and his friends have to teach them how to kill the zombies (aim at the head). They start killing zombies left and right but then the leader of the inmates swings a little to close to Rick's face. Then he throws a zombie at Rick and after they clear the wing he claims "S*** happens". So Rick looks at him and puts a blade in his head!
He then chases another one of the inmates into a group of zombies then closes the door behind the inmate who just gets destroyed by the zombies.He spares two of the inmates and gives them the wing then him and his group go back to his wing where Rick's family and some others are waiting for them.

Such a good episode.

Sinking

 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6zkZ3f8DnKs

Though this clip is only a short 40 seconds, it will make you laugh for a lot longer. When there is a call of help saying "we are sinking", the german operator's response is, "what are you thinking about?"
Thats freaking hilarious!!! The way he hesitates and says it with a strong german accent makes it even better and the fact that it's his first day on the job makes the whole thing even more funny. The statement at the end stating "Improve your English" is something to wrap things up over people's laughter.

Blog 4

Observer

   This person that I noticed was quit. People around him were talking, laughing, joking around but he just sat there and took it all in. He didn't talk much and mostly just laughed with everyone else. He didn't care about bringing much attention to himself. I think this person would be calm in most situations, but maybe also witty. He seemed intellectual.

Fiesty

   This person was quick to respond to something that didn't please them. She was somewhat aggressive about it and wouldn't back down. I think this is the type of person who speaks up a lot. Someone who raises their hand in class constantly and isn't shy to speak their mind. I have no idea what she would eat for breakfast but she would probably get whatever it is she wants to eat.

Kind

   I really liked what I saw here. This person would laugh at other people's jokes and would pay good attention to anyone trying to talk to her. She seemed patient with people and not the type of person who would make any remarks or comments that would hurt anyone's feelings. 

Obnoxious

   I noticed that this person tried hard to draw attention to themselves. He was loud and moved around a lot and said things that were not totally necessary to be said. I think this is the type of person that could hurt someone's feelings without