first blog

hi this is my first post!  very excited to join the blogging world, as i hope it will make me write everyday and keep up with practicing..  so anyway. i set this up tonight because recently i have been having my doubts with humanity and its downward spiral. i'm not talking about obesity, murder rates, and political strife.. maybe this isn't as important as those issues, but i feel it deserves some light.

children and technology are, quite possible, the WORST mix of two elements.  when there are 6 year old girls who have 3 different pairs of Ugg boots, Pandora bracelets (yes, thats plural), the new DS system, a laptop and a cell phone..something's REALLY wrong with our society!!  why do they need it all???  i work to earn my spending money, and i've earned by lifeguading, babysitting, teaching private swimming lessons, coaching a swim team, and becoming the new Sports Announcer at my college for the swim meets.  it's a lot of time i spend with my odd jobs and the money isnt always great but it's something. and since i got a job at 16 and have never been without one, i know the value of a dollar. i got my first pair of ugg boots last year--as a birthday present. i understand big gifts on a birthday or christmas, but really--what mom gets their kid blue and pink uggs just because some other kids at the elemetnary school have them???

my mom never stood for that crap. she taught my brother and i how to save money for things you want, and we only got big things (aka anything more than $50 was big to us) on a special occasion.christmas, birthdays, graduations, and really good accomplishments once in a while. (when i was first published in a magazine for a poem, i got to pick out a piece of jewelry.) the reward system is fine for kids as long as they actually earn what you give them. my little brother recently got into the Virginia Tech architecture program (no small feat, they take 90 out of 1,200 applicants)  which would be a cause for a reward. awesome accomplishments = deserving of rewards. being born into money does not = deserving of rewards for no reason.
but seriously..when little kids are well off because of their parents' success, they don't learn to value anything.  i can't tell you how often i see kids in restaraunts on their cell phones or DS', blatantly unaware of what goes on around them. its awful. the art of conversation is lost because the parents would rather their child sit down and shut up for an hour than involve them in communicating with adults. thats a good skill to learn, and because i was talking to adults at age 5, i'm a pretty damn good "people person."  my dad works in a restaraunt and wont serve people until their kid stops being anti-social. he said he tells them "i'll come back to take your order when he's done," he said to a family the other night whos' 11 year old was engrossed in a game on his iPhone. yes, the child has an iPhone. why? what is the point?
i just dont get it.. i have a cheap phone i got with my family plan upgrade, and its fine. it makes calls, looks nice, has a keyboard, sends texts, and i even got picture messaging on it. but why am i content with my one pair of Uggs and my HP laptop and a 12 year old NEEEEDS the newest mac, the iPhone 4, an xbox AND a ps3, and expensive clothes they will outgrow in a year to be happy??  what happened to the parents? why dont they stop over-indulging and teach their kids the value of a dollar, or how to earn something?????  kids are becoming way too materialistic, and ever evolving technology feeds their needs. this is why im calling them the "gimme generation" because no amount of expensive high-end products will ever be enough for these spoiled brats.

dont get me wrong-- i LOVE designer clothes and purses and jewelry and of course shoes. but i dont go out buying it all or asking for every new trend that comes out.