The Almighty Screen and the Adrenaline Rush by Joe D.

Everyone values different things in various ways. Some people prefer to show off their bling bling, or their sweet rides. While others prefer to get that rush when you catch a huge bass, or to feel that special way on Christmas morning with your family. But the real question is how do you calculate or discern how valuable something is beyond prices and votes?

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The Red Sox came back to beat the Yankees in the 8^th inning 5 to 4, that is music to my ears. Finally, I finished my 800 word essay for Ms. Veins on the Tudor Monarchy. So that’s how Alexander Hamilton died, in a duel with Aaron Burr, what a funky way to die. I am sitting at my Samsung Sync Master 906 Widescreen computer looking up things that I am curious about and typing up my homework.

I use my computer practically everyday of my life. There is always something I need to find out or a school related project to complete. My computer is the only place I go for research on specific topics. I love to “Google” things and surf the net searching for intriguing new ideas. Some people might call me a nerd for doing this, but I love it. Lately I have been looking into the history and politics of our country and deciding if I am a Republican or Democrat. I could write a 2,000 word essay on this topic but there are plenty of other activities that I do on my computer that I would like to tell you about. I also like researching topics on the present day era, like sports. ESPN.com is my best friend when it comes knowing my fair share of sports statistics. I need to keep up with my three major sports teams, which are the Red Sox, Patriots, and Celtics. The computer is one of the few sources that I can access 24/7 and it is always accurate. The computer is also an extremely valuable item because I can do my homework on it. I have horrible penmanship and I do not have a good use vocabulary. On Microsoft Word I can take the information I just learned on Google and type it into my homework assignment. Without my computer a huge part of my life would be taken away from me.

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The point guard dribbles up to half court I get into my defensive position and contain the little midget. He has nowhere to go and no pass options. I close in on him like a tiger hunting his prey and swipe the ball away from him when it is bouncing back up to his hand. The ball bounces once and I take one stride to it and begin my fast break down court. I don’t need to look back to know that he is right on my tail. I see the free throw line beneath my foot and I realize it is time for me to take my leap. I jump off one foot holding the rock in my right hand using my left to shield off any remaining defenders. I begin my ascent up to the hoop, the little punk behind me jumps up and tries to pull me down in an effort to draw the flagrant foul. But I keep on going up, up, up, until my hand reaches the rim and I slam that sphere into the hoop so hard that the backboard shakes and let myself hang for a few seconds. The crowd goes absolutely wild.

These are the moments I live for. The times when I do inhuman feats because the adrenaline in my body pushes me to the limit and I get that feeling and that rush. I slip into my jersey and shorts which I have done time after time. I close the door to my room and pretend that I am in a massive arena. Thousands of eyes are on me and I throw my hands into the air to get the crowd roaring. I picture myself doing the impossible like breaking all five defenders and doing a between the legs 360 over a kid and then dunking it in his face. But in my head I know that this probably won’t happen so I open the door and walk downstairs. Tip-off begins in 1 hour so my dad and I get into the car and drive to where the game will be played. Once there I shoot around picturing those impossible feats over and over again. There is nothing like feeling that rush go through my body.

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I value both my widescreen computer and the feeling I get before a basketball game for various reasons. My computer provides me with information that I am curious about, to the score of the Patriot’s game, to being able to type up my homework. But before a basketball game I get that adrenaline rush flowing through my blood stream that gets me pumped. While a computer has a price around $1,200, you can’t put a price on the incredible feeling you receive before a sporting event.

The problem in society today is that people usually only focus on materialistic items while they take priceless things for granted. It would be very hard for me go through a day of my life without my almighty screen, but I would be missing a huge part of my life if I didn’t play basketball. I don’t think anyone can calculate or discern if one item is more valuable then another feeling, I know I sure can’t.