Things I did in 2015

I played part two in trifecta

Went to trek

Worked at a law firm over the summer

Went to prom

Met my boy Jaiden

Fell in love with boxing

Finally beat my dad in 1vs1

Became best friends with Kenn 

Beat wellman in laser tag

Won a church ball championship (suck it Britt)

Went to Lake Powell 

Watched frank sign with duke

Named my car

Kissed my sophomore crush

Watched all 7 Star Wars in one day

Fell in love with Tupac and Biggie

Won 3 flag football championships

Coached the worst team in girl junior jazz history and possibly the best one this season

Watched Claire move away after 8 years of being best friends

Turned 17

Taught beckham how to say straight cash homie

Beat assassins creed

Realized riddler is my favorite superhero or villain

Slept for 13 hours one day

Beat airbornes American Ninja warrior 

Decided I wanted to go on a mission

Lost to an Indian reservation in the 2A title game

Lost 8lbs

Took acutane

Got in a car crash

Tried a sushi burrito

Found Denace

Put Christmas lights up in my car

Got my heart broken twice 

Finished HIMYM for the second time

Played on the beach in Newport

Became the quorum leader

Went to Davanzas 

Got my wisdom teeth taken out

Went to Freddy's 

Got to see my Knicks 

Went to the temple for the first time in my life

Wrote a letter to Colin cowherd 

Punched Kanab in the face

Stole my parents car and took it to the hot pots for a night

Saw 8 mile

Got my French horn

Slept over at kyes

Saw my dad cry for one of the first times in my life

Kicked a door in

Hung out with Roman

Went hammocking 

Got a ticket for speeding 

Hit my first 3-pointer

My car turned 10,000

Saw the lights

Became friends with Britt Dax and Zoo

Watched the greatest finals performance ever

Went sledding

Took my parents credit card and bought 4 jerseys from China

Please I beg of you 2016 be as good to me as 2015

Steven O. Jordan

Dating: the endangered practice

I was scrolling down Twitter last night and I saw an interesting trend. I saw approximately 100 tweets give or take. 40 or so we're about the usual sports another 20 were interesting facts and about 20 were just random things people I was following decided to share. But 15- 20 had about the same meaning or theme. They were all girls whining about dates no longer happening or how "chivalry" and respect are dead with boys. This by no means is uncommon, in fact to go on Twitter and not see this complaining is a rarer sight.

I layed in my bed thinking about it I thought of the 3 main causes for it: social media and forms of communication, girls and boys. 

So we start off with the leader in my mind which is media and communication. With all of the forms of communication boys don't have to ask out anymore. Why would they? They want to get to know you? They go on Twitter or Instagram and look down there feed of pictures and other things they have posted. If you spend 20 mins stalking someone on there profile you can tell what there interests are, who there friends are, depending what they tweet on there personality. Plus with all of the pictures they put on there you can tell the physical attraction level. To add to this we have been giving the wonderful tools of texting and other forms of communication that allows boys to not have to ever talk to you in person because we can learn all we want from these interactions. Why would we ever take you out with all of these tools? All of the pictures on them are a highlight reel. Social media also adds a layer of unachieveable "relationship goals" or "chill dates" that make the average dinner and a movie seem bland or unappealing to someone being invited to these activities which sadly are the more realistic. To add to that movies and other forms of media convince us that our attraction to women is nothing but a sexual lust. Feelings aren't real only sex is. As does the rising rate of porn viewing. If in the back of young men's mind is engraved why would they want to date? Sex is the only thing that matters? They're not humans only objects. To put the cherry on top the new styles now a day is to exploit the sexuality of woman and to have them be provocative making it easier for their counterparts to view them as objects. 

Now the girls. First thing first I believe with every fiber of my being that every woman deserves true love and the highest admiration from a young man no matter what the circumstances are. That being said, for some reason this generation of girls thinks they're entitled to a "Notebook" story and their very own Ryan gosling. They are not. You may have to work for it a bit. You may have too look outside yourself and appealing more than just what you wear. Why would a guy ask you out if all he thinks is you're self centered? You guys preach that you want dates but the kids that would be willing to take you out you would say no to? You don't think you would? Oh I hear you talk about that "creepy" kid in your math class and how you talk about how weird he is. The poor kid has never talked to a girl in his life and doesn't know how to act. You make him flustered because he has a crush on you and doesn't know how to show you. Ya you would shoot him down in 2.111 seconds after he suggests you guys should go to a movie Friday and without hesitation you explain to him how you have to mow your lawn all Friday night even though it's December. Heaven forbid you ask the boys out to dates and take some form of action for something you want instead of expecting someone else to do it for you. You guys want a guy to care about you so much but won't do what's necessary to make it happen. Instead of waiting for a good guy or a legitimate date you are so desperate for their attention or affection you settle for "Netflix and chill or "drives". Everyone knows what that means. Hooking up with them may bring a sense of accomplishment and joy for a brief time but overall further increases your desire for something real. If you hold on and don't accept hookups and make boys take you on real dates they will come it may just take some time.

I believe that men should hold women in the highest regard because they are truly are better half and we should treat them like that. Everyman will at some point come to realize this. Sadly very few of them do this while they're in their young teen years causing confusion for their feelings and what to do with them at a younger age. They look to whatever is around them to teach them how to act. Again this ties to the media that they are most familiar with. If you see young beautiful women in bikinis running along the beach that may have no sexual meanings behind as an 9 year old boy your body is built to be aroused by that. Slowly your mind becomes calloused to these thoughts and ideas because you're surrounded by them. Unfortunately this more cases than not leads to pornography, completely desensitizing true feelings from primitive sexual urges. A lot of men feel that dating is just to please these desires. They understand how bad women crave desire and attention and exploit it with little to no effort at all. Why if I wanted to kiss a girl would I take her on 3 dates costing me around 60 dollars over a span of a month if she gives it out after talking at lunch four times texting for a little over a week, finally taking a drive up the canyon for free and achieving what I want? If a guy wants to know a girl on a deeper level he just talks to her or invites her over with no deeper intentions. It's free and you do not have the fear of rejection as you would with asking her out and often times you learn more about someone with a heart to heart in someone's kitchen than ice skating. Also dating is scary for boys. "What if she says no?" "What if I totally blow it and she hates it?" "I always chew with my mouth open... What if I forget to close it?" Why would they risk the embarrassment of the 1000x things that can go wrong?

I think it is an impossible thing to fix but I believe these things can help. Girls need to stop thinking they're above people and stop expecting that things will just fall in their lap and actually be nice to people demand respect instead of being ok with being objectified. Boys need to stop treating girls as objects and with respect understanding that they're someone's daughters. 

My feelings: I hate dating. I think dating around with no feelings toward them just for and hooking up is dumb. There are three girls that I have met that made me want to date and spend all my money and time with. Outside of this I have done very little dating or have wanted to. This all being said this practice is important to high school. It probably will only become more rare as the issues stated before only become more prevalent sadly. I would encourage those who are thinking about asking someone out please do. You may never know how much that person needs it or what I may lead to.

Steven O. Jordan

EpicWin21 is #1

ADAM IS THE MAN

Steven O. Jordan

Lessons I have learned throughout my life

These are 100 lessons I have learned from the most influential people in my life wither it be good or bad:

1. Dad- Dedication and how to have true character and to be strong

2. Mom- that I'm unconditionally loved

3. Braden- how to be smart and true character of a great man 

4. Wes- how to be professional but to hold on to your childhood no matter how old you get

5. Bro Pyper- hope is always there

6. Colin Cowherd- being smart is the most important thing you can be

7. Sarah- how to be a best friend

8. Bear- unconditional loyalty

9. Heather- those close to you always hurt you the worst

10. Britt- hard work and effort

11. Kayla- how to truly care for someone

12. Grandpa Steve- life is never as good as it seems or as bad, it's somewhere in the middle

13. Eminem- everyone is just as screwed up in the head

14. Kennedie- selfishness is a destructive trait

15. Dax- how to be funny

16. Saunders- help can come in May different forms

17. Grandma Vickie- holding grudges can destroy life

18. Hooty- you are a product of your environment 

19. Beckham- how simple life really is

20. Thayne- picking on people that are less than you is a terrible thing

21. Doni- crap can hit the fan really fast and once it does it's hard to stop

22. Taylor- how to have someone you want to beat no matter what it takes and to have a true rivalry

23. Caden- how to truly hate someone with every fiber of my being

24. Jerome- how to fall in love with football

25. Maddie- what my perfect woman will be like

26. Claire- be yourself no matter what

27. Seth- just because you're Mormon doesn't mean you act like it 

28. Arrie- unconditional kindness to everyone 

29. Walkinghors- what happens when you desperately cling to the past

30. Jaden H.- friendships are conditional

31. Susan- how to make the most out of a crappy hand you got dealt

32. Jaiden- how to help a friend when they need you

33. Jentzen- no matter how bad your life is, as long as you smile you can get through anything

34. Grandpa Von- nothing you do is unforgivable 

35. Rob- how to give service to everyone around you 

36. Uncle josh- take everything lightly and with a good attitude

37. Barbra- family isn't always defined by blood

38. Harvey- losing isn't acceptable

39. Mckoy- how you can be a good person even when your actions don't follow it

40. Aunt Bec- how being a strict rule follower makes you rigid

41. Sean- sex destroys lives and affects more than just yourself 

42. Mckayla- how to kiss

43. Aunt Claire- there's more to the world than just the Mormon bubble

44. Johnny- how to turn the killer mentality on and off

45. Tyler- pride is an ugly trait

46. Lauren- happiness is a choice

47. Sean B.- importance of the church

48. Sierra- how to respect women

49. Senõra Swartz- mercy

50. Grandma becky- to love every person 

51. Cole- true brotherhood

52. Chad- just because you are rich doesn't mean you have to shove it down everyone's throat

53. Frank- even sports stars have real everyday problems like normal people

54. Toby- how to deal with disappointment and coming up short

55. Spencer- just because you act like an idiot doesn't mean you aren't brilliant

56. Liz- no matter how much talent you have somethings just aren't overcomable

57. Conner- why to never be lazy or idle

58. Jimmy- how to be a quick thinker 

59. Troy- football is just a game

60. Jenni- anything can happen in your life in a matter of seconds and change it forever

61. Macklemore- never forget your past

62. Ryan- how not to parent

63. Keenan- how friendships can shape ones future

64. Corbin- how to be cool

65. Justin- to be a complete waste of space

66. Tyler- how different someone can be in two different settings and that's ok

67. Mj- how to be a better big brother

68. Matt- addiction can be overcome

69. Sam- how fast your life can go down hill if you aren't making good choice

70. Aubrey- love blinds your judgement

71. Maggie- just because you see someone one way doesn't mean that's who they are 

72. Bro Powell- explained how you can be a good person even when you make a mistake

73. Dawson- how to get girls

74. Lexi- kissing ruins friendship 

75. Poison- every rose has its thorn

76. Colin- how to waste gods given talent

77. Harley- how to smile again

78. Nelson- how to express myself

79. Talmage- stereotypes don't fit everyone 

80. BoBo- no matter how many advantages you have in life you can always find a way to screw yourself over

81. Brooke- letting people help isn't a sign of weakness

82. Bro beck- just because you are an old man doesn't mean you have a stick up your butt

83. Ellany- strengthened my convictions

84. Terrell- anger can consume you and make you so dumb things 

85. Kye- how to have no shame 

86. Parker- how you can completely turn your life around in a single year 

87. Ms. Wright- teachers understand way more than you give them credit to

88. Parker R.- the worst people can still have great advice

89. Sis Ottley- insanity 

90. Robert Greene- how to achieve true power

91. Andrew- having a mean streak can help and enhance your life

92. London- the difference between infatuation and real feelings

93. Biggie- a first impression always lasts even if you are no longer that person

94. Tyson- high school changes a man

95. Martin- true epitome of how you can't judge a book by its cover 

96. Cannon- how to have a big heart

97. Paul- not all Mormons look the same

98. Kostner- when you're a kid you can't understand the repercussions until you are older

99.   Mower- making the best of your situation

100. Nate- your parents aren't who you become

Steven O. Jordan