1. It's been about 5 days since the Boston Marathon explosions. I'm probably a little late on this, but obviously our thoughts and prayers go out to the victims and their families. I'm told one of the suspects has been killed and the other is in custody (albeit without supposedly having been read his Miranda rights). But the good news is, the people of Boston will not take this inhumanity lying down. In fact, after running 26.2 miles, some runners ran an extra 2 miles to the hospital to donate blood. So here's to Boston, and all the people that call it home.
2. I'd like to approve of Pope Francis, since he's been in charge for about a month. What with washing prisoners' feet on Easter, wearing simple clothing and living in an apartment. But as far as I know, he hasn't elaborated on his remarks that same-sex marriage is "the work of the devil" and a "destructive attack on God's plan," and calling gay adoption "a form of discrimination against children." As far as the LGBT community is concerned, it's "new guy, same message."
3. I'm going to college! Well, not yet at least. First I have a couple of weeks before my high school graduation, then I have about 2 months of summer, and then I'm going to college. It's called Hood, and it's about a 45 minute drive from where I currently live. So wish me luck.
4. Did anyone read this year's Time Magazine's "100 Most Influential People"? The people listed include:
*chess player Magnus Carlsen
*Facebook COO Sheryl Sandberg
*Kentucky Senator Rand Paul
*Filipino president Noynoy Aquino
*U.S. President Barack Obama
*Governor of New Jersey Chris Christie
*CIA director John Brennan
*Mexican president Enrique Peña Nieto
*U.S. Supreme Court justice Elena Kagan
*U.S. Vice President Joe Biden
*Malawi president Joyce Banda
*actress Jennifer Lawrence
*director Steven Spielberg
*actor Bryan Cranston
*Bollywood actor Aamir Khan
*Egyptian comedian Bassem Youssef
*activist Malala Yousafzai
*Burmese dissident Aung San Suu Kyi
*former U.S. Congresswoman and gun control advocate Gabrielle Giffords
*actor Daniel Day-Lewis
...and many more