My Rosberg Thoughts After Spa

31 August

I’ve been holding my thoughts about the Nico Rosberg versus Lewis Hamilton saga for a week now but before the race weekend in Monza starts, here are my ideas. Also, I haven’t written an F1-related blog since like forever so, sorry for a splurge of thoughts right here.

To those of you who don't know, I am a Fernando Alonso fan, so that kind of makes me unbiased with regards to the two Mercedes drivers.

What I thought of Nico Rosberg before as Schumacher's teammate:

I thought that Nico was not really that good because even if MSC was old and kind of rusty, he still beat the younger Mercedes protege.

What I thought of Nico before the start of this 2014 season:

He's not just a son of a former champ but is quite quick as well. He was not far off of Lewis in terms of performance and I am little by little liking him as a driver.

What I thought of Nico before Spa:

A real challenge for Lewis and deserves the world title because of his consistency even if lady luck was always in his side of the garage. He's made less mistakes than Lewis.

What I want to speak of Rosberg now after Spa:

My immediate thoughts after the contact was that he was rude and very aggressive. He did not have the room to overtake and did it anyway and because of that, Lewis and the whole team was compromised.

After the race, and especially the podium interviews, my view of Nico Rosberg had a big turnaround. The very classy guy has become a very unsportsmanlike villain of F1.

First thing I thought was that he should have immediately apologized for causing a preventable collision during the post race interviews. And then after reading all the F1 sites, I also found out that in fact, Nico was still really angry about Lewis' actions during the Hungarian GP.

Remember that  during the race in Budapest, Lewis was given an order to let Rosberg through in the race. Hamilton ignored the order but said that if Nico were to get close enough, he will let him through. Fact is, Nico never really challenged for the position and Lewis slowing down for his teammate would have consequences on his own race programme.

So anyway, a week after all the denial to speak about the incident, Nico finally apologized in Facebook, twitter, et cetera. 

For me, it was a forced apology because I believe that he was shaken by the boos and all the negativity of F1 fans such as me showed towards him.

So anyway, I really did not like what he did. I mean, keeping shut and then apologizing a week after isn't really appealing. He should have said sorry or kept shut. He is trying to win back the F1 community by apologizing but really it doesn't change the fact that he previously lied to us fans.

I don't know what's gonna happen in Monza but I hope to see light whether Rosberg has been forgiven by fans already.

Cottonball Challenge!

Practice Writing

Different stages of our lives give various levels of happiness. While some believe that increased responsibilities do not hinder an adult's happiness, I feel that it gives them a lot of stress unlike teenagers.

Teens are generally happy because they have less responsibilities. They do not need to pay bills like their parents do. Instead, teenagers only need to focus on finishing their homework, or doing some chores.

In addition to this, they are not required to work to get money. Rather, they get their allowance from their parents. They would then spend this for shopping or attending parties without having to think about tuition fees or taxes. Teens are typically care-free and have more fun.

On the other hand, some believe that adult life brings more happiness. It is true that adulthood comes with greater responsibilities but the personal satisfaction from earning your own money is unequivocal. Also, most adults start a family and the love that a family gives always plants a smile on one's face. Some even claim that the happiest moment of their lives was when they first saw their children smile for the first time.

Being adults likewise, releases people from restrictions. They are allowed to vote or travel alone around the world. This results to meeting new faces and discovering new places. You can also enter bars, drink, and have fun with colleagues from time to time.

Yet all this happiness can be eaten out by stress. I think that problems occur more often with adults. Their own families are counting on them, and work commonly gives huge loads of mental stress.

Personally, I think that even though adults have the luxury of earning their own money and traveling around the world, teenage life, even with its limits, is happier because of the decreased amount of responsibilities and stress that goes with it.

Practice Writing

Topic:
Being a celebrity - such as a famous film star or sports personality - brings problems as well as benefits.
Do you think that being a celebrity brings more benefits or more problems?

Answer:
note: not edited

Being overly famous is not all that good. Although celebrities get to earn high amounts of cash, there are several disadvantages from stepping into the limelight.

Famous film stars and sports personalities have very high incomes. The most popular ones can get up to millions of savings, enough to sponsor charities and buy glamorous cars and houses. They could also get sponsors that would pay them extra money for advertising a product.

Another benefit of the famed is the ability to influence a certain population. Without having to get involved in politics, a famous sports icon could become an inspiration to many. Roger Federer and Michael Jordan have excelled in their own fields of sport and encouraged the future generations to be like them, if not, better.

However, being known by many has its negatives. For one, a celebrity's privacy is limited. The media has made money out of capturing candid photos of stars. For example, Kristen Stewart, a very famous American star, could not go to a small shop without getting her photo taken on paper. ALso their personal lives have been a focus of several gossip shows and sites.

In connection with this, while the whole world is watching a star's every move, the famed is expected not to make any mistake. Yes, they become an inspiration to many but they are immediately criticized for making a small mistake. A famous musician in the US was once bashed for not smiling to a fan which became a huge issue to many. People do not usually smile or greet strangers but apparently, celebrities are exempted from that.

In conclusion, a lack of privacy and being expected to not make many mistakes, are drawbacks of being a celebrity. But several people still choose to be famous because of high salaries and having the capability to influence many.

Ave Snapshots: "Carousel Waits"

Ave Snapshots: "Carousel Waits": January 2, 3:08 PM Kyle, Zoe, and Chesca happily await their turn on the mini-carousel of SM.

Practice Writing

People attend college or university for many different reasons (for example, new experiences, career preparation, increased knowledge). Why do you think people attend college or university? Use specific reasons and examples to support you answer.

The general public enroll in college or universities because of various reasons. The major reasons regarding this are better career opportunities, deeper comprehension on specific topics, and skill enhancement, which will now be discussed.

One of the elements as to why people attend college might be because of better career opportunities. College graduates have more job choices than those who did not attend universities after high school. In my country, more jobs are offered for people with a degree. Last Sunday's classified ads in the newspaper provided at least 70 percent of jobs to college grads. Although there are some work given to high school graduates, their jobs tend to earn lower salaries. Furthermore, people who finish college become professionals who are highly needed in the society today.

Another primary reason people go to college is their desire to get more knowledge. More extensive topics and discussions are learned in College. In my experience on the subject of Chemistry, the college classes provided more information and topics were more detailed than when I was in high school. Rather than just talking about elements, my college taught me about organic and inorganic chemistry, molecular bonds, and many more. The same goes to Microbiology and Physics. Topics were more detailed thus giving me more information.

One other cause of people's desire to attend universities is skill enhancement. Nursing colleges provide students with 'on-job-trainings' as part of their course. During my third and fourth years in college, the nursing department allowed us students to train in the hospitals like administering medications to patients with the assistance of nurses. Students in the Hotels and Restaurant Management courses have subjects that allow them to be a manager-for-a day in small diners and hotels. Skills with regards to prospected careers are thus better enhanced in college.

In conclusion, concerning my first point, there are more jobs offered to those who finish a degree in college. As for my second, further knowledge is deepened in college subjects. And finally, with regards to my last position, a person's skills improves during college.

Conclusions from the 2014 F1 Australian Grand Prix

1. The distinct noise is gone. And I don't like it.
     The sound of this  year's six-cylinder engine can be likened to that of a vacuum cleaner. I read once that Formula isn't just about the speed, it's about the noise. The rule changes robbed us fans from that. I hope they do something about it because I felt sleepy because of the sound.

2. Mercedes are way, way ahead.
     The silver arrows are at least a full second ahead of any team. During the race, Nico ran away quietly ahead of the pack. If Lewis did not retire, we might at least had a battle for the lead. In any case, the Merc was really fast.

3. Felipe has something to smile about.
     Even if he was put out of the race by Kamui's Caterham on the first corner of the race, the other Williams Martini car of Valteri Bottas showed tremendous pace finishing 6th even if he had an accident that caused the appearance of the safety car. That should be a positive for Massa knowing that he has a car underneath him that can put him on top of the podium.

4. Ferrari is still a slow car.
     Much to the dismay of Ferrari and fellow Alonso fans, Ferrari is still pretty much like a turtle. They had some electronic issue during the race. Plus the two world champions were fighting with midfield cars! Which may imply that Ferrari's pace is of midfielders. Kimi tousling with Vergne? And Alonso wtih Hulkenburg? They could be only the fifth fastest car. Mercedes are the fastest followed by Williams, Mclaren, and possibly Redbull.

5. Mclaren are back.
     People forgot quickly how dreadful Ron Dennis' team was last year. They hadn't had a single podium in 2013. And quickly they already have 2 podiums plus they lead the constructor's championship. Incredible!

6. Magnussen who?
     Magnussen. I predict we are going to hear that name for a long time getting on the podiums, probably winning a race or two. What a fantastic drive for the rookie! With Daniel's Redbull disqualified from the race, Kevin inherits second place bettering Lewis Hamilton's race debut result in 2007.

7. Tyres not much of a factor.
     Reliability and engine power dictated the season opener. Mercedes powered cars clearly dominating the field. Tyre degradation didn't quite have a massive effect unlike what we used to last season.

8. Redbull caught cheating.
     Dream debut for the Redbull of Daniel Ricciardo became a nightmare. Much to the delight of the Aussies during the race, Ricciardo drove impressively well through the field only to find out five hours after that he had been disqualified because his team did something illegal with the fuel flow system of his car.

9. Quiet race unlike any other.
     Sorry I had to repeat this. I really don't like the sound of the engines. It is too quiet. What makes Formula 1 distinct from other racing sports and cars is that lovely high-pitched sound of the V8's or V10's. It is gone now. Yes, yes, the engines are now more environment-friendly, but THE SOUND!!! It is gone!

10. Malaysia next.
     I predict a Lewis resurgence and a Williams accompanying the two Mercs on the podium.


-Ave Cortes, 17 March 2014