People these days…

Joshua Bell performing in the metro station

I recently read an article somebody shared on Facebook entitled, A Violinist in the Metro by David Emery. Even though this article was published years ago, it has soon made its way back into the circulation. This article was about the Washington Post conducting an experiment to see what the priorities of people are these days. The experiment was to have somebody play a musical instrument in the metro at the busiest time of day (preferably in the morning) to see what the people of our society have become and what they do about it. Throughout the experiment, a few people stopped to listen only to realize they were going to be late for work. Others didn’t even stop to listen at all, they just threw some money into his violin case. What these people didn’t realize was, the guy that was playing the violin in the metro was Joshua Bell. He is one of the best musicians that had a sold out show just two days before this experiment where the tickets were being sold at 100 bucks a seat. He was also playing a violin worth 3.5 million dollars.This just goes to show that people don’t pay attention to the world around them. All they care about is getting to work on time and rushing to get back home.

To me, this article proves that I as well as many others just need to slow down and take a step back. I mean, I am only going to be young once so why not enjoy it while I can. In just a few years, I will be just like those people in the metro station rushing to get to work and being too busy to take time out of the day just to enjoy life itself.

This experiment proved the Washington’s Post point. People are too busy to appreciate the littlest of things in life.

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Coffee: the New Drug

In a recent article on CNBC titled “The Coffee Addiction” by Scott Wapner states that coffee once was just a simple drink but today, it’s something more. He says that, “It’s fancier, tastier, pricier — a magic elixir that satisfies our collective craving and our national addiction to caffeine.” Later on in the article, he enlists the help of Dr. Peter Martin confirming that this can be an addiction where he says, “If you drink coffee regularly and then one day not drink coffee then you might develop a headache…” where he basically goes on to say that your body is dependent on this natural stimulant.

I agree with him that coffee can be that natural drug or stimulant you need to get through the day. There are a large number of coffee shops all throughout the world especially Starbucks, making it an easy access to get this “drug.” Everywhere you go, there is always going to be a Starbucks. In turn, they have come up with different ways to entice their consumers with the iced mochas and frappuccinos which are mainly for the younger generation in today’s society. People are becoming more dependent on this stimulant because they feel that they have to have it. True, there is a chemical in coffee that helps you stay awake, alert, and focused, but; why don’t they just go to bed earlier and get those extra minutes of sleep in the morning.

Some statistics show that there are nearly 400 million cups of coffee drank every day. I personally don’t like Starbucks or more specifically coffee which is rather funny considering my dad is the Vice President of Manufacturing for Red Diamond Coffee and Tea. My poor dad brings home samples of coffee (more specifically the flavored coffee) and gets me to try it. As always, I try not to hurt his feelings when I tell him I don’t like it. Some people have to have that coffee to get them through the day but, to others they don’t need any kind of stimulant at all.