View from the sideline

I had the opportunity on Saturday to take photos of the ASU - Cal football game from the sideline, for my photojournalism class. It was amazing how different the experience, especially the atmosphere, is when you're on the field. The crowd is loud, yet you can still hear the hecklers ("You're ****ing terrible, ref!" Or, "Hey, Sullivan, you suck!"). And by the end of the game, I was exhausted from running up and down the sideline competing with other photographers for prime real estate.

I took about 300 photos, about 50 of which are acceptable, and about 20, in my opinion, are pretty good. Here are a few for your viewing pleasure:

The ASU band during pre-game festivities.

Coach Dennis Erickson and the Sun Devils jog onto the field before the game.

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California quarterback Kevin Riley takes a snap during the first quarter.

ASU quarterback Danny Sullivan throws a pass during the first quarter. He missed the receiver.

California running back Javid Best is tackled by the Sun Devil defense after picking up a first down.

I don't remember who this is, and I'm too tired to look it up right now.

ASU quarterback Samson Szakacsy throws his first career pass - for a touchdown.

Movie review: 'Paranormal Activity'

Friends had told me, "It's the scariest movie I've ever seen."

My sister Haley had said it's "INSANELY scary. You won't sleep the night you see it, guaranteed."

My sister Katie and her husband Clark refused to go see it with me, because, based on what they had heard, it would be too scary for them to handle.

Well, let me play the part of "mythbuster."

'Paranormal Activity' is creepy, intense, and unnerving. But it's definitely not the scariest movie I've seen, and I don't see that many scary movies.

Overall, I enjoyed the movie. It did spook me somewhat, and I was into it the entire time. And there were a few scenes that made me put my hand over my mouth in fright.

Not to mention, I didn't eat any of my candy.

But the movie was a bit of a letdown, perhaps because my expectations were too high. The plot is too formulaic and predictable.

The main characters, a couple who are "engaged to be engaged," the boyfriend quips, have been hearing strange noises and want to find the cause. The boyfriend buys a nice video camera, and they set it up every night to document what happens.

It starts slowly, with a few creaks here and there. Each night, it gets progressively worse. This is the predictable part.

Now, I don't want to spoil it, so that's all I'll say about the story.

The movie's best feature is definitely the ending. It felt like a punch in the gut and made me feel a bit sick.

Still, I think I'll sleep just fine tonight.

A living formula

If I were to express myself in an equation, I think it would look something like this:

Parker Leavitt = (3x² + 5y³) + (z+t)/e + E^db

Where ...

x = inherited paternal genes,
y = inherited maternal genes,
z = influences from friends and peers,
e = personal experience,
t = education and instruction from teachers and other authority figures,
d = past decisions and their consequences,
E = environment, AND
b = my belief system

Now, that is not, of course, an entirely accurate or comprehensive representation of everything that has made me who I am today. But it's a start.

Do I have a point to all this? I think so.

I was thinking recently: Is it possible that all of one's behavior, choices, opinions and perspective are a direct result of an equation like the one I listed above?

An input is made when something, anything happens. The event is processed through the equation, and the output is the person's reaction.

What do you think? Could a person, theoretically speaking, be reduced to a formula, albeit one much more complex than mine listed above?