The week before finals.

     Kraft's character mac and cheese is considered by many to taste far superior than plain, old, normal mac and cheese. People claim that its the difference in the instructed ingredients; however, lets be honest, who actually follow the directions for mac and cheese? I know that I don't. After all, all you need to do is put in a splash of milk, a scoop of butter, and the packet of cheese powder (which is totally gross if you think about it for more than half a second) that the box gives you and VOILA, your mac and cheese is ready to cook. So to me that whole "the difference in the ingredients" argument doesn't hold up.
      So why does it taste better? My answer: the fact that its CHARACTER mace and cheese. You are eating your favorite characters, whats not to love? Kraft has made character mac and cheese for all of the following (to my knowledge): Scooby Doo, Spiderman, Super Mario Brother, Pokemon, Rugrats, Flintstones, Toy Story, and SpongeBob SqaurePants. That's a lot of options when you are picking out mac and cheese!
    So with all these options for character mac and cheese I began to wonder; why isn't there Harry Potter character mac and cheese? All of the other options don't seem as wide spread as the phenomenon of Harry Potter. I mean Rugrats and the Flinstones? Those aren't even part of modern popular culture (unfortunately, I was always a fan of Tommy Pickles). As I pondered this question I asked my friend what she thought on the subject and came to the same conclusion as I did: that not having Harry Potter character mac and cheese is huge overlook.
     Think about it ? Wands, wizard's hats, lightening bolts (for Harry's scar), broomsticks, etc would make the perfect Harry Potter macaroni. Also Harry Potter appeals to all age groups, and certainly to ones that the Kraft company markets to with the product of character mac and cheese. Also, it seems to me that mac and cheese is a staple in college. One of the biggest age groups of Harry Potter fans is co-eds. To me, the decision to make Harry Potter mac and cheese is a no brainer.
     Perhaps its because character mac and cheese is one of my favorite foods to eat and Harry Potter is one of the staples in my life, but I think that a combination of the two would be EPIC!

    The clocks have been set back, the days are turning colder (well at least they should be), and the season of fall will soon be fading fast into the bleak days of winter. For some the chilly season means snow, Christmas---and therefore Santa and lots of presents, or other happy joyous occasions that fall within the frosty months of a Chicago winter. However, for others the frigid winter can mean longs days cooped up inside, adding unknown amount of time to an already long commute, or watching the once white, fluffy snow turn into a black hill of ice.

    In any of these scenarios there is one thing that will always make that cold day just a lit bitter better, warmer, more delightful, hot chocolate! Yes, the season for that delicious, foamy, chocolaty, warm drink is upon us. Hot chocolate is perfect for every occasion in winter: drinking it during a break from  ice skating at Millennium park; driving to school with a cup in hand; after a hard day spent out on the slopes; and cozying up at a fire with a good book. Being an ardent lover of hot chocolate, I found myself to believe that hot chocolate simply goes with everything.

    Just like snowflakes, each hot chocolate is unique. The variety of hot chocolates differs from the basic components, water versus milk, to the extras which make the drink that much more scrumptious. Marshmallows, graham crackers, whipped cream, chocolate chips, peppermint sticks, and many others are all suitable extras that make each cup of hot chocolate unique and yummy to its drinker. My favorite blend? A cup of hot chocolate made with milk, whipped cream, marshmallows, and graham crackers for dipping!

     Obsession: the domination of one's thoughts or feelings by a persistent idea, image, desire, etc. In accordance with this definition in would be acceptable to say that the issue of obsession is dear to my heart. Perhaps my tendencies towards obsession come from my child hood. As a toddler I used to watch Cinderella over and over and over again. It became such symbolism for my early days that there are home videos of me watching it.  Every story my parents about those years allows has some element of Cinderella within it. So even as a toddler I showed the early signs of an obsession tendency growing.

     As I grew up the obsession with Cinderella persisted, however it was pushed into the wings and my love of reading took center stage. Now you might be wondering, how could a love of reading be associated with obsession problem? In most cases a child’s love of reading is an extremely positive thing, something that most parents and institutions strive to install within kids at an early age. I’m sure my parents were thrilled as I spent my days reading instead of spending all my time playing Neopets or Pokemon Red on Gameboy, though I did spend quite a bit of time in Neopia and training my charmander. However, the need that I felt to read soon overshadowed important daily necessities. Sleeping for an example, something that is extremely important for an nine year old girl, became second to the reading my book. I would stay up and read by the light of my closet late into night, yes, even on school nights! Finally when I was around the age of ten it came to my parents great alarm why I was constantly tired, as they had yet to discover my secret method of reading after they turned off my lights and tucked me in. My parents trying to find out what was wrong with me wanted to have my blood drawn, and being faced with this option, which would involve facing my great fear of needles, I confessed to my late night reading habits that consumed me.

     When new books to read grew slim my reading obsession joined Cinderella in the wings and my obsession with TV shows stormed the metaphorical stage. Everyone has their favorite TV show, or two, or three. After a long hard day of school, or work, taking a half hour to an hour of time to decompresses feels extremely relaxing. Electronics, and therefore television, have become a way of life in our culture today. From reality TV shows such as Jersey Shore to crime solving shows like Law and Order: SVU there is a TV show out there for every type of person.

     What makes a TV a good one? Well this varies for each individual but for myself it is the relationships that build between characters that always hooks me into a show. Yes, I love the baffling mysterious disease that House and his team always seem to figure out by the end of the episode, but that alone is not why I watch the show. The friendship between House and Wilson is comical and touching and the sexual tension that emanated between House and Cuddy for the first five seasons (they are FINALLY together in this current season) was always riveting to watch.

     The relationship between House and Cuddy, or as the couple is fondly called “Huddy”, brings me to my next point. This perhaps is my main point, reason why I become overly emotionally involved with TV shows a.k.a. “obsessed”. As I stated before the relationships between characters is what always hooks me on a show. It has been prove time and time again that my favorite type of relationship to watch develop between characters is one filled with chemistry. The evidence: House and Cuddy from House, Lorelai and Luke from Gilmore Girls, Bones and Booth from Bones, Bo and Nora from One Life to Live, Castle and Beckett from Castle, and even Benson and Stabler, who have their moments, from Law&Order:SVU. This list of couples, or sadly in most cases not-at-all couples, is the main reason for my intense dedication towards said couple’s show.

     There is always those two characters on a show that you want to get together, or in my case multiple characters on multiple shows. The two may never end up together but the anticipation of the them getting together creates a bond between you and the characters. The writers give you moments of hope just as you are about to give up on your “dream” of seeing the two together. The impossibility of the two characters ever truly being together is always lurking in the back of your mind even as you watch them flirt outrageously with one other. However, despite the feeling that the chemistry between the characters will never truly be recognized by the writers you never give up hope and continue to find joy in tiny scenes, such as in the show Castle with “the moment” between Beckett and Castle at the Heat Wave premiere when she reads the dedication. That one moment makes the entirety of the episode worth it, despite the total almost negation of “the moment” by Castle and Beckett just seconds after it happens. Of course there is also the couples that do eventually get together, only furthering the cycle of endless hope for the rest of your favorite wanna be couples. Happiness was found on screen for Luke and Lorelai on Gilmore Girls,  Bo and Nora on One Life to Live, and recently House and Cuddy on House.

     So with my tendency to root for the underdog, or the couple to be that will probably never be, correlating with my trait of becoming easily obsessed I now find myself watching way more TV than I should be in my Junior year of high school. With tiny matters such as the ACT and SAT looming closer and closer, all my extracurricular activities, and of course all of my actual course work all demanding my attention and care it probably isn’t wise to be wasting a minimum of five hours a school dedicated to “my shows”.

     This post has been based on the fact that I, along with several friends, consider myself to be “slightly” obsessive when in comes to TV shows that I watch. The term “obsessed” seems to have a negative quality attached to it, therefore implying that my obsession is unhealthy and detrimental. However, what if we were to replace the word “obsessive” with word “passionate” (having, compelled by, or ruled by intense emotion or strong feeling; fervid”. One could reasonably argue that I am simply passionate about shows that interest me. Then suddenly my habit becomes a positive quality, one to be shared and not hidden away like reading a book from my bedroom closet light.