Entry 25: Christmas Holiday

Write about what you hope to do on your holiday. What are your plans? What do you hope to do? What do you hope not to do?

• I hope that during the holiday, I will be able to relax and rest for a while. It has been quite a tiring week. I also want to be able to go out and enjoy the holiday as much as I can, since the following days will become very tiring, and I am certain that the days will become very stressed as well.  I will not be leaving the country, since my brother is coming back and my family has many plans for his "returning home". We have to take my brother to the doctor for his vaccination, then take him to the dentist to see his rotten teeth. After that, we have some military issues that we have to solve (since my brother is in college he will have to notify the military of his status). There will be a few days where we will have family activities, but these are never sure because my mother does things depending on her mood (and that changes a lot). Some other few days will be spent with friends, and I'm hoping that I'll be able to go to the basketball game on the 21st and the 22nd. The few of the days will be spent writing homework, and preparing for tests. For homework I have French, American Literature, SAT Math Level II Prep, AP Psychology, and Precalculus; for tests I have a Precalculus final (which means I'm going to die). I hope not to spend the whole break cleaning my house and doing other chores.

Entry 24: What's Your Problem

You have probably been in or witnessed a situation that you did not think was fair. It may have been something that happened to you or someone else. Think about a time you thought, "It's not fair." Write about something that happened to you that was not fair. Explain what you think makes something fair or unfair. How can you judge when a situation is one or the other?

• An example of me being in a extremely unfair situation was when my brother and I first got our laptop computers. Our family, all very excited, went to look at computers, and we ended up buying two new computers. Of course, everyone who reads until now will think that I will get one of the computers; but no, I didn't get one. Instead, one of the new computers went to my brother, while the other went to my father. I got the old computer that my father once had - a six year old computer. That's so unfair, isn't it?! 
• I believe that to determine whether something is fair or not, we have to look at several things (this may vary depending on the situation). For example, if a person doesn't need something but gets it instead of someone who needs it, this is unfair (this is applied to the case above, in my case). Also, another common case of unfairness is when someone didn't do something that should be blamed, but still got blames. I believe that every single person has experienced something like this before, whether it is a small case of a big case. I believe that to judge each situation, the basis is to look at if people did what they are supposed to do.

Entry 23: Address an Issue

What issue is important in your community today? Select an issue you feel strongly about and write about it. Use Thoreau's "Resistance to Civil Government" as your model (from your American Lit Textbook). Argue for or against a particular solution to the issue. Be aware of the kinds appeals you are using: Emotional appeals can be powerful, but logical ones will provide stronger support.

• One of the most important issues in our current community is the issue of littering. Everywhere we go, there is always a sign of trash and garbage on the floor, or anywhere else it's not supposed to be in. One solution to this problem is to create a law that goes against littering: if you little, you will have to pay the fines, and if you are unable to pay the fines, then you will have to go to jail. Also, to make sure that this law can work, more trash cans should be placed out so people actually have a place to throw their trash - this will decrease the incentive of throwing trash on the floor and instead allow people to throw the trash in the trash can. An example of this is Singapore. Singapore is not only a beautiful place because of its monuments and other beautiful landscapes and artificial achievements, but it's also a beautiful place because it is very clean. There are no trash or garbage on the floor, there is no gum stuck to places (which is extremely disgusting), and everything looks organized. Would you want to live in a dirty place or a clean place? Of course a clean place! And all you have to do is to through trash in the trash can!

Entry 22: Late Policy

How do you feel about the new tardy policy at school? Do you have any suggestions for how it might be better? What do you think the problem is? If you were the boss of the school, how would you deal with attendance problems?

• I believe that the new tardy policy is absolutely ridiculous. To specify what I mean, I will say that I believe this policy is ridiculous because first, it won't be that efficient, and second, it's extremely unfair. I say that it's not efficient because sometimes it's not the child's fault for being late to school; it's the problem of the environment. For example, their parents never wake up early enough, or there might be an accident during the usual traffic jam. Children may feel as if they are unjustly blamed, and may become even more rebellious. Also, it's unfair because parents did not pay such a big amount of money to have their children denied access to education. Even if they are late, I believe that the school does not have the position to just lock the children out of school. Sure, they can mark them as tardy and make them do cleaning and other community services, but the school certainly can't just LOCK them and PREVENT them from education. Has the school consider the negative effects? I believe that the previously implemented system is just fine: you come in late, your marked tardy, and you have to do cleaning in the school. Another problem with the system is that sometimes a part of the system, either the staff or the teachers, may not be doing their job correctly. For example, the teacher may close the door before thirty seconds. How are we supposed to justify that? The solution that I will propose is to implement an electronic system where the students have to swipe cards so that there are no biases, and then if they are tardy for more than a certain number of times, then they have to do services for the school or outside of the school.

Entry 21: Helping the Reader

American Novelist James Jones said, "I think the writer ought to help the reader as much as he can without damaging what he wants to say; and I don't think it ever hurts the writer to sort of stand back now and then and look at his stuff as if he were reading it instead of writing it." Why might it be especially important to evaluate one's own personal narrative from the reader's point of view? What is the relationship between the writer and the material in a personal narrative, and how does it compare to the relationship between the reader and the material? How can it be helpful for a writer to look at the writing from the reader's point of view?

• I believe that it is especially important to evaluate one's own personal narrative from the reader's point of view because by doing so, he or she is making it easier for the reader to understand as well as the experience the writing material of the author. In general, it helps convey to the reader the messages intended to be conveyed by the author. And when the author successfully conveys what he or she wants to say to the reader, it may provide insight to the reader, and help the reader connect the material of the author to the reader's personal experience (activated certain emotions). If the author does not stand in the reader's point of view, then the reader would think that the author is talking nonsense since he or she doesn't understand what the author's saying and would not read the material. The relationship between the writer and the material in a personal narrative is basically that it's personal - the narrative may be biased due to the close emotions connected. The relationship between the reader and the material is more distant (not personal). The reader may just believe that it's just another story or just some other knowledge.

Entry 20: Effective Anecdotes

F. Scott Fitzgerald said, "When you tell an anecdote, tell it so your listeners can actually see the people you are talking about." A good way to do this is to close your eyes and visualize how a scene would look and sound if you were recording it with a video camera. Think of an anecdote related to your influential person and describe it as a scene that is being recorded with a video camera. Imagine the "frame" of the picture and what is in it. Does the frame move during the scene? If so, how? Does it jump back and forth between speakers? Does it pan around? Zoom in or out? What sound do you hear? Do they come from something inside the frame, or outside it? The scene you choose does not have to be part of your essay, but it should be related to it to help you build background.

• The anecdote that I thought of relating to my influential personal was the story about him doing his college applications. Because he kept on procrastinating, he had a hard time convincing his parents (in this case my parents as well) to let him go to college. The frame of the scene would be panning from my brother to my mother (for example, when they are arguing about something). It would also zoom in on their expressions when they were arguing, and zoom out on their expressions to get both expressions of my mother and my brother. The sound I hear is the sound of arguing as well as yelling, and it comes from within the frame (since if something outside of the frame made a sound, they would be yelling at it and telling it to shut up). This anecdote helps to show results of not making an effort for the future - you might not be recognized and others may not want to help you achieve your goal (in this case, to go to college). My influential person's parents thought that he wasn't showing enough effort. So I learned that when I think about my future, I must take into consideration that if I want anything that I want to be done, I have to show effort and convince others that what I want is the best thing so that they would support me and my cause. 

Entry 19: The Hardest Part

When writing about significant experiences and influential people, the part students have the most difficulty with is showing how the experiences and influences have helped to form the person they have become. Because it is the most difficult part, it needs a lot of extra attention. Considering your influential person essay, write about how the influence has manifested itself in the formation of your character. What concrete examples can you describe that demonstrate the effect of this influence?

•  I believe that the concrete examples of the influence and the manifestations of the influence my influential person had on me are mostly behaviors cause by psychological changes. It can affect several different aspects of psychology. Some of them include the aspect of though, my point of view (how I view the world), and my reactions to different things and different situations, especially those reactions concerning academic interests. Some examples of the manifestation includes the thinking a lot of my future. I start to set up plans and prepare for my future, and this a huge leap for me, because I used to not think about anything at all but entertainment. Because of this, I start to put extra effort into assignments, and this resulted into grades that are quite good (at least until now). Also, I have become more anxious about things (this is the affected reactions part). For example, when I see my grades on Veracross and see that I have either incomplete or missed assignments, I freak out and panic like someone is trying to kill me. And then I run like monsters or something evil is after me to find the teacher and try to solve the problem (you may wonder how I can solve the "problem", but it's basically just trying to get the highest grade possible with a missed assignment).

Entry 18: Your Attributes

Describing the person that influenced you will either show the attributes you value or the ones you don't value depending on if this person positively influenced you or negatively influenced you. Either way, this question will reveal a lot about your values and what you strive to become in your life. Some of the values that admissions officers are looking for are: ability to learn from mistakes, accountability, concern for others, creativity, defined goals, dignity, discipline, ethics, goal-orientation, honesty, humility, introspection, leadership, lucidity, maturity, positivity, self-awareness, team-orientation, uniqueness, and vision. Qualities that they aren't looking for are: anger, arrogance, bad writing, blind ambition, ego, entitlement, immaturity, mediocrity, perfectionism, poor judgment, prejudice against race/gender, and vanity. Look through the two lists and try to determine which attributes you have. Then decide whether you got any of them from your influential person. Write about these attributes and how you came about them. If you didn't get them through your influential person, where did you get them? Did your influential person give you any of them? If not, explain why you chose this person and how they DID influence you.

• I believe that the good attributes I have include characteristics such as the ability to learn from mistakes, concern for others, defined goals, ethics, goal-orientation, honesty, introspection, and leadership. I believe that I cannot decide for myself the other characteristics. How did I get these good attributes and characteristics? I would say that most of them did not come from my influential person. Instead, they are products of nature, results of my genes. I believe that the only trait I got from my influential person is the trait of introspection. This is because one of the actions of my influential person was the trigger or initiative to my introspection of me and my future. I began thinking, what would the future be like, and how would my future change depending on my efforts, both academically and non-academically. As for the bad attributed that I have, they include anger, immaturity, and perfectionism. Similar to the good attributes, I cannot decide by myself the other attributes and characteristics. All of these three traits are caused by nature, by my genes. I am quick to anger (I suffer from mood swings), I am sometimes very childish and immature, and I feel uncomfortable is something is not perfect (at least in my dictionary). Why would I choose this influential person if he only influenced only one trait? That is because the trait concerns my future, which is something that I value a lot.

Entry 17: Oral History

Describe the process of creating your oral history. How did you go about it, what was your subject's response like, what did you learn, both about your subject and about yourself? If you had more time to work on an oral history project, how would you improve upon the process? Who might you choose as a subject? Why? Describe how you feel about the value of oral histories as a source of information.

• The main process for creating my oral history presentation and essay is to ask questions. We need, of course, to know who is the influential person of the interviewed person, what is the influence or the impact, and how the influence manifests itself. The subject's response is mostly informative. I learned about the subject his past, and why he has his present behavior. I learned about myself that I am actually good at creating a story with only a few details given to me. If I had more time to work and develop my oral history project or presentation, I would improve the process by adding more pictures to the presentation slides, and also by giving the background a more informative picture. I believe that I should have also included the reaction of the subject. If I were given the chance of choosing my own subject for my interview, I would choose someone who is a close friend of mine. The reason is mainly because I even though we know each other already and understand each other quite well, it would be better if I understood my friends even more. I believe that the oral histories are valuable most of the time. However, we must always consider the fact that they may be biased depending on the subject.

Entry 16: EMERGENCY

Everyone has seen or heard of emergencies. TV, newspapers, and many other media sources are full of stories of people going through terrifying and life threatening ordeals. Have you ever been in a dangerous or emergency situation, such as a natural disaster, car crash, or a medical emergency? If so, what was the situation? How did it make you feel? If you have never been in an emergency situation yourself, how do you think you would react? Would you be able to control the fear and act effectively, or do you think you would panic? Would you freeze up, or run around in circles screaming? Or would you calmly take control and know just what to do? How can you prepare for emergencies? Do you think being prepared can help a person avoid panicking? In what way does how a person reacts to an emergency reveal his or her character?

•  I have never been in an emergency myself; at least, in my opinion. In my imagination, I believe that when I actually do end up in an emergency, the first thing I would do is swear. A lot. And I mean it. Of course, I would panic while swearing. But after my "swearing" period, I would try to think of ways that will solve the problem even though my panicking. Basically, I try to keep the appearance of being calm because I'm afraid that if I appeared like I'm in a panicking state, other people may then be affected and start to panic even more. I believe that it's hard to prepare for emergencies, because we never know when they happen, and we don't know what type of emergency will happen. All we can do is try to be as cautious as we can about the things that we do, and about the things that other people do. And when emergencies really do happening, one of the most important things that one has to do it to remain calm. Sometimes reactions can show the personality of a person. For example, if someone reacts by running frantically around, we can usually say that these people are the more open and the more active people (and thus not afraid to show that they are panicking). People who just freeze and don't do anything are likely to be introverted, because they do not know how to express their panic and keep all of it in their mind. People who are calm are usually the one who is more capable of reacting quickly to situations.

Entry 15: Disappointment

"If every time you sat down, you expected something great, writing would always be a great disappointment."

At the beginning of a writing project, sometimes called the brainstorming step, the writers job is to simply collect ideas and get something on paper. It can be a time of doubt, as often writers feel like they don't know where to start. Even knowing that we can revise later, we often hesitate to begin. Write about your experience with beginning a writing project. How do you do it? Do you have writers block sometimes? How do you get over it? What ways work best for you to generate ideas and get started?

•  When I am beginning to write a project, I will first think of ideas, and after that choose an idea, and start immediately after a short and brief outline. This initiation process is usually very fast, taking about only five to ten minutes, mainly because I decide on a topic very quickly, and once I decided it, I usually won't think about changing my topic anymore. I usually don't have a writer's block when I start writing - it appears when I am around the middle of the essay. When an idea comes to mind, I will be very excited and write for a while, but after that period I will be seriously stuck on that part. So, I will sometimes change the content of what I am going to write if I have writer's block, because it may in a way help me. Different people have different ways for generating ideas for writing projects. For me, I usually listen to music, or read my novel. Generally, in order to find ideas for topics, I generally make myself relaxed and comfortable. If I do so, then something may suddenly inspire me, or I might remember something that could work as a topic.

Entry 14: Your Influence

Newton's Third Law states: "The mutual forces of action and reaction between two bodies are equal, opposite and collinear". How does this apply to relationships between people? In what ways are the actions and reactions between people equal, opposite, or collinear (whatever "collinear" means)? When you think of people that have influenced you, do you think that there was an equal influence the other way? An opposite influence? A collinear influence? What influences do you think you might have on other people? Will you ever end up on someone"s "influential person" college application essay? Would you want to be? Explain.

• An example of using Newton's third law to describe the relationship between people could be when one person treats another person a certain way, and in response the other person treats the first person back in the same way. Another way to describe this would be to say a person influences me, which changes me, and then I in turn influence the person back. I believe that the reactions between people are equal when two people treat each other with the same treatment. For most cases, when one person treats you in a friendly way, you would also treat that person in a friendly way. Reactions between people are opposite when the treatments differ extremely. For example, there are sometimes love and hate relationships that are really complicated (and I would prefer not to get involved into any one of them). As for collinear, I would say it's very similar to the treatments in equal reactions. When there are people who influenced me, there was an equal influence on the other party as well (in the case for my significant person essay), though it was a very subtle influence. In the end, the two of us maintained quite a friendly relationship, helping each other on occasions. My main influence on others involves academic aid for other students (when I can help). I don't think that I'll end up as another person's influential person and I also don't want to be because it's going to make things awkward.

Entry 13: Influential Person

Your next essay will be about a person who has influenced you: Indicate a person who has had a significant influence on you, and describe that influence. Notice a couple of things about this prompt: it does not say the MOST significant influence, and it does not say to describe the person - it says to describe the influence. As with the significant experience essay, this essay will require you to examine yourself, and to try to figure out who you are and what kind of person you are. From there you work backward to try to determine how you got to be that way. For the last essay, you tried to find an experience that helped to form you. Now you need to find a person who did so. For this entry, try to come up with three or four different individuals that you might be able to use, and for each one describe how your relationship with him or her had a formative effect on the person you are today.

•  The first person that comes up to my mind as an influential person in my life is my mother. Most mothers are very influential. For me, my mom influenced me in two ways: she taught me (or drilled into my head) the sense of responsibility, and she also taught me about domestic skills that will help me survive (for example, doing chores such as mopping the floors, arranging and ordering things into easily accessible places, etc). I appreciate these skills a lot. Along with my mother comes my father. My father influenced me the most by teaching me indirectly that my parents and my family have spent a lot of effort and money on me, and that I should appreciate what I have and not take anything I have for granted. He teaches me this because when I see him hard at work just to earn money for the family, I will feel a sense of shame if I was slacking off. My brother also influenced my thinking. His going to college got me to actually start thinking about college. It makes the whole "going away from home" ordeal seem more realistic, and not just something that everyone is talking about. His influence tells me that I shouldn't slack off, because college is coming soon, and if I don't work hard, maybe I won't even get to go. Finally, Pamela, our head of school, is also a very influential person to me because she is a motivation for academic improvement, among other things. I also learn to really appreciate her hard work and sacrifices for us.

Entry 12: Learning Experience?

Think about writing your significant experience essay and answer these questions (as well as including any other thoughts you might have about the process):

• Why did you choose this particular experience? 
• What reflecting on this experience and then writing about it teach you about yourself?
• What did you learn about life in general?
• What were the easiest and most difficult aspects of writing this essay, as compared to other essays you have written? Think in terms of idea generation, organization, and mechanical issues, as well as any emotional or creative hurdles that you had to deal with. 
• What will you do differently next time you do a similar project (or any project)?

• The reason why I chose to write this significant experience is because this significant experience teaches me an important lesson in life, a lesson that everyone should learn if they want to be successful in the future. The experience tells me that I need to be responsible and I need to keep up the job of being responsible so I can succeed in school and when I take jobs. From this essay I learned that if I am not responsible and if I don't finish my tasks, people would not trust you, and then life will become hard in general because you are then on your own. The most easy aspect of writing this essay was that this essay is in a first person point of view, and I like writing in first person point of views, because I know my feelings quite well. At least better than any would be third person who might appear in my essay. The most difficult aspect when writing this essay is that I have to conquer the reluctance of telling the event because I am ashamed of the shame and the guilt. Complicated, yes? Anyways, for the last question, I do not know and I am not sure what I will do differently next time when I do a similar project because I need to compare this significant experience with another essay to be sure how I will change the essay myself.

Entry 11: Worms

"Nobody loves me, everybody hates me, think I'll go eat worms." How do you react to having a bad day? What strategies do you have for coping when everything seems to go wrong for you, when people are giving you a bad time, and when everything generally sucks?

•  I have several specific ways for coping when everything seems to go wrong for me or when everything seems to generally suck. To generalize the whole idea, I become somewhat of an autistic person when I am coping with a day that literally sucks. I would want to be by myself, and not talk to other people. I would then listen to music, look for music, or download music illegally (just kidding!). Another option is to read novels. Reading novels helps me turn my attention away from the bad things that have happened, and I am able to indulge myself in the fantasy world for a while and not think about the cruel reality. Watching movies or dramas on television or videos on YouTube may also help in a similar way. Another way to cope is to drift off into sleep, where you won't be think about anything (unless God is mean enough to also give you nightmares when you are dreaming; if this is the case, I truly feel sorry for you). Most people would choose this way to cope with a bad day. Finally, another way for coping (for me) is to eat a lot of food. This is a little bit bad for oneself, because if you eat too much you might become overweight or have other problems. But you would feel better after eating until you're content.

Entry 10: Ivy or not Ivy? That is the question!

In the video clip we watched, Malcolm Gladwell makes the point that statistics show that for students who could go to an Ivy League school, it doesn't actually matter whether they actually do go in terms of later success in life. His argument is that Ivy League schools don't create success, they simply only allow people in who are already predisposed to success no matter what school they choose to go to. Given Gladwell's argument, is there any reason to spend tens of thousands of dollars on an Ivy League education when the end result is the same for a much less expensive state school education?

• I believe that there are actually no reason to spend tens of thousands of dollars on an Ivy League education when the end result is the same for a much less expensive state school education. At least, this is what I believe. There can only be "selfish reasons," as I like to call them, if parents want to send their child or their children to Ivy League under this circumstance. This is because if they send their child or their children to Ivy League schools, they will have something to be proud of, and something to bring fame to their family. If you think about it, since elite schools have been "elite school" for a long period of time, naturally people would want to say that they were from this credited elite school and they graduated from. In other words, because want to be able to boast and be able to earn respect from others, in a way. Another possible reason to explain this phenomenon is that people are insecure. They believe that only if they are absolutely sure that they have something to "back them up" in a sense will they be secure. Or at least more relaxed, if not totally secure. They have this thought that elite schools would be better because of certain set values.

Entry 9: Who, Me?

Why would anyone dislike you? Or even hate you? Most of us like to think that we are nice enough people, and we are usually surprised or even hurt when we find out someone doesn't like us. Nevertheless, just about everyone has someone who dislikes them. Step outside yourself and look at yourself as an outsider, someone other than yourself (it could be a stranger or someone you know very well). What reasons might someone have for being annoyed by you? For disliking you? For hating you? Write from the point of view of an "other" who doesn't like you. Explain why "you" (the "other" you) don't like you (the real you). Describe what you don't like or hate, and then make suggestions about what the real you could do to make the "other" like you.

• People may dislike me for several reasons. Sometimes even I dislike myself. First, I sometimes speak without thinking about others, and sometimes I don't really consider the circumstances when I speak (which results in me being scolded by my mom a lot). I also don't consider other people's feelings (so I offend people really often, and thus, make people dislike me). According to my mom, I am also someone who is very annoying when I pester. I pester people for two reasons. First, when I want something, I will continue to ask my mom the same question over and over again, like a broken radio, until my mom gets extremely annoyed and yells at me. The second reason for why I pester is when I see someone with a bad mood, I will keep on asking them if they are OK. Sometimes I dislike myself for this because I would like to be left alone when I am depressed or upset, but I don't do the same to other people, which makes me a person who someone may easily dislike. Another reason someone may dislike me is that I get moody very often, so the people around me have to cope with my mood. And when I didn't get enough sleep the night before or when something bad happens, I will always be very upset and snap very easily at other people.

Entry 8: Hate

Think of the person in your life that you dislike the most. This should be someone who you know and who knows you, not a political, entertainment, or historical person (sorry Justin Bieber haters). This is a person who is in your life. It could be a teacher (even me), classmate, relative, or anyone else as long as you actually know each other. Do not name this person or describe your relationship to him or her more than is necessary. Try to explain why you dislike this person so much. Begin by describing him or her physically, then describe his/her behavior and personality. Analyze what it is that you dislike. Try to define the aspects of this person that you dislike, then explain why they bother you so much. Try to think of ways in which you might be able to overcome your dislike. Is it possible?

•  I won't describe the physical appearance of this person that I hate, since I believe that describing him won't help with your imagination (because of a lack of details). It's too troublesome. However, I can give you quite a good description of his behavior. First, I'll say that this person is very... ignorant. If he thinks that you're not worth his time or that you're not "good enough" to talk to him, he ignores you. And he does this by waving you off, or by saying "whatever" and "I don't care". Therefore, I believe that it's hard to communicate with this person, and I decided that I would be better off avoiding and not talking to him. Another thing that I can say about this person is that he is a person who likes to scheme a lot. For example, he acts really friendly when he is with the people he likes or prefers. However, when he is with people that he dislikes and does not prefer, he tends to become really rude. Also, another act that shows his scheming mind is that when he wants something, usually benefits, from a person he usually dislikes, he will suddenly pretend to be really friendly. But as soon as a person's usefulness ends, he goes back to his rude self. I believe that the only way I can overcome my dislike it to stay away from this person and not see his "rude side" for a while.

Entry 7: Last Thoughts

Imagine that you are very old. You don't have very much longer in this world, and your life is flashing before your eyes. You have had a long life, and as you contemplate it, you think about the one thing you are most proud of. Then you think of the one thing you are most ashamed of. Then you think about whether you have any regrets, or wish that you'd lived differently or had other opportunities. Maybe not. Maybe you've lived life to its fullest and grabbed hold of every opportunity, and even made your own opportunities. Write about what your last thoughts might be. Consider what you hope they are as well as what you fear they might be.

• One thing that I am most proud of in my life is the fact that I am now grown up and mature. At least, more mature than before, when I was still naive and foolish, and shy and timid. I have grown to be more open to others, and to the world, and to not hide from others the real me. However, when I look back, one of the things that I am most ashamed of is me being irresponsible. There have been many cases, such as group projects, and also homework. Usually, I would wait until the last minute to do my homework, and do something else before that time that's not related to what I'm supposed to do. I just that that's just human nature - I could resist the fun of other things. I of the thing I regret the most (this is a joke, since I couldn't think of anything) is meeting Benson. I was a disaster. He bullied me (I know, I know, a bit hard to believe) and showed me how chaotic school can be. Anyways, I would like to try out a school life where I am a local school student, since I have never ever been to local school. But I'm still glad that I came to an American school. As for jobs, I hope for opportunities such as being a lawyer or a psychologist.

Entry 6: Innocent

You have been accused of a heinous crime that you did not commit (think of the most nefarious offence possible). There is no evidence to prove your innocence, so your lawyer has to depend upon your good character to defend you. Write the argument your lawyer would have to use to convince a jury that your personal qualities show that you would never commit such a dastardly deed. Be truthful (which I realize is not very realistic) and dig deep into your best character traits. Use evidence of your past behavior to illustrate your angelic nature.

•  The prime suspect should be released since she is innocent. Though there is no evidence to prove the innocence of the prime suspect, her qualities and characteristics have proven so. First, the prime suspect is extremely helpful at home (sited from the mother of the suspect). She does almost all of the chores for the house, and also takes care of other minor things. Second, the other family members of the suspect have said that she is very thoughtful for the family. For example, during occasions such as religious praying, the suspect is said to help set up the occasion. Third, the brother of the prime suspect has mentioned the willingness of the suspect to help others. The brother said that when he needed contact lenses and wasn't able to get them in America, the prime suspect immediately went and bought them the next day, and even sent it out on the same day. Fourth, the classmates of the prime suspect have noted patience of the suspect when teaching and helping others, for example during basketball practice, when other members did not understand strategies. Fifth, the prime suspect is passionate about society and generous. She volunteers to help in community service, helping recyclers sort out trash, and she also donates whatever money she can save when there are disasters, for example, after the earthquake in Haiti. Finally, the prime suspect is known to be trustworthy, keeping secrets for her close family and friends.

Entry 5: Shot Down in Flames

Today you are to take the point of view of a human resources officer whose job is to choose new employees from applicants. Some will be hired and some will not. You (the real you) have applied to this job, but you (the HR person) has decided not to hire you. As the HR person, write a report on why you decided NOT to hire you (the real you).

Dear Administration Committee:
      The Human Resources Committee has decided to turn down Applicant Number 237, Wanyi Chou, for Job Position Two. Applicant 237 has a high degree of education. However, she tends to sidetrack quite often when completing given tasks. The total time for task completion was one hour for Task Three. Applicant Number 237 was seen reading irrelevant articles and chatting for the first fourty minutes, only to start her task when there was twenty munites remaining. Though the quality of her work was acceptable, I do not believe that this sidetracking behavior is acceptable for our complany. Another observation worthy of mentioning to you is the applicant's inability to be patient. During waiting time, the applicant was seen fidgeting in her seat and kept trying to talk to other applicants. This shows her characteristics of being unpatient and a little bit too sociable for the company. Her sociable trait may be distracting not only for herself but also for our other fellow employees. If you deem our decision inaccurate, incorrect, or want to change anything, please feel free to view Applicant Number 237's resume and other profiles and documents and tell us of your decisions. Thank you.


Report Written by Wan-Yi Chou, Human Resource Administration

Entry 4: Tables Turned

In the near future you will be writing short essays in the effort to convince a college admissions officer to accept your application. Put yourself in his or her position. Think about the kind of person you would want to have at your institution. What qualities are you looking for? What warning signs are you looking for in people to turn down? Using specific details describe the perfect applicant, then give reasons why those details are important.

• The people who are mostly likely wanted at an institution of a job would have the following qualities. First, they should be somewhat intelligent. Having the knowledge to do a certain task, or having the knowledge for problem solving and critical thinking is very important. The second quality is that the person has to be responsible. Responsibility would allow trust relationships to be formed. The third quality is that a person has to be sensitive. And when talking about sensitive, it is not in the sense that a person cannot receive constructive criticism. Instead, the sensitive mentioned here means that the person has the ability to deal with different incidents, act accordingly under different circumstances, and adapt to new situations. The fourth quality, one that most people would want from their superiors and peers, is respect. Respecting other people earns you trust, as well as friendship. The last quality, I believe, is creativity. People should be able to think outside of the box to be successful.
• Warning sign that tell us that we should turn down people include arrogance, disrespect, and cowardliness. When people are arrogant and disrespectful, they make people dislike them and unassociate with them. Also, if people are afraid and are cowards, then they can't take up a leadership role.

Entry 3: No Big Thing

You are always being asked to write in superlatives: what was the most significant experience in your life or who was the most influential person. What about thinking the other way? Do you ever try to minimize the importance of people or events in your life? Under what circumstances do you try to "inflate" things, and in what circumstances do you try to minimize them? Why? Choose a recent event in your life and try first to make it seem more important than it was, and then less important. Which was easier?

• I have sometimes unconsciously tried to minimize the importance of an event. Two reasons to explain why I would do that would be because I don't want to feel embarrassed or because I don't want to make other people feel bad about something. Anyways,  I am going to use the previous mentioned topic of going to St. Petersburg, Russia again for this entry. The first narrative is an "inflation" of the essay, while the other minimizes the essay.
• The journey to St. Petersburg can be said as a "spiritual" one, quoting Vivien. The place was extremely beautiful, with all the whiteness of the snow and the brilliant colors of the buildings. St. Petersburg is a city full of culture and history. This should be an extremely appreciated trip because this is a very rare life experience. 
• The first thing I felt was the coldness in the air. I had to pull my coat closer to keep the warmth in. The flight from Taiwan to St. Petersburg was not a comfortable one, and all the elevation and air pressure is creating a giant headache and making my ears ache. My hair was all oily, sticking on my face. The conference was not very ordered. In fact, it was one of the most chaotic conferences I have ever been through. Another thing I disliked about the trip was that even though the food was good, it was never enough. And to be honest, they do not make cup noodles as delicious as the ones we brought there.

Entry 2: First Time for Everything

There is an old saying: "There's a first time for everything." Write down as many "firsts" that you have experienced in your life that you can remember. For example, first time riding a bicycle, first time going to a new school, etc. From that list, choose one first and describe it in as much detail as you can. Remember to use your five senses and active verbs and descriptive nouns. Also, make sure you describe your thoughts and feelings before,during, and after the event.

• First MUN experience
• First time at PAS
• First time I went to Russia

•  My family was very excited as we started to pack for the trip to St. Petersburg, Russia. The various meetings at school told and prepared us for the MUN meeting, and also what we had to bring on the trip. The flight to our destination took approximately two days: first from Taiwan to Singapore, then from Singapore to Moscow. When we arrived at Moscow, we had to take another short flight to St. Petersburg. The flight, though exciting, made me extremely uncomfortable. By the time we arrived at the hotel, we were oily and cold. St. Petersburg was covered in snow, and we were greeted by the colorful and majestic monuments from the past as we went on a tour the next day. Before the three day conference, we spent a day touring around the historical city. Cathedrals and churches can be found quite commonly, and generally, we had a great time. However, the air was constantly filled will the smell of smoke, since the people in Russia love to smoke and drink a lot. It smelled extremely uncomfortable as the smoke mixed with the humid air. The part of the trip I enjoyed the most was the train ride from St. Petersburg back to Moscow. The scenery was green and white as trees and snow fly past my vision. My cellphone was able to catch two beautiful images with the sun setting and illuminating the snow. The first feeling I felt when I came back to Taiwan was the heat and hot, humid air...

Entry 1: What Happened to Me

Write a narrative about any event in your life that you remember clearly, but be sure to describe it as it affected you. Talk about how you perceived the event--sight, sound, taste, feel, smell--and what your intellectual and emotional reactions were to it. The event itself is not important--it can be boring or exciting. What is important is how you tell the story. You are practicing inserting yourself into the narrative, so be sure to be the focal part of the story and not just a passive witness. At this time don't worry about how the event changed your life (or didn't), just practice telling what happened in as much detail as you can.

•  As I stood by the side of the building, I saw the bypassing people throwing curious glances at me. For once, I understand what is was like, standing alone and not doing anything. The sun was shining brightly, and despite the fact that I was standing in the shade, I could feel the dry and humid feeling on my tongue and down my throat. I started to grow anxious. Pressing myself to the wall and feeling the coldness of the stone run up my spine, I took out my cellphone and pretended to be busy. I heard the sound of a car honking another car blocking in front. Looking up from my cellphone, I shifted towards the glass walls of Starbucks. The automatic doors slided open silently. The aroma of coffee and bread hit my nose as the sound of employees shouting orders entered my ear. I entered the shop and realizes that two of my teachers were sitting on the table, talking to a person who used to be a teacher in my school. I left out a breath I greeted and talked to them, feeling a wave of relief and familiarity. Minutes later, I walked out along with them and waved them goodbye. Again came the feeling of anxiousness. I glanced at the watch. It has already been 15 minutes since I left the cozy feeling of my mother's car. Finally, after waiting for a total of 17 minutes, I heard my name called out by a sweet voice, accompanied by my friend's face. I smiled.