Entry 27: Personal, But Not Selfish

When talking about your issue topic a number of you expressed its importance to you in terms that, on the surface, might seem a bit selfish. Remember that the goal of the issues paper is to impress the college admissions officer that you are an engaged person who is aware of the world around you and concerned about other people. Use this journal entry to try to extend your interest in your chosen interest beyond simple self-interest. How can you use it to show that you care not only for yourself, but for your fellow human beings?

• The issue topic that I expressed during class was actually both personal and international. It can seem selfish on some certain levels, but it can also include the international world. My issue is not directly concerned with global warming and its effects, but mostly with the climate patterns of the last decade and exactly what is happening in the present day, and how people are reacting to it. It is personal to me because in the future, I might be one that has to go to these places that are strongly influenced by the weird, irregular, and unpredictable climate patterns. I do not want to be influenced by the climate then because one) it is very cold and I will have to wear lots of clothes (maybe layers of clothes that will make me look like an oversized onion) and 2) it would be extremely uncomfortable not only because it is very cold (or actually, it can be very hot), but also because wearing that many layers of clothes when it is extremely cold is hard to move in. This does not only apply to me, but also to others internationally. For example, the currently trend of snow in Japan is making it hard for the people in Japan to move about through their own neighborhood, and they also have to wear large amounts of clothing and shovel the snow away so that transportation and communication is actually allowed. Therefore, even though this topic may seem to be on a very personal or selfish level, it is actually also on a very international level since many people in the world are affected by it.

Entry 26: The Worst

What was the worst part about your winter break? Why was it the worst? What was the cause? Is there any way it could have been better? How?

• I believe that the worst part of my winter break was doing SAT practice tests everyday. Well, it wasn't really that bad, but compared to the other things that I did during my winter break, it can be consider the worse part of my winter break, with homework and the preparation for upcoming tests following close behind it. Anyway, why was doing SAT practice tests the worst part of my winter break? This is because it was very time consuming (therefore I can't do anything else relaxing that I wanted), it is a neuron killer (because my brain cells are dying at an incredibly fast rate), and finally, if I get a bad grade on it, I get scolded (like any other test that I have). What was the cause for me doing SAT practice tests? Easy: I have to prepare for the real SAT practice test coming up June and November (I believe this is when I have my real SAT tests, when I'm in junior and senior year, respectfully). And if I get a bad grade on my SAT tests, then I can't make my college applications look "presentable", which then influences and causes a terrible domino effect that I don't even want to think about. I believe that there wasn't any way that it could have been better because in a sense (in my sense, actually), SAT is necessary. Necessary for what? For me to get into the colleges that I want to get into. So, let's continue working hard!

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.