Prom was already a week ago. It's hard to imagine that time passes by so fast. I can't believe I forgot to write about this topic until now. Prom was an experience I would never forget. It was cool riding in a limo and seeing everyone all dressed up. That was only my second time riding in a limo, the other time was for my cousin's wedding. I was amazed with all of the people there, I was surprised to see that there were actually a lot of juniors there too. A lot of pictures were taken, however, none of the pictures were taken by my camera. I idioticly forgot my camera at home, when I was rushing down the stairs when my date rang the doorbell. Because I only knew I was going to prom last minute, I therefore scheduled my make-up appointments last minute. Obviously with so many proms on the 28th of April, everywhere was booked. The only time I could get was at 3:15. I was only done at 4:15, which was nerve wrecking because my date told me he was going to pick me up at 5. Next year, I know that I have to get everything planned out and ready far in advance, in order to get rid of all of the chaos that happened before the prom.
Getting the dress for prom was really stressful. I had to go to five different stores to find the perfect dress, that was actually my size. What made it harder was that my date already bought his tux, so I had to match with a royal blue. I would have thought that this is an easy color to find, but I was wrong. It took me three different days of looking just finding the right one. Even after I found it, I had to get it altered since I was way to short for the dress. Even after it was altered, it was still too long. Thoughout the night, I had everyone stepping on it. I started to get a little paranoid, worried that someone would step on it while I was walking, unexpectedly ripping it or something. That would have cost a lot of money for that dress in addition to the humiliation I would have went through. Now I know that next year i can't buy a dress that touches the floor.
The theme for prom was red carpet or something like that. I loved all of the centerpieces placed in the middle of the table, and the delicious food. At prom, I actually ran into my long lost friend, who I was friends with since preschool. She said that her date was boring and said that he thought she had cooties, so we actually got to spend the whole night together. We had a great time even without her date. We caught up with old stories, danced, and just enjoyed each other's company along with my date. It was surprising to know that...
I didn't get to go to an after-party because of the commmunity service project I had to do the next day at 8:00 in the morning. However, I do hope to stay overnight at a hotel next year. I just hope we get to planning the after party in advance.
Now that I know what is expected, and what needs to be done for prom, I will be prepared for next year. I just hope I have as much fun as I did this year.
Friday, May 4, 2007
community service
I just realized I have to turn in my community service sheet for next year. Sadly, I don't have a car, so my options of community serivce projects are somewhat limited. I'm not sure what I want to sign up for yet. There are just so many options to choose from, and they all sound good. I like old people and kids so I guess I don't really mind what to do. Right now I'm thinking of the Adult care at Central Union, the Nursery Care at Central Union, Shriners, ESL, Headstart Preschool, and Palama Settlement. I think there are other I want to choose from, but I'm not too sure yet. I'm pretty sure I want the Palama Settlement to be my first choice because I would enjoy teaching kids sports. I like coaching gymnastics, but the only thing is, is that I'm not very good at the 'normal' sports that were listed on the sheet, such as basketball, baseball, and volleyball. I chose the community service projects that were at Central Union because I could just walk there, and I am somewhat familiar with the campus since I attended Central Union when I was in preschool. I remember loving the teachers, and all of the fun activities we could do, so I think I would enjoy working there. I know I enjoyed that preschool when I was only 5 years old, but I think I would still love it because of all the nice teachers and cute kids. I'm thinking of Shriners because it seems like a very different experience, for I have never helped disadvantaged kids before. In addition to that, this location is also very convenient. I'm thinking of ESL because I think that it would be a good way of practicing my Japanese skills, while being able to interact with kids at the same time. I don't know what to chose, but I think I should decide soon because the paper is due in an hour...
'Trip'ped
Today I had to make up a kaiwa no hi (conversation day) for Japanese class. I went to my sensei's office and we talked about my most memorable trip. I told her my favorite trip was my trip to Whistler last year, where my family went up to go skiing for the first time. I didn't realize this until I talked about this that that trip was actually a place when a lot of injuries occured. But yet, it was my most memorable trip, maybe it was because of the many injuries, I don't know.
Because my mom was the only one who skiied before, we had to take lessons. The first time I put those ski boots on, I felt like I was some kind of robot for Halloween or something because it was so heavy as if it was a space boot. It felt so weird walking in them; however, it wasn't as weird as those skis. When I first put those on, it felt as if I was learning how to walk again. I was wearing shoes that were as tall as me, sliding around uncontrolably. I didn't feel too bad though, because my mom, dad, and sister looked awkward too. Our instructor came, gliding so smoothly towards us. She was apparently a national champion. She taught us how to climb up the hill, and take our first 'steady' steps, glides, or whatever you call them. It turned out that I wasn't half bad and could actually run down those 'massive' bunny slopes.
However, this is when all the injuries started to occur. When my dad was trying to glide down to the bottom of the bunny slopes for the first time, this really fast skier ran right into him. It was scary, but funny in the same time, for it looked like my dad was flying for a short period before he landed straight onto his back. It turned out that he tore some ligament in his knee and had to sit out for the rest of the trip.
Next was my mom. There I was shivering in the snow, it was the first time I was ever in such cold weather. It was then when I truly realized I dispised the cold. Every half an hour or so, I had to take a trip to the heated bathroom, where I would run my sore numb hands under the hot water. (I know, pretty pathetic.) Anyway, while I was shivering in the cold, my mom was really hot. In fact, she was so hot that she took off her ski jacket and her layers of clothes until all she had left was one long sleeve jacket. She told me that she was still hot. When we got home, it turned out that my mom had hyper-thyroidism(?). Her thyroid gland was out of control that rapidly increased her metabolism, and increased her temperature. After the diagnosis, she had to go through a special treatment to get rid of it.
After my mom's incident, my sister got hurt. We were both skiing down the next level of bunny slopes, when I suddenly saw her yelling 30 feet away from me, "Nikki Help Me!" It turns out to be that she couldn't stop. Of course I couldn't do anything because I couldn't ski well. I didn't know what to do except for just ski downhill. I turned around and she was still skiing when I saw her fall face flat in a pile of snow. She wasn't hurt that badly, which was a good thing because all I could do was laugh. I would have gone up to help her but I didn't know how to ski uphill. I saw her head pop up from the snow; she stood up, and looked at me and said, "Nikki!" She had a big pile of snow still on her head when she skiing down to meet me. I had to laugh some more when she got mad at me for not helping her.
Luckily, I didn't get injured (except for my numb hands) like the rest of my family. And I really think that it's because of luck, since I am a clumsy person. Even though we had a couple of injuries on this trip I think that it was the most memorable because we were able to spend a lot of time together as a family. (Usually my dad is at his business meetings.)
Because my mom was the only one who skiied before, we had to take lessons. The first time I put those ski boots on, I felt like I was some kind of robot for Halloween or something because it was so heavy as if it was a space boot. It felt so weird walking in them; however, it wasn't as weird as those skis. When I first put those on, it felt as if I was learning how to walk again. I was wearing shoes that were as tall as me, sliding around uncontrolably. I didn't feel too bad though, because my mom, dad, and sister looked awkward too. Our instructor came, gliding so smoothly towards us. She was apparently a national champion. She taught us how to climb up the hill, and take our first 'steady' steps, glides, or whatever you call them. It turned out that I wasn't half bad and could actually run down those 'massive' bunny slopes.
However, this is when all the injuries started to occur. When my dad was trying to glide down to the bottom of the bunny slopes for the first time, this really fast skier ran right into him. It was scary, but funny in the same time, for it looked like my dad was flying for a short period before he landed straight onto his back. It turned out that he tore some ligament in his knee and had to sit out for the rest of the trip.
Next was my mom. There I was shivering in the snow, it was the first time I was ever in such cold weather. It was then when I truly realized I dispised the cold. Every half an hour or so, I had to take a trip to the heated bathroom, where I would run my sore numb hands under the hot water. (I know, pretty pathetic.) Anyway, while I was shivering in the cold, my mom was really hot. In fact, she was so hot that she took off her ski jacket and her layers of clothes until all she had left was one long sleeve jacket. She told me that she was still hot. When we got home, it turned out that my mom had hyper-thyroidism(?). Her thyroid gland was out of control that rapidly increased her metabolism, and increased her temperature. After the diagnosis, she had to go through a special treatment to get rid of it.
After my mom's incident, my sister got hurt. We were both skiing down the next level of bunny slopes, when I suddenly saw her yelling 30 feet away from me, "Nikki Help Me!" It turns out to be that she couldn't stop. Of course I couldn't do anything because I couldn't ski well. I didn't know what to do except for just ski downhill. I turned around and she was still skiing when I saw her fall face flat in a pile of snow. She wasn't hurt that badly, which was a good thing because all I could do was laugh. I would have gone up to help her but I didn't know how to ski uphill. I saw her head pop up from the snow; she stood up, and looked at me and said, "Nikki!" She had a big pile of snow still on her head when she skiing down to meet me. I had to laugh some more when she got mad at me for not helping her.
Luckily, I didn't get injured (except for my numb hands) like the rest of my family. And I really think that it's because of luck, since I am a clumsy person. Even though we had a couple of injuries on this trip I think that it was the most memorable because we were able to spend a lot of time together as a family. (Usually my dad is at his business meetings.)
Done
Yay, our last ilh team competition is over! Only one more week till ILH championships and then it's over for good! (Too bad I still have a bunch of finals to study for...) Gymnastics only goes up to ILH championships instead of states because there just isn't enough teams to have a state competition. I think it's just hard for many schools to get access to a gym, especially because it is so costly due to the fact that there is a limited amount of gyms in the first place. I know Pac 5 has to pay something like $700 to practice at Mojo Gymnastics.
I love how ILH gymnastics is so much more laid back than regular gymnastics. In ILH gymnastics, I have the freedom to actually have my butt on the floor without getting yelled at, we don't have to condition (although I miss that), and we can practice without someone crying everyday.
Gymnastics is right next to the judo/wresting area, where constantly hear the wrestlers practicing hard. We can hear loud thuds of bodies slamming onto the floor in unison, while the coach yells the counts, "One, two, three! (whack)". While all of this is happening, I look around and find that my teammates are often just standing around. It's a great place to get away from the stressful gymnastics. I skipped gymnastics practice because of my homework load yesterday, and Chel, one of my teammates told me about the interesting practice story. She said that her sister was giving out those sugary strawberry belts at practice, and for the whole workout people were running around chasing the girl with the strawberry belt. Amazingly, this story didn't surprise me, for such events occur quite often. One day, our coach considered playing games for the whole practice without working out. However, we couldn't find dodgeballs, so the workout turned out into an open workout, where you pretty much do whatever you want.
Even competitions are very unstressful. In regular gym, the gymnasts compete individually, while in ILH gymnastics, we compete as a team (all the individual scores add up to a team score). Also, there are only three teams, so there isn't that much competition, especially in varsity. In varsity, Punahou has 6 gymnasts while Pac 5 and Kamehameha only have one. So everyone can fall twenty times and it wouldn't matter because we would win. I find these types of meets a lot less stressful because there isn't any pressure to be perfect and beat everyone. As my teammate's mom said, "It's much nicer to see the girls laugh when they fall off beam, rather than cry." Even though I have never cried because of a mess-up, it goes to show how much pressure meets can be.
I love how ILH gymnastics is so much more laid back than regular gymnastics. In ILH gymnastics, I have the freedom to actually have my butt on the floor without getting yelled at, we don't have to condition (although I miss that), and we can practice without someone crying everyday.
Gymnastics is right next to the judo/wresting area, where constantly hear the wrestlers practicing hard. We can hear loud thuds of bodies slamming onto the floor in unison, while the coach yells the counts, "One, two, three! (whack)". While all of this is happening, I look around and find that my teammates are often just standing around. It's a great place to get away from the stressful gymnastics. I skipped gymnastics practice because of my homework load yesterday, and Chel, one of my teammates told me about the interesting practice story. She said that her sister was giving out those sugary strawberry belts at practice, and for the whole workout people were running around chasing the girl with the strawberry belt. Amazingly, this story didn't surprise me, for such events occur quite often. One day, our coach considered playing games for the whole practice without working out. However, we couldn't find dodgeballs, so the workout turned out into an open workout, where you pretty much do whatever you want.
Even competitions are very unstressful. In regular gym, the gymnasts compete individually, while in ILH gymnastics, we compete as a team (all the individual scores add up to a team score). Also, there are only three teams, so there isn't that much competition, especially in varsity. In varsity, Punahou has 6 gymnasts while Pac 5 and Kamehameha only have one. So everyone can fall twenty times and it wouldn't matter because we would win. I find these types of meets a lot less stressful because there isn't any pressure to be perfect and beat everyone. As my teammate's mom said, "It's much nicer to see the girls laugh when they fall off beam, rather than cry." Even though I have never cried because of a mess-up, it goes to show how much pressure meets can be.
Thursday, April 26, 2007
Two Fishies
In US history Mr. Seidenstein was talking to us about college, and how he loved to research when he was a student. He said it was because he was a Virgo, and Virgo's apparently love to be obsessive about those things or something like that.
I was a definite skeptic about the whole concept of astrology, and told my coach about it when we were on that topic before. I didn't how the sun, the planets, and what not make up who we are as people. It didn't seem to make any sense because it didn't seem that those topics could be in any way related. In response to when I said this, she seemed a little upset. She told me she used to study astrology, and that I can't be a skeptic without putting some effort into researching about it. She made a good point, despite how ridiculous the whole astrology concept seemed to me. So today, I decided to look up my sign or whatever you call it. I am born on Feburary 21, which means I'm a pieces, the two little fishies. I didn't understand how someone came up with this sign as the sign for people born on Feb 20-Mar 20. I don't know how they came up with those exact dates either. What if you're born on Feb 19 11:59 in Hawaii, and then you fly over to the mainland where Feb 19 11:59 is actually Feb 20 3:59, does that make you a pieces or the sign that comes before it?
Anyway, I wanted to find out the traditional traits of a pieces to see whether those traits match my personality. According to this website, the 'astrology insight' I am supposed to be imaginitive, sensitive, compassionate, kind, selfless, unworldly, intuitive, sympathetic, an escapist, idealistic, secretive, vague, weak-willed, and easily led. Wow, that's a lot of words to descricbe me. Hm...let's see...I'm pretty sure I'm not imaginitive or intuitive, although I think I can be a little sensitive, compassionate, kind, selfless, sympathetic, and I'm definitely unworldly...Hah, I'm pretty sure I'm the most naive out of everyone I know. I'm pretty sure I'm not an escapist, even though I'm not quite sure what the exact definition is...I think I'm idealistic, or I was anyway. I am very sercretive according to my parents...Wow, and I'm definitely vague. My friends used to make fun of me because of that. In fact, someone gave me a keychain that says...'I used to be indecisive but now I'm not too sure.' Oh, and I'm pretty sure I'm weak-willed and definitely easily led because of my 'vagueness.' Hm...this profile was not 100% accurate, but it was pretty close. The accuracy could have been coincidence, but I can't conclude that unless I have a better data. Maybe one day when I have time, I'll figure out how many people 's astrology profile matches what kind of person they are.
But even though these astrology profiles happen to be accurate, I think I'll continue to be a skeptic because I don't understand how someone could come up with all of these profiles by just looking at space. But maybe I will understand the reasoning behind astrology if I do enough research...I don't know...(Ah...vagueness again...)
I was a definite skeptic about the whole concept of astrology, and told my coach about it when we were on that topic before. I didn't how the sun, the planets, and what not make up who we are as people. It didn't seem to make any sense because it didn't seem that those topics could be in any way related. In response to when I said this, she seemed a little upset. She told me she used to study astrology, and that I can't be a skeptic without putting some effort into researching about it. She made a good point, despite how ridiculous the whole astrology concept seemed to me. So today, I decided to look up my sign or whatever you call it. I am born on Feburary 21, which means I'm a pieces, the two little fishies. I didn't understand how someone came up with this sign as the sign for people born on Feb 20-Mar 20. I don't know how they came up with those exact dates either. What if you're born on Feb 19 11:59 in Hawaii, and then you fly over to the mainland where Feb 19 11:59 is actually Feb 20 3:59, does that make you a pieces or the sign that comes before it?
Anyway, I wanted to find out the traditional traits of a pieces to see whether those traits match my personality. According to this website, the 'astrology insight' I am supposed to be imaginitive, sensitive, compassionate, kind, selfless, unworldly, intuitive, sympathetic, an escapist, idealistic, secretive, vague, weak-willed, and easily led. Wow, that's a lot of words to descricbe me. Hm...let's see...I'm pretty sure I'm not imaginitive or intuitive, although I think I can be a little sensitive, compassionate, kind, selfless, sympathetic, and I'm definitely unworldly...Hah, I'm pretty sure I'm the most naive out of everyone I know. I'm pretty sure I'm not an escapist, even though I'm not quite sure what the exact definition is...I think I'm idealistic, or I was anyway. I am very sercretive according to my parents...Wow, and I'm definitely vague. My friends used to make fun of me because of that. In fact, someone gave me a keychain that says...'I used to be indecisive but now I'm not too sure.' Oh, and I'm pretty sure I'm weak-willed and definitely easily led because of my 'vagueness.' Hm...this profile was not 100% accurate, but it was pretty close. The accuracy could have been coincidence, but I can't conclude that unless I have a better data. Maybe one day when I have time, I'll figure out how many people 's astrology profile matches what kind of person they are.
But even though these astrology profiles happen to be accurate, I think I'll continue to be a skeptic because I don't understand how someone could come up with all of these profiles by just looking at space. But maybe I will understand the reasoning behind astrology if I do enough research...I don't know...(Ah...vagueness again...)
Sustainability Fair
Surprisingly, the Sustainability Fair was a big hit last week Friday. Apparently, there were so many classes that wanted to come, that the Luke aunties, the ones who organized the fair, had to turn many teachers down. In Japanese class, our sensei wanted us to become involved in this event. She required us to make posters in order to promote the idea of conservation, and write a reflection about it. (Oh, that reminds me, I have to turn that in after this...) I think that it was a good idea that she required us to be involved with an event, especially since the Japanese value this idea so greatly. From the various different booths in the fair, we were able to attain information that we wouldn't have otherwise known. Like most people, I don't read newsletters and articles in the mail about the importance of sustainabilty, nor do I come across television shows where this is mentioned. I think this was a convenient, crowd attracting event that brought a lot of people together to learn about an important cause we had no idea of before.
I didn't get to look around much since I was working at a booth the whole time I was there, although I did get to see some of the booths around me. I was working at the computer booth where I was supposed to show people the many different environmentally educational websites. There was a website where you can click once a day, and sponsors would donate to help save 11 feet of rainforest, there was a website that allowed you to calculate the harmful effects you cause daily, and there were many other websites with fun games that taught you ways you can become more environmentally friendly.
One of the booths next to my station was a physics project, that showed the enormous amounts of waste that are being released when putting your computer to sleep rather than shutting it down. There was a booth that gave out free bags to use at the grocery store so that we don't have to use unecessary plastic bags, there was a booth that showed you how to recycle magazines, and there was a booth that showed us worm bins. These worms eat anything. Instead of throwing your leftover food away, you can put it in a worm bin, so that we can limit the amount of trash that is being dumped to our overfilled landfills.
Even though all of those booths were interesting, I felt as though the movie shown at the end was the highlight of the whole fair. The movie was called, 'The Inconvenient Truth,' a documenary done by the 'once next president,' Al Gore. This film was a big eye-opener to me, for I had never heard about how much harmful things America contributes to daily, and what the effects might be in the future. According to him, the Earth as we now know it won't be the same in the future. The melting icecaps will flood many lands, temperatures will rise, and many species of animals will die out. In fact, global warming could be the cause of the end of the world, which is really scary to think about. I just find it weird that I never heard about all of these statistics before until a week ago, especially since this has been known for many years. Maybe I'm very ignorant about world issues...I don't know...
I didn't get to look around much since I was working at a booth the whole time I was there, although I did get to see some of the booths around me. I was working at the computer booth where I was supposed to show people the many different environmentally educational websites. There was a website where you can click once a day, and sponsors would donate to help save 11 feet of rainforest, there was a website that allowed you to calculate the harmful effects you cause daily, and there were many other websites with fun games that taught you ways you can become more environmentally friendly.
One of the booths next to my station was a physics project, that showed the enormous amounts of waste that are being released when putting your computer to sleep rather than shutting it down. There was a booth that gave out free bags to use at the grocery store so that we don't have to use unecessary plastic bags, there was a booth that showed you how to recycle magazines, and there was a booth that showed us worm bins. These worms eat anything. Instead of throwing your leftover food away, you can put it in a worm bin, so that we can limit the amount of trash that is being dumped to our overfilled landfills.
Even though all of those booths were interesting, I felt as though the movie shown at the end was the highlight of the whole fair. The movie was called, 'The Inconvenient Truth,' a documenary done by the 'once next president,' Al Gore. This film was a big eye-opener to me, for I had never heard about how much harmful things America contributes to daily, and what the effects might be in the future. According to him, the Earth as we now know it won't be the same in the future. The melting icecaps will flood many lands, temperatures will rise, and many species of animals will die out. In fact, global warming could be the cause of the end of the world, which is really scary to think about. I just find it weird that I never heard about all of these statistics before until a week ago, especially since this has been known for many years. Maybe I'm very ignorant about world issues...I don't know...
School, Not Quite Over
Wow, there's only a month before my junior year is over. However, I don't think that the time will pass by quickly one bit. There is just so many tests to take, events to go to, projects to do, and things to be done. For the last few weeks, I have been staying up till at least 11:00 every night. Ok, I know most people don't think that 11:00 is very late, but for me it is. Especially since I have been going to sleep at 10 in the beginning of the school year. Last night alone, I had two papers to do and a test to study for. Ya, not very fun. Lately, I have been finding myself in the library more often, trying to finish my mountain load of homework. I would stay up late if I could, but I fall asleep in class whenever I do. And that of course, isn't good because then I won't be able to pay attention and my grades will drop even more. And to add more to my stress, I have competitions every Wednesday, right smack in the middle of every school week.
Most people are looking at the last month of school to be exciting, for they will soon be free of all the pain-staking work that is required. But as for me, I am not particularly excited for time to pass by faster, since there is so much stuff to be done.
My schedule is pretty much full till the end of next school year. This week is prom, the week after that is my SAT physics subject test, a week after that my big US paper is due, a week after that is my AP physics test, two weeks after that are finals, a week after that is the SAT reasoning test, the week after that is my ACTs, the week after that, summer school (Euro...), driver's ed, and diving season starts again, and probably by the end of that school will start once again. In the midst of all this, people are expecting me to be looking at colleges, having some 'friend time', starting to write my college essays, and finishing my required seven hours of community service for Japanese. Gosh, it seems as though I don't even have time to breathe. Although it is my fault that I made my schedule this way, and hopefully at the end, I won't regret all the work I've put into, as I would expect to happen.
Most people are looking at the last month of school to be exciting, for they will soon be free of all the pain-staking work that is required. But as for me, I am not particularly excited for time to pass by faster, since there is so much stuff to be done.
My schedule is pretty much full till the end of next school year. This week is prom, the week after that is my SAT physics subject test, a week after that my big US paper is due, a week after that is my AP physics test, two weeks after that are finals, a week after that is the SAT reasoning test, the week after that is my ACTs, the week after that, summer school (Euro...), driver's ed, and diving season starts again, and probably by the end of that school will start once again. In the midst of all this, people are expecting me to be looking at colleges, having some 'friend time', starting to write my college essays, and finishing my required seven hours of community service for Japanese. Gosh, it seems as though I don't even have time to breathe. Although it is my fault that I made my schedule this way, and hopefully at the end, I won't regret all the work I've put into, as I would expect to happen.
Friday, April 20, 2007
Lucky Phone?
I just got a new phone a few days ago because our two year warranty just expired. Actually, because I lost my phone in the bathroom and needed a new one was the real reason behind me getting a new phone. I was just lucky that I lost it now since I our plan expired anyway.
In the quest of finding a new (freee) phone, my family went to various different verizon locations. Ok, actually, my dad did all the looking, and my family just went with him when he found the best store. I'm not sure how many stores he went to, but he finally called us to the little store in Kahala Mall in the middle of macy's and jeans warehouse. We talked to one of the workers, and she showed us the various different types of phones we could get. At first, she showed us a phone similar to the one I lost. I was fine with that; I mean, I honestly didn't need a fancy one. I didn't think I deserved one in the first place, especially since I misplaced my old one.
While this salesperson went behind the counter to retrieve the boxes my soon to be new phone, I spotted a sleek black phone, similar to a razor. I just had to look at it, so I opened it; and I bet you that my jaw dropped. For this phone was like no other phone I've seen before. Even though it was looked like a razor at first, it didn't look like one when I flipped it open. For this phone had a *gasp* keyboard! I have never seen a phone with a keyboard before, except for the bulky sidekick some of my friends have. I'm pretty sure I was mesmerised by it, because the salesperson came back and said, "You like it don't you?" I nodded my head. "Oh ya, I almost forgot, this week is a special sale. You can get this phone for free if you renew your plan." I couldn't believe it. How could I be so lucky? She showed my family the new tricks this phone can do. With this phone, I would be able to go on the internet, text, and listen to music! (I have never been able to text on my other phones before.) I didn't think that my dad would let me have this, and actually reward me for my irresponsible deed. But he did, mainly because the salesperson talked him into it.
At first, I was excited with all of the special tricks this samsung could do, playing around with my new settings options, and my one month free trial of the internet. However, I was surprised to learn that I actually began to miss my new phone dispite the amazing gadget that now lies in my pocket. My free internet trial will soon expire, and I will no longer be able to use it anymore. My old phone had a two special charms on it I cannot replace. One was from Beijing and the other from Okinawa. My old phone showed the time in the front screen so that I didn't have to open my phone every time I wanted to check the time. And most of all, my old phone had all my contacts in it, that I can't get back, what's the point in texting when you don't know anyone's phone number? With my terrible memory, I'm not able to contact my friends and family who I don't see often anymore. I never would think that I would say this but I think losing that phone wasn't so lucky after all.
In the quest of finding a new (freee) phone, my family went to various different verizon locations. Ok, actually, my dad did all the looking, and my family just went with him when he found the best store. I'm not sure how many stores he went to, but he finally called us to the little store in Kahala Mall in the middle of macy's and jeans warehouse. We talked to one of the workers, and she showed us the various different types of phones we could get. At first, she showed us a phone similar to the one I lost. I was fine with that; I mean, I honestly didn't need a fancy one. I didn't think I deserved one in the first place, especially since I misplaced my old one.
While this salesperson went behind the counter to retrieve the boxes my soon to be new phone, I spotted a sleek black phone, similar to a razor. I just had to look at it, so I opened it; and I bet you that my jaw dropped. For this phone was like no other phone I've seen before. Even though it was looked like a razor at first, it didn't look like one when I flipped it open. For this phone had a *gasp* keyboard! I have never seen a phone with a keyboard before, except for the bulky sidekick some of my friends have. I'm pretty sure I was mesmerised by it, because the salesperson came back and said, "You like it don't you?" I nodded my head. "Oh ya, I almost forgot, this week is a special sale. You can get this phone for free if you renew your plan." I couldn't believe it. How could I be so lucky? She showed my family the new tricks this phone can do. With this phone, I would be able to go on the internet, text, and listen to music! (I have never been able to text on my other phones before.) I didn't think that my dad would let me have this, and actually reward me for my irresponsible deed. But he did, mainly because the salesperson talked him into it.
At first, I was excited with all of the special tricks this samsung could do, playing around with my new settings options, and my one month free trial of the internet. However, I was surprised to learn that I actually began to miss my new phone dispite the amazing gadget that now lies in my pocket. My free internet trial will soon expire, and I will no longer be able to use it anymore. My old phone had a two special charms on it I cannot replace. One was from Beijing and the other from Okinawa. My old phone showed the time in the front screen so that I didn't have to open my phone every time I wanted to check the time. And most of all, my old phone had all my contacts in it, that I can't get back, what's the point in texting when you don't know anyone's phone number? With my terrible memory, I'm not able to contact my friends and family who I don't see often anymore. I never would think that I would say this but I think losing that phone wasn't so lucky after all.
Monday, April 9, 2007
Around Campus
Before the Easter vacation I just wrote about, I was working at the Luke Center, in which the Luke aunties wanted me to put Sustainability Fair notices in all the teacher's boxes. I had to walk from office to office in four different buildings and deliver all of those notices. I actually enjoyed doing this because there were so much of the campus to see. It seemed as though it has been so long ever since I have been an Elementary/Middle School student going to classes in Winnie, Castle, and Bishop. I don't remember too much about Winnie since I only spent one year as a student there. But I do remember the little swinging door to the Winnie office that was once up to chest and is now to my hips. It's kind of weird because when I was in fourth grade, I remember thinking that everyone in Castle were old smart giants. And when I think of the sixth graders now, I only think of them as one of those little kids. As a little kid, I remember thinking the world was just a big place, with big people walking around, rather than realizing that I was just a small kid against a bunch of average sized people.
The next stop on my list was Castle and Case. Castle looked exactly the same as I remembered it, it didn't seem to have had any renovations or anything like that. The only thing is that everything looked smaller because I am now bigger. There was also an unfamiliar face behind the office desk, instead of that haole lady with the bob haircut. As I entered Case, I was reminded of the time of when I first had to deliver something to the teachers boxes. I was amazed with the size and cleanliness of the place, and had gotten lost, going around in circles trying to find the office. I remember passing by the mural of Punahou. There was a bench along a wall with a tile mural of the whole school, with every single building on that tile map of Punahou. As I was wandering around, becoming more lost, I decided to go to the bathroom. And inside the girls bathroom was so nice, it looked like it could be in some nice restraunt. There were extra sanitary pads along with body spray, lotion, and flowers in a pretty basket by the sinks and a note that said 'use whatever you need' or something like that. I was just blown away by this bathroom and wondered why the academy, the rulers of the campus, didn't get such nice treatment. After that I wandered some more, looking into the different classrooms, and every single one of the classrooms were doing something high tech. In one classroom, I saw all of the students with their laptops open working so diligently, none of them were even talking to each other. In another classroom, I saw the students with their laptops open, starring at a screen in which the teacher was using the elmo to do some sort of math problem. I know we have elmos in academy, but still. I couldn't believe that there wasn't one classroom that wasn't doing somehing high tech; it was pretty crazy. I'm not sure if it's coincidence or what, but I could really understand what Mr. Watson was telling us in class that the students in Case are the start of a whole new learning style. Hm, that just gave me another idea for my public interest paper.
The next stop on my list was Castle and Case. Castle looked exactly the same as I remembered it, it didn't seem to have had any renovations or anything like that. The only thing is that everything looked smaller because I am now bigger. There was also an unfamiliar face behind the office desk, instead of that haole lady with the bob haircut. As I entered Case, I was reminded of the time of when I first had to deliver something to the teachers boxes. I was amazed with the size and cleanliness of the place, and had gotten lost, going around in circles trying to find the office. I remember passing by the mural of Punahou. There was a bench along a wall with a tile mural of the whole school, with every single building on that tile map of Punahou. As I was wandering around, becoming more lost, I decided to go to the bathroom. And inside the girls bathroom was so nice, it looked like it could be in some nice restraunt. There were extra sanitary pads along with body spray, lotion, and flowers in a pretty basket by the sinks and a note that said 'use whatever you need' or something like that. I was just blown away by this bathroom and wondered why the academy, the rulers of the campus, didn't get such nice treatment. After that I wandered some more, looking into the different classrooms, and every single one of the classrooms were doing something high tech. In one classroom, I saw all of the students with their laptops open working so diligently, none of them were even talking to each other. In another classroom, I saw the students with their laptops open, starring at a screen in which the teacher was using the elmo to do some sort of math problem. I know we have elmos in academy, but still. I couldn't believe that there wasn't one classroom that wasn't doing somehing high tech; it was pretty crazy. I'm not sure if it's coincidence or what, but I could really understand what Mr. Watson was telling us in class that the students in Case are the start of a whole new learning style. Hm, that just gave me another idea for my public interest paper.
Easter Vacation
Sad, our last break until the end of the school year is over. At least I felt like this vacation wasn't too bad. Throughout the day before a break like this one, I am always really excited about the long weekend ahead of me. However, I often find myself at the last day of break, feeling like I wasted my whole weekend, rushing to do all my homework due to my procrastination and sleeping in. This weekend was different, and am proud of my prolific (SAT word!) self. On Friday, I woke up at 9:00, which is early for me, did my homework and went to my SAT tutor at 1:15 and spent a very productive hour doing SAT prep. After my class was over, I was planning to spend half an hour of my day waiting for the bus to go to my grandma's house where my friend was going to pick me up. Luckily, when I was looking for the bus stop, I heard a "NIKKI!" It just so happened to be my cousin and aunty driving from Costco, heading to my grandma's house. I was able to save an hour of my time just by pure luck. At my grandma's house, I was able to help my aunty carry in some groceries, and was spend that hour saved watching quality television with my grandma. There, my friend picked me up and drove me all the way to Pearl City to my gym. There, even at practice, I am proud to say was very prolific (is that even how you use the word?). I learned a back 1 1/2 aand a toe hect, and went through 10 beam routines. After practice, my dad picked me up, and went to a food court I have never been in before. I'm not quite sure what it's called; all I know is that it is in some shopping center by Walmart. There, I discovered a new food I like from Blimpie, the chicken ceasar wrap.
Saturday was the next day of my very productive break. This Saturday, I spent some many productive hours of window shopping at Ala Moana with my friend. We were able to go to all the stores and get ideas of what I wanted. Sadly however, due to my indecisiveness, I wasn't able to get anything (except for a book I was supposed to get). The plus side to all of this was that I was able to have a good time, and able to know what kind of stores have what. After that long day of shopping, I went home and had a family dinner with my two grandmas of Panda Express food. Family dinners are very rare at my house by the way, due to our family's weird schedules.
Sunday was Easter, which was when I woke up at 5:30 so I could go to an Easter sunrise service at 6 on the beach. I really liked the service, the sunrise was especially nice behind the speakers. But by the end of the service, the sun was too bright and none of us could look at the pastor. Someone was even baptised during this service. It was kind of funny because the tide was low and the pastor and the lady had to walk really far out. And when the pastor baptised her, she screamed. I'm assuming she screamed due to the cold ocean water. Nevertheless, the service in all was really good. When I got home, I finished my sleeping until 10:00. My friend then came to my house, and studied for our AP test for three hours. When she left, I went running around my block with my dad, since I am totally out of shape. Hopefully I can keep this running up every week. After this, we had yet another family dinner for Easter, with delicious food my mom had made, served on our nice plates and placemats. That was the best meal we had in a long time. I didn't even feel the pressure to finish my homework that night for everything was done earlier.
Sadly here I am back at school, my productive last long weekend ended. The only thing breaks we can look forward to now is the end of school.
Saturday was the next day of my very productive break. This Saturday, I spent some many productive hours of window shopping at Ala Moana with my friend. We were able to go to all the stores and get ideas of what I wanted. Sadly however, due to my indecisiveness, I wasn't able to get anything (except for a book I was supposed to get). The plus side to all of this was that I was able to have a good time, and able to know what kind of stores have what. After that long day of shopping, I went home and had a family dinner with my two grandmas of Panda Express food. Family dinners are very rare at my house by the way, due to our family's weird schedules.
Sunday was Easter, which was when I woke up at 5:30 so I could go to an Easter sunrise service at 6 on the beach. I really liked the service, the sunrise was especially nice behind the speakers. But by the end of the service, the sun was too bright and none of us could look at the pastor. Someone was even baptised during this service. It was kind of funny because the tide was low and the pastor and the lady had to walk really far out. And when the pastor baptised her, she screamed. I'm assuming she screamed due to the cold ocean water. Nevertheless, the service in all was really good. When I got home, I finished my sleeping until 10:00. My friend then came to my house, and studied for our AP test for three hours. When she left, I went running around my block with my dad, since I am totally out of shape. Hopefully I can keep this running up every week. After this, we had yet another family dinner for Easter, with delicious food my mom had made, served on our nice plates and placemats. That was the best meal we had in a long time. I didn't even feel the pressure to finish my homework that night for everything was done earlier.
Sadly here I am back at school, my productive last long weekend ended. The only thing breaks we can look forward to now is the end of school.
Wednesday, March 14, 2007
Thank Goodness for Forgiveness
My pencil case on the side of me is covered in flowers, rainbows, smiling ladybugs, and butterflies. It reminds me of one kleenex commercial I saw on TV the other day. In the commercial, there is a monk (whom I'm assuming to be Buddhist) who embraces all nature, taking time just to save every little creature in the way. He turns over a turtle on stuck upsidedown, he returns a fish back into the water, and even transfers a spider from the floor to a homely plant. This monk has a cold however, and sneezes into Kleenex, realizing to his dispair that he had just killed 99.9% of his cold and flu viruses. Then on the bottom of the screen it says, thank goodness for forgiveness.
I found this commercial funny, and now that I think back on it, I start to wonder why God created germs and bugs in the first place. All germs do is make people and animals sick, doing us no good whatsoever. People say that there is a reason for everything, but I can't seem to understand the reason behind bugs and germs. The only thing most people do to such nuisances is try killing them. Some bugs like the butterflies and the ladybugs are beautiful to look at, but the other millions of species are ugly and it seems as though they are just taking up space.
Ok, maybe after thinking about this topic a little more, I am beginning to understand. Bugs are just a part of the circle of life I guess. Bugs are food to other animals, which are food to other animals, which are food to us humans. If all bugs were to die, then then the animals who eat the bugs will die, and the other animals who eat those animals will die, which will probably make our own survival harder. Maybe I am being a little self-centered, thinking that the only species that matter is the most powerful one, maybe we should be more considerate God's creations, since he probably had purpose for everything here. But on what level should we be considerate of God's creation? Should we be like monks, saving every little spider, and feeling guilty when we get over a cold? It's true that spiders and germs are a nuisance, but is that a reason to kill? I mean, we don't kill off annoying people in our lives. This deep thinking is making my head hurt...
I found this commercial funny, and now that I think back on it, I start to wonder why God created germs and bugs in the first place. All germs do is make people and animals sick, doing us no good whatsoever. People say that there is a reason for everything, but I can't seem to understand the reason behind bugs and germs. The only thing most people do to such nuisances is try killing them. Some bugs like the butterflies and the ladybugs are beautiful to look at, but the other millions of species are ugly and it seems as though they are just taking up space.
Ok, maybe after thinking about this topic a little more, I am beginning to understand. Bugs are just a part of the circle of life I guess. Bugs are food to other animals, which are food to other animals, which are food to us humans. If all bugs were to die, then then the animals who eat the bugs will die, and the other animals who eat those animals will die, which will probably make our own survival harder. Maybe I am being a little self-centered, thinking that the only species that matter is the most powerful one, maybe we should be more considerate God's creations, since he probably had purpose for everything here. But on what level should we be considerate of God's creation? Should we be like monks, saving every little spider, and feeling guilty when we get over a cold? It's true that spiders and germs are a nuisance, but is that a reason to kill? I mean, we don't kill off annoying people in our lives. This deep thinking is making my head hurt...
Nails
As I look at my fingers typing this blog, I see that my nails are really ugly now. For junior function, I had got my nails done by none other than myself, (with the help of my mom and sister). My mom already bought the OPI french manicure set she only used once so there wasn't any point in setting up an appointment with a professional manicurist (is that what they are called?) that would end up costing me $65, (which is more than a function ticket). It actually turned out to be nicer than I thought, which was a relief because it actually ended up taking me an hour or so. I had no idea how many steps was needed to paint a simple french manicure. There were five steps, which you had to wait five minutes in between to make sure your nails were completely dry. Ok, maybe it took longer than it should have since I made many mistakes along the way. It was my first time doing a french manicure so I guess those many mistakes were acceptable. I actually ended up making my mom and my sister do my right hand since I was getting frustrated with my left hand capabilities. The end product wasn't perfect, for it was obvious that they were done by someone like me. Nevertheless I was happy how they turned out.
Sadly however, no one noticed the effort I put into those nails at junior function. In fact, even I had forgotten that I had my nails done until a friend was showing me her beautiful $65 professionally done nails. I showed her mines, and she complimented them; I was proud that someone appreciated these nails of mine. But it was after we had gotten back to school, so it was dark and she couldn't see how uneven the paintings were or how my right hand's nails weren't as shiny as my left hand's nails.
Today, four days after junior function, while writing this blog, I can totally see the flaws in the once half decent nails. During these four days, I have been using my hands pretty frequently, going to gymnastics practice, and getting them chlorine-ified from diving practice. Therefore, the very tips of my tips don't have nail polish any more and they now look sad and pathetic. From the preparation for junior function, I can say that I have a stronger appreciation for the many women out there who have to look good all the time. I now know what it's like to spend hours and money on hair, make-up, nails, and clothes. I couldn't imagine doing that everyday, having to cut off sleep just to get ready.
Sadly however, no one noticed the effort I put into those nails at junior function. In fact, even I had forgotten that I had my nails done until a friend was showing me her beautiful $65 professionally done nails. I showed her mines, and she complimented them; I was proud that someone appreciated these nails of mine. But it was after we had gotten back to school, so it was dark and she couldn't see how uneven the paintings were or how my right hand's nails weren't as shiny as my left hand's nails.
Today, four days after junior function, while writing this blog, I can totally see the flaws in the once half decent nails. During these four days, I have been using my hands pretty frequently, going to gymnastics practice, and getting them chlorine-ified from diving practice. Therefore, the very tips of my tips don't have nail polish any more and they now look sad and pathetic. From the preparation for junior function, I can say that I have a stronger appreciation for the many women out there who have to look good all the time. I now know what it's like to spend hours and money on hair, make-up, nails, and clothes. I couldn't imagine doing that everyday, having to cut off sleep just to get ready.
Get Over It
A reverse dive is probably my least favorite dive. Wait, what am I saying? It IS my least favorite dive, in fact, I think I might even hate it. A reverse dive is a dive in which the diver does a regular forward hurdle and rotates backwards to enter the water. It may sound like a pretty simple dive, but it is in fact, really scary. When rotating backwards, I often see the board pass by as I enter the water. My biggest fear is cutting off the board and landing on the board instead of the water. Even though I am a former competitive gymnast, I never learned how to do skills that relates to a reverse dive. In gymnastics, we learn how to travel and flip backwards, forwards, and sideways, but never at the same time.
Every night at practice, my coach has to force me to practice my reverse dives repeatedly. He always tells me that the only way to get through my fear, is to get my numbers in. In other words, I have to practice that dive many times so I can get more comfortable doing it. I have been doing reverse dives throughout my season of diving, and I have to admit, I'm not exactly comfortable doing it yet.
During the summer of 2006 was when I first attempted these dreadful reverse dives. Surprisingly, my first few reverse dives were actually my best, because for some reason, I slowly got closer and closer to the board after these first few dives. My coach told me to take it out, but I didn't exactly know how. And instead of taking it out I took it waay in. I jumped on the side of the board, flew backwards when I was supposed to go forwards, and almost landed on the side wall, which is about 2 feet behind the front of the board. If I hadn't have went sideways, I would have landed on the board, and might have gotten some broken bones. In mid air, I saw the wall pass by me, while my teammate and coach were screaming. Luckily, my coach didn't me do it again that day, and it was the last practice of the summer session.
I was obviously terrified when I came back to practice before season started. I tried to leave early from practice so I wouldn't get the chance to do those reverse dives. But as time passed, I realized that I couldn't hide from that dive forever, and that I had to at least attempt it sooner or later. My coach realized this too, and taught me how to do reverse dives over again. I remember doing those drills, and wished that I could do those forever. My coach finally talked me into trying one eventually, and I actually I ended up going for one. It wasn't the prettiest dive, but I was proud of myself for attempting it. That dive didn't miraculously free myself from that fear, but after attempting it, I started to get a little more self-confidence. I actually ended up competing that dive in five meets, not very well, but I it anyway. In fact, at diving states, I cut off the board again, and ended up being very close to the board. My teammate's grandma screamed really loud, which scared the heeber jeebers out of me. I ended up getting a really low score for it too.
But no matter how scared I am of the dive, and how terrible it is, I learned to get through the 'heeber jeebers' and just go for it because I learned that if I wouldn't have tried, I wouldn't have gotten very far in diving. Besides, there really isn't as much satisfaction and pride of getting through the season without any obstacles along the way.
Every night at practice, my coach has to force me to practice my reverse dives repeatedly. He always tells me that the only way to get through my fear, is to get my numbers in. In other words, I have to practice that dive many times so I can get more comfortable doing it. I have been doing reverse dives throughout my season of diving, and I have to admit, I'm not exactly comfortable doing it yet.
During the summer of 2006 was when I first attempted these dreadful reverse dives. Surprisingly, my first few reverse dives were actually my best, because for some reason, I slowly got closer and closer to the board after these first few dives. My coach told me to take it out, but I didn't exactly know how. And instead of taking it out I took it waay in. I jumped on the side of the board, flew backwards when I was supposed to go forwards, and almost landed on the side wall, which is about 2 feet behind the front of the board. If I hadn't have went sideways, I would have landed on the board, and might have gotten some broken bones. In mid air, I saw the wall pass by me, while my teammate and coach were screaming. Luckily, my coach didn't me do it again that day, and it was the last practice of the summer session.
I was obviously terrified when I came back to practice before season started. I tried to leave early from practice so I wouldn't get the chance to do those reverse dives. But as time passed, I realized that I couldn't hide from that dive forever, and that I had to at least attempt it sooner or later. My coach realized this too, and taught me how to do reverse dives over again. I remember doing those drills, and wished that I could do those forever. My coach finally talked me into trying one eventually, and I actually I ended up going for one. It wasn't the prettiest dive, but I was proud of myself for attempting it. That dive didn't miraculously free myself from that fear, but after attempting it, I started to get a little more self-confidence. I actually ended up competing that dive in five meets, not very well, but I it anyway. In fact, at diving states, I cut off the board again, and ended up being very close to the board. My teammate's grandma screamed really loud, which scared the heeber jeebers out of me. I ended up getting a really low score for it too.
But no matter how scared I am of the dive, and how terrible it is, I learned to get through the 'heeber jeebers' and just go for it because I learned that if I wouldn't have tried, I wouldn't have gotten very far in diving. Besides, there really isn't as much satisfaction and pride of getting through the season without any obstacles along the way.
Monday, March 12, 2007
My Friend, Caffine
Caffine will be my friend tonight, for I will spending many hours doing homework. Our defining moment draft is due tomorrow, along with a math and Japanese test. It wouldn't be so bad if I knew the material for these tests, but the thing is, I don't. For Japanese I started memorizing the vocabulary, but there is still a lot more for me to learn about the kanji, culture notes, and sentence structures. In math, I usually know what I'm doing, but these lessons I have found myself lost. Today during our review game, I couldn't answer the majority of the questions which is kind of disturbing. Whata makes it worse is that on this test, there will be questions from last test's material. Confusing permutations, combinations, pascals triangle, binomial theorem, the list goes on and on. I don't know how long it will take until I actually start understanding and feel confident. Maybe I'll go to my friend's house again so we can study together. Ya, that sounds like a good idea, hopefully she can be my tutor. I just hope I won't be wasting her time if I do. The defining moment paper is also due tomorrow. However, I still haven't figured out a way to go about my paper, and I need to decide how to do so. When I read my paper, it sounds weird. I don't know if it doesn't make sense or if I have too many grammatical errors, but whatever the case is, I need to make some changes by tomorrow. And on Thursday, I have my physics test (which is ALWAYS hard), my Japanese presentation, for which I have to memorize 1 1/2 pages of Japanese, a Japanese paper, which requires an hour spent on watching a Japanese TV show, and these composition posts. You might ask why I didn't start over the weekend. The answer to that is that I was just busy. On Saturday, I had my Junior Function, for which I had to get my nails done, my hair done, make up done, etc. And on Sunday, I was really tired, due to my unwelcomed monthly visitor. So I ended up waking up at 10:30. After that, I went to lunch, went to the gym aalll the way in Pearl City, came home to eat dinner, and went to sleep at 8:30 because I was so tired. I really did try to do my homework and everything but I was just too tired and my math homework was just too blurry since I was only half awake. Sadly, I think I'll be tired again today, tomorrow, and the day after, so caffine will definitely have to be my friend. I know it's our last week before spring break and the third quarter is ending, but hours of homework is never really fun.
Tuesday, March 6, 2007
Lucky Kids
In my U.S. History class we have just finished a mock trial dealing with the annexation of the Hawaiian monarchy. I am actually supposed to write a reflection like paper in response to this trial after I finish this blog. I am definitely not looking forward to doing that. When given assignments like that, is when I realize that I really miss those days of freedom in elementary school.
At gym class one day, I remember talking to a fifth grader who was complaining to me about her homework, saying, “I have soooo much homework tonight! You know, I have to do three whole workbook pages!” I rolled my eyes and told her that was nothing compared to the work we have in high school. But for some reason, she was determined to convince me otherwise. “But it’s three pages front and back, so I actually have to do six!” I had to laugh to myself because I knew that was nothing. But at the same time I remembered those days when I used to think that ‘six’ pages of homework was too much.
Some people may say that as teenagers, we have more freedom because we don’t have as much restrictions from the adults in our life since we are expected to think on our own and what not. However, I think that as kids, we actually had more freedom. As a child, we didn’t have as many responsibilities we are expected to have such as chores and the overdose of homework teachers give us to restrict us from doing the things we want to do. Therefore, we had more time to spend on whatever we wanted rather than taking care of so many tedious responsibilities. Also, we actually have to think more of what is right or wrong now, because the consequences are greater as a teenager. We can go to jail for stealing something from a grocery store as more mature people. But when we would have done the same thing as a kid, our actions are overlooked and will just be blamed on the parents. Basically, the kid can do whatever she wants since the parents will ultimately take the blame. Just by watching kids play on the playground, I can see the freedom little kids have. They run around screaming their heads off, without a care in the world. As an observer, I think it can be kind of cute, since it is normal for kids to act like that and it is expected for kids to have so much energy. But as teenagers, one will be thought of as really immature and weird if someone started running around screaming her head off. Therefore, kids have the power to act however they want and no one will care. It’s just too bad I didn’t realize how great it is to be a kid when I was a kid.
At gym class one day, I remember talking to a fifth grader who was complaining to me about her homework, saying, “I have soooo much homework tonight! You know, I have to do three whole workbook pages!” I rolled my eyes and told her that was nothing compared to the work we have in high school. But for some reason, she was determined to convince me otherwise. “But it’s three pages front and back, so I actually have to do six!” I had to laugh to myself because I knew that was nothing. But at the same time I remembered those days when I used to think that ‘six’ pages of homework was too much.
Some people may say that as teenagers, we have more freedom because we don’t have as much restrictions from the adults in our life since we are expected to think on our own and what not. However, I think that as kids, we actually had more freedom. As a child, we didn’t have as many responsibilities we are expected to have such as chores and the overdose of homework teachers give us to restrict us from doing the things we want to do. Therefore, we had more time to spend on whatever we wanted rather than taking care of so many tedious responsibilities. Also, we actually have to think more of what is right or wrong now, because the consequences are greater as a teenager. We can go to jail for stealing something from a grocery store as more mature people. But when we would have done the same thing as a kid, our actions are overlooked and will just be blamed on the parents. Basically, the kid can do whatever she wants since the parents will ultimately take the blame. Just by watching kids play on the playground, I can see the freedom little kids have. They run around screaming their heads off, without a care in the world. As an observer, I think it can be kind of cute, since it is normal for kids to act like that and it is expected for kids to have so much energy. But as teenagers, one will be thought of as really immature and weird if someone started running around screaming her head off. Therefore, kids have the power to act however they want and no one will care. It’s just too bad I didn’t realize how great it is to be a kid when I was a kid.
Monday, March 5, 2007
Hopeless Me
My lunch for today is grilled Boca burger sandwich, with avocados, tomatoes, and lettuce. I’m really hungry, and can’t wait to eat it. But it’s only 11:06 am and I usually don’t get hungry till 12:30. My mom makes the best lunch; she packs it for me everyday along with a mountain load of snacks. To my friends, I am known to be the one who always has food. I know I am spoiled like that, and I love it. My mom has a hectic job, but she always manages to make such delicious lunches. I just briefly checked my front pocket of my backpack, and it is stuffed with food, filled with curly Cheetos, organic raisins, Nutter Butter, and that’s only what I can see without digging in. Both my mom and grandma are such good cooks. It seems as though everyone’s moms and grandmas are. It’s kind of sad though, because most my generation of girls can’t cook. I happen to be one of them, sadly enough. I only know how to cook with a recipe in front of me, using measuring cups and measuring spoons, occasionally having to ask my mom what some cooking terms like ‘braise’ mean. I am already a junior heading towards college, and don’t even know how to cook on my own. I keep telling myself I need to learn, but for some reason I always seem to get too lazy. I give credit to those stay at home moms out there.
Sadly to say, I can’t sew either. I sewed hems and buttons once or twice, but I never made anything real useful. My mom used to make me dresses to wear to preschool, and I don’t know how she did it. Even when I sew a hem with a sewing machine, the stitch comes so crocked. But I guess the skill of sewing isn't that important because most people buy their clothes already made anyway. I'll just pray to God that there won't be a huge flood or something that wipes out all the clothing stores. Even though I can’t cook or sew, I can proudly say that I can wash clothes. I know what detergent goes with which, how to push the right buttons, turn knobs, hang clothes, and fold clothes. It might sound pathetic that I’m bragging about this, but there are some people my age who don’t know how. If I were to say this to someone three generations ago, everyone would think I’m mentally handicapped or something. Maybe it’s true that as years pass, kids are getting more and more lazy due to the increase of technology. Either that, or parents are learning how to spoil their children. Nevertheless, no matter how much I enjoy being spoiled, I think kids should learn about such basic tasks. Pretty soon I, along with so many other people, will be moving on to college, without our parents. After college, we will all have families and then we will have to be the parent. We will have to start being independent and take care of ourselves. I need to stop writing now because my laptop is going to die.
Sadly to say, I can’t sew either. I sewed hems and buttons once or twice, but I never made anything real useful. My mom used to make me dresses to wear to preschool, and I don’t know how she did it. Even when I sew a hem with a sewing machine, the stitch comes so crocked. But I guess the skill of sewing isn't that important because most people buy their clothes already made anyway. I'll just pray to God that there won't be a huge flood or something that wipes out all the clothing stores. Even though I can’t cook or sew, I can proudly say that I can wash clothes. I know what detergent goes with which, how to push the right buttons, turn knobs, hang clothes, and fold clothes. It might sound pathetic that I’m bragging about this, but there are some people my age who don’t know how. If I were to say this to someone three generations ago, everyone would think I’m mentally handicapped or something. Maybe it’s true that as years pass, kids are getting more and more lazy due to the increase of technology. Either that, or parents are learning how to spoil their children. Nevertheless, no matter how much I enjoy being spoiled, I think kids should learn about such basic tasks. Pretty soon I, along with so many other people, will be moving on to college, without our parents. After college, we will all have families and then we will have to be the parent. We will have to start being independent and take care of ourselves. I need to stop writing now because my laptop is going to die.
Wednesday, February 28, 2007
Third Class Sport
Here I am, sitting alone against a wall in gymnastics practice, and am using the stretching block as a desk for my laptop. You might wonder why I’m not practicing. That’s because there is just too much homework that is due tomorrow. But I really want to workout because today my coaches, Mili and Lei, are actually making everyone be productive. There are four groups today rather than the normal two. One group is tumbling on floor, having fun doing front tucks and baranis off the mini tramp. I just saw one of my teammates land flat on her face during a front tuck. I don’t want to be mean or anything, but that was kind of funny. There was a really loud smack when her face hit the mat, that the wrestlers on the other side of the blue tarp heard that for sure. She is a diver too, so I guess she is used to a 1-½ somersault in which one enters head first into the water. I had a few face smackings too, but face smacking on a gym mat isn’t nearly as painful as a body flop off the diving board. Once I hit the water so hard, I ended up getting big purple bruises on my leg. Haha, right after that incident, a guy walking past me just tripped on a mat, I actually laughed out loud for that one. I know I shouldn’t be laughing because I’m pretty clumsy myself. I even trip over my own foot sometimes. I guess that’s ironic because gymnasts are supposed to elegant and agile.
Gymnastics is so entertaining to watch, much more entertaining than any other sport I know. Sports like football, basketball, and track can be exciting to watch, but it’s only exciting when there is competition. After all, football player only tackle and run, basketball players only run and put the basket into a hoop, and runners just put one step in front of the other. Gymnasts on the other hand, risk their lives everyday, tumbling sky high without landing on our heads, doing stunts on a four inch wide, four feet high beam, running as fast as we can towards a stationary object, and swinging high on a set of bars with bloody hands. Many ordinary people can’t do stunts as most gymnasts can, while many people can throw a football, shoot a basket, and run. I don’t have anything against such athletes, or anything, it’s just that I think more people should appreciate gymnastics as a sport, rather than thinking it’s too easy to even be considered as a sport. Many don’t realize how much it takes to be an exceptional gymnast because of how easy such stunts can look. An average competitive gymnast has to spend around 20 hours a week in order to keep up with new skills and conditioning. Unlike any other sport, it is pretty much impossible to keep up with skills even after a short vacation. It’s actually hard to keep in shape too. I never thought in a million years I would say this, but I actually miss those brutal conditioning days. When I was doing club gymnastics, I was actually in shape, even though I didn’t believe it then. Now, only a year after I quit doing club gymnastics, I have gained about 10 pounds, and am not in condition whatsoever. I thought I would be able to condition on my own time after I quit so that I would stay in shape. However, I wasn’t as disciplined as I thought. Even though we condition in ILH, it isn’t at all how it used to be. I honestly don’t think that we’re going to get much stronger with their conditioning. Even though I miss some aspects of competitive gymnastics, I don’t regret quitting at all. I now have more time to myself, rather than spending most of my time at the gym, being able to try new things at the same time.
Gymnastics is so entertaining to watch, much more entertaining than any other sport I know. Sports like football, basketball, and track can be exciting to watch, but it’s only exciting when there is competition. After all, football player only tackle and run, basketball players only run and put the basket into a hoop, and runners just put one step in front of the other. Gymnasts on the other hand, risk their lives everyday, tumbling sky high without landing on our heads, doing stunts on a four inch wide, four feet high beam, running as fast as we can towards a stationary object, and swinging high on a set of bars with bloody hands. Many ordinary people can’t do stunts as most gymnasts can, while many people can throw a football, shoot a basket, and run. I don’t have anything against such athletes, or anything, it’s just that I think more people should appreciate gymnastics as a sport, rather than thinking it’s too easy to even be considered as a sport. Many don’t realize how much it takes to be an exceptional gymnast because of how easy such stunts can look. An average competitive gymnast has to spend around 20 hours a week in order to keep up with new skills and conditioning. Unlike any other sport, it is pretty much impossible to keep up with skills even after a short vacation. It’s actually hard to keep in shape too. I never thought in a million years I would say this, but I actually miss those brutal conditioning days. When I was doing club gymnastics, I was actually in shape, even though I didn’t believe it then. Now, only a year after I quit doing club gymnastics, I have gained about 10 pounds, and am not in condition whatsoever. I thought I would be able to condition on my own time after I quit so that I would stay in shape. However, I wasn’t as disciplined as I thought. Even though we condition in ILH, it isn’t at all how it used to be. I honestly don’t think that we’re going to get much stronger with their conditioning. Even though I miss some aspects of competitive gymnastics, I don’t regret quitting at all. I now have more time to myself, rather than spending most of my time at the gym, being able to try new things at the same time.
Goodbye
I remember my barefoot Barwick days during my first year at my scool. I was in fourth grade, and I remember that my biggest stress was gymnastics, something totally unrelated to school. Time sure flew by fast, and now, as a junior, there is not one day that goes by totally stress-free of school. I just wish I could have that remote from the movie ‘Click’ and rewind back to those happy elemntary days.
After our school carnival, (the best carnival ever!) I now realize how precious everyday here is. However, working up to carnival actually went by really slowly. Every now and then we had meetings, sign painting, the required 12 hours at the tank. (I was the booth chair for white elephant.) Because it took so long to prepare for carnival, it was surprising to experience that the Friday and Saturday of carnival went by too fast. Maybe it went faster than it usually did because this was the first year I didn’t even have fun time to spend at the carnival. I had a diving champs on the Saturday of the carnival, so I had to do all of my shifts on Friday. So before I knew it, we were taking the traditional walk around carnival. When Mrs. Ashford told us that it would be an emotional experience, I honestly didn’t get it. I didn’t understand how a walk around an empty carnival ground would be emotional. It’s not like that would be our last carnival ever. Only until the actual walk did I understand, I’m not saying I started wailing or anything, I’m just saying I understood what my dean was explaining to us before. It symbolized the ending of the big event of our high school career and the beginning to our end, if that makes any sense. We will never again experience what we would experience, which actually is pretty sad when I think about it.
Right when carnival was over, everyone was talking about Junior Function, which is the next big event in our school year. It’s actually pretty stressful deciding who to take and who to take pictures with, especially when it costs so much too. During all of this, we had to schedule for our last year at my school, order our class ring, fill out our NHS forms, schedule our college conference, and study for our most important year. Ah, just thinking of all the things I have to do during the next few weeks is stressing me out. I am excited to leave Hawaii and go off to a college in the mainland, (hopefully somewhere nice and warm), although I wonder how much I would miss my friends and family here. I might not even see my friends after senior year, for we will all be moving on in our separate ways. I will probably no longer live with my sister or parents ever again after I graduate, I will no longer see them everyday but maybe only a few times a year. In the beginning of my Junior year I was so excited to moving on with my life, but now I am seeing the depressing side to all of this, which is not making me very happy. Maybe I should stop before I get really depressed.
After our school carnival, (the best carnival ever!) I now realize how precious everyday here is. However, working up to carnival actually went by really slowly. Every now and then we had meetings, sign painting, the required 12 hours at the tank. (I was the booth chair for white elephant.) Because it took so long to prepare for carnival, it was surprising to experience that the Friday and Saturday of carnival went by too fast. Maybe it went faster than it usually did because this was the first year I didn’t even have fun time to spend at the carnival. I had a diving champs on the Saturday of the carnival, so I had to do all of my shifts on Friday. So before I knew it, we were taking the traditional walk around carnival. When Mrs. Ashford told us that it would be an emotional experience, I honestly didn’t get it. I didn’t understand how a walk around an empty carnival ground would be emotional. It’s not like that would be our last carnival ever. Only until the actual walk did I understand, I’m not saying I started wailing or anything, I’m just saying I understood what my dean was explaining to us before. It symbolized the ending of the big event of our high school career and the beginning to our end, if that makes any sense. We will never again experience what we would experience, which actually is pretty sad when I think about it.
Right when carnival was over, everyone was talking about Junior Function, which is the next big event in our school year. It’s actually pretty stressful deciding who to take and who to take pictures with, especially when it costs so much too. During all of this, we had to schedule for our last year at my school, order our class ring, fill out our NHS forms, schedule our college conference, and study for our most important year. Ah, just thinking of all the things I have to do during the next few weeks is stressing me out. I am excited to leave Hawaii and go off to a college in the mainland, (hopefully somewhere nice and warm), although I wonder how much I would miss my friends and family here. I might not even see my friends after senior year, for we will all be moving on in our separate ways. I will probably no longer live with my sister or parents ever again after I graduate, I will no longer see them everyday but maybe only a few times a year. In the beginning of my Junior year I was so excited to moving on with my life, but now I am seeing the depressing side to all of this, which is not making me very happy. Maybe I should stop before I get really depressed.
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