Friday, April 18, 2008
Last Week-Part 5-
Well what can I say? It’s been nice knowing you guys. Class was really fun, and dare I say interesting at times. I was glad that our class was a whole group of really diverse, understanding people. I still hate politics with a passion, but I was glad the class wasn’t heated debate every time. I know those times were interesting, but I’m just glad everyone was on good terms. I wish you all good luck with your papers, and good luck in life.
Don’t really have much else to say, but I do need about sixty more words. Well, I can guess I can reflect a little on how much I’ve grown. I’ve learned to see arguments better-in terms of seeing some fallacies and propaganda. I don’t know if I can argue better though. I didn’t break out of my shell as much as I would have hoped. But I will in time I’m sure. Overall, I do think I can write a better paper. I just wish I would learn how to prioritize my life.
Well, I’m out. See you guys later and good luck again. I hope whatever major you’re pursuing works out for you. And always keep an open mind-I find that that works best in life.
BYE!!!!!!!!!!!!
Last Week-Part 4-
Lately I’ve been thinking of becoming an ALT (Assistant Language Teacher) in Japan. It’s weird actually. I hate grammar (to a degree) and I was never any good at it, but being an English teacher might not be so bad. I could definitely put these Japanese courses to good use. And I’ve never visited another country before, so that’s always a plus. But I would have to worry about culture shock, and I have read/heard that being a gaijin (foreigner/outsider) is not a good thing in Japan. All of that aside though, being an ALT is both tempting and completely out of the question.
I wanted to be teacher when I was a kid (you know, after wanting to be an archaeologist, a marine biologist, etc.). But later, I decided against it. I don’t really like speaking in front of a room of people, and being a teacher would be a big challenge actually. Most teachers just make you read out of the book, copy way-too-many-pages of notes, or listen to them lecture the whole class. To be a really good teacher, it would take a lot of skill and talent. And what really turned me off even more was the thought of teaching some of the kids I went to school with. You would have to put up with rowdy kids, angry parents, and just a whole lot of crap. Being a teacher just did not seem too appealing to me.
But what the hell?... I’m still considering this job…
Last Week-Part 3-
The other major I have always considered is art. I don’t know what exact subfield, but I’ve always though (and have been told) that art is the major for me. I tried it this semester, and I’m still not sure. Near the beginning, I thought that I just wasn’t cut out for it. I would come to class and get incredibly bored drawing whatever was in the middle of the room. But it got better as the semester went on; I could feel myself improving too. At home, I do like to draw when I have the time. It’s not that I have no interest, but rather, I’m just indecisive.
Last Week-Part 2-
Right now, I can only keep reminding myself that having a little bit of knowledge in a variety of fields is a great asset. You can know everything about one particular subject, and that’s great, but knowing nothing about anything else is…pretty lame. I really would like to have a basic understanding of Biology, or a basic understanding of Japanese (I would like to be fluent in Japanese actually). I guess I just don’t see why I have to study something like it’s going to be my major. But damn. That’s an old age question I’m sure everyone is tired of hearing, and I’m probably (actually definitely) not the first to ask.
Last Week-Part 1-
This semester made me question why I was in college actually. I just couldn’t help but think, why am I doing this; why am I here? In middle school it was all about getting into high school. In high school it was all about getting into college. So what am I “getting into to” in college? A job? I don’t think I need to know every single step of photosynthesis to hold a job that doesn’t concern Biology. I even said to myself, ‘Now I know why people drop out of college; they don’t want to put up with all of this crap’. And that’s probably a big reason, other than failing out. I just couldn’t see why knowing all of this was going to help me make it through life.
Friday, April 11, 2008
Summer
I don’t know if it’s just because I got all of the hard classes this semester or something…..maybe I just overloaded myself, I don’t know. This semester has been very tiring, and there was ALWAYS something that needed to be done. I just feel like I was never given a break this semester. I never had a weekend completely void of homework. Even this weekend, I have a lot of work to do.
I hope summer doesn’t throw me off too much though, in terms of work. I’d hate to have to come back next year, and have even more work to do. But I hope the summer will be relaxing nonetheless. I currently don’t have any vacation plans (*gasp*), but just laying around the house is fine to me. Just as long as there is no school work, it’s fine with me.
School Thoughts Again
Is it really necessary to know every step of photosynthesis to achieve success in life? Do I have to know how to apply the Pythagorean Theorem to a room to figure out its total size, when I have no intention of being a carpenter/flooring contractor/what have you? Need I write these blog posts every Friday to become a billionaire in the future?
All of these classes are for the general education program. I guess they would like us to be well-rounded individuals, and it makes sense. However, I cannot see myself applying a lot of this in daily life. Some of it is helpful, and then some of it just seems like busy work.
Right now, I just don’t see the point of it all. In elementary school, it was all about moving up to the next grade. In junior high, it was all about getting into high school. In high school, it was all about college, college, college. Now, what is this about? I can see taking classes that pertain to my major, but what about everything else? Maybe I will eat my words and really use what I learn, but for right now, I just don’t see how knowing the entire process of photosynthesis will help.
The Can't Think of a Good Title Blog Post
They say you should apply whatever foreign language you are learning to your everyday life. This makes sense, but it’s a little difficult. I’m constantly surrounded by English, so of course I want to speak English. And practicing out loud would be very awkward for other people. They won’t know what I’m saying, and will probably think I’m wasting time. I think I’ll just keep the practicing mental, or on paper.
And, one day I will learn kanji. It’s going to be rough, but I’ll learn it.
それじゃ、また後で。
Random School Thoughts
There really is a love/hate relationship with those classes that are no homework, only 3 or 4 tests all semester. You love the idea of no homework at the time, then you make a not so hot grade on a test, and you realize that’s all you have. It’s annoying to have only 3 shots at a decent grade; and if you fail one, you can forget making an A in the class. I would rather have the homework as a backup grade. It would be annoying but it would make my life easier.
I wonder why teachers only give tests though. Is it for them or us? Do they just not want to have to grade all of that, or is there no point to it? Maybe they figure no one will do it, and don’t even assign any? My guess is the first one. The classes I usually don’t have homework in are huge classes (100 students or more), so I wouldn’t want to grade all of that.
Time to Move On
It just seems like people put a little too much focus on something like sports. They’re a form of entertainment and we love them, but there are more important things out there in the world. I’m not really into sports myself, so I can’t really relate to the people who feel very passionate about them. It’s fine to play and love them, but there is more to life then winning a game. And after you win, you get what, bragging rights for a year? A year will go by fast trust me. We’ll get ‘em next year as they say.
Friday, April 4, 2008
This Week
Well turns out this week wasn’t so bad after all. I made a B on my Bio test (well, a C as a raw score, but B with the bonus points), which was amazing because I thought I epically failed. My art teacher also decided not to grade the drawings we did on Tuesday, which made me really glad. We have to critique them in front of the class, and I just did not want to even look at that thing again.
I would really hope this week would teach me to get my act together, but I doubt it. I used to be on top of things pretty well back in the 10th grade and below. Now I’m just extremely lazy and I procrastinate, and I can’t seem to get things done. Like everyone else, I have a million other things I’d rather be doing, and that’s what I focus on.
I hope someday I’ll be more on top of things. But right now, I just want to sleep….
Should we Forgive and Forget?
Forgiving is the hardest part I think. You can’t forget until you forgive, so the forgiving must come first. People always have a hard time admitting their mistakes. This makes the forgiving really hard. Let’s say you pre-judge someone of another race, only to find out they were not that way at all. You might feel embarrassed you were wrong and won’t admit it, or you just will never even think you were wrong. A lot of people turn a blind eye to what’s in front of them. They keep going along with their stereotypes and pre-judgments, refusing to see what’s there. And people just won’t forgive. They have the mind set that they are right, and that their opinion is tops.
If we can get over this forgiving deal, then the forgetting shouldn’t be too far away. Things might still be a bit shaky even after forgiving, but after reconciling with your own feelings, you’ll forget. Life’s too short to harp on one thing forever.
Forgiving and Forgetting
Well to forgive is one thing, forget is another. Forgiving leads to forgetting, it’s not the other way around. If you truly have no intention of forgiving, then you won’t forget. We see it everyday after all-ghosts of the past still holding strong in people’s minds. Whether it has something to do with Jim Crow Laws or the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor, it’s there. People won’t forgive, and that means no forgetting either.
It’s really sad how that stuff is still around. It happened so long ago, and you would think people would have forgotten, if anything, by now. But like I said, they won’t forgive. They pass on their thoughts and ideas to their kids, who then pass it on to theirs…it’s like a cycle. A pretty unjustified cycle too, considering the kids weren’t even alive at the time.
WHO is allowed to speak about race?
The thing is, if ‘race’ starts getting thrown around in conversation or debate, things get real heated, real fast. It almost makes you think NO ONE can talk about race. Why talk about something that makes everyone upset? After all, none of us are perfect, and all of us have pre-judged someone based on their looks or skin color. It’s like none of us are in the position to be the mediator of the race argument.
Well I don’t know who the mediator is going to be, but anyone can talk about race. None of us are that perfect, non-judging individual after all. I don’t think it’s a topic left up to politicians, or anyone else in charge. It’s not something that should be avoided either. I don’t like starting big arguments are getting people mad, but if it needs to be spoken about, it should be spoken about. I don’t see why people get upset over the topic anyway (just with the fact that it’s brought up I mean), but I always think “Oh no…” when it does. I guess it’s just our culture.
Do we have a problem talking about race?
As we spoke about this is in class, I analyzed myself, to see how I saw “race”; and I’m sure everyone else was too. I do agree that background has a lot to do with it. Why wouldn’t it? I think I’m more afraid to talk about it than most other people actually. I’ve went to a private school my whole life. I’ve gone to school with very few African American kids. Race was never really a topic, as we were mostly white children. Every time this topic comes up, I’m not scared of the topic itself, but rather what will be said. Not that I don’t like speaking entirely, but I’m always a little hesitant.
I’m hesitant to the extent of using “black” actually. I know it sounds crazy, but I use “African American” a lot of the time, especially when talking in front of the class or a group. I thought about it, and I can’t explain it. I don’t really like using “white” kids or “Asian” kids either. I do use the terms I’m sure, but I don’t like using them in the sense that ‘black kids are this,’ ‘’white people are that, ’those Asian kids…’. I do probably say some of those things, I’m not little Ms. Perfect preaching to you here.
But yes, I do think there is a problem. We just avoid it for different reasons, but mainly not to step on anyone’s toes. And I hate stepping on people’s toes, so I definitely avoid the topic.
And I’m very nervous putting this blog post up actually….