http://english.aljazeera.net//sport/tennis/2011/09/201191303339382653.html
I am surprised that Nadal lost his number one title so quickly. He was known as the king of topspin. He has big advantages such as being left handed and having a two handed backhand; being left handed allows him to put a different type of spin on the ball and using two hands makes his backhand stronger. I am also disappointed that Roger Federer lost in the semifinals. I loved matching him play, especially when he does the tweener between his legs and they end up being winners.
This reminds me of the current event that I did this past week in my sports and entertainment marketing class on Djokovic. Serbian tennis player Novak Djokovic used to be known for "djoking" around and his impressions of Rafael Nadal, John McEnroe, and Maria Sharapova. Now he is stepping up his game. This past year he has won the Australian Open and Wimbledon. He has a 52-7 record for the year with only losses from Rogerer Federer in the French Open and Andy Roddick in the Western and Southern Open.
In the article that I read, it said the key to his wins is his physical conditioning. He found out that he was allergic to gluten which he has laid off. Now, he does not experience fatigue anymore and can play in long matches. I wonder how long his winning streak is going to go until someone else takes the number one title from him. There will hopefully be more current news on tennis for me to write about because it is my favorite sport.
Friday, September 16, 2011
Free Post : Tutoring
During the summer,I took Japanese a Laney College. One day, when I was walking to the bus stop, a lady called at me from an apartment. I went over to her to see what she wanted. It turned out that she was looking for a tutor for her daughter who was going to be in fourth grade. I had nothing to do on the weekends so I took the job. I started tutoring her on the first week of August and I am currently still on Saturdays and Sundays. I do not get paid much but that's okay since they just immigrated from Malaysia and probably do not have much money. At first, I thought tutoring Nancy was fine, but now I have encountered a problem.. .
I think that she might have a learning disability and worry that she will not able to catch up at school. Doing worksheets and reading with her, I realized that her memory is really poor. When I ask her for an answer to a problem and she gives me the wrong answer, I tell her that it's wrong, but like less than a minute later, she says the same thing again. Normally, when kids know the alphabet sounds, they can sound out words, but when she tries, it sounds nothing like what it looks like; she adds a whole bunch of extra sounds that I have no idea wher she gets them from. Sometimes, she even has a hard time with basic math. Right now, her class is learning to round to the millions and she does not even know how to round to the tens.
Everytime I tutor her I end up yelling at her because I get so frustrated. I really don't know how to help her if she learns at such a slow pace and has such a bad memory. I go to her home for four hours each weekend and we barely get anything done. I kind of want to quit but at the same time I feel bad since it's only been a month and I'm sure that they won't find another person who is willing to get paid what I get. I'm not exactly sue what to do at this point. Can someone offer me some advice?
I think that she might have a learning disability and worry that she will not able to catch up at school. Doing worksheets and reading with her, I realized that her memory is really poor. When I ask her for an answer to a problem and she gives me the wrong answer, I tell her that it's wrong, but like less than a minute later, she says the same thing again. Normally, when kids know the alphabet sounds, they can sound out words, but when she tries, it sounds nothing like what it looks like; she adds a whole bunch of extra sounds that I have no idea wher she gets them from. Sometimes, she even has a hard time with basic math. Right now, her class is learning to round to the millions and she does not even know how to round to the tens.
Everytime I tutor her I end up yelling at her because I get so frustrated. I really don't know how to help her if she learns at such a slow pace and has such a bad memory. I go to her home for four hours each weekend and we barely get anything done. I kind of want to quit but at the same time I feel bad since it's only been a month and I'm sure that they won't find another person who is willing to get paid what I get. I'm not exactly sue what to do at this point. Can someone offer me some advice?
Wednesday, September 14, 2011
Biweekly :College Prompt
Describe the world you come from — for example, your family, community or school — and tell us how your world has shaped your dreams and aspirations.
"Even though you might not live a life for God, I hope you can live a life for others."
That is one thing that my brother said to me that I will remember for the rest of my life.
Growing up in Oakland when I was a child, my family was not rich; we had to live off of food stamps from the government, my sister quit college early to work, and I remember just living very frugally. Compared to that life that I live now, living in Alameda and living a pretty nice lifestyle,I should be happier now. The problem is that I'm not. Through the past years, I always thought that it was because I needed more materialistic things or that because my mom is mental and I would be happier if she just went back to China. However, after much though, I have come to the conclusion that the source of my unhappiness is the broken relationships I have with my family.
When I was little, I used to do everything with my mom.Because my mom somewhat has a mental illness that had gotten worse starting when I was in elementary school, I stopped talking to her and ignored all the questions that she'd ask me. Now that I am almost an adult, I have a bad attitude when my sister minds my business;I sometimes ignore her too. I really need to change my attitude and try to help my mom in pain and get along with my sister who is the one supporting my dad in China, my mom, and me. I really miss the ties that I used to have with my family, like engaging in conversation and eating dinner together every night. This has made me realize that self sufficiency does not lead to happiness.
After my brother moved to Davis and went to church, I have seen an amazing transformation. Now, he is working as a teacher for special education kids. I always wondered why he chose that job when he could have chosen another one that makes more money and is more well respected. It shows that he really cares about other people, no matter what they are like. Seeing my brother live such a selfless life has encouraged me to do more community service, which I have done so much that it became a part of my daily life. I realized that it was a much more meaningful way to spend my time that being alone in my room using the computer.I have made a life goal of pursuing a career in which I will be able to interact other people, especially those in need. That is why I want to be a nurse practitioner. I want to do something meaningful with my life like establishing relationships with other people. Hopefully, working with patients, I will come across people that are mentally ill, and realize that there are a lot of people like my mom out in the world and that will help me cope with my mom better.
"Even though you might not live a life for God, I hope you can live a life for others."
That is one thing that my brother said to me that I will remember for the rest of my life.
Growing up in Oakland when I was a child, my family was not rich; we had to live off of food stamps from the government, my sister quit college early to work, and I remember just living very frugally. Compared to that life that I live now, living in Alameda and living a pretty nice lifestyle,I should be happier now. The problem is that I'm not. Through the past years, I always thought that it was because I needed more materialistic things or that because my mom is mental and I would be happier if she just went back to China. However, after much though, I have come to the conclusion that the source of my unhappiness is the broken relationships I have with my family.
When I was little, I used to do everything with my mom.Because my mom somewhat has a mental illness that had gotten worse starting when I was in elementary school, I stopped talking to her and ignored all the questions that she'd ask me. Now that I am almost an adult, I have a bad attitude when my sister minds my business;I sometimes ignore her too. I really need to change my attitude and try to help my mom in pain and get along with my sister who is the one supporting my dad in China, my mom, and me. I really miss the ties that I used to have with my family, like engaging in conversation and eating dinner together every night. This has made me realize that self sufficiency does not lead to happiness.
After my brother moved to Davis and went to church, I have seen an amazing transformation. Now, he is working as a teacher for special education kids. I always wondered why he chose that job when he could have chosen another one that makes more money and is more well respected. It shows that he really cares about other people, no matter what they are like. Seeing my brother live such a selfless life has encouraged me to do more community service, which I have done so much that it became a part of my daily life. I realized that it was a much more meaningful way to spend my time that being alone in my room using the computer.I have made a life goal of pursuing a career in which I will be able to interact other people, especially those in need. That is why I want to be a nurse practitioner. I want to do something meaningful with my life like establishing relationships with other people. Hopefully, working with patients, I will come across people that are mentally ill, and realize that there are a lot of people like my mom out in the world and that will help me cope with my mom better.
Thursday, September 8, 2011
Free : LDC 2011
This summer was very memorable for me because I was able to attend Red Cross’s Leadership Development Center once again. This year is was at Santa Clara University, a campus that was beautiful. I was able to be recertified in CPR and First Aid. I was in the Purple Grapes clan, the most awesome group ever. Though in the beginning it was kind of awkward since we didn’t know each other, after the three days, I felt so close to them in a way I have never really felt with others. We did so many memorable things together.
For our clan anthem, we sang “The Grape Life” a modified version of “The Good Life” by One Republic. For our skit, we put a twist to Snow White, where she becomes Snow Purple and instead of the Seven Dwarves, there were the Seven Principles of the Red Cross –Humanity, Individuality, Neutrality, Impartiality, Voluntary Service, Unity, and Universality. During the dance competition, we danced to Lady Gaga’s Edge of Glory. I had an awesome time and the people in my group were just so sweet. I was so touched that each and every single one of us got out of our comfort zone and was able to participate in the discussions and search and rescue, giving their all. After LDC was over, I had a hard time adjusting back to normal day life because I missed my grapes of much that I watched the dance video like thirty times.
I MISS MY GRAPES, CHRISTINE HO, SARAH LYNNE PENALOSA, BRANDON KAN, KEVIN HONG, JOAN BARCELONA, JESSICA HUANG, YUWEN LI, CHRISTINA BELLEMARIPOSA NWABUZOH, CHARISSE MAE SALCEDO, BRYAN CHING, BRIAN ZHANG, JIN MEI, AND SARAAVYA!
For our clan anthem, we sang “The Grape Life” a modified version of “The Good Life” by One Republic. For our skit, we put a twist to Snow White, where she becomes Snow Purple and instead of the Seven Dwarves, there were the Seven Principles of the Red Cross –Humanity, Individuality, Neutrality, Impartiality, Voluntary Service, Unity, and Universality. During the dance competition, we danced to Lady Gaga’s Edge of Glory. I had an awesome time and the people in my group were just so sweet. I was so touched that each and every single one of us got out of our comfort zone and was able to participate in the discussions and search and rescue, giving their all. After LDC was over, I had a hard time adjusting back to normal day life because I missed my grapes of much that I watched the dance video like thirty times.
I MISS MY GRAPES, CHRISTINE HO, SARAH LYNNE PENALOSA, BRANDON KAN, KEVIN HONG, JOAN BARCELONA, JESSICA HUANG, YUWEN LI, CHRISTINA BELLEMARIPOSA NWABUZOH, CHARISSE MAE SALCEDO, BRYAN CHING, BRIAN ZHANG, JIN MEI, AND SARAAVYA!
Wednesday, September 7, 2011
Response to Kristen's 9/11 current event
"This growing fear of losing security has made politicians promise things that cannot be done. In my opinion, to improve homeland security would be a HUGE task to handle. You cannot predict people's movements and thoughts, so it makes taking the next step a hard one." -Kristen He
http://kristenhe.blogspot.com/2011/09/september-11.html
I agree strongly with this statement. This makes me question whether the troops in Afghanistan will ever come back. Obama is bringing back all the troops from Iraq, but 66,000 will still remain in Afghanistan, leading to many Americans thinking that Obama was not as progressive as we had hoped for. The war against terror has been over a decade so that even hardcore Republicans are starting to be swayed. Because the war is a matter of morality and U.S. security, Obama was not able to keep his promise of pulling out troops quickly. Dealing with the Middle East is a huge task do to because it involves spending a lot of money, money that the U.S. does not currently have.
It is true that the terrorist's movements are unpredictable, but they are less of a threat now. In a recent Meet the Press news show, Senator John Kerry, talked of a recent plane crash in Afghanistan. It was in a way positive since it was not a large scale attack. This shows that the terrorists are not currently capable of one. Since threat from Afghanistan is dwindling, I think that the U.S. needs to go back to nation building instead of continuing its position as the police power in the world. This also reminds me that the U.S. should also not have involved itself in Libya, that Obama violated the War Powers Resolution, and that once Gadaffi is dealt with, U.S. troops should not stay there for peace keeping.
http://kristenhe.blogspot.com/2011/09/september-11.html
I agree strongly with this statement. This makes me question whether the troops in Afghanistan will ever come back. Obama is bringing back all the troops from Iraq, but 66,000 will still remain in Afghanistan, leading to many Americans thinking that Obama was not as progressive as we had hoped for. The war against terror has been over a decade so that even hardcore Republicans are starting to be swayed. Because the war is a matter of morality and U.S. security, Obama was not able to keep his promise of pulling out troops quickly. Dealing with the Middle East is a huge task do to because it involves spending a lot of money, money that the U.S. does not currently have.
It is true that the terrorist's movements are unpredictable, but they are less of a threat now. In a recent Meet the Press news show, Senator John Kerry, talked of a recent plane crash in Afghanistan. It was in a way positive since it was not a large scale attack. This shows that the terrorists are not currently capable of one. Since threat from Afghanistan is dwindling, I think that the U.S. needs to go back to nation building instead of continuing its position as the police power in the world. This also reminds me that the U.S. should also not have involved itself in Libya, that Obama violated the War Powers Resolution, and that once Gadaffi is dealt with, U.S. troops should not stay there for peace keeping.
CE : Unemployment and Economic Independence
http://english.aljazeera.net/news/americas/2011/09/2011983341818860.html
Ever since I planned to take AP Gov, I had to follow political news over the summer. Due to this, I was able to better understand the problems the are plaguing the U.S. currently such as the debt ceiling and unemployment. In this article, the Repulican candidates Mitt Romney and rick Perry are debating over jobs because it is currently the number one problem American families are facing. Romney and Perry are addressing jobs to show that they will do something about the problem that Obama has not been able to solve, but has made even worse. With unemployment at 9.1%, it is unlikely that Obama will be re-elected since no president has ever been reelected at at a time where unemployment was over 7. something%. Also, Obama has increased the national debt by trillions and has been unable to fulfill many of the promises for change that he had made.
Recently in government class, we split up into groups to look into important parts of several sections in the textbook. In the fourth chapter, American Political Culture, there was a table showing that only 23% of Americans believed that it was the government's responsibility to take care of the poor who couldn't take care of themselves and 63% believed that hard work guarantees success. It also said that This shows that Americans believe in economic independence. When Perry attacks Social Security, he is demonstrating this belief that Americans should not have to rely on the government especially when they are truly capable of taking care of themselves. That reminds me of an article that I read in the summer that over half of all Americans receive benefits from the government and I am positive that not everyone that receives it is really in need.
Ever since I planned to take AP Gov, I had to follow political news over the summer. Due to this, I was able to better understand the problems the are plaguing the U.S. currently such as the debt ceiling and unemployment. In this article, the Repulican candidates Mitt Romney and rick Perry are debating over jobs because it is currently the number one problem American families are facing. Romney and Perry are addressing jobs to show that they will do something about the problem that Obama has not been able to solve, but has made even worse. With unemployment at 9.1%, it is unlikely that Obama will be re-elected since no president has ever been reelected at at a time where unemployment was over 7. something%. Also, Obama has increased the national debt by trillions and has been unable to fulfill many of the promises for change that he had made.
Recently in government class, we split up into groups to look into important parts of several sections in the textbook. In the fourth chapter, American Political Culture, there was a table showing that only 23% of Americans believed that it was the government's responsibility to take care of the poor who couldn't take care of themselves and 63% believed that hard work guarantees success. It also said that This shows that Americans believe in economic independence. When Perry attacks Social Security, he is demonstrating this belief that Americans should not have to rely on the government especially when they are truly capable of taking care of themselves. That reminds me of an article that I read in the summer that over half of all Americans receive benefits from the government and I am positive that not everyone that receives it is really in need.
Wednesday, June 2, 2010
Final
I have thoroughly enjoyed having a blog this past school year. When I scroll through past posts, I think to myself, "This has got to be the most I've ever written in my life!" My blog allows me to jot down memories. It is convenient since it keeps all my writing in one place. My favorite part is being able to add pictures to give myself a visual of what I wrote about. I can also look at other people's blogs when I see a topic that interests me.
Blogging has changed the way I write, think, and think about writing.I used to think that writing is only worth something only if it is written professionally. I developed that mentality because only good essays good get markings in English class. But now that I think about it, writing, even if it has bad grammar, is significant as long as it means something to the writer or reader, especially if it is about an important event in a person's life. I used to think that writing was plain and boring, but it is actually very powerful. It's amazing how writing can take all different types of forms. There are reviews, fiction, real life stories, poems and you can learn many morals/ lessons from each kind. For example, if you read dramas, you learn stage directions. Also, once you finish a book, that isn't the end. There can be analysis and discussions which can be used to expand into other subjects.
Writing used to be one of my greatest fears. I dreaded writing essays because I always ended up having writer's block. After blogging so much, I now think that producing 300 words is a cinch. However, 500 words is still kind of tedious to do. When I feel painful doing 1000 word reviews and finals, I am in awe how authors can write novels without dragging the storyline. I think I am now more conscious of how I write. I write compound sentences. I used to only scratch the surface of subjects, but now I think more in depth; For book reviews, I think of the morals that I learned: "They show their greatest potential as human beings despite the obstacles in their way; they show their true colors." (True Colors Review) Instead of treating the books as just a story for entertainment, I thought about what kind of lessons can be learned and why the book was named what it is. Doing these kinds of things allows me to write more and suffer less writer's block. With so much practice, I form paragraphs automatically. For book reviews, I try my best to incorporate quotes and make smooth transitions between paragraphs.
My favorite post this past year is my review on the book True Colors by Kristin Hannah. It was one of the best book that I have ever read in my life. It morals of forgiveness and hope make it an inspiring novel. In this post, I answered three prompts about the book. They were: What was the author's purpose(s) in writing this book, and how can you tell?, How well was this purpose achieved?, How would you describe the author's style of writing? What's your opinion of the style?, and Pick a character that interested you and write about them in depth. Answering these quotes allowed me to reflect on what I've read and develop an in depth interpretation of the title and realize how one of the characters relates to me.
For my favorite character, I picked Winona, one of the Grey sisters. I started out with two quotes that describe how Winona felt towards her sister, Vivi Ann. Then I wrote about her personality of being jealous and prideful and how these bad traits get her into trouble. The author's purpose of writing this book is to describe life in a small town and to encourage hope, love, and forgiveness. I described Hannah's style as being easy to read, capable to stir the emotion of the readers, and gives a laid back mood by adding dialogue. In the end, I described the pity, anger, and happiness that I felt through the course of events.
Even though I got full credit on this review, there are many ways in which I could have improved on it. The quotes that I put in did not support my claims. For example, I ended with a quote: "And my dad said. Yeah. It's about time I taught my son to play poker. His son. That was when I had my answer, when I finally knew who I was. " (p558). After rereading this post, I realize that it has nothing to do with the author's style of writing. I guess I just put it in because it was a touching quote and I thought it would be a good conclusion. Also, I did not proofread it carefully, so there were grammar mistakes and switching between the past and present tense.
I get my ideas for blog posts from the aspects of my daily life. The things that I do and watch have a big influence what I write about. Because I always watch anime, I like write about Detective Conan, Naruto, and Bleach. I really like writing about the fun that I have hanging out with Michelle on Thursdays and Fridays after school. When there is a break from school, I usually blog about what I did on each day. However, I can not always think of a topic. When that happens, I resort to using things that I learned in history; These included my posts Should Euthanasia Be Legal? &French Imperialism in Indochina. One time, I used my essay The Cold War from the Layer A of my history project.
I think that some of my inspiration for writing comes from reading amazing works of literature or any other type of writing. For example, when I read really good books like the Percy Jackson series and True Colors, it makes me wish that I had a talent for writing stories. I want to be able to write something that others enjoy reading and maybe think of a good story plot that no author has yet to think of. Though that goal inspires me, I know that I do not have the diligence to improve my writing or even think of a plot for a story. I find it too difficult and I would rather just go the easy way and not even try. Most of the time though, my intention for writing a good essay is not exactly a good one. Being in school, I only think about writing so that I can get a good marking on it.
Writing can take me on a trip down memory lane. I enjoy the nostalgia that I feel when I recall happy moments of the past; it makes me feel as if I'm reliving that moment. it serves as an alternative to remember those moments if I didn't take picture. Writing can also be relaxing and give a sense of freedom. It can serve as an outlet. I remember that one time when I was depressed about my life, I wrote down how I felt in my notebook. After that I felt a lot better. I think that's why some people have diaries. I have wrote a lot this past school year and I hope that it will prepare me English 3 next year.
Blogging has changed the way I write, think, and think about writing.I used to think that writing is only worth something only if it is written professionally. I developed that mentality because only good essays good get markings in English class. But now that I think about it, writing, even if it has bad grammar, is significant as long as it means something to the writer or reader, especially if it is about an important event in a person's life. I used to think that writing was plain and boring, but it is actually very powerful. It's amazing how writing can take all different types of forms. There are reviews, fiction, real life stories, poems and you can learn many morals/ lessons from each kind. For example, if you read dramas, you learn stage directions. Also, once you finish a book, that isn't the end. There can be analysis and discussions which can be used to expand into other subjects.
Writing used to be one of my greatest fears. I dreaded writing essays because I always ended up having writer's block. After blogging so much, I now think that producing 300 words is a cinch. However, 500 words is still kind of tedious to do. When I feel painful doing 1000 word reviews and finals, I am in awe how authors can write novels without dragging the storyline. I think I am now more conscious of how I write. I write compound sentences. I used to only scratch the surface of subjects, but now I think more in depth; For book reviews, I think of the morals that I learned: "They show their greatest potential as human beings despite the obstacles in their way; they show their true colors." (True Colors Review) Instead of treating the books as just a story for entertainment, I thought about what kind of lessons can be learned and why the book was named what it is. Doing these kinds of things allows me to write more and suffer less writer's block. With so much practice, I form paragraphs automatically. For book reviews, I try my best to incorporate quotes and make smooth transitions between paragraphs.
My favorite post this past year is my review on the book True Colors by Kristin Hannah. It was one of the best book that I have ever read in my life. It morals of forgiveness and hope make it an inspiring novel. In this post, I answered three prompts about the book. They were: What was the author's purpose(s) in writing this book, and how can you tell?, How well was this purpose achieved?, How would you describe the author's style of writing? What's your opinion of the style?, and Pick a character that interested you and write about them in depth. Answering these quotes allowed me to reflect on what I've read and develop an in depth interpretation of the title and realize how one of the characters relates to me.
For my favorite character, I picked Winona, one of the Grey sisters. I started out with two quotes that describe how Winona felt towards her sister, Vivi Ann. Then I wrote about her personality of being jealous and prideful and how these bad traits get her into trouble. The author's purpose of writing this book is to describe life in a small town and to encourage hope, love, and forgiveness. I described Hannah's style as being easy to read, capable to stir the emotion of the readers, and gives a laid back mood by adding dialogue. In the end, I described the pity, anger, and happiness that I felt through the course of events.
Even though I got full credit on this review, there are many ways in which I could have improved on it. The quotes that I put in did not support my claims. For example, I ended with a quote: "And my dad said. Yeah. It's about time I taught my son to play poker. His son. That was when I had my answer, when I finally knew who I was. " (p558). After rereading this post, I realize that it has nothing to do with the author's style of writing. I guess I just put it in because it was a touching quote and I thought it would be a good conclusion. Also, I did not proofread it carefully, so there were grammar mistakes and switching between the past and present tense.
I get my ideas for blog posts from the aspects of my daily life. The things that I do and watch have a big influence what I write about. Because I always watch anime, I like write about Detective Conan, Naruto, and Bleach. I really like writing about the fun that I have hanging out with Michelle on Thursdays and Fridays after school. When there is a break from school, I usually blog about what I did on each day. However, I can not always think of a topic. When that happens, I resort to using things that I learned in history; These included my posts Should Euthanasia Be Legal? &French Imperialism in Indochina. One time, I used my essay The Cold War from the Layer A of my history project.
I think that some of my inspiration for writing comes from reading amazing works of literature or any other type of writing. For example, when I read really good books like the Percy Jackson series and True Colors, it makes me wish that I had a talent for writing stories. I want to be able to write something that others enjoy reading and maybe think of a good story plot that no author has yet to think of. Though that goal inspires me, I know that I do not have the diligence to improve my writing or even think of a plot for a story. I find it too difficult and I would rather just go the easy way and not even try. Most of the time though, my intention for writing a good essay is not exactly a good one. Being in school, I only think about writing so that I can get a good marking on it.
Writing can take me on a trip down memory lane. I enjoy the nostalgia that I feel when I recall happy moments of the past; it makes me feel as if I'm reliving that moment. it serves as an alternative to remember those moments if I didn't take picture. Writing can also be relaxing and give a sense of freedom. It can serve as an outlet. I remember that one time when I was depressed about my life, I wrote down how I felt in my notebook. After that I felt a lot better. I think that's why some people have diaries. I have wrote a lot this past school year and I hope that it will prepare me English 3 next year.
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