Comments

Gautam- Social Media

Ellen: Frigidness

ATDPTI Reading Response

Honestly, I love this book. It sends you for a loop with its mix of childish humor and deep sadness. It has an excellent way of going about tragedies and wrongdoings, and it makes them have a sense of hilarity at the same time. It made me feel the emotions that Junior was feeling. This is one of my favorite things that happens in books.

One of the biggest things that affected me in this book was not any event that transpired on the pages. It was when I realized that the author of the book was not living the story he wrote. He was writing as Sherman Alexei. This moved me, not because it disappointed me, but because I realized how well this man can write. For me to be fooled into thinking that he was living through these events is an incredible feat in my mind. Honestly, this book is what the Diary of a Wimpy Kid should aspire to be.

Free Post

Throughout my life, I've always been fascinated by the talent to see an image in your head, and recreate it on paper with lines and marks. I have always envied the ability to draw. Coming from someone who survived off of fantasy novels for the first, well actually, I still kinda am. I get all of these images in my head, some being described by the author, and some that I create myself. The thing that I am thankful for is the ability to convey my meaning in words.

I have recently started to write a story. It will, of course, be a fantasy. I have tried this at least seven times in my life, and they al turn out, well, less than I had hoped or envisioned. However, this time will be different. How do I know this? This time I'm going to do something that I've never actually thought of. I am going to make an outline. This is an extremely simple solution that I should've figured out years ago. Anyways, we'll see how it goes, and if I'm satisfied with it (which, knowing me, I won't be) I'll share it with the class, my teachers, or really anyone who cares to listen.

Comments

Griff- The Khans

Anders- The Colosseum 

Last Semester

Coming from a different school, I knew that there would be challenges to face at Episcopal, both socially and academically. However, I severely underestimated the difference in the amount of work I received at my old school compared to the amount I receive now. Don't get me wrong, I've adapted to the workload, and I'm currently in a steady spot with my homework, so I think I'll be okay.

Home life is slightly different. I'm not interacting as much as I'd like to with my family, and I just don't feel as if I have enough time to relax. I have a problem with procrastination, and it is especially bad when I'm at school. Rather than work at tutorial or study hall, I say to myself, "Homework is for home." rather than just working on it. That is my biggest problem that I hope to conquer in the second semester.

Research Paper

I'm currently two and a half pages into my outline. The outline is single spaced, so it needs to be three pages to meet the six-page final copy that will be double spaced. My topic is discussing the events that affected Ho Chi Minh's view on the Soviet Union. This topic isn't necessarily important to history per say, but I find it extremely interesting. Ho Chi Minh was a Vietnamese Communist revolutionary who freed Vietnam from French control, and he attempted to unite North and South Vietnam.

One of my favorite things about this topic and the research that goes with it is the history I learn about China and Russia. I've learned more and more about conflicts and internal power struggles. I've also discovered that in his later days, Ho Chi Minh had better relations with China than he did the Soviet Union. He used the Soviet Union mainly as a stepping stone, and as a means to get enough power to free his own country. I am infatuated with recent history, and this subject is ripe with new discoveries for me.

Comments

Ryan- Importance of my Research

Anders- Free Post

Free Post- My Weekend

This weekend was a much-needed break, it feels as if we haven't had a break in ages. (that was a joke) But in all honesty, this weekend was more relaxing than the entirety of winter break. I ate great food, bought several interesting books, and went to the movies with my mom. The movie we saw was called Hidden Figures. It is a film about three black women in 1961 who work in the calculations department for NASA, amidst the race between Russia and the United States.

This movie gives a firsthand look at the injustices and poor treatment of not only African-Americans but women in general. Not only does this film serve as a reminder of the immense change we, as a nation, have gone through, but it also has deep tragedies and many emotional moments. At one point, I looked over at my mother to see her eyes watery. This was a great movie, and I recommend it to anyone and everyone.

Research Update

The most I can say about the progress of my project is that, well, it hasn't completely stopped yet. There were a few times where I gained lots of momentum and was able to accomplish much. There were also times where I developed something similar to writer's block. I would lose all sense of meaning or direction in the paper, and I would often need someone to pull me out. As I write these words, I laugh because it seems to be happening now.

I feel like the hardest thing about the paper so far has been the notecards. I honestly don't feel comfortable enough with the assignment. I need some help in figuring that out. The easiest part by far has been annotating sources. It has always been clear to me how these sources would connect to my topic. I do need to ask around for help on more components than just the notecards, but that is a large part of what is troubling me.