23/4/14 Second day of school in France and last day of being in the host family! aka how I need to realize that this blog isn't a freaking diary

[Why is it Wednesday?! Tomorrow is Thursday! No!]

Today went a lot like yesterday. I woke up at 7 and left for school. I reviewed history while I was in english class and learned about how Stalin hated facism and how Hitler hated communism (and Stalin), despite the irony that "communism" at that time ran in a very similar way to facism (absolute dictatorship, nationalism, propaganda, etc). Then some more things like the rise of nationalism and Mao in China and the Akihabara Massacre in India. I spent some of my time casually analyzing the limits and cons of capitalism; we all want what is best for our world and country, I wonder what others political ideologies might arise in the far off future.
I recall a little someone--coughs, Yuen, coughs coughs-- saying that history isn't important. I don't know where to begin my argument on why it is. You can see the origins of opinions, philosophies, thoughts, ideas. It is vital in understanding current struggles today. Things haven't always been the way things are now.

School is so terribly long in France. The next time you want to make fun of the french, just remember that students your age here have to stay in class until 5pm. It doesn't sound so bad until you remember that you're stuck in the same setting classroom with the same classmates all day with like only four different teachers. Ouch!

But despite it all, the highlight today was definitely when I was asked to go answer some questions from another class by the english teacher. When the my classmates were performing an oral presentation later (one group just finished giving a talk on "La sexualite des jeunes"), I was taken out to go. It was a bright, beautiful classroom with a large window giving an incredible view of the nearby buildings. We was first told to sit down as the english teacher made the class copy down a passage from a text about Sherlock Holmes and his companion, Watson. Oh my god, it was brilliant. I was in complete awe as the passage went on and only thought to copy it down myself when it was almost over. Here, I got the last few lines, "[Sherlock and Watson] are an item against crime. They are loyal to each other. This is a love couple because both characters have opposite personality types."
Yup. Basically just a long text about how compatible the two are with each other. I also recall a line, "Watson is like a dutiful dog," and some more things about how the two were thrown together and couldn't be separated after. That was gold. Certainly not what I was expecting at all. I wished I read Sherlock Holmes and actually shipped it to appreciate it all the more. No shame in admitting that because I know no one reads my blog anyways. I can make a probably even make a post about how monkeys fly in France and no one would blink an eye. Because no one reads my blog. Haha! Get it? I like no one. Seems like an all about great guy when he's not mocking poor cyclops.
[Darn it, I want to analyze character's relationship together all day too. Preferably Achilles and Patroclus, but I'm not picky. ]

We were asked some typical questions like if we played any sports, why we decided to come to France, any differences back in America, what kind of music we liked...etc. They asked us if we tried to cafeteria food, which we had tried yesterday! I told them them to trust my words that it is loads better than the lunch served in our school (no offense). This was met with scrunched up noses and a laugh from the teacher saying that the students hate the food there. What can I say? Cafeteria food is cafeteria food, even in France.

Skipping the part about sleeping in class, lunchtime, an abnormally long break, back to class again, another break, and class once more would lead me to the end of school where I return home and do absolutely nothing. So let's go with the last class of the day. At that point, I was bored out of my mind and the economics teacher was kind of scary-strict. Despite my fears, I rested my head and fell asleep anyway. What? I wasn't included in the activities so what can I do? I hope I didn't snore. I might have drooled a little bit too which is odd because I don't drool.

I was picked up later and I went home and the end.
And thus concludes my last day. I never did get a chance to go to town...



-- Hannah Wu

(If I remember, I'll update with pictures!)

School in France! 22/4/14

It's spring break! Why must I suffer through classes? More importantly, why must I suffer through classes when I have no idea what's happening?

The day kind of went like this: woke up, ate some dried figs, school, suffered, lazed around, ate dinner, lazed around some more, procrastinated in sleeping (also known as "now").

The school I went to had an elementary school, a middle school, and a high school, all divided of course. What I found most interesting was that the classroom and classmates don't change with each class subject; the teachers change! French class was first, which I found incredibly boring. I was most impressed by the fact that the teacher wore like 4 or 5 inch heels while teaching. Afterwards, there was english class. Now, you think this one might be more fun but it was still kind of bland! The teacher spoke completely in french while teaching, a large contrast to the french class I take in school. At this point, I was sleepy and I had a headache. Oh, and I also ran out of tissues.

(One thing worth noting is that on the wall at the back of the classroom, the students did a bunch of posters on obesity and healthy eating...in english. Surprise, surprise! It's linked to America. One poster said, "[Obese people] have no friends, they are excluded from society and they have difficulty to move." Strong statement, haha! Audrey flipped her english journal and there was some pictures they had to glue in about unhealthy eating in America. Which reminds me, when I went to a bookstore, my host family brought an American recipe cookbook. It had a large flag in the center of the book, and the cover was a photo of a bagel hamburger! All the recipes looked fairly unhealthy. Is this what people outside of America think of us? I'm amused.

When math class came about, my eyes were bleeding tears of boredom, which happens when I get tired. Geeze, I felt kind of miserable. I slyly rested my head in my arms and fell asleep. That is the first time I fell asleep in class-- Well, not counting the time during SSR in middle school when I dozed off accidentally. I was latter woken up by my teacher and I felt immensely guilty. But might I emphasis "accidentally"?

This time was different because I consciously fell asleep on purpose. I think I most definitely offended the teacher.

When it was lunch time, Audrey and another student asked me if I had a nice rest. Oops. In my defense, I was seriously feeling miserable and sick. Am I allergic to France? I sure hope not, since it's a beautiful country. I deliriously thought "J'ai mal a la tete," to myself all day.

Lunch came about, and I think most (if not all) buy lunch here to eat. It seemed better prepared compared to the cafeteria at our school. It's also definitely true that the french eat a lot of bread with their meals!

I would write more but it's late. And here ends the blog post that sounds like it been written by an annoying, immature, quirky kid. Sorry. It's 2am here and I need to sleep. Maybe it'll be updated tomorrow?

Bye!

21/4/14 Log 1. In France

[ I am in a small town near Toulouse, France right now living with a host family and I'm slightly confused on how to do this assignment. Nonetheless, I'll try my best. ]

I woke up in a room that I am still growing accustomed to. The time is 8am, a large improvement compared to the last two days when I woke up at noon.
I ate breakfast, a cracker infused with soymilk and dried figs. Since coming here, I have never eaten figs before although I've heard of them. It's very sweet. Audrey, a girl in my host family around my age, also sat down next to me for breakfast. She ate cereal with milk. The silence was a bit unnerving, so I asked in very broken french, "En general, qu'est-ce que tu as fait sur le weekend?" (Generally, what do you do on weekends?), to which she answered something along the lines of "J'ai fini mes devoirs et je suis allee au gymnase." (I finish my homework and I go to the gym.)
Afterwards, I wandered around the house and took some pictures of the family's cute pet turtle. Her name is Yoco. She ate the little plants we fed her. She enjoys getting her chin rubbed, the darling turtle.

Around this time, my allergies were getting worse. I don't know what I'm allergic to here, (it could be anything, since the list of what I'm allergic to is quite long.)  but it's embarrassing constantly using so many tissues!
Later, Audrey and I went cycling around the town. She led me on a trail to a river; it was so pretty. However, being a complete loser and not changing into proper shoes, I scratched my left foot on some plants that I think is poison ivy. It felt like it got stung by many tiny needles. I went back and washed my foot.

Then it was lunch. My host family eat bread-- the baguette-- with their meals for lunch and dinner. They eat lightly first (a salad and maybe some other things) before moving on to the main course (pasta or rice, for example). For dessert, they eat either cheese, yogurt, fruits, or pastries. My host parents drink a small amount of red wine with their meals too.
My french family speaks to me completely in french. The people in the midi-pyrenees area speak very fast, and I can only catch a few words here and there when they're conversing on the lunch or dinner table. I remember when I first arrived that the dad told me that in his house, you speak french! I marked beginner for language proficiency, and I truly am a beginner. My biggest advice to you is to not stay in a foreign country until you are at least proficient in the language. You'll get the most out of it that way.

I had a headache now, and we were meant to go to a cave to see prehistoric paintings later. I searched my suitcase for some allergy medicine. I checked the back and it said not suitable to make someone asleep but it also said that it might induce drowsiness. I was kind of fixed on the "might" part, so shrugging, I popped the pill into my mouth. It wasn't until later when I was feeling pretty sleepy. Darn it.

The tour was completely in french, and I almost fell asleep when we finally reached the paintings. I was thinking something along the lines of, "it's so quiet here. What I wouldn't give to take a nap...", especially since the presentation was completely in french and I couldn't understand what she was saying other than a few key words like "cochon" and "cheval". I felt horrible later because these are the markings of people that lived before everything we knew in history happened. Farming, society, civilizations, innovations, wars...

<<Salon Noir>>

[photo not mine]

I think the most significant thing I found in the cave was the writings from all different points in time. There were messages and marking dated 1500s, 1600s, 1700s, 1800s, and 1900s... There is nothing more fascinating than seeing a groups of messages from all different points in time and lives. At first I was confused because I always believed that the number of people that could read and write were a minority, but then I remembered that around the 1600s, Martin Luther translated the bible into German so it's more accessible. If western europeans could read around that time, can't they write too? Silly me for not realizing that sooner.
The most endearing thing was that despite writing in lovely cursive, the fact remains that those guys don't have perfect handwriting either. It's a little messy and shaky, much like the handwriting we see today.


Tomorrow I will go see what a french school is like. I'm pretty nervous...
Until then!

My limerick + what it's about.

a world deliberately concealed from public eye

pollution, suffering, corruption, lies

all in name of corporate rapacity,

the system a paradigm of atrocity

our fares are a sign of the time

Right.

It's not much of a stretch to say that I am very unimpressed with the food system right now in America.

There is this food monopoly going on right now in the market. Big names brand are owning a definite sizeable chunk in our market. Our system has made it so one dollar can buy you a hamburger from McDonalds but it can't buy you a fresh cabbage. 

49 million people are hungry and in poverty right now in America. A few miles from where you live right now there are families struggling to feed themselves and their children. But still, I see food being wasted left and right. I see so much meat being tossed away with no notion of the abhorrent life those mash of animals endured to end up in their hands. We're more wasteful and distanced than we ever were with what we eat three times each day.

Those hungry people can't afford to eat what they want, so they turn to McDonalds for daily sustenance. The irony? It's places like McDonalds that are directly perpetuating and making workers that can't afford to feed themselves.

See where this cycle is going? In what world does it make sense that a packaged hamburger (a baked bread bun, processed meat, cabbages, tomatoes, mayonnaise, and ketchup) would end up costing less than a single cucumber? 

CAFOs, or Concentrated Animal Feeding Operation (factory farming) have gone way out of hand. Animals are fed diseased food that make them sick, so to counter that they are now being fed a great deal of antibiotics. It's too much. They have put in so many antibiotics that some scientists estimate that we might become desensitized to them through the animals we're eating. Animals are being fed an inappropriate diet (example: cows eating corn when they are meant to eat grass). It's like a person living on caloric cardboard. 

In slaughterhouses, USDA have regulations for how animals are being slaughtered, but the USDA have done nothing to uphold those rules. The waste (especially animal waste) that those places create are being dumped into rivers and oceans. It's killing our ecosystem and marine life. 

I can't manage to fit something as complex and diverse as the food industry (especially the CAFOs, which man. I can go on about that.) 

I just wish we could turn back to more sustainable means, but it looks like it's only going to get worse. For those that might listen, please just buy from your local farmers. The food and meat would be so much better for your health. Know where the food your buying come from. The brands you support make all the difference in the world.

(Fare means food and diet, but it also means the price you pay to board a vehicle. I felt it was fitting. )

My poem-- "Clarity"

Clarity

Every morning the soft stream of light falls on lidded eyes

Curtains ripple as sparrows begin their song

In scorched comfort of tarnished shelter, I hum

Oh, Glorious Day

I’m not worth you.

You, Life, are a creature of light,

(--a gift I’ll only worsen)

a detriment like me does not deserve you

I can be the courageous hero that slays the monster that is me.

I can be the selfless gardener that weeds the snag that is me.

I can be the pious priest that saves you from that which is me.

on this last morning, I will be.

Fear have kept me grounded but clarity lifted the veil

Overdose on what never helped now fulfills its role

(and as lidded eyes grow darker

the sparrows’ song begin to cease

I leave alone, just as it should be

on this last morning…  I will finally

free you )

Do you ever feel that mixture of admiration and envy for those that have a way with words? To those that can manipulate words like its tangible threads and weave it this way and that so they can sculpt a world in our minds from an infinite selection? 

Sorry. Off topic. For english, we had to write a free verse poem about any topic. If you can understand what this poem is about, then extra extra kudos to you. (tell me? )

I'm not completely satisfied with "Clarity"; something seems off. But still, I was able to write a poem of 19 lines! I don't write much poems (but I do admit it's kind of fun, that state in mind where one moment you're writing whatever your fingers compel you to and the next moment you're thinking critically on how to best phrase something), but the few I have written were only a few lines long. 

I won't include them because this post is just about the free verse poem we wrote for class. I hope I can learn rhyme scheme or pentameters too sometime during this unit. 

Should special education and general education coincide?

Hey again. I hoped you all enjoyed your weekend. Martin Luther King day just past, another reminder of what the devotion of a cause can bring forth to this world.
It's hard to give your life for something you believe in, but harder to live your life passing every second working for that cause.

That aside, this is about blog post #10 my teacher had us write. Let's see, "Do you believe that schools should combine both special education and general education students in the same classroom?"
 Looks like this relates heavily with what I wrote last time. Now, this question strikes me as unclear and abstruse. Just what exactly did she mean by that? I'm not sure. I'm going to interpret this question as asking us whether schools should put students that qualify for a special education in a class mostly fitted for a general education.


Huh?


I say "mostly fitted" rather than the idealistic half general/half special education that the question hinted at because most likely, the general education students would outnumber the special education students in the average classroom.
We need to look at each individual carefully to determine the best type of education that would yield the most benefit for him or her. Never mind if the student is autistic or mute and deaf, if that student would thrive more in a general education classroom and environment, then that is where that student should go.

So to me, this question is confusing because if we combine the classes, then wouldn't we lose the purpose of special education in the first place? What I do strongly advocate and encourage however, is to lessen the gap between the special education class and the general education class. Perhaps it would be better if instead the student with different needs in learning simply visit and take part of the other classes from time to time.

"Tutoring?" Nah. They're the ones tutoring us. (or at the very least, a mutualistic relationship. )

Gah, those young teens were so cute. I mean, I don't mean to sound patronizing by calling these guys 'cute' or the such, but they really were so adorable! Many of them were smiling. Most were enthusiastic while a few were slightly bored (--but really, they're people just like us. I can't blame them, hah. I get a bit bored in PE every once in a while too. )
[I'm sorry. I'm kind of horrible for calling them that, aren't I? sorry not sorry okay, sorry. I probably shouldn't lump a group of complex individuals and sweep them underneath the same adjective.]

Am I going to fast? Sorry. I'll explain a bit first on what I'm even blabbering on about.
Today in English class, I had to privilege of "tutoring" some students in the Special Education class. Now, our teacher toyed with the idea of doing this before and asked the class for their thoughts on it. When I thought "tutoring", I thought I would help them in relation to academics, not physical education!
For the first time, we got the chance to to experience what my teacher was planning for us to do. We walked over to the track and met up with the guys we were meant to "tutor". The first person we saw immediately greeted us and ask how we were doing. This concisely indicates that these people are both friendly and sweet.

What we had to do for the duration of the class period was to sit on the fake grass and roll a ball back and forth. Simple enough, right? The difficulty increases bit by bit until we had to go in push-up position to roll it back and forth and then later roll it by rolling it underneath one of our arms. Then afterwards, we had to stand up and throw the ball back and forth and catching it with only one hand. I may have failed a little there with the catching.
The people in that class were able to do it no extreme difficulty. The petite girl I was throwing to was a natural at rolling, throwing, and catching the ball. Even my friend could not compare. I'm looking at you, Elizabeth. They were able to do it wonderfully; spectacularly!

I do admire the people I met today. I have reason to believe that they're tough for striving. It takes a lot to keep on going even amidst all the setbacks. Difficulties pull us back, but they're able to pull forward. As opposed to them, I don't know if I can put on and wear such a heavy claim as they can.
The staff and teachers who guide them are great. I hope they continue to do a great job and give them the education and love they so deserve.

Marketing Strategies seen through the lens of Canon

 

Hey-a. I'm just going to briefly go over the plausible marketing strategies that they probably used when constructing their advertisement for the Canon EOS 50D.

Their claim: Their latest camera is a "breakthrough" in technology, therefore better than all else.
Audience: Beginners looking to take their photography to the next level.
Ethos: Uses fancy technical terms like "APS-C sized 15.1 megapixel CMOS sensor" and "DIGIC 4 Image Processor" (which I can't understand, but most photographers and engineers seems to rave about those terms, so why not? ) Also uses terms like "innovation" and "breakthrough".
Pathos: Through the camera lens we witness a stunning moment of a young woman hiking up a mountain. It's uplifting and bright, and it makes you want to be there photographing such a moment. Uses words "breathtaking" and "inspiring".
Logos: The cameras features better "detail and color reproduction", "ISO capabilities", and "megapixel(s)...for huge images."
Big Names: Tyler Stableford

On bullying and harassment.

 

(the second video has a french line at the end that translates to "A day at work doesn't look like this. What about a day at school?" Unfortunately, I do fear that some workplaces are truly like that for a few... )

Bullying has such a drastic effect on youth on their mental health development that stay with the poor child forever. The scars won't ever wash away no matter how harshly you scrub. Perhaps the memories will fade one day but the imprints are forever. The bullied and bullies might sadly develop illnesses such as depression or anxiety in their later life, especially with bouts of low self-esteem. Emotional, physical, verbal, sexual, domestic; all forms of abuse correlates to psychological health issues.

There are hardly any positive outcomes for bullying for either the perpetrator or the victim. We might be inspired by one's struggles and see hope in the future, but wouldn't it be so much better if bullying were just avoided altogether? I feel that if we can explain to our children more just what counts as bullying. Everyone knows to "not bully", but how many bullies are there right now that don't even know that they're doing anything wrong?

I just.. I imagine a child, a teen, or an adult living in constant fear of seeing their abuser. They might feel anticipation and dread at their next encounter, wishing in private that they'll leave their life soon. Or perhaps they feel that they're obligated to help whomever is harassing them. What if even one if blind to the actions of the bullies?

Cases of bullying are not always black and white. It differs in its complexity but the gist is still the same: There is pain.

Aspirations for a new year. (as well as this semester's goals. )

You know, I didn't even know that resolutions was a "thing" until a few years back? I think I'm just a bit too secluded.

For the first time, I've decided to make a new year resolution. In no particular order, I hope to:

1) Become a more conscious shopper. Buy local, look for more "fair trade" labels, and do at least a little bit of research on the brand or where the food comes from. I've found a nice enough place called Ava's Downtown Market in Mountain View that supplies dairy from Straus Family Creamery and meat from Marin Sun Farms. Their practices are a lot better than the standard "farms" you might see in the supermarket and therefore much higher quality. I'm happy for that and hopefully I can convince my parents to buy from there.
(hey, vote with your money, right? ha haa.. ha. ha... )
2) Courtesy of Miss Kritzeck, I've also decided to try to not eat anything with flavoring in it. She had the idea of not trying anything containing artificial flavors for her resolution and I was inspired enough to try to do the same.
I've found it hard to spot whether something does have flavoring in it or not, but I'm doing what I can. If I know it contains natural or artificial flavoring, I'll try to avoid it. Best of luck to my teacher as well!
3) Walk around a bit more and try to eliminate any snacking in between meals. I think going out for a few walks of fresh air would do anyone good.


Semester goals and new year wishes should coincide with each other. So adding on to the resolutions, I hope to:
4) Get motivated and finally read those hundreds of books you've been meaning to. I also wish I could learn how to study better. My habits for studying are certainly something I frown at frequently--in fact, it can't even be called 'studying'! It's kind of awful. Be productive!
5) Learn, learn, learn. I really hope I can learn a lot in the remaining semester. That's my biggest recurring goal for academics. I also hope I don't forget what I learned the last semester, oops. This here matter more to me than grades or test scores will ever be. This precept is dangerously and almost naively idealistic, but regardless; what is the point of school without the enhancement of the mind?

(And I suppose that's all. Hopefully. )

I understand that many of you also have resolutions for 2014. I hope when the next ball drops and it's January 1st, 2015 at 12am, you would have succeeded in some way or the other.