Typical Parade Behavior

Today was actually a wonderful day. Class began with a 40-minute test that I passed with an 80. I was truly disappointed and considered adding 10 of my special points just to make it a 90. Wistfully, I chose to let it be and wait to use it for future tests. After most people finished the test, they went to a Mardi Gras party while a few of us remained in the classroom and discussed the typical parade behavior. For example, a huge attack that one endures when thrown a box of snacks or the throwing behaviors of the float riders when seeing someone they recognize. We also touched on the possibility of going on a field trip that is out of Mobile, AL, and possible fundraiser ideas to earn the required amount of money for each student to participate. I have not laughed so hard, ever in my life, until today.

Culture Projects Last Day

Today was the last day that there would be presentations about culture. After the remaining projects were presented, we were given a vocabulary assignment to keep us occupied while the teacher did a one-on-one with students concerning their essay. He didn't get to my name but he honestly doesn't have to because I already know why I didn't pass without needing to know my grade. In fact, I'd rather not know my grade out of utter disappointment. I read the prompt too fast and I didn't even read the whole entire thing so I missed a part that was necessary in order to past. Besides that,  I took a well-deserved nap and we were let out early due to the weather.

Culture Projects Day 2

Today, I was able to present my project. I had mastered saying "Hello, this is my project on Congo's culture" in French and that was my opening. It went well, or so I assumed. I had received a 98/A for "reading off the board a little too much" and for not making the right amount of eye contact. I felt that this was unfair to say since I began my project with every bit of eye-contact along with the occasional reading of slides to maintain the flow of the presentation. I even conveyed information using my hands which means that I was extremely engaged with my audience. Besides that, I discovered much about the different countries such; in South Korea, they believe that sleeping with a fan can cause death and in the Netherlands, they celebrate the color orange. In Canada, they celebrate a day called "Boxing Day" which is basically like Christmas for us but instead, they just give gifts for no reason. Discovering this information made me even more interested in the boldly printed phrase on my bucket list: Travel the world. I feel like everybody really did a good job presenting their country and causing a peak of interest within me.

Culture Projects

Today was the first day of the culture presentations. I feel like everybody did really well presenting and conveying information to the class. I was hoping to present today to get rid of these butterflies that I always seem to have but the good part is that I have more time to prepare so its a win-lose situation. Overall, class was interesting.

ACT Prep strikes again

Today, I did not attend class because of an ACT prep class. I did not expect to be called for the class but, sadly, I was. I also learned that I failed my essay because I didn't include components of the prompt so that was depressing. Overall, today was average.

Culture

Today, we were split into groups of continents in which the country we were assigned is located. Since I have DR Congo, I sat in the group with others who's assigned-country is located in Africa. Within the groups, we were told to research our country's customs, write down 6 of those customs then compare and contrast those customs with the people in our groups. I realized that Congo has some very interesting customs but the one that stood out the most was that the people of Congo throw teeth, that have fallen out the mouth of a child, on top of their roofs. It is said that their reason for doing this is so that the teeth could grow back properly. After completing this assignment, we were given a prompt. The prompt asked should you have to adhere to the customs of countries in which you visit. I for one, feel that you shouldn't have to abide by customs that you aren't accustomed to but it will be nice and respectful if you were to take the initiative to research the customs before you visit. Then, when you arrive, you will be knowledgeable about what to expect and when to expect it. Overall, today was great.

Absent

Sadly, I did not attend school today.

7 ELEMENTS OF CULTURE

Today, the class began with the passing out of a test that was supposedly similar to the one that was taken on Friday. However, the test was not similar at all. It wasn't as difficult to understand but it was challenging when answering the questions that followed. I had a stressful time choosing which answer was correct because more than one appeared to be suitable. Although the teacher has been over how to break down the questions so that the answers could be easily found, I can never seem to remember how it is done; I never have enough time to do the thinking process. Following the completion of the test, we discussed the 7 Elements of Culture. I found it interesting that there are 7 elements of culture because I never heard of them until now. As we observed the PowerPoint, I found that the elements are things that I already have knowledge of concerning culture, they just had names. Overall, today was good.

Mother and Son Bond

Today, we discussed a prompt concerning whether or not it is a must for a son to have a nurturing relationship with his mother. I really wish that I could say yes and no considering the fact that not every male has a mother and turned out fine. However, since my teacher would bring up "society" or "majority," I decided to keep my opinions within. After discussing the prompt, we were presented with 2 poems that seem to be telling a story. It is ironic because they are by 2 different people but they fit together perfectly. Following the completion of our assignment, we were told to answer a question about what we would say or ask our mother concerning the state of our life. The teacher then took it a step further and said that for homework, we have to read what we wrote to our mother and post about her reaction. I honestly did not read what I wrote to my mom because we always discuss what it is that I have written. I basically tell her that I am stressed out because my schedule is always so full. Her response is always that I can overcome it and not stress myself out over it but to let it come naturally because I am intelligent. I find it extremely difficult to follow this advice because if I'm not hard on myself then I feel that I'll begin to slack; that I will fall to standards of those who put in little to no effort and receive a good enough grade. The one thing I didn't ask her and will never ask is that if I was to start slacking, would that disappoint her and shatter the "smart child" image that she so badly desires for me to uphold? I assume that it will only offend her and that her response would be that she only pushes me past the limit so that I can achieve great things in life. While that is a good reason, the side effects are that I am now stressed to the point of fatigue and anxiety. My health is not of the norm. In fact, I have low iron and since I forget to take my pills, hence my busy schedule, I am lacking something that I need in order to perform properly throughout the day. Overall, today was inspiring and a little emotional.

NHS

Again for the 100th time, I did not attend class. My grandmother and mother felt that is was necessary to go and celebrate my election into the National Honor Society.  The program was nice and different from the NJHS that I attended in middle school. Overall, today went well.

ITS ONLY RIGHT.

Today, we discussed a topic relating to black history. It was regarding the dehumanization of African Americans or you can say, how the N-word affects the emotions of African Americans. The teacher began with the word: Caricature. This word means a picture, description, or imitation of a person in which certain striking characteristics are exaggerated in order to create a comic or grotesque effect. He then presented examples such as cartoon drawings of African Americans with exaggerated facial features along with stereotypical symbols. Following the examples, he stated that the N-Word is a caricature and went about displaying the different ways in which it is used. Everything was fine until he pointed out that the N-Word, regardless of its ending, shouldn't be used by blacks and that it is offensive and hypocritical. Now, society itself is hypocritical. People believe that babies shouldn't be aborted, even if the mother is unfit, but doesn't want the child to end up in foster care. That's completely hypocritical because they want for the child's life to be protected even though the child will only end up miserable and lost in the system. Hypocrisy is human nature because everybody is constantly attempting to see everything from better perspectives even if it is wrong. In my opinion, the N-Word should be used by African Americans, exclusively. It is a word associated with emotions that gave us the initiative to consolidate and overcome. As stated in our previous topic, doubt is needed to bring about certainty. The doubt within the N-Word is the assumption that African Americans are nothing but ignorant animals who are not worth anything in life unless they are in the fields. The certainty is the creation of technology, the African American celebrities, and the flourishment of young gifted minds that we behold today. The N-Word is a reminder of our history and indicates something as positive as a close friend or brother. We took the word and its power from the people who brought upon it and modified it to represent a strong bond between 2 or more colored people. I'm not saying that it is a good word to say, more likely it should be said in your head, but that does not mean it should be treated as profane language.

ACT? More like Please Help Me!

Today, yet again, I have not been present in class. This time it wasn't my fault. Ben C. Rain assumes that it is okay to continuously throw ACT Prep classes on us without indication. I understand the need to make sure that their juniors do exceptionally well but I feel that they are not being mindful of the fact that some of us take AP classes. Not only that, but we also have a life out of school and the pestering thought of the ACT causes a lot of stress (especially for me). I honestly can't wait till the ACT and AP Exams are completed so that I can finally exhale the breath that I have been holding since the beginning of the year. Overall, today gave me anxiety.