final post

Usually my blogs are pretty funny, but this post serves as an evaluation so it might be lackluster.

As a student I think I have mastered time management and procrastination. I know it sounds horrible but I have started projects the day they were due and have still gotten A's. Perfecting procrastination is a skill that requires plenty practice. 
AP Language has definitely made me a better writer. It's also made me think more outside the box. It has prepared me for next year and college.
Practicing writing will improve one's skills. Doing timed writing also helps me with the essay on the SAT and resume building. It also helps for college applications.

The hardest essay is the rhetorical. I think it is hard to find rhetorical devices. I know that tone is always a good backup. but I still need two more. Usually I end up just bsing the whole thing and I never feel good about it.
Synthesis is hands down the easiest. All you have to do is read the documents and find three things they have in common. Then you phrase these similarities into a thesis that answers the prompt. The essay builds itself and doesn't require much outside thinking.
I don't think I can adequately answer this question since I haven't finished reading Gatsby lol. I actually enjoyed Devil in the White City. I personally love novels based on true stories and I have a certain fascination with history. 
The Things They Carried is also a page turner and generally most students like that one.
Crucible was horrible. I love the time period that it was written in- the Red Scare is amazing, but Crucible felt like a theatrical version of Degrassi or some other teenage drama. It was more of a story than truth.

Synthesis binder was the worst project ever assigned. All i did was print articles that weren't painstakingly long and wrote my thoughts in the margins. Did not help at all for the essay. Also it's a huge waste of paper. Definitely do NOT recommend this project for next year. It's easy, but it's a waste of time. 
I really enjoy blog posts. Maybe you should start it earlier in the school year and let your students do a freebie post every 5 posts or something to keep them interested.  
I like that you teach Gatsby after the AP exam instead of giving is a stupid project. Side note, if you give a project after the exam your students will hate you forever and expect some to slug you on twitter or something.
Loved how you teach essays with the outlines.
Learning fallacies was a waste of a week.
Group projects are horrible. Almost always one person does all the work. I say this because I feel like I did all the work for the teaching day.
Warm ups are incredible pointless. 
I always look forward to your class and would definitely say your one of my favorite teachers. Your'e a funny guy and you know how to keep a class entertained yet focused. 

How i feel about your class

In my feels or nah

I somehow always end up doing these blogs with minutes to spare so this is going to be a sub par blog. Sorry, but I'll try to spin some gold out of hay.

The first item I can't be apart with is my car. I know I'm incredibly shallow, but I understand how it feels like to not have a car. All of a sudden, you have all this freedom, all this responsibility, and once its gone, all there is is a void. I didn't have my car for almost a month and I was miserable. I had zero independence and relied heavily on my friends to take me to work, school, you name it. Receiving something like a car and watching it disappear really taught me appreciation and respect for my material things. I know technically I don't carry my car but I bring my keys almost everywhere.

My ultimate life goal is to be happy. As a child, I was picked on and was a huge crybaby. My uncle still asks me if cry when someone mocks me. Happiness always seemed an intangible object to me as a kid, so I feel like all I want in life is to be happy. Everything else I want is to help me get there. All of life's desires are just stepping stones to reach the final achievement of bliss. My current goal is a top-tier university. Five years from now it will be a 6 figure job, 15 years from now it will be a family, and 75 years from now it will be one more year. All these wants tie back to happiness.

I don't think there's a single person in the universe I idolize. Everyone has flaws and everyone makes mistakes.

I have fitness inspirations, success inspirations, bliss inspirations, and personality inspirations. I love a lot of people and I am always thinking of them. Most of these people are my friends. I worry about their problems, I wonder how I can help them achieve their goals, and I willingly sacrifice for their well being. I think my friends motivate me to be a better person. I try to show more compassion and generosity. I want to think like Buddha, but I can't forget the material world. I hope one day I can find that one person who can make me a better person.

When I think of myself I think intelligent. Funny story, my Spanish teacher last year asked us to describe ourselves in one word. I said intelligent because frankly, I am. I don't care if that's conceited to say, but I can not count how many times I have heard "Emily, your'e so smart." This one girl who,THANK GOD, left Westside, decided that it was okay to cause an uproar and blurted out"OF COURSE YOU WOULD SAY THAT OMG EMILY YOUR'E SO COCKY I THINK I AM SO COOL BECAUSE I AM OPINIONATED". Granted I might be paraphrasing, but the message was the same. And the funniest thing is that this girl said that lazy was the perfect word to describe her. Literally everyone hates you so swerve lazy is possibly the worst word you could pick. Another personality trait that most people don't know is that I am very bitter. You could probably tell by my little hate monologue that i hold grudges. Yeah I do, get over it because I know I won't. I'm usually only this was to my family. I will NEVER forget how my sister sabotaged me and forced me to be friendless. We used to dance together and she told EVERY SINGLE DANCE GIRL, EVEN THE DAMN TEACHER that I picked my nose. To be honest while 9 year old doesn't okay? Worst parts were when we had to dance while holding hands. All those pretentious girls looked at me like I had syphilis. As you can tell my childhood was full of fond memories that didn't affect my current sassy self. Lastly, I would say that I am bold. The other day, Saturday to be specific, I jumped into a pool that was about 50 degrees because #YOLO. I don't really know when this attitude formed because I used to be that stereotypical Asian girl that sat in the corner and did puzzles all by herself. I'm glad that caterpillar has become a social butterfly. I want to be fearless. I want to speak my mind. I want to spend my youth being spontaneous and my old days regretting. 

The most influential memory I have is one that I would rather not post on the internet. As an elementary student I had to face reality rather quickly because there was high distress in the family. At the same time, the recession hit and my father's small business suffered greatly. Keep in mind that my parents had four children in a span of 6 years so financial suffering is inevitable. My friends call me cheap all the time, but I don't care. They don't understand the struggle so I just interpret it as just being smart with my money. I will always be a hard worker and will genuinely earn every penny I make. This experience really taught me to appreciate what you have because things can be gone before you know it.

I know this blog was really lengthy but I think you can really learn a lot about the mysterious 17 year old Emily Wang. I hope one day when I am older and I am trolling the internet that I stumble across this gem. Having a digit time capsule is a rather sweet thought and I can already feel the nostalgia flowing through my bones.

Nationalism

First of all I'd like to give myself a high five for not starting after 11. 

This is literally me. So it seems that I'm making some progress.

Being a first generation American, I struggle with balancing my two cultures. Today, I was watching the Olympics with my friends, and they asked me whether I would cheer on China or America. I would be lying if I said I was conflicted between the two, but I immediately replied America and proceeded to express my nationalism. The fact that USA is wreaking havoc might or might not have influenced my decision, but I still tend to identify myself as American.
http://www.nbcolympics.com/video/three-americans-three-medal-winning-slopestyle-runs?ctx=golden-moments
*Crying because nationalism too strong*

I definitely believe it is difficult to find a perfect blend of two cultures, but is is not impossible. My parents raised me with certain morals that I still believe in to this day, but they also have some ideologies that I believe are backward and outdated. Children still keep their parents culture through commonly overlooked things like religion, food, and habits, but they can have different perspectives on politics, society, and money. Personally, I think my parents focus too much on success and favor it over personality. They would prefer to have a banking demon daughter over a Unicef volunteer. It literally drives me to my wit's end. Even thinking about it upsets me. 
I believe that the third option is just a mix of the two cultures. People grow up adopting different aspects of both cultures and just combine them into a new one. If I was shipped to China I would stick out like a sore thumb. Granted I would look the same, but the second I speak, people will know that I am not a native. The opposite is true about America, I definitely do not look like the typical white American, but you wouldn't be able to tell over the phone.

It's not like I abandoned the traditional Chinese ways of life either. I went to Chinese school every Sunday for about 11 years. I actually quit after fall 2013 semester because I felt like I didn't have 2 hours to waste especially since I just sat in a ridiculously small desk staring at the board like the clueless muck I am. I did martial arts for years and even quit track to do traditional Chinese folk dancing. Still don't forgive my mom for forcing me to do something so stupid.
Interestingly enough, I do bleed red, white and blue.

I love the idea of independence and can't wait to move out. I don't think education is the only way to success. And I don't think success is life's goal. I have the audacity to speak my opinion and I occasionally threaten to run away when I'm channeling my inner drama queen. I PROCRASTINATE LIKE NO OTHER. I'm horribly lazy and am subject to gluttony. These ideas are distinctly American concepts that show the true nature of the couch potato. But I am also open-minded. I am generous and determined and willing to fight for what is mine. I have spread kindness to strangers and have held the door open for others. I'm daring and adventurous, but most importantly, I am American. 

Poe's Woe

I usually try to be witty in these blog posts, but I'm not really feeling it, so to my 2(3 if I'm lucky) readers, this is a premature apology for my sub par post. 

I would definitely copy how Poe establishes a bad gut feeling about the house. He did "not know how it was" but he already had a sketchy feeling about the House of Usher. Just looking at the house presented " a sense of insufferable gloom."

Another great technique Poe uses is the creation of a sickly, critical character. Roderick Usher is a lonely, mentally ill introvert that owns the haunted house. What's scarier, a haunted house or the freak that spends his whole life in it? Personally, Roderick freaks me out, and if he can make me feel some type of way, you can bet that I would create a character even more eccentric than my buddy Roderick.

Poe also uses imagery to describe the house as gloomy and sickly. The building had an "atmosphere of sorrow" that prevented the idea of happiness. Is it even possible to smile when "an air of stern, deep, and irredeemable gloom" fills the room with a mood of despair? A scary setting will definitely keep the readers interested in a scary story.

Another genius thing that Poe does is the use of an ignorant narrator. This creates suspense and and forces the readers to question what's really important and what's not.

The last thing I would copy is an unclear ending. The reader is not quite sure of what happened to the characters or plot; This leaves them wanting answers and hopefully raises awareness to my increasingly popular haunted house story.

I guess this "challenge" is not optional. I would introduce more characters to create complexity and I would not be so repetitive in imagery. We get it Poe the house is creepy. 

Here's Lady Rainicorn to lighten up the mood of this post.

A SONIC RAINBOOM!!!! OMG STOP THE PRESSES. YOU GO RAINBOW DASH

Nice Sprites and Scary Monsters

Nobody like to hear the truth. And no story is exciting without some embellishment. Humans like to explain the unknown through the use of religion, science, and magic. Americans in particular love to dramatize tall tales by adding an element of the supernatural. It keeps people on their toes and forces the audience to be infatuated with the idea of the mysterious occult. 

There's no denial that ghosts and ghouls are big moneymakers in the television industry. One of the longest running shows on CW ( a television network who targets the youth of America) is a show that is all about the supernatural. It is literally called Supernatural. Their giant fan base is due to the obsession with the scary creatures of the dark. But then again Jenson Ackles is one hell of a man.

I hate to be mainstream and use the obvious example of Supernatural, but in my defense, I've been watching this show since season 2 and it is currently on season 9 so haters can swerve!

The occult can be found in unexpected places, maybe even under your bed or in your closet. For the longest time Americans have tried to blame their fear of the dark on monsters that inhabit children's bedrooms. Monster's Inc. illustrates the irrational fear that young children have on these "imaginary" creatures. Kudos to the kids who can just pass out the second they hit the bed.

 American culture is unique in that it is a blend of thousands of different identities. Ghost stories are exchanged and made more gruesome and terrifying than their original storytellers could ever imagine. This fascination with the supernatural shows the true mentality of Americans. It distracts people from the issues of reality and puts their real problems on the back burner. 

We the people, in order to keep ourselves entertained, preoccupy the populations through means of the fear, superstition, and the occult. After all, we all need a little excitement in or lives, and the best way to get that heart rate pumping is through some fear. 

Boss Sauce

          As much as I love Sherlock, it appears that the entire class of 2015 and their dads are in consensus. Let's be honest, who can resist a British accent and all that charm? Instead, I'm going to let my inner teenage drama queen take over this assignment; after all, the best anti-heroes are those that can kill in a blink of an eye. Everyone loves the hybrid heartthrob Niklaus Mikaelson. 

          This twisted man is the protagonist of the hit tv series The Originals. The Originals is a spin-off of another teenage drama, The Vampire Diaries. Just about everyone between the ages of 13 and 19 have a small obsession with the supernatural world, even manly men like my friend Blake. You can check out his blog at http://bteltschik15whs.blogspot.com/ 

          You'd be surprised that such a ladykiller (literally) can be compared to a man like Icabod Crane from The Legend of Sleepy Hollow. Icabod, a cowardly schoolteacher, shares many similarities to the immortal bad boy. These men are manipulative, selfish, and unsatisfied.

          Klaus and Icabod both know how to influence people to do their bidding. One of them spoils his students so he can roach off of their mother's cooking, while the other uses fear and compulsion to get what he wants. Klaus is also a experienced liar and does not know how to limit his deceit. 

           Both anti-heroes are also only concerned about their own well being. Icadbod's main reason for pursuing Katrina Van Tassle is so he can have a feast for dinner everyday. Her wealth attracted greedy men and brought scoundrels like Icabod Crane to her doorstep. Klaus's actions are almost always for the sake of his own benefit. He was willing to betray his brother for the control of New Orleans. Now if that's not selfish, then I don't know the definition. 

             You would think that an immortal vampire/werewolf would be content with being the most powerful being known to exist right?

LETS BE REAL. If I'm going to live forever might as well live the lavish life. Klaus just finished dealing with all the bs that was left behind in TVD, now he's looking for trouble in New Orleans. He can't be happy with some castle in Ireland. Nope. He's got to have control over one of the biggest supernatural cities. Icabod is no better. He is a privileged man who has the highly respected job of schoolteacher. He does not have to lift a finger to prepare meals and is well liked among the villagers. But the fool threw away this good life to chase a girl who was infinitely out of his league. 

Even though these two men are seemingly so different, all anti-heros are similar in that you don't expect them to amount to a desired hero, but they surprise you in pleasant ways.