What is your race?!

Our new topic that we started in class was race, race is really confusing to define. race is a group of persons related by common descent or heredity. The topic of race is really confusing and to me seems very hurtful to some people. Here in America it seems that we all identify people as white, black, asian, european. However, in those countries race is much more identified and complicated it goes farther than being white, black, asian or european. In Asia they identify people as Chinese, Taiwanese, Korean, Japanese, Malaysian, Thai etc. The category splits up into so many more categories than just being described and labeled as "Asian."
I am Asian but technically I am more than just being labeled as "Asian," I am Chinese, Taiwanese, Shanghainese and I am also Szechuan. I am Chinese because I am from Hong Kong, I am Taiwanese because I am from Taiwan, I am Shanghainese because I am from Shanghai, and I am also Szechuan because I am also from the city of Szechuan. Sometimes it is very annoying that I am just labeled as being Asian I am much more than that, and sometimes it is also annoying when people say "You ALL look alike, what's the difference?" or "Your all fom the same place, it doesn't matter." The truth is we all don't look alike, we all don't speak the same dialects or languages so how does that make ALL ASIAN people look alike. I speak four different dialects out of like the some odd 150 to about 200 other different dialects and languages from Asia. We are not all alike and race is more than just being labeled as Asian, White, Black, or European etc. It is who you are.

Monopoly?!

It was fun to take a relaxing day in class, we got to play monopoly. However, Sal put a twist into the game. Each piece that a player had represented how much money the player would make and start off with. For me I had the second highest income rating, so for me life was easier and the other players below me because they had to manage their money; however, they also had to take risks to buy things to so whenever a player landed on their place they would earn money. Also, I was in charge of keeping track of the money which was very confusing for me because I am not very good at math, I had to keep subracting and adding all over the place and then I had to read al the cards to make sure everyone had the right amount of income during the game and after.
I realize now once you earn a certain amount in yoiur life it's hard to go up in social class unless you are already rich or it comes from your family. If you start at the bottom it's hard to change your momentum and change your lifestyle and try to better yourself because you work a minimum wage job and it's very hard to make a living if you don't have a degree or didn't go to college.

Change of Faith

In the movie we watched about social classes, there was one family that was going through really hard times. Tammy the mother, had two sons. One of her sons was so embarassed of the way we live and the way his mom dressed that he never invited his friends over to this house to hang out. He considered himself as more popular and preppy and he tried to dress nicer and more clean than the way he lived. He was also trying to change the way his brother dressed and acted too, his brother wanted to grow up like him to be popular and preppy. I think that his mom was offended by the way he acted and the way he sort of treated her. She is trying to make a better life for herself, but as we saw in the video it was very hard for her to change the way she lived. I think Tammy is proud that her son is trying to get out of the lifestyle they are living now and that she is also happy that her oldest son is trying to go to college.

50-50 Chance

After playng the penny game in class, I see now that it is so difficult to earn the money that people do now that have jobs. Playing the penny game, Sal told us that we have a 50-50 chance at first to win pennies everytime we go, but once you keep playing the game you realize only one person playing the game can end up with all the pennies and one person is so much richer than another person. Seeing the graphs in class I never realized that about les than 1% of the population is richer than 99% of the population in America because all the time in the media you see so many people who are wealthier and you think there are so many of them until you compare them to the rest of America, then those top 1% in America do not look like anything to the world. America is the richest of the richest and the poorest of the poor which is a huge difference, why can't we help those that are less fortunate to balance out America? Well, that's not how life works there are those top dogs and those underdogs.
It's so unfair for forgein people because it seems that they have to work twice as hard for their jobs to keep them and keep what they have going for their family, it seems that life doesn't come as easy to them as for the native people of America. My parents are foreigners and when they first came to America they knew some English, but it was still hard for them to get the jobs they have now they had to work basically from the bottom to the top. I feel that if you do not know how to speak English that well in this country everything comes so much harder at you and you have to push and drive yourself to be the best you can be.

Saints and Roughnecks

After reading Saints and Rougnecks and discussing the short story in class, I think that Stevenson has Saints and Roughnecks. The Saints in the story were the students who would get into the least trouble so they could get out of school earlier and cut class; however, they wouldn't get in trouble for it. The Roughnecks were the students who always got into trouble so they had a bad reputation with the school and never got away with anything. I think there are Saint and Rougnecks at school the students, the students that are Saints would be the kids who always do their homework, never get into trouble with the school have better reputations and whenever that student would be sent to their dean they might have a lesser punishment than someone who is perceived as a Roughneck because of their reputation in class and with the authority.

Masculinity

After watching the Columbine movie in class and seeing the other movie on masculinity, many things in both movies are very true about boys and men now a days. Their identity is covered by aggression, anger, and toughness; however, why can't their identities be covered by love, happiness, and sensitivity. This does not usually happen in guys because they need to pull off that "I am tough" look off to show that they are in not scared of anything that comes their way, but deep down inside they are scared, but if they can't pull of the toughness image people would think of them as girls and that's not cool enough for them and the people they are hanging out with.

Teens...

I with the article we read for homework the other day, Teen Mystique. Teenagers do not really have a definition we are just defined as kids at a certain age called teens. However, many people fear our age group because we are very unpredictable such as drinking. Even though the law says we can't legally drink unless we are 21, we dont really care we find someway to get alcohol. We are also hard to described because our generation right now is completely different from the other teen generations we have had before. Many people can't explain it but the teens now are just different, it's probably cause alot of teens have jobs and don't ask for their parents to pay for everthing, but we spend that money and ridiculous things instead of saving up for college.

Girls in the Media

Women are portrayed to have great bodies and to be perfect. Well, that is how the media portrays women to be, all the time on advertisements and in shows women are ridiculously skinny and it does not look right. It makes them look anorexic and even fake. When, my teacher showed us a website that showed us the different changes that magazines editors made that changed the look of Britney Spears or Kirsten Dunst it was sort of sickening, because they were altering the real person and changing them to what the media thinks they should look like. I feel that women should be comfortable with the way they look, they should not compare themselves to supermodels or famous people. If girls keep getting skinnier by a younger age it is so unhealthy. Now we see younger girls who are eating less because they are not happy with the way their bodies look, but the less you eat it affects your hormones and your appetite. Women are ridiculed more to have the perfect body because that is what many guys look for in women's body types, they have to have the best looking girfriend or friends because it will make them look cool. However, why couldn't people just be happy about the way they look they don't need to be criticized by the media.

Guns

From watching Bowling for Columbine it made me have a different view on guns and fear. Most people have guns because they fear everything that surrounds us. Most people try not to stereotype different racial groups that are around us, but when we see the news and the media it is very hard not to judge those different types of different people. Some people caring or have guns just because they can and because they fear what is out there and they feel safer having a gun by their bedside; however, some people do not have those types of fear and they find other ways to defend themselves if they need to not using a gun or having a gun. Sometimes you can not tell why different people bring guns to school or tell the different types of people who create a shooting at school. Sometimes they do not have a reason, but most of the times they do and they have all that built up anger that this is how they release it, by creating a massacre. Watching Bowling for Columbine it made me sort of scared because the people who caused that shooting can be anywhere, no one knew from their school that those two kids would ever do something like that but they did, so that is why people fear what is around us.

Tuesdays with Morrie

Morrie talks about how everybody is afraid of death. That is one thing we all fear even though that we all know that someday that we are all going to die at one point. Morrie tells Mitch why there is no point of being afraid and why we should just accept it. I do think Americans are afraid of dying because we are afraid of leaving the ones we love behind and we are afraid of dying because you never know when it is going to happen. We Americans like to know what is going on in the world not what is going to happen sometime in the future when you do not even know when it is. That moment scares us. I think what Morrie says is true, we shouldn't be afraid of dying because it happens to all us. One day I am going to die, yes, I am sad that I will be leaving loved ones behind but I will see them soon in heaven. We will all find each other at the end.

Different Norms

When I first lived in Hong Kong everything was different from they way my family and I lived in Illinois. The food, the culture, the language, even the toilets were different. The food was all Chinese and everybody just spoke Cantonese, no one spoke English. At first, it was the hardest thing for me to understand what my grandparents were saying to me, my mom had to translate for me and my brother. However, after a few months we started catching on to what others around us were saying. It was a completely different lifestyle for us. The culture was different too, people in America everybody basically just has a set time when they eat; however, in Hong Kong people there just eat whenever they want normally they eat dinner probably around 8,but my family aways went out for midnight snack because everything in Hong Kong was still open. The stores and night markets, which were shops on the streets at night, were always open no one went to sleep. Everybody just stayed up because they can. Also, one other thing was different the school schedules. They go to school everyday besides Sunday and they go from like 9 until 4. Their schedules in Hong Kong were completely different, but I got used to it eventually. When, I first moved back to Chicago everything just seemed really weird to me, like the language and school. Everywhere there are different norms we just have to get used to it instead of judge it.

A Different Lifestyle

When, I went on vacation to Hong Kong and Taiwan to visit my parent's family it was really weird. They all drove on the opposite side of the rode, and most of the people just rode mopeds or motorcycles instead of cars because their are so many of them. The people crossing the roads don't really look at where the cars are coming from or going to they just walk across the road even though cars are still coming and going down that street. Also, many people in Hong Kong and Taiwan stay up past midnight; they go out to things called night markets where people are shopping and eating and just hanging out around 2 or 3 in the morning. No one really sleeps where they are; however, in America most people are asleep by like midnight and no one just hangs out in the streets and goes shopping because nothing is even open at that time.
Also, living conditions are also different, most people in America live on houses, but people in Taiwan and Hong Kong mostly live in apartments with their families. Living in houses in their countries is like being wealthier there, but we see that differently. The common person in America mostly live in houses not apartments with a bunch of their family.

A Bronx Tale-The Community

The neighborhood that Collogero lived in was seperated into different parts and each part meant something and was respected. In Collogero's neighborhood everybody feared and respected Sonny. Sonny was part of a mob or gang that controlled their neighborhood( Italian). However, Collogero's father wanted nothing to do with Sonny and his gang but, he respected him. Although Collogero's father wanted to do with Sonny, Collogero was like a son to Sonny, he always listened to Sonny and always thought he was right. Sonny always got him out of trouble.
Collogero's neighborhood was seperated by a bridge and the next neighborhood over they were not not supposed to go through(blacks), it was an unwritten law that everyone knew. Each time an Italian or Black would go into another one's neighborhood they were looked at very differently and everyone we cuss them out and stare at them. However, Collogero did not want to be a part of it even though his friends would. He just went along with them so his friends wouldn't think he was a coward.

Wat Class or Groups Do You Belong To?

The other day in class we did an acitivity about different groups and classes we belong to in our society. In the middle of the page there was a circle we put our name in then around it, our teacher told us to draw a couple of circles and inside it; we wrote what main groups we think ourselves are apart of and what defines us. Then inside each circle we wrote what our job or role is in that group and we underlined one or two circles that we really think defines us as a person.
The groups I am part of is volleyball, Asian-American, female, track & field, family, significant other, friends, and seniors/ period 1 sal's sociology class. In each group I am a different role; however, some of the groups I do not have a role I am jut part of that group.
The roles I represent is that in volleyball, I am known as the one who always gets hurt A LOT! I just dive into everything; people, chairs, the stands, the curtains, and the wall. I am also the really outgoing one in track & field and in my different groups of friends. In my family I play a role has a daughter and a sister and cousin. In my significant other group I play a role has a girlfriend, and in my Asian-American group I just represent a small part of all those who are Asian-American. Last but not least in the group seniors/period Sal's sociology class I play a student.

Saliva or Spit? It's all the same

The day we discussed the short story we read, The Surivors of the F227, was the grossest day. Our teacher Mr. Salituro told one of our classmates to spit into a spoon. So gross. We were talking about the difference between saliva and spit and if we were dying would we drink that spoon of spit to survive. All of us were getting grossed out by the spit that we did not really care we just did not want to look at that spoon of spit anymore. We don't think about drinking others people spit when we share drinks, or share food, or have a kiss on the lips with a loved one. We just don't think about drinking one another's spit. But, when we see the spoon of spit we think differently, we just would not drink it. The way it looks it is just so gross, when we are sharing each other's drinks we do not look at the saliva around it we just drink the drink. Mr. Salituro, was explaining how everything is the same we are still drinking each other's spit even though we do not think about it and see it. It is just natural to us not to say, "Oh, I'm drinking your spit." However, when we see a spoon full of spit we just grossed out.

A Different Way of Life

i really liked the presentation that Colleen presented us. it was really different and very interesting to hear her prespective on a different country and the way they live. i thought it was really interesting that she really wanted to be part of this volunteer program and help the kids and the natives of tanzinia that are in need. she didn't put herself in front of others peoples need, she thought about them and the way they live and how they have less opportunities than we live in america.
the way many people live in the u.s. we take for granted. all we think about is "me, me, me" we have to think about other people who are less fortunate than us.
i'm happy for her that she decided to take this opportunity to help the natives of tanzinia, that was very thoughtful of her. in the future i really hope i get a opportunity like this to help other people in need of a better life. i understand that the opportunity would be challenging to get through to experience a different way to live, but sometimes you have to see the prespective in other peoples eyes.

My Life in a Bubble =]

I define myself as a energetic, fun loving, caring, athletic, and all-around good person who loves to play volleyball, run track, hang out with friends, and who loves her family. But, I do love every sport, when I was little I basically played every sport there is to play. Judo, cheerleading, dance, track, volleyball, basketball, soccer, badminton. My main sports were judo, volleyball, and track. But, now I just play volleyball and run track. I used to be the Junior National Champion in 2002. Now, I'm on the varsity volleyball and track team, I love it!! This past summer and the summer of 2005, my club volleyball team went to the Junior National Olympics. In 2005, my team went to Minneapolis, Minnesota; and in the summer of 2007, my team went to Dallas, Texas.

I have a younger brother, Darien, whose 15. We get along really well, and we have a lot in common. We both play volleyball for the same school team and same volleyball club, Rolling Thunder. However, we both play completely different positions. He is a setter/hitter, but sometimes he is a defensive specialist or libero, he goes in for the middles to pass or to play back row for any of the hitters. I play libero because I am too short to play front row. =]

This year I'm a senior, and I love it because it just means that this is the last year until college, but I'm also very sad to leave my friends and family. I'm interested in majoring in public relations, but more specifically education for younger children, interior designer or any kind of designer really, or I wanna work for a firm that helps create parties or plans them. But, I'm trying to get a volleyball scholarship so I can play in college, but if I don't get a scholarship I think I'm going to play club in college so there is still some part of volleyball in my life.