remake the world

some easy to follow tips on how to organize your digital life for a stress-free experience while trying your best at school! ✨📖

other posts: 

advice on choosing your major

self-studying in three steps

I started making my own masterpost of links for personal use back in November, and I ended up collecting enough links that had to be split into multiple posts! So, as a result, this masterpost entails everything college related, including applying, dorms, exams/finals and more (I would add a lot more, but Tumblr won’t allow me). If I repeated any links or if the links are dead, please tell me and I’ll fix it up as soon as I can! Or, if I’ve included your post and you’d like me to remove it, please tell me and I’ll do so immediately. Otherwise, hopefully this helps anyone who needs it!

Not even a single soul:

it’s not gonna be perfect, and that’s ok. high school movies tell us that senior year is this amazing time in your life where you have all these formative experiences that shape the course of your destiny or something, but in my experience this is not really the case. my senior year was somehow both excruciatingly slow and very fast, and it had ups and downs just like any other school year. so if your senior year isn’t a wonderful collection of instagrammable moments, don’t worry. everyone else is finding “senior season” a little underwhelming too, even the people who seem to be having the most fun. quite frankly, you shouldn’t want your senior year of high school to be the best year of your life. 

college apps are important, but you don’t have to kill yourself over them. i know, i can say this because i just finished them, but it’s so true. applying to college is a horrible, tedious process that i’m going to attempt to break down in another masterpost. i went to a high school where people were fucking obsessed with getting into college, and it was sort of horrifying to watch people self-destruct over the process. even i (and i consider myself a fairly private, non-competitive, even-keeled person) went a little nuts towards the end. i’ve said it before and i’ll say it again, there is no reason on god’s green earth to apply to twenty or more schools. it’s expensive (most application fees are 60+ USD), time-consuming, and stressful. the only reason i can even see why you might be doing this is if you qualify for a bunch of application fee waivers, but even then, it’s just stupid. most colleges make you write secondary essays in addition to the common or coalition app essay, and that doesn’t even factor in scholarship applications, interview prep, and keeping up with school on top of everything. the best thing you can do for yourself is pick around ten-ish schools that you’re actually serious about attending and skip the hassle. you will get into at least one college if you apply smart. trust me. the people i know who went ham with applications were miserable all the time (even the smartest ones) and most of them didn’t even get into their top choice schools. when you’re churning out 3+ essays every month, it follows that they’re not all gonna be winners. additionally, know that life will go on even if you don’t get into harvard. relax. you have an entire life ahead of you. even if it doesn’t work out exactly how you planned, good things take time, ya feel? 

you’re still valid even if you don’t participate in every “senior activity” possible. “but it’s your last pep rally!!” “you HAVE to go to prom!!” “let’s go to every football game this season!!”  no. just no. you’re really not gonna remember a lot of this stuff. if large crowds of ppl aren’t your thing, if you’re stressed or tired, if you don’t have the money (a lot of these “senior only” activities are EXPENSIVE expensive or at least they were at my school), or if you just have no interest in homecoming or whatever, IT’S FINE. you don’t have to justify this stuff to other people. i let ppl guilt trip me into doing a bunch of shit for our “last high school memories” or whatever and uhhh i didn’t always have a good time. for one thing, i’ve never had a shit ton of school spirit or whatever and two, being around crowds of ppl is pretty draining for me. the only “senior activity” i actually enjoyed was prom, but i knew ppl who skipped out on that and ya know what? i think they were ok. i never bought a yearbook. it’s fine. you should shape your senior year around what’s mentally/financially safe for you + and what you’re actually interested in, not what people expect you to do.

you don’t really have to do extracurricular activities this year, so don’t do anything you’re not truly passionate about. i stopped doing a lot of stuff like model un and science olympiad this year because i just wasn’t interested in them anymore. and i don’t regret it. to be blunt, you already have the lines on your resume filled by those activities if you’ve done them for a long time. so if you’re not feelin’ it, don’t waste your time. just do the things you wanna do. i did a lot of theater stuff last year and had a great time. it was super rewarding and i had a pretty good time with my castmates, and i was glad i had done that instead of more “academic” activities like scioly. 

it’s ok to be unsure about your plans for the future. for some reason, this is the year, every adult in your life is gonna be like, “wHaT’s Ur MaJoR???” and “wHaT jOb Do YoU wAnNa HaVe wHeN u GrOw uP??” as a result, you can start to feel a lot of pressure around having an answer prepared, and if you are on the fence about what you wanna do with your life, you can feel like other ppl have their shit together a lot more and that you’re aimless and stupid. trust me, you’re not, though. i personally think it’s unfair that we expect 18 y/os, who in many ways are still kids, to have their whole life planned out. a lot is still liable to change even after high school, and I think you’ll be remiss if you don’t allow your dreams and ambitions to change with it. if you’re truly unsure about your plans but you know you’re going to college, i’d recommend making sure none of the places you’re applying to are going to lock you down in a major when you set foot on campus. i have friends who are going to large universities who have already basically declared a major, which to me seems like an odd system. if 4-yr college isn’t in the cards for you for whatever reason, try taking a year off, getting a job, or community college. a lot of ppl i know look down on ccs, but to my knowledge, community college can be a great start to figuring out what you wanna do with your life. you have time. don’t rush it.

getting sick of your school friends is normal. it sounds mean, but in my experience, it’s true. i mean you’ve gone to school with these people for 4 or more years now, and you’ve changed a lot. and that doesn’t mean you don’t like them and wish them well, but there can be days where you’re like “omg pls stop talking to me rn!!” especially in that lull after application season. don’t be mean to anyone ofc, but realize that feeling exasperated with your peers is just part of the process, and you’re not a bad person for wanting a little bit of space. in my experience, unless the issue is w regards to toxicity or people being generally shitty, ppl will be able to connect w each other much more normally after school is over. 

you will get senioritis to some degree, but you have to push through it. it must be great to be one of those people who literally never stops working. but for the vast majority of us, some kind of senioritis will slap us in the ass after applications are done. you will have no motivation to do coursework but! remember that coursework needs to be completed! to be completely honest, once you’ve been accepted to college, you really only need to maintain a C average to not get rescinded, and i knew plenty of people who screwed around more than i did and they didn’t get their admission rescinded. but like, you don’t want to be one of those people who somehow fails a class because you don’t “feel like” doing the homework. you need to graduate, you need to hold onto your scholarship, and you need to maintain your accepted status. quite honestly, you need to kick ur own ass and make yourself work, whether that’s by turning down invites to hang out, or putting your phone in a different room. also, don’t be that person who’s playing iphone games in every class. your teachers will think you’re an asshole, and that’s really not the move. 

you don’t have to take everyone’s advice. this is the year everyone wants to be an expert on adulting, whether that’s your peers or parents’ colleagues or school counselors. in the end, your are the only one who can decide what’s right for you based on your financial situation and what you are comfortable with. i’m not saying “don’t take anyone’s advice”, because i truly believe there are some people out there who have the means to help you succeed. but i think you should pick and choose because you’re about to be fed a deluge of information that may or may not be useful or relevant to what you want to do. for example, people told me that i was limiting myself by not applying to any ivy league schools or very many competitive universities, or that i should lie about my race on my application (!!) because of the bias against ppl of asian descent in college admissions (note: i actually wrote about my heritage in my common app essay so it wasn’t like it was some secret lmao), which were uhhh not helpful. do what feels right and don’t feel the need to humor ppl who don’t have your best interests at heart. 

don’t compare yourself with other ppl. it’s natural to be a little jealous of peers who snag acceptances to prestigious colleges on full-tuition scholarships or land dream jobs/gap-year programs right out of high school. it’s a bit of an ugly feeling, but i’m not gonna sit here and say i didn’t wish i was one of those people at a point. that’s disingenuous in the extreme. it’s ok to be disappointed if everything doesn’t all work out, but at a certain point you need to accept what’s happening to you and make the very damn best of it. wallowing in self-pity just because your classmates are succeeding is just stupid. also, recognize that everyone’s ability to achieve their post-hs goals is wildly different based on their own circumstances. if you are less financially able to pay for college, for example, your opportunities are more limited than someone with a six-figure college fund. it’s quite frankly naive to assume that everyone shares your experience. be happy for people who do well. be happy for people who are proud of themselves. don’t try to take other people down because you’re feeling bitter. i’ve said it before and i’ll say it again-other people’s success is not your failure. 

HELLO EVERYONE!! ∩(︶▽︶)∩ School starts next week and I wanted to use my remaining life  freedom days to make some printables/desktop wallpapers (◡‿◡✿) so here are the september calendars and desktop wallpapers

FEATURES

You can choose between calendars that start on Monday (August 26) or Sunday (September 1) 

Horizontal or Vertical layouts available

Option to have a “Things to Remember” box or not 

AVAILABLE IN FOUR COLORS!!!! (◕‿◕✿) Black, Pink, Blue, Yellow (just check out the folders to see them!) 

SEPTEMBER CALENDARS

HORIZONTAL Variation: Monday | Sunday

VERTICAL Variation: Monday | Sunday

SEPTEMBER WALLPAPERS (ꈍ ᴗ ꈍ✿)

I plan to drop more printables soon (besides the oct,nov, dec cals) so u can drop by for suggestions or notes to make my printables better!  ー( ´ ▽ ` )ﾉ

AP EUROPEAN HISTORY MASTERPOST

Unfortunately, my school doesn’t offer AP history courses until junior year curse the STEM-based curriculum there are five math tracks and one history track in sophomore year, and it doesn’t offer AP European History period. However, we do take a European history course that covers the essentials of the test. As a result, I’m currently self-studying AP Euro in order to supplement my schoolwork and take the AP exam in May. These are some of the resources I’ve found helpful so far :)

VIDEOS

Tom Richey

Paul Sargent

Eugen Weber

Yale’s European Civilization (1648-1945) Video Course

Compilation of Videos on Everything! 

Crash Course P1 and P2 (not all videos are relevant for the test!)

Khan Academy (again, not everything is relevant!)

PRACTICE QUESTIONS AND TESTS

FRQs from previous tests

albert.io

online map quiz

30-question multiple choice practice test

topic-specific multiple choice quizzes

varsitytutors (they also have an app!)

FLASHCARDS

studystack

dates

literature (renaissance through scientific revolution)

handy dandy quizlet folder

general

CRAM PACKETS & REVIEW SHEETS

huge spreadsheet made by @solarstudy @studyplants @heckthepolice​ 

brief topic-by-topic overviews

HuGe review sheet

study guide that covers up to the Industrial Revolution

review packet with key terms and review questions

PREP BOOKS

REA Crash Course

5 Steps to a 5 // 2014-2015 edition

Barron’s

Princeton Review

Peterson’s

GENERAL

historysage 

amazing explanations of everything

teacher page with tips and links

collegeboard home page

Hello everyone! I’ve had some questions about the assignment schedule I posted here.

The idea was born out of my desire to eliminate the “Oh shit is that due tomorrow?!?!” late night moments of panic. I knew I wanted to have one master list of all of the things I needed to get done. Something about having absolutely everything I need to do written down and in front of me makes a challenging semester seem less daunting and more doable.

The best part about this schedule is that you can tweak it until it works for you! I chose to use Excel because it was more flexible than writing it in my planner, and I could add/delete tasks as the semester went on (and as professors changed the due dates a million times). 

During syllabus week, I go through each syllabus and list every task, reading, assignment or exam from the beginning of the semester all the way through finals week. By the end of the week, I have a comprehensive list of what I need to do for every single class, all in one place. I’m getting ready for the new semester and thought I’d walk everybody through how I organize mine:

Completed: mostly because I like to mark tasks off as I complete them, but also because it made it easier to quickly scan and find where I’m at in the list.

Type: I used this to discern between assignments and tests or quizzes, which I put in bold. I also put in the readings I assigned myself, and projects assigned by teachers.

Due Date: Alternating colors to block tasks by due date, so you can see at a glance how many things you need to do for that day.

Assignment: Quick description of the task or assignment. I put in any information given by the syllabus about the material the test covers. 

Class: Color coded! Amazing!

for anyone wondering, i used zebra mildliners highlighters for this photo

⭐️ (for beginners) ⭐️

When talking to french people, focus on innocuous topics like the weather, current events (“avez-vous lu à propos de..?” Have you read about…?), and cultural topics like food, movies, art, music, and so on. And remember to use vous instead of tu!

I only speak a little French. Je ne parle qu'un peu le français.

I am learning French, but I am only a beginner. J'apprends le français mais je ne suis qu'un débutant.

I have been learning french for 2 days / 2 weeks / 2 months / 1 year / 2 years. J'apprends le français depuis deux jours / deux semaines / deux mois / un an / deux ans.

Will you please correct me? Peux-tu me corriger, s'il te plaît?

What does ___ mean? Que veut dire ___?

What does that mean? Qu'est-ce que ça veut dire?

Can you explain in French/English to me? Peux-tu m'expliquer en français / anglais?

What does that mean in this context? Qu'est-ce que ça veut dire dans ce contexte?

What is the French word for ___? Quel est le mot français pour ___?

Is this/that correct? C'est juste?

Am I wrong? Je me trompe?/Est-ce que j'ai tort?

Am I correct? Est-ce que j'ai raison?

Do you understand? Est-ce que tu me comprends?

I do not understand. Je ne comprends pas.

I want to improve my level in French. Je veux améliorer mon niveau de français.

I need to practice French. J'ai besoin de pratiquer le français.

Do you have time to speak with me? As-tu le temps de parler avec moi ?

Can you help me to learn French? Peux-tu m'aider à apprendre le français?

Do you mind if we speak in French? Ça te dérange si nous parlons en français?

Can you please speak in French? it helps me to learn. Peux-tu me parler en français s'il te plaît? Ça m'aide à apprendre.

How do you say ’___’ in French? Comment dit-on ’___’ en français ?

I struggle with spelling / reading / writing / listening / pronunciation. J'ai du mal avec l'orthographe / la lecture / l'écriture / la compréhension orale / la prononciation.

Can you please repeat? I did not understand. Pouvez-vous répéter s'il vous plaît ? Je n'ai pas compris.

I don’t speak French fluently. Je ne parle pas couramment le français.

I am confused. Je suis perdu(e).

I don’t know how to say it in French. Je ne sais pas comment le dire en Français,

Sorry (or ‘pardon’), what did you say? Pardon, qu'est-ce que tu as dit?

I’ve never heard of that. Je n'ai jamais entendu ça.

That makes sense. Ça se tient.

That does not make sense. Ça n'a aucun sens.

What’s happening? / What’s going on? Qu'est-ce qui se passe?

What do you mean by ’___’ ? Qu'est-ce que tu entends par ’___’? / Qu'est-ce que tu veux dire par ’___’?

⭐️ Personal Stuff ⭐️

Here is a list of phrases you can use and practice when giving and asking for personal information. Take note that the list makes use of the formal “vous”.

Comment vous appelez-vous? What is your name?

Je m'appelle Christine. My name is Christine.

Quel est votre nom? What is your name?

Comment allez-vous? How are you?

Je vais bien, merci. I am doing well, thank you.

Très bien, merci. Very well, thank you.

Quel âge avez-vous? How old are you?

J'ai # ans. I am # years old.

J'ai trente ans. I am thirty years old.

J'ai quarante-deux ans. I am forty two old.

Quelle est votre nationalité? What is your Nationality?

Je suis canadien(ne). I am Canadian.

Je suis américain(e). I am American.

Je suis chinois(e). I am Chinese.

Je suis coréen(ne). I am Korean.

Où habitez-vous? Where do you live?

J'habite en Californie. I live in California.

Quel est votre numéro de téléphone? What is your phone number?

Mon numéro de téléphone est le … My phone number is …

Où êtes-vous né(e)? Where were you born?

Je suis né(e) à… I was born in…

Êtes-vous marié(e)? Are you married?

Oui, je suis marié. Yes, I am married

Non, je ne suis pas marié. No, I am not married

Je suis célibataire. I am single

Est-ce que vous avez des frères et soeurs? Do you have any brothers and sisters?

Je suis fille unique. I am an only child/daughter

Je suis fils unique. I am an only child/son

J'ai - frère(s). I have - brother(s).

J'ai - soeur(s).  I have - sisters(s).

Je n'ai pas de frères. I don’t have any brothers.

Je n'ai pas de soeurs. I don’t have any sisters.

Quel est votre métier? What is your job?

Quelle est votre profession? What is your profession?

Que faites-vous dans la vie? What do you do for a living?

Je suis ingénieur. I am an engineer.

Je suis boulanger/boulangère. I am a baker.

Je suis médecin. I am a doctor.

Je suis infirmier/infirmière. I am a nurse.

⭐️ Interests ⭐️

Quel est votre sport préféré? What is your favorite sport? (formal)

Quel est ton sport préféré? 

What is your favorite sport? (informal)

Mon sport préféré est… My favorite sport is….

J'aime faire du sport et garder la forme. I like to do sports to keep fit.

Quelle saison préférez-vous? What season do you prefer? (formal

Quelle saison préfères-tu? What season do you prefer? (What season is your favorite?) (informal)

Quels sont vos passe-temps préférés? What are your favorite pastimes? (formal)

Quels sont tes passe-temps préférés? What are your favorite pastimes? (informal)

Mes passe-temps préférés sont… My favorite pastimes are…

Qu'est-ce que vous faites dans votre temps libre? What do you do in your free time? (formal)

Qu'est-ce que tu fais dans ton temps libre? What do you do in your free time? (informal)

Est-ce que vous avez un animal de compagnie? Do you have a pet?(formal)

Est-ce que tu as un animal de compagnie? Do you have a pet? (informal)

Non, Je n'ai pas un animal de compagnie. No, I don’t have a pet.

Oui, J'ai un chat. Yes, I have a cat.

Oui, J'ai un chien.Yes, I have a dog.

Qu'est-ce que vous aimez? What do you like?

J'aime le jazz. I like jazz.

J'aime le rock. I like rock.

J'aime le hip-hop. I like hip-hop.

Je n'aime pas le rap. I don’t like rap.

Je n'écoute pas de la musique très souvent. I don’t listen to music very often.

J'aime les films d'amour. I like romance films.

J'aime les films d'aventures. I like adventure films.

Je n’aime pas faire du ski. I don’t like skiing.

Qu'est-ce que vous aimeriez faire dans la vie? What would you like to do in life ?

J'aimerais être chef. I would like to be a chef.

For if you want to make hip young friends.

Disclaimer: French people complain a lot. A lot. Don’t be surprised if 90% of these expressions are complaining.

Non mais oh - say this if someone does something mildly annoying and you want to express your shock and distaste.

Tu me fais chier - (alt. tu me fais chier, là.) literally ‘you make me shit’. means you’re pissing me off.

Carrément - translates to ‘squarely’. Means ‘literally’. If someone tells you something surprising or annoying, you can answer simply “ah carrément.” see: tu me fais carrément chier.

J’hallucine / je rêve - are you annoyed by something? say these.

C’est pas possible - a classic. anything bad happens - c’est pas possible. There is no cheese left? It’s not possible. I’m hallucinating. This is a burden on me that solely I can bear I cannot believe this is happening.

Ça commence à me gaver - I’m starting to get real sick of this. see: Ça commence carrément a me gaver là, putain.

T’es relou - verlan slang for ‘lourd’ meaning someone’s heavy, personality-wise. They’re tedious.

Ça me saoûle / ça me gonfle - similar to gaver, means something’s pissing you off, you’re sick of it.

Grave - totally.

C’est clair - totally/that’s clear. Like ‘claro’ in spanish. “Justine elle est trop relou” “C’est clair. Elle me fait chier.”

J’en ai marre - I’m sick of this.

J’en ai ras le bol - I’m sick of this.

J’en ai ras le cul - I’m sick of this (vulgar).

(J’en ai) Rien à battre - I don’t give a damn.

(J’en ai) Rien à foutre - I don’t give a fuck.

C’est bon, là. -  That’s enough.

Perso, euh, - “Personally,” generally used at the start of a complaining sentence, to express how personal the matter is to you. Perso, euh, c’est bon là. J’en ai ras le cul.

Rôh là - general expression of distaste. Le longer the rôh, the more annoyed you are. Rôôôôôôôôôôôôôôôôôôôôôôôôôôôôh, c’est quoi ce bordel.

C’est quoi ce bordel ? - translates to “what’s this brothel”, means “what’s this shit?!”

C’est de la merde - It’s shit.

C’est une blague ? - Is this a joke?

Idem - ditto

J’ai la dalle - I’m hungry

Ça caille - It’s freezing

Ouf - two meanings 1. phew or 2. verlan for “fou”, meaning crazy (as a noun or adjective). “Kévin, c’est un ouf! Il fait du vélo sans casque!” “Ouais carrément, c’était un truc de ouf!”

Kévin - there’s a running joke that all the young delinquents seem to be called Kévin.

Crever - slang for “to die”. Va crever, connard!

Connard/Connasse - c*nt, but a lot less vulgar in french peoples eyes

And finally,

i mentioned this briefly in my recent vlog about how important it is to gain a better understanding of finances + i figured that it might be nice to share some resources for gaining financial literacy! hope this helps ✨

why financial literacy is important

resources on financial literacy from the national credit union administration

harvard’s take on financial literacy + additional links within that page

how credit cards work

tips for improving your credit score

how to check and improve your credit score

khan academy course on finance

cnn money 101

mymoney.gov from the financial literacy commission

gcf lessons (includes lessons on work / career / internet / microsoft / etc as well)

ally wallet wise

money as you grow

adult budgeting 101

tips for paying off student loans

common ways you waste money

strategies for paying off student loans

how insurance works

personal loans 101

guide to getting out of debt