#assignment 20

My Most Prized Possession

I have been married and divorced a few times, but I have held onto many of the ex-family members. So, now I have relatives, step- children, siblings, adopted siblings ( the same thing, in my mind), children, parents, step-parents, in-laws, ex-in-laws, and an ex-husband to count among my family. They are my most prized possession(s).

PART 1: Freshman Year a)   

b)  A major news story I remember from freshman year is Obama running for president! During voting, I worked at a calling center making phone calls reminding people to vote. Also during spirit week, there was U.S.A. day and my friends and I painted american flags and letters on our shirts and spelled out Obama ‘08! c)   I learned a lot about globalization in Mr.Angell’s history class. We learned the definition of the word and it’s impact on spreading ideas. I think I remember it really well because we went over it again and again, but also because Mr. Angell is such an outrageous teacher that it’s hard to forget anything he says. d)   My freshman year I went to one lacrosse practice and then decided I didn’t want to play. I think if I could re-do one thing it would be to play lacrosse for at least a year. I think it would have been cool to experience playing a sport and being part of a berkeley high team. e)  

my first big research paper of high school! f)   Meet lots of new people!   PART 2: Sophomore Year a)   

b)   I switched into AHA my sophomore year so there was a big difference returning to school. I met a whole bunch of new people and new teachers and the way the classes were was totally different. c)     I seriously don’t remember any big news stories from my sophomore year.... d)   Geography of the world and all the United States! In Ms. Gusfield’s history class we focused on this for a while and I remember I was really bad at it so I worked my butt off to memorize and learn everything and I ended up doing really good on the test and ever since then it’s stuck with me! e)    I’m proud that I jumped into AHA sophomore year and adapted so well, not that it’s hard to with such great classmates and teachers. But I’m proud that I changed from AC to AHA and enjoyed the transition and loved my classes and teachers. f)    

Stahl taught me how to do different types of prints this year, and this is my best one! g)    PARTY! PART 3: Junior Year a)   

b)   I enjoyed my junior year but there were a bunch of hard things. It was hard watching my senior friends applying for college and leaving (my best friend is a year older), it was scary thinking about the fact that i would have to do that the next year and realizing i had no idea what i wanted to do. It was also really hard to stay motivated in school and be on top of all my work. c)     2010 Bp oil spill... this major event was talked about all the time at home and at school. d)    The biggest surprise of my junior year was finding out my cousin was pregnant! This was very exciting because she lives in LA, which is pretty close. I’ll be living in LA too next year so I’ll get to see my baby cousin a lot! e)     I learned that math is hard! Before junior year i had always enjoyed and done well in math classes. My junior year i took math analysis and worked really hard but also realized that i don’t really like math that much. f)     Standing up for myself. I had a lot of drama with my friends that year. When I was hurt I’m proud that I spoke up about it rather than just brushing it aside. In the end, this was the best thing to do. Also, I’m proud that although I have terrible stage fright i powered through when asked to be an emcee at the senior awards ceremony and did it. I ended up doing a great job and felt really good about myself and the fact that I overcame my fear. g)    

my two best pieces from Stahl's class. I spent a long time on the colored pencil drawing and am really proud of it, and the painting was my first successful painting and I learned I really like painting on wood! h)    Lookout for yourself and do what you think is right, but also be open to new experiences.

PART 4: Senior Year a)    

b)    The best thing about being a senior is feeling very satisfied with your high school career. Feeling like you are the big man on campus but also feeling ready to move on. Also, being really close with so many other seniors and knowing them all so well because we’ve all gone through so much together. Also all the fun senior things during spirit week, etc.   c)   I would go back and tell my freshman self that working hard in school is incredibly important, but so is socializing and enjoying yourself. You need to balance these out and not be too hard on yourself. d)    Rising college admission fees and expensive loans! We have been looking at this a lot with you, Lev,  and as we’ve talked about it most definitely impacts and effects us! e)     Any and every Beyonce song because she is and will always be my idol and i listen to her repeatedly, especially this year. f)    I think I learned a lot this year, but the internship was definitely a huge thing. I’ve had a job all of highschool, but it is through a family friend. I think learning how to seek out internships and interviewing and working at a place taught me many great skills. I have become close with the woman i interned for and learned so much from her about cooking, running a business, working in a shop and so much more. g)   I spent the entire first semester in the college career center working on college stuff. I worked really hard and got into UCLA! As this was going on, my grandma, who passed away in November, was sick with pancreatic cancer. I am proud that I was able to spend time with her and my family and still get all my college stuff done. I also got my license this year which I am very excited and proud about. h)