Is This a Generation of Nincompoops?

Yes. Children should be able to tie their shoes, open a can with a can opener, and eventually wash their own clothes. (But might I admit I don't exactly know how to operate the washing machine at home.) Five year olds don't belong in strollers. Yet somehow fifteen year olds say they are already ready to drive. This may be a generation full of new technology, but does that mean that older "technology" should not be common sense as well? There are some things that kids just have to know. Someday I'll learn how to wash clothes.

TV Shows I Won't Be Missing

New and old tv shows have started and I am making sure to know when they are on as if they are my weekly appointments. They are the only things that keep me sane in the chaotic school week. I find myself having to decide between reading a chapter for history class, or watching Chuck and The Event on mondays. I mean seriously, which would you prefer? Somehow I need to find a way to keep up with shows and get good grades.

I like watching CHUCK because it deals with a regular Nerd Herd guy who is a spy. I have kept up with this show every monday and I'm still waiting to find out if he will tell his sister that he's a spy.

The Event, which premiered last monday, was a different sort of show that left me thinking that it is going to be as confusing as Lost. It was hilarious when I heard on NBC that it left everyone thinking "Where did the plane go?" When the plane disappeared I was sure the show was going to get weird. Another clue was when the time changed throughout the show. It would say "One week earlier" and then it would have a part that was three weeks before that. Still, confusing shows can be entertaining.

First of all, I love Sheldon. He is too smart for society. He doesn't fit in because regular people don't understand his smartness. I haven't kept up with The Big Bang Theory as much as I would have liked to, but I will be watching it this season on Thursdays. I have to admit that the shows from previous seasons have been better than the more recent ones, but I hope this one will be good. 

I love my TV shows and can't wait to see what happens in this new season. (And I'll try to do my homework too.)

If I Had The Power...

To GET RID OF TAKS, the world in Texas would be a better place. Schools, including Beta, are too focused on preparing to place at the top. Last year we had to have an extra tutorial just to learn for the TAKS. It was not very effective, and it just caused students to have to cram more into their heads before the end of the year.
I am not complaining about how easy the tests are, because I really do not want to have a harder test instead. Rather, I would prefer to pay more attention to classes and semester exams. The TAKS tests come at the end of the year when my brain is already putty and I just want it to be summer already. Students may also have to worry about AP tests. Getting rid of TAKS is another way of getting rid of stress.

Constitution Day Cartoon

The cartoon is meant to show the two different views on the 14th Amendment. Is it right for someone to gain citizenship just because they are born in the United States? 

I think it is wrong for someone who is here illegally to suddenly become a citizen because their child was born on U.S. soil. It is something that people can take advantage of, and it can make the population grow exponentially. If someone was born here, he or she is rightfully and automatically a citizen, but their parents should not get the advantage of becoming citizens. But then they will be separated from their children! No wonder it is a conflicting dilemma. Probably having a child over here is the last resort of illegal couples who find it too impossible to become citizens through the means of a normal process.

Survival of the Freshmen

When coming into Beta, freshmen can be intimidated by stories of teachers overloading on homework, or worry that they will no longer have a life. Students who are not used to being in a school that challenges them may have a hard time adjusting to the more demanding situation they find themselves in. Still, I believe the school is good for learning self discipline; the survival rate for freshmen can improve if they follow some tips.


I think planners should become a freshman's best friend because they can be so helpful when it comes to keeping up with assignments, due dates, events, and more. My planner is full of writing, which sometimes looks awful, but I try to have it looking neat. I take it with me to every class and make sure to write the assignment at the end of the period.


No matter what, there will be stress, but that is where you learn how to deal with it. For me, prioritizing is essential; I have had to make the decision between watching "The Big Bang Theory" or working on my English project, or on Wednesdays, I have to finish ALL my homework for Thursday and go to church.

One of the things I have the most difficulty in is time management. I love taking my time and being a perfectionist, but sometimes it is necessary to just finish the work and finish it all.

They should start homework early when they get home because I have started my homework at 9 p.m. and gone until 2 a.m. Personally, my brain cannot process things when I am half asleep. I end up just going to sleep and hoping to be able to finish it the next day. It usually never gets done before it is time to turn it in.

To all the freshmen out there, you'll get used to it, do your best, take it seriously, and remain calm.

Smothering

Someone steps on my foot, and then I step on the back of someone else's foot. People have to hobble side-by-side like penguins migrating as they try to make it to class in the meager five minutes provided. The ones on the edges get crushed as they walk by the wall. It was the first thing that I discovered is going to be a problem in school this year--crowded hallways. It is the nightmare of a claustrophobic student.

I have been in the same school since 9th grade and I was in the junior high for two years, and it has never been this packed. I wish I could blame it on the freshmen, but they do not make up the whole student body. They did highly increase the number of people, though.

Apparently it is too easy for new people to get into the school nowadays. When I enrolled way back when, it was actually a process and I had to write an essay about why I wanted to go there (or why I deserved to get in); now it seems like grandma is standing at the door ushering kids in and offering them cookies! She welcomes them and hopes they do not leave because then the farm, I mean school, will get less government funding.

What happened to the bubble of space that each person is supposed to have? The cafeteria in the morning, the halls in between classes, and even the classrooms have gotten congested. Who can be comfortable with an area of two feet to breathe? It is a hindrance to my education if I do not have my personal space.

I do not think anything will be done any time soon, but the simple solution for the future is to not enroll more students than can fit comfortably in the school; students would then be able to walk through the halls like humans instead of herds of cattle.