Admissions Preview

So, last Saturday I went to our school's main campus for an admissions preview. Quite honestly, I should not have gone considering the amount of schoolwork I had to do but I had signed up for it so of course I went. I've always wanted to do an admissions preview, I suppose because I like talking to and meeting new people and answering prospective students's questions. There were two other IB students with me and we did not get too many people coming over to our table considering the preview was for the lower grades. However, I did see a couple parents come in with misconceptions about the IB and the FB tracks, and we were able to answer their questions for them. I was a bit nervous that someone may ask me to do something that would put me on the spot (such as, speak Spanish?) but nothing of the sort happened and I am glad I went for the experience even if it was not very interesting, I probably would have regretted it if I hadn't.

Halloween Boum!

When I came back from break (which I did the day before school started again) the reality that the boum was on that Friday hit me. But we quickly passed out permission slips that day. That whole week I was planning decorations and food and driving around to buy things and desperately trying to get a speaker. (Which we could not get but it turns out the hallway intercom worked fine. Still, no more boums without speakers.)
           On the day of the boum all these kids turned in their slips when they were supposed to have turned them in the day before. That's fine seeing as we passed them out Monday, but in the future I think we'll require them to turn the slips in on Tuesday (having passed them out the week before) and keep that strict because we have to order food. We did sandwiches, pizza, and caramel popcorn as well as candies. It would have been cooler to not have pizza at all, but it was fine. I did get a variety of sodapop though. Not enough however, due to late permission slips but that's okay.
          Next time and we'll definitely be in a different venue, it would be cool if the food could be in an area separate from the dancing, somewhere small with enough light to see the food and drinks. The issue of 30 people using 80 plastic cups is very annoying. Sharpies next time?
          Music was another issue though, the volume was fine but we listened to a few complaints anyway and tried to make it louder and change the songs all night. Not again.
I spent so much time setting up, we had tons of Halloween decor in storage plus the things I brought. I got to the boum 30 minutes after it started actually, it took so long and I had to go home first plus pick up food.

Scary right? One kid said it was "the best decorated boum ever", and that really made me happy. I think everyone had fun which is great, people weren't leaving early like last year and we were able to allow some the seniors and juniors to bring friends outside of school. So there was positive feedback and that's the most important thing.

So behind my brother and my friend is this black plastic sheet we hung on the wall. There were two of them, and they were huge. We splattered glow in the dark paint on them and although we didn't have enough, it sort of worked. The covered a bench with a jack o'lantern on it which looked cool. Hmmm, I didn't really take pictures of the decor before but that's okay. I also used this strobe light DVD that projected against the black sheet. The sheets really served to make the hall look bigger. I actually am really happy with how the decorations went, there were tea lights in plastic jack o'lanterns and real jack o'lanterns and balloons with led lights in them. Twas fun. I still need a prom venue and then the Valentine's boum next. But honestly, no prom venue until I apply to at least a couple colleges. The amount of work my class has been given when we need to be finishing up our college essays and things is ridiculous. Explains why this reflection on the 29th has just come in now. But I have hope, everything will be alright.

Nickel Run 5K

On Saturday I went to the Nickel Run for Nicole.
I decided to wear this shirt that our team had made the soccer season following Nicole's death. Luckily when I was picking up my number I saw some of my former teammates (wearing the shirt also) and they invited me to run with them. Surprisingly I was actually able to maintain a good pace while running and wasn't getting tired or out of breath. At one point however one of my teammates got tired and I decided to run with her as the other two girls had continued running. I really didn't want to leave her behind as I had thought that I wouldn't be able to keep up either. I'm glad I stayed with her even though it took longer. Unfortunately I had to leave just after I crossed the finish line, so I didn't have time to stay and visit with the rest of the team, I only said goodbye to my runningmate and left. But I was able to pick up a Nickel for Nicole postcard.They show a picture of Nicole and the car she was in. The car is absolutely smashed, and you can see the passenger's seat, where she was sittting. It's awful but I hope that Nickel for Nicole and the Nickel Run can help to make a difference in the choices of young drivers (and older drivers) behind the wheel. The postcards are actually sent out for free per online request, so maybe I could order some for my school. It could help bring awareness here too.
These are the race results, my name is under 'Female 16 to 19' :
http://www.clinesrunningcorner.com/results2011/oct8_nickelrun_2011.pdf

A Nickel for Nicole Postcard

I was the Tiger at the DIS Carnival!

 These are pictures of me as our school's mascot, the DIS Tiger at this Saturday's Carnival. I really enjoyed this, although it was a challenge to walk in the overheated costume and take so many pictures with little kids whilst trying to entertain them. Some people watching me say hello to the children called me the "friendliest tiger".

Boum Committee Meeting

Today we had another boum committee meeting. I lost two members, a couple of freshman who seemed to be planning on coming during recess and then decided to tell me they didn't want to do it after I had to go looking for them during lunch. Apparently they "had a lot of work and joined too many clubs", their immaturity was annoying but at least they didn't flake out on me when it would have counted, that is during the boum.
       We were supposed to be deciding on a theme; we didn't want to do Halloween this year as it is quite expected by everyone, but it seems the real problem is location. No one wants to be at our school because it is the same place we spend all our time working, and has not always worked well in the past. No one wants to have it at the school's other campus, because that NEVER works, as it is much too big for the amount of people we have. There were some good ideas tossed around, I just need to take some time to find something that can work.

DIS Movie Night #3

Yesterday was the Fundraising Club's first movie night of the year. We screened Ratatouille in English with French subtitles for the kids at the Churchill campus. I arrived there at 5:30 to set up chairs and the concession stand. For the rest of the night, I sold chips and attended to the cash register, we were very busy all night. Actually it amazed me how many people kept coming again and again to buy things. But at least we raised a lot of money for our school, and these movie nights are always enjoyable. The only thing that is bothersome is the unrest of all the kids. So many of them weren't watching the movie at all and were running around yelling (inside AND outside of the building) while the parents did nothing. Next movie night we're going to try to find a way to calm them down; at least it will be in the winter and they won't be as likely to want to go outside.

Boum Committee Activity This Week!

So this week I was able to begin Boum Committee as the club fair was held Tuesday and Wednesday.
On Monday night, I created a banner for Boum Committee to set up at the club fair, where I recruited Members. Here's a photo of the banner as I was working on it in my room. The only change before the fair was that I sprayed a subtle silver glitter over it.

I really like it! Over Tuesday & Wednesday I sat at a table set up for the committee and recruited 8 members! I also had a meeting with our teacher advisor to discuss our budget, dates, etc. Since our first Boum is October 29th, I wanted to get things started quickly and held our first meeting yesterday. It went pretty well and we're scheduled to have our next one on Tuesday. 

Wipe Out Kids' Cancer Run

So last Saturday I ran at the Wipe Out Kids' Cancer Run in Addison, TX. 

For more evidence, my name is on this results document: http://runningblog.dallasnews.com/archives/2011/09/addison-oktoberfests-wipe-out.html

I think this is a great event for a good cause and I really had a fun time running. I actually ran with my dog,  he behaved very well so he went all the way (5K or about 3 miles.) There were many people there that ran for a specific child, it was saddening to be reminded that so many children have to face such awful diseases for no reason. But I really think that it's possible to make cancers easier to treat. On another note, I'm happy I ran simply for the exercise of it, which I needed. There is another event that I'll be running at on October 8th, Nickel From Nicole. It's the first run to promote safer teen driving in the memory of Nicole Legrow, who was actually on my soccer team. She died in 2010 at the age of 16. Her friend was driving them to a party, and they were speeding in the rain. They hit a concrete cylinder and Nicole didn't survive. I didn't know Nicole too well, but she was always nice to me and a beautiful person. Going to her memorial service and seeing her mom was the most tragic thing I've ever seen. At the end of it there was a room with photos of her, including a board that she had had in her room with photos, ribbons, tickets and papers on it. At the time I had one very similar to that. Seeing that really affected my own mom who couldn't imagine be able to do such a thing.  I was shocked at how quickly the process of death is finished. I couldn't imagine being able to absorb the shock of a loved one's death and then have a funeral for them in two days, or a memorial service in three. Afterwards, her parents would still come to our soccer games and her mom would always look terrible, I can't imagine how it would be to have someone you love taken away from you so tragically. My heart goes out to them, I think the run will definitely be emotional, but I'd like to go support the Legrow family. 

Just a note . . .

Yesterday an issue touched me that I would like to get involved with. It may or may not end up having anything to do with CAS. But in case it does and because this is on my mind, I'd like to write about it here. If it's found irrelevant and I need to remove it at any time I will.
        I knew that executions as punishment for criminal offenses were still going on in my state of Texas and many other states in the U.S., and had heard mentioned some unjust cases. But last night I became informed of one that has absolutely shocked and disgusted me. All night I watched coverage of protesters a mile outside of a prison in Georgia where an execution was set to take place. Even though I hadn't heard of Troy Davis's case before, it had been protested in cities around the world. Wednesday night it went to the U.S. supreme court once again. And Troy and his family began a night of torture.
       In a case wherein an overwhelming majority of witnesses recanted their statements and admitted they had been threatened by the police to prosecute Davis, wherein Davis's right to choose witnesses was discarded, wherein there was no forensic evidence, you would think that death row is a highly cruel and unusual punishment to dole out to a very likely innocent man.
      Scheduled to die at 7:00, his execution was postponed while the supreme court deliberated. For four hours. During this time, the family had no idea of what was going on as they stood outside with the protesters, a mile away, anxious and sick to their stomachs. They weren't allowed to watch their family member die, whereas the family of the person Davis allegedly killed was. After four hours the supreme court agreed unanimously to kill Davis, without any explanation to him or his family. The president didn't intervene. And so they allowed the state of Georgia to murder an innocent man. There are so many things wrong with this case and the death penalty I cannot write it all here. I've always been against the death penalty but this makes me want to take action, rather than just hold an opinion. So I've contacted a non-profit organization here that works to abolish it in my state, I hope I can do something.
   

Pinwheels for Peace

So last Thursday my peers and I helped with someone's CAS project, Pinwheels for Peace. Pinwheels for Peace is a project that aims to promote peace ( in both politics and everyday life) by distributing material for simple paper and pencil pinwheels to be decorated, created and displayed for International Peace Day. (Which was yesterday, in fact.) So we spent time helping to each decorate and design a pinwheel. I quoted a song from John Lennon in a spiral on one side: "All we're saying . . . is give peace a chance." And made flowers on the other. On the spiral side I also wrote "Think Positively" on two corners. I love the idea of focusing on promoting peace for peace, rather than fighting war for peace. It is actually something I am trying to depict in my artwork, and this attitude of focusing on the positive was a driving force for my decision to change my art show theme.
For more information on Pinwheels For Peace:
http://www.pinwheelsforpeace.com/pinwheelsforpeace/home.html
For sources that helped me to better understand the power of positivity:
http://www.theusversusjohnlennon.com/site/ (Film)
http://thesecret.tv/ (Film & Book)

Me working on the Pinwheel.

 

Face design of the Pinwheel. 

Back design of the Pinwheel. 

Fundraising Committee Car Wash

Here's a photo of me at the car wash last year! I'm on the right and that's Noor again from the Russian Gala on the left. I should be attending more car washes and movie nights this year with the Fundraising Committee.

Student Council Meetings

So the school year has started and I've already attended two student council meetings, one of which was today during lunch. Our President, Noor introduced the student council and we each had to speak to the new head of highschool on our role. I intoduced my role as Boum Committee President and told Mr. Vanhille of my goals for this year. I'm still very excited.

Boum/Prom Committee

This year I'm the president of the Boum Committee at school, which organizes the dances and prom. I'm really excited actually, this summer I was even writing things down. In this reflection I'm going to write about some of the things I did last year as well as what I'm preparing for this year.

Last year I attended all meetings as well as helped prepare and setup the boums/proms. For prom I spent time picking up fabric for the red carpet and gauzy fabric to drape on the ceiling. During set up I brought over two silver line poles from my house to use as it was a red carpet theme. I helped set up Prom and cleaned up after. The experience really convinced me that I wanted to run for Boum Committee president. This year I am especially excited and have been working on possible themes, issues to address at the meeting, the committee agreement for members to sign and posters to promote the committee to new members, even though I may have to wait until late September to recruit members at the school's club fair before I can have meetings. I truly can't wait to start and aim to keep up this energy all year.
Picture: Fellow Boum Committee member Noor & I out shopping for fabric in 2011.

Set Design

For our school's theater festival I was asked to make a fireplace prop three days in advance. With that short amount of time I worked with two sophomores to create it. I was so grateful for their help because they randomly asked to get the cardboard out of my car and started it while I was in class. One of them did wonderful flames as well. Unfortunately the prop was taken before I could photograph it finished. But I've attached a photo of the painted box, we used umber, gold, and bronze metallic to give it the look of wood.

Soccer Camp

Over spring break I volunteered at my school's soccer camp. Mostly I walked the kids to the restroom and watched the three troublemakers that refused to participate. It was a new experience attempting to control these adorable kids, a couple of the boys first told me how they were going to hurt me and then wouldn't stop hugging me. I definitely had to try my best to discipline them, but I would love to do it again.

We took these with my phone (that's why they're a bit yellow) the last day, I probably shouldn't have brought it out as a distraction tool though because afterward all of them wanted to have a turn with it!

Simon's Art Show

On March 31st and April 1st I helped a senior in my art class set up their IB art show. As I'm in art and will also have to present my studio pieces in a show next year I thought that I should support Simon as well as attain some experience for my show. I helped him and our art teacher for about three hours after school ( I left around 8:15 at night!) stabilizing the walls, repainting them, adding hooks to pieces and then mounting them up. The next day I also spent an hour in the morning painting one wall a brighter white. That afternoon he had his art show and   I think it went well, I was very glad to have been able to help him.

DIS Movie Night #2

Following the success of our last movie night the Student Gov. Fund Committee of which I am a part of decided to host a second movie night. It occurred on March 25th and I attended to help set up the gym (chairs, tables, concessions,) sell the refreshments, and then stayed after to clean up.

 

My friend Noor & I in Russian costume at the gala.

Russian Gala 2011

Each year our school hosts a gala and auction to raise funds for the school, and this year I was asked to volunteer there. As it's the year of Russia we were required to wear Russian costumes. I went at first in the morning to help set up the tables and their centerpieces. Then I arrived in the evening in Russian costume to greet  the guests and sell raffle tickets and treasure bags. It was a very fun experience and pleasure to represent my school, I hope that next year I will receive this opportunity again.

Volunteering at ReStore

We moved things around the store as it was very messy because they constantly get new donations. Working there was fine except for this man with some sort of apparent mental disablity that constantly kept shaking my hand, talking about me and staring. At one point he actually asked "Am I creeping you out?" So I think he knew how he was acting despite whatever was wrong with him and I regret allowing him to shake my hand about 20 times that day.

A couple lessons later. . .

I'm not sure which is better so here are both. These were taken after 2 or 3 lessons, the song is "Exitlude" off The Killer's album Sam's Town. "Enterlude" & "Exitlude" both have the same lovely piano melody, just varying lengths and this couple is one of my favorite things to sing ever, I sang "Exitlude" in class but it was apparently fine so we moved on to a more difficult song.

Singing (before lessons)

These were done shortly before I began lessons, I'm singing a bit of an unreleased MIKA song, "You Made Me". I was trying to keep my voice from sounding ridiculously flowing as it can sound recorded. By the way, I'm zoomed up on a pillow, in the future I'll definitely include videos with my face.

Voice & Piano Lessons

It's been quite awhile now that I've wanted to take voice and piano lessons, and now, with the excuse of at the least 150 hours of CAS that need to be completed, I am getting that opportunity. During middle school I really became interested in singing and piano. I had taken piano lessons before for about a year when I was eight, but I did not have much interest in practicing and eventually stopped. In fact, I didn't listen to much music at all except for the radio. In middle school however I discovered a few artists that really influenced me to want to sing and play piano. I've sang alot  for myself since then, but without anyone to ever direct me. I hope that by taking these lessons I can gain some confidence in singing and a new skill in piano. It will be challenging most of all for me to gain confidence, because singing was very personal for me for a long time; but I am very excited to try my best and go as far as possible.

DIS Carnival

This is a picture of myself and a few of my classmates back in October while volunteering at DIS's Carnival. We face-painted nonstop for quite a while.