Sunday, December 20, 2009
Back To Wordpress
Hey all. So I found a free host that had decent bandwidth and disk space, and decided to move over there. The main reason though, is that they also allow me to install Wordpress and use my own domain, and all for free. So from now on, www.asiania.net will bring you to the newer one. I'll be posting on there from now on. I hope you guys will continue to follow me!
Tuesday, December 15, 2009
Days Like These...
You know, sometimes, I read about how politicians are pushing for longer school days. I'm pretty sure that politicians are supposed to represent the people's needs. So have they lost it? I wake up at 6:30 every morning, go through 7 classes (and no, that's not counting lunch!) and get out of school at 3:30. Then I have to take care of whatever school business I have, go to my locker, pack up.
After the one hour long commute home, it's about 5:00 already. Add in some socializing, and all of a sudden, I get home at 5:30. Let's say dinner and a shower take an hour total. That's 6:30. I work on homework for 3 hours (which really isn't enough), and it's 9:30. If I go to sleep then, without tossing around until 11 like I usually do, then I get 9 hours of sleep. Not too shabby, right?
But this is based on an ideal world. Guess what? I'm a teenager, so I have a social life. Then there's other things that get in the way, like a Physics unit due, an AP Chem lab due, a Guitar concert to play in... And I can't fall asleep right away either. So maybe I get 7 hours of sleep every night, and some days, I have to skip certain homework assignments to make it work. This juggling act doesn't work... I wake up every morning, my body already beat. Then I tear it through 7 and a half hours of school.
By the way, to any politicians out there, all teachers like to make their big assignments due around the same time. It's the week before winter break, and I have a test/quiz/unit due/concert in EVERY class I take. I'm not exaggerating. I have a test in AP Chem, a unit due in Physics (Hon), a concert to play in for Guitar 2, a quiz in Pre Calc (Hon), a quiz in Mandarin 3 (Hon), a quiz in Brit Lit (Hon), and a quiz in Driver's Ed. I'm only a sophomore.. God damn it, the system is so fucked up already. And these retarded politicians want to extend the school day? I dare them to do it. I dare them, because they won't be elected once my generation is allowed to vote.
Seriously, these politicians need to get more in touch with their people.
After the one hour long commute home, it's about 5:00 already. Add in some socializing, and all of a sudden, I get home at 5:30. Let's say dinner and a shower take an hour total. That's 6:30. I work on homework for 3 hours (which really isn't enough), and it's 9:30. If I go to sleep then, without tossing around until 11 like I usually do, then I get 9 hours of sleep. Not too shabby, right?
But this is based on an ideal world. Guess what? I'm a teenager, so I have a social life. Then there's other things that get in the way, like a Physics unit due, an AP Chem lab due, a Guitar concert to play in... And I can't fall asleep right away either. So maybe I get 7 hours of sleep every night, and some days, I have to skip certain homework assignments to make it work. This juggling act doesn't work... I wake up every morning, my body already beat. Then I tear it through 7 and a half hours of school.
By the way, to any politicians out there, all teachers like to make their big assignments due around the same time. It's the week before winter break, and I have a test/quiz/unit due/concert in EVERY class I take. I'm not exaggerating. I have a test in AP Chem, a unit due in Physics (Hon), a concert to play in for Guitar 2, a quiz in Pre Calc (Hon), a quiz in Mandarin 3 (Hon), a quiz in Brit Lit (Hon), and a quiz in Driver's Ed. I'm only a sophomore.. God damn it, the system is so fucked up already. And these retarded politicians want to extend the school day? I dare them to do it. I dare them, because they won't be elected once my generation is allowed to vote.
Seriously, these politicians need to get more in touch with their people.
Saturday, November 21, 2009
Just Keep Coming Back
I tried starting a more personal blog yesterday, and I looked through a bunch of places that I could blog at. Eventually, I started one (won't say where), but no matter how much I tried to like it, I couldn't. It felt so dead. I keep feeling drawn back to Asiania. Even though hardly a soul visits the blog (I get something like 300 visits a month), I feel compelled to share my story here instead of elsewhere.
Ugh, I don't even know what I want to say. The past weeks have taken their toll on me. There's been too much work. It's also winter now. Combine a cold world with a bunch of work and throw that on a teen that's probably going through emotional changes (it's who we are). Life just isn't as cool as it used to be. I feel like I'm slipping from society. There are a few anchors holding me down, but for the most part, I am oblivious to others. How can I go through another 2 years of high school? Something better change.
Ugh, I don't even know what I want to say. The past weeks have taken their toll on me. There's been too much work. It's also winter now. Combine a cold world with a bunch of work and throw that on a teen that's probably going through emotional changes (it's who we are). Life just isn't as cool as it used to be. I feel like I'm slipping from society. There are a few anchors holding me down, but for the most part, I am oblivious to others. How can I go through another 2 years of high school? Something better change.
Gary M.
Saturday, October 31, 2009
Wading Through Memories
I went to Chinatown to get my braces tightened, like I do every month. And every time I go, I hope that I might make it through my appointment and be back home without running into anyone I used to know. It's not that I hate them, but that I don't feel any connections with them anymore. When I talk to most of them it is a conversation born out of politeness.
After I left Haines, the elementary school I went to, to go to WY for 7th grade, things changed. 7th and 8th grade are the two years that kids change the most. Those moments that I missed out on are memories they share that I will never have the privilege of knowing. But it's not even just that. Those years I had at WY changed me in such a way that I don't think people from Haines can understand.
Sometimes, I feel like I've matured so much at WY, and when I revisit my old friends, it feels as if they haven't matured at all. I marvel at how they could still talk the way they did, the way their minds still thought about the same things. When I see them, I wonder how they can continue to do it their way, when the rest of the world does it a different way. Here's a bunch of people that are still into anime, that are geeky around girls, and listen to Korean music like all Chinese people do. But in the four years I've been separated from them, I feel as if I've grown enough to begin my life.
I want to start doing things with my life. I want to start a company, or manage others, or just take on responsibilities in general. But these guys that I grew up with are still kids in my eyes. The way they act, it doesn't look like they think the same way I do. They don't want to grow up and become adults. So while we may share a past, I'm already looking towards the future.
After I left Haines, the elementary school I went to, to go to WY for 7th grade, things changed. 7th and 8th grade are the two years that kids change the most. Those moments that I missed out on are memories they share that I will never have the privilege of knowing. But it's not even just that. Those years I had at WY changed me in such a way that I don't think people from Haines can understand.
Sometimes, I feel like I've matured so much at WY, and when I revisit my old friends, it feels as if they haven't matured at all. I marvel at how they could still talk the way they did, the way their minds still thought about the same things. When I see them, I wonder how they can continue to do it their way, when the rest of the world does it a different way. Here's a bunch of people that are still into anime, that are geeky around girls, and listen to Korean music like all Chinese people do. But in the four years I've been separated from them, I feel as if I've grown enough to begin my life.
I want to start doing things with my life. I want to start a company, or manage others, or just take on responsibilities in general. But these guys that I grew up with are still kids in my eyes. The way they act, it doesn't look like they think the same way I do. They don't want to grow up and become adults. So while we may share a past, I'm already looking towards the future.
-Gary Mei
Thursday, October 29, 2009
To Find That Source
I've joined a couple sites that pay for writing, and the pay is pretty meager. That's why I've submitted about 20 unique articles in 2 (ish) years, and most of them weren't even any good. But today, I finally got the courage to join Constant Content.
Constant Content is a bit more professional than other sites such as AC, Helium, Triond, Bukisa, etc. Instead of getting paid per page view (ok, AC has Upfront Payments but it's mostly meager), you write an article and you set the price you want and how much rights the customer gets.
When the other sites pay out anywhere from $1 to $10 (there are some that go above that, but that's rarer) per article over the course of its life, you might think that's good. "Hey, $10 for an article I can write in an hour? That's over minimum wage!". Sorry to burst your bubble, but a writer demands much more than $10 for an hour's work... Word smithing is a skill that isn't easily attained and when writing for pay, a writer pushes all their skills and their soul into the piece. To be paid slightly above minimum wage is an insult.
That's why Constant Content seemed like a good bet. They pay what you ask for, so it feels a bit more professional. The only problem is that I can't ever think of anything to write. Constant Content lists requests from people looking to buy, but I'm not interested in any of them. I either have no experience with it (how do I write about what it's life to live in California when I live in Chicago?), or the requests don't meet my tastes. Coming up with an article for a vaguely worded request, that doesn't pay too well, and I don't have a guarantee that it'll be bought doesn't appeal to me.
When I write, I let the words flow out of me. But every flow has a source, and I can't tap that source that my writing comes from unless I know exactly what I'm writing. Even when I blog I can't find that source. Compare my blogging to the writing I produce when it's commisioned. There's a huge difference in tone, style, and overall quality. But if I ever want to succeed as a writer, I have to be able to access that Source whenever I want to.
Constant Content is a bit more professional than other sites such as AC, Helium, Triond, Bukisa, etc. Instead of getting paid per page view (ok, AC has Upfront Payments but it's mostly meager), you write an article and you set the price you want and how much rights the customer gets.
When the other sites pay out anywhere from $1 to $10 (there are some that go above that, but that's rarer) per article over the course of its life, you might think that's good. "Hey, $10 for an article I can write in an hour? That's over minimum wage!". Sorry to burst your bubble, but a writer demands much more than $10 for an hour's work... Word smithing is a skill that isn't easily attained and when writing for pay, a writer pushes all their skills and their soul into the piece. To be paid slightly above minimum wage is an insult.
That's why Constant Content seemed like a good bet. They pay what you ask for, so it feels a bit more professional. The only problem is that I can't ever think of anything to write. Constant Content lists requests from people looking to buy, but I'm not interested in any of them. I either have no experience with it (how do I write about what it's life to live in California when I live in Chicago?), or the requests don't meet my tastes. Coming up with an article for a vaguely worded request, that doesn't pay too well, and I don't have a guarantee that it'll be bought doesn't appeal to me.
When I write, I let the words flow out of me. But every flow has a source, and I can't tap that source that my writing comes from unless I know exactly what I'm writing. Even when I blog I can't find that source. Compare my blogging to the writing I produce when it's commisioned. There's a huge difference in tone, style, and overall quality. But if I ever want to succeed as a writer, I have to be able to access that Source whenever I want to.
-Gary M.
Oh the Irony
Okay, so it's been a while since the Asiania Team has posted stuff but here's a funny story i have to tell.
Okay, so i bought this racquet online, the Wilson kfactor kzen, for those of you who play tennis, or who has some tennis knowledge, it's a pretty good racquet. I got it like 75% off and got free stringing and free overgrip and every thing for only 75$! It's a great deal. I even got free shipping!
But then my dad was being so asian! He was like "75$? WTF why so much? you can go to Target and get some racquet for 30$. It's still a racquet right?"
I aruged with him and he got mad so he like started hitting me. WITH MY NEW TENNIS RACQUET I BOUGHT.
so for about 2 days i couldn't sit on my thighs/butt. Oh the irony, i got spanked by the tennis racquet i got for 75% off. Guess it was the compensation. LOL
WHY MUST MY PARENTS BE SO ASIAN!?
Okay, so i bought this racquet online, the Wilson kfactor kzen, for those of you who play tennis, or who has some tennis knowledge, it's a pretty good racquet. I got it like 75% off and got free stringing and free overgrip and every thing for only 75$! It's a great deal. I even got free shipping!
But then my dad was being so asian! He was like "75$? WTF why so much? you can go to Target and get some racquet for 30$. It's still a racquet right?"
I aruged with him and he got mad so he like started hitting me. WITH MY NEW TENNIS RACQUET I BOUGHT.
so for about 2 days i couldn't sit on my thighs/butt. Oh the irony, i got spanked by the tennis racquet i got for 75% off. Guess it was the compensation. LOL
WHY MUST MY PARENTS BE SO ASIAN!?
Friday, October 23, 2009
War, A Necessary Evil
Pakistan's launched a huge offensive against one of the main Taliban strongholds, and I applaud them for that. War isn't a pleasant thing, but someone's got to do it.
Here in the U.S., there are plenty of people calling for the American troops to come back home, for the war to end. But who's going to fight if we don't? Yes, Iraq and Afghanistan are far away from American soil. But that doesn't mean it's not our problem. Take a look anywhere in the news. African countries are being invaded by Al-Qaeda ideals, Iraq still has militants, Pakistan's trying to control the Taliban, Hamas (a terrorist group) runs Gaza, and this is all just the tip of the iceberg.
There are radicals all over the world attempting to spread their hateful ideology and wrest power from the free, democratic governments. There are people out there that want to strip women of all their rights and turn them into inferior beings that men control. There are people out there that want to tell you what to do, when to do it, and how to do it.
These radicals aren't on American soil yet, but if we let them have free reign over the East, it's only a matter of time before they set their eyes toward us. Instead of calling our warriors back home, we should be thanking them for defending not only the sovereignity of our country, but also that of countries that they have no allegiance to. These warriors are heroes.
Here in the U.S., there are plenty of people calling for the American troops to come back home, for the war to end. But who's going to fight if we don't? Yes, Iraq and Afghanistan are far away from American soil. But that doesn't mean it's not our problem. Take a look anywhere in the news. African countries are being invaded by Al-Qaeda ideals, Iraq still has militants, Pakistan's trying to control the Taliban, Hamas (a terrorist group) runs Gaza, and this is all just the tip of the iceberg.
There are radicals all over the world attempting to spread their hateful ideology and wrest power from the free, democratic governments. There are people out there that want to strip women of all their rights and turn them into inferior beings that men control. There are people out there that want to tell you what to do, when to do it, and how to do it.
These radicals aren't on American soil yet, but if we let them have free reign over the East, it's only a matter of time before they set their eyes toward us. Instead of calling our warriors back home, we should be thanking them for defending not only the sovereignity of our country, but also that of countries that they have no allegiance to. These warriors are heroes.
-Gary M.
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