Coming to An End?

When I first started this blog, I was not only new at the school and shy, but a bit skeptical about the idea of having a blog. I was scared of what the people reading would think about it (even though I'm pretty sure only about three people actually read my blog). Over the course of having this blog I've grown as a person, made new friends, and become more comfortable with sharing my interests and experiences. Sometimes of the course I'v had trouble thinking of things to write about, or how to make it appeal to the readers but I've learned from not only this blog and class, but my whole experience while here that I should not care what people think of me because I am who I am. And trust me, I know for a fact that that is definitely easier said than done.

photo of me, taken by me

Although letting go of your anxiety or worries of what people think about you is difficult, I think it's really important and this blog helps to be able to do that. Because I can be myself when writing these posts. Not only because maybe some people reading this are not from this school, or state or even country. I highly doubt the reality of that, but imagining that helps me feel more comfortable being myself on this blog.

I've also learned over the course of this year that this blog is kind of like my personal diary that I can write down my thoughts and opinions inside. I can rant about things or express my thoughts and feelings, as if it is my diary. Only a few people will read it anyways, and so I like the idea of being able to post my thoughts.

As for how this blog has helped me become who I am today... I don't feel much different but I do know I'm more comfortable with talking to people and sharing ideas. I am still quite shy and quiet around people I am not close friends with, but in the end at least we have something to talk about. If I am at some sort of get together and see a fellow Honors English student that I don't really ever talk to, here's one more thing to talk about to keep it from becoming awkward, haha.

Overall, this blog has been a really great experience, and although I don't think I am going to continue posting, I am looking forward to reflecting on these blog post when I get a bit older. I think it'll be cool to look back at these blog posts in ten or fifteen years. Anyways, to finish off this final post, I want to thank whoever reads this for reading it. This has been a fun journey and I enjoyed writing these posts, even if no one ever read them! I also want to thank my friends for being the two or three people who read my blog and you can check them out on Teen Travel Tips and Anything And Everything.

Thanks for everything,
Ariel

Festivals, Ice Cream and Crane Necklaces

Picture of Calpico, taken by me

This previous weekend on Saturday I went to a Japanese festival in Salt Lake City with my friend Marea from the blog Anything and Everything. The festival was held on a street, with various vender, for both food and other items like clothing and accessories. They also had a few game tents or booths, and two separate stages with different performances going on. It was a very cool experience and I got to try some very good food, and drinks while there. I had a teriyaki beef bowl and successfully ate it with chopsticks, haha. We also shared gyoza, which for those who do not know, is a Japanese pan-fried dumpling.The food was delicious and I enjoyed it a lot. While at the festival I also tried a White Peach Calpico, which is a Japanese carbonated drink, that is almost milky, similar to Yakult (Yakult is another Japanese drink).

Not only were there vendors at the festival, but there was also a small store that had knickknacks, candy, accessories, jewelry and many other cute items. While there, my friend and I both purchased delicate little necklaces with a gold circle pendant that has a crane etched in. It is supposed to represent or bring good luck to person who is wearing it. I also purchased a pack of miniature colored pencils, that actually work. In comparison to my pinky finger, each colored pencil is about half the length.

Ice Cream, photo taken by me

My friend and I shopped, ate and watched the different performances before heading to The Habit, a fast food restaurant to get ice cream cones. Throughout the day I had a lot of fun exploring, taking artsy pictures and just walking around spending time with my friend. It was a great experience and although I do not know a ton about the culture and lifestyle it was super cool and interesting to be involved for the day!

I am hoping to go back to this festival next year, or find another one similar to it wherever I am (since I am most likely moving). The festival was an amazing and fun experience and I hope that next year, whether I'm here (in Utah) or in Florida that I will be able to find another festival or cultural event like this one and spend a fun day with friends exploring.

Overall I had a very fun time and ended up going to see Park City High School's production of Anne Frank afterwards. I hope you enjoyed this blogpost and make sure to check out Anything and Everything if you'd like, Marea writes some pretty cool posts. Anyways, see you next time!

~Ariel

Looking For Alaska Book Review

Looking for Alaska is a young adult novel, written by John Green about an emotionally unstable, teenage girl named Alaska Young. It is told from the perspective of high school junior Miles Halter, also known as Pudge by his friends. Miles or Pudge is a new student at Culver Creek Preparatory High School in Alabama. The novel follows Pudge, who does not receive a very warm welcome to the school, Alaska and their friends Chip also known as The Colonel and Takumi, through their junior year of high school. On Miles’ first night at Culver Creek he is thrown into a lake as a prank performed by the Weekday Warriors, a group of rich students at Culver Creek. Therefore, it is the group of friends' goal throughout the novel to out-prank the Weekday Warriors to get them back for their cruel prank on the new kid. Throughout the story John Green gives a bit of background on the character’s past and explains events or experiences that may affect the way the characters are in current time, such as when the whole group of friends get drunk and play a game of “Best and Worst Days”. As the book progresses Alaska becomes more unhappy with her life and sometimes a little moody. Small events pertaining to her attitude eventually lead up to a reckless incident, leaving Alaska dead and her friends in a state of depression. After Alaska Young's death Pudge spends most of his time in mourning until the Colonel decides they need to solve the mystery of Alaska's death. Was it suicide? The quick and fast way out? Or was it really all an accident? While trying to figure out what really happened Pudge, The Colonel and Takumi decide to have one final prank in honor of Alaska, which was respectably the best prank of all time in Culver Creek's history of pranks according to the book.

Photo courtesy of Wikipedia

Overall I thought this book was really good and left me a bit awestruck. It had a great plot, diverse and amazing characters, and a fantastic ending. Although this book was sad and had me in tears the storyline and charcters were very easy to connect with. They felt very real and had opinions and emotions that were relatable and understandable. It really felt as if each character had their own personality and were not just characters. Green did a very good job of making these characters their own person rather than them all sounding and acting as if they were created by the same author. Green also includes details that help make the story more realistic and interesting. The emotions that the characters have make the book more enjoyable and help to make it feel like something I personally could connect with more. The setting also helps make the scene and story easier to imagine and visualize in your mind.

To conclude, this book was fantastic and if you have not read it, I definitely recommend reading it. It is a beautiful piece of literature that I would gladly read multiple times, and usually when I can read a book more than once, it's a pretty good book... Well at least in my opinion! If you would like to see a larger summary and description of this book and the author you can check out Wikipedia's page!

-Ariel