Once Upon a Semester--

NOTE: All these pictures were taken today.

My name is Johann Alcaraz, also known as "John" for the sake of Jsquared- my dual personality. Mr. T has given me and my classmates the opportunity to create our own type of evaluation. I'm not sure how to come about in doing this, but I'll attempt anyways:

It's 1:54 a.m. and I'm pretty darn tired. However, I had just drank a Rockstar so although I'm tired, I'm not sleepy. I don't know if my brain is being weird, but I'm thinking of evaluating myself on the terms of my home life as it pertains to my study habits. Perhaps this may enlighten you on my apparent "slacking" status and as to the reason why I'm even awake at this hour. You see, for the past couple of weeks, I've slept before midnight-- but as a consequence, I never finished my Fiziks homework in advance and 90% 

of the time, I end up finishing it at school, or even, not at all. But today, I actually want to do some work and have something to show for it. I realize that I haven't turned

 in an assignment in a while.. tsk tsk tsk.

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On your right is my bed. Scattered among it are

 my Fiziks workbooks.
1. Hewitt Concept Development: I love this workbook. I use it a lot to help me understand the fundamentals of any concept that Giancoli boggles my mind with. I've also photocopied the whole workbook so that I may write/draw in it, especially when it comes to excercises with diagrams and pictures.

2. Giancoli Problem-Solving: I use this sparingly and not as much as I should. When muddling through Fiziks Qs and Ps, I sometimes resort to checking if the Q or P is listed in there, and if so, I use it. 

3. Hickman Problem-Solving: I've yet to touch this. So far, it's been just another book on that bookshelf of mine.  

Next picture: Study Place 2. I usually have a laptop on that minitable with the computer chair, but it is currently in my dad's po

ssession. This is where I us

ually do my Cornell notes (typed of course) and my Giancoli Qs and Ps. Do notice that my bed is only a few feet away from that area- the biggest temptation in the world is to take a nap and tell myself "I'll wake up at 2:00 a.m. and finish it then." YEAH RIGHT. Countless times I have fallen into that lethargic state waking up into the next day with 15 minutes to get to school for Leadership, and with incomplete homework assignments. Lately, I've been so tired that even if I force myself to try and concentrate, I just go to sleep. It's been a habit and because of it, I've fallen behind on the past 2 units

. Yet another shame. But LUCKILY, I've recently just found a way (recently as in today) to rid myself of that temptation. It's working now so I'm planning on implementing it daily. Check out Study Place 3.

The dining table works wonders! I wonder why I hadn't thought of it before!

Alright, so here's what I'm thinking:
I'm making a pact with myself. I am going to finish or at least try and work on at least one Fiziks assignment every night. Mr. T is right: Cramming is useless in this course. I need to get back on track-- I've succumbed to my emotions long enough and I refuse to let it affect my education. Cmon John, move aside and let Johann have the floor for second semester..please!

Here's my plan: Don't even worry about making up the past 2 units just yet. Focus on the current unit and reviewing what you can for Wednesday's final. Once the week is over, REST. After a weekend of resting, pick up where you left off and catch up gradually. Once you return to school, it'll be a New Year. As cliche as it sounds, START FRESH. Oh, and ask Earnest to be an accountability buddy and keep you in check. You can't go at this alone..
P.S. Start doing homework at the dining table. :]

Study Place 4: This is located inside my parent's bedroom and is the ONLY computer with internet/printer access in the house. It is the 2nd most fought-after item in the house (#1 being the remote control). Sometimes, I go 3-5 days without finding an open slot to get online. But with it being currently 3:08 a.m. right now, competition is sleeping hehe.

With this computer, I log into Fusion, Gmail, Blogger, and.....Myspace -__- (as seen on the screen )

I've yet to use the Section Links from Fusion, but I love the almost-always-up-to-date calendar that lets me know what's coming up in class.  As for Gmail, I use it a lot a lot a lot a lot. But what I need improvement on is my COMMUNICATION with Mr. T. A socratic dialogue has escaped me once again. I must admit- I kinda miss spending a few hours online collaborating with my classmates in finishing a lab over Gmail's Share feature and talking it over in a chatroom. [Note to Mr. T: Bring back labs please? I guess it's true that you don't miss something until it's gone...] Oh, and if you haven't noticed, I'm missing an evaluation blog from the previous report card time. Yeah, I never did it. The signs of my slacking abound, but I'm determined to come back around in the second semester- heck, I'm starting now.

It feels good knowing I was productive throughout the day. As I look back on the past weeks since Thanksgiving, I frown at the time I've wasted. My homework log has not been touched for a month. It's a shame. But coming back up is never impossible.

Yeah, this evaluation may not be the norm-- but it's served as a good recollection for me. 

Now, the question remains: What grade do I believe I've EARNED?

==> Grade Right Now: C.

==> Grade-To-Date (Cumulative): A- 

Because of my recent performance, I don't think I deserve very much. However, taking into account that this is my SEMESTER grade, I do feel as if I've earned an A- throughout the time, work, and effort I've spent for this class from the beginning of the school year until now. 

Right now, I think I'll consider myself on probation with that A-. I need to prove to myself, Mr. T., and my classmates, that I am worth that A- and 2nd Semester is gonna hit 'em hard. 

This semester has been a growing experience for me. It's also a 'first' experience for me in terms of letting my emotions and drama take over my focus on education. I've lived through it and I've learned and am continuing to learn through it. If I am to relate it to the current unit:

I need more momentum. Rushing and cramming (velocity) won't do it, so the only other ingredient left is force. I need to get back to that certain level of DISCIPLINE.

Once upon a semester, Jsquared worked harder, and not smarter, until it got to the point where she gave in and gave up. Will she stay down? Will she rise back and endure? Tune in next semester and find out!