Hair

myfatcats2Leave a comment

Josie has asked me to do her hair after school. I love braiding people’s hair. I especially love braided Josie’s hair because it’s very soft, fine, and easy to braid. Last year, I used to braid her hair all the time in the hammocks. She recently dyed her hair black, and it looks amazing. She’s going to a concert, she’s probably going to get killed at it because everyone is jumping around and flailing their arms everywhere. I’m a little scared for her, but mine as well look cute for your last moments. I’m just kidding. Anyway, I’ve always loved braiding people’s hair. I taught myself how to braid a few different types of braids; the fish tail is my favorite. I just love doing hair in general, and I love different types of people’s hair. The cultures and everything are something that fascinates and really speaks to me. 

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Waiting

ackley4167Leave a comment

Waiting and patience are essential to life, until everything starts to feel like a never-ending cycle. The weekend, for example, is what I look forward to all week. Waiting for each weekend feels like a highly repetitive schedule, which it is. But the wait is always worth it, whether it’s a chill weekend or a fun one.

When it comes to school, we wait for each day to be over, counting down until Friday. Then the schedule repeats itself once it hits Sunday. It’s the same with breaks during the year; we wait for winter break, spring break, and then summer break. Once again, the cycle repeats.

Life almost feels like a waiting game, but what exactly are we waiting for? We watch the clock in each class, waiting for it to end. At work, people do the same thing, watching the clock until their shift is over. Just to do it all again the next day.

I sometimes wish the idea of time had never been created. I understand that it helps people stay organized, but I also think it can feel like brainwashing. Something about the idea of time feels off to me. As I said, it always feels like a constant waiting game that never ends.

Amazon.com: The Ultimate Wall Clock |14 Inch | Modern | Atomic | Analog | Home | Office | School | Gym | Indoor | Outdoor | Sets Automatically | Unbranded | Classic | Black | Battery Operated | Modern Décor : Home & Kitchen

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First Win

thehebrewhammerLeave a comment

Finally, the Spuds are in the win column! Last night we traveled to Thousand Oaks to face the Beacon Hill Gryphons, which was scheduled to be played at 3. But when we showed up to the field at 2:45, the game would probably have to be pushed back a little bit to 3:15. The Hebrew Hammer got the nod from head honcho Hank Pankratz, which would be the correct managerial decision as I bolstered the Spuds to their first win, but it wasn’t just my doing. In the 6th inning, after a handful of errors and a walk, I was in a tough situation with bases loaded and 1 out, and that was until the best play of the game was made by my freshman Henry Zhou, the kid who does the scorebook, who hasn’t seen a lick of playing time! I threw one pitch, a ball to the 8-hole batter and that was when Coach Pankratz walked to the home plate umpire and started doing a bunch of pointing yelling and all of that stuff, that was when Henry noticed that the other team made an illegal substitution, forcing the batter to be out having me face the 9-hole batter with 2 outs in the innings. After striking him out on 3 pitches, it was onto the 7th inning, in which local hero Bennett Brown was up to bat. Jay then screamed from the dugout, “Get hit for me, Bennett!” In which he listened perfectly, as he got nailed in the back and immediately dropped to his hands and knees and went into the most voracious arch any of the team has ever seen. All in all, it was a beautiful first win, and the team will definitely carry this energy to next week.

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Film Analysis — Sinners

StrawberryMushroomLeave a comment

Surrounding the subject matter of the 2026 Academy Awards, Ryan Coogler’s Sinners seems to be the primary topic of discussion. The movie set the all-time record for the most Oscar nominations presented to a single film, earning a total of 16 nominations. From merely hearing the film’s premise, I couldn’t imagine it warranting the praise it seemed to be receiving. But after seeing the film for myself, it was clear that the film held a significant amount of subtext beneath its seemingly simple exterior.

On paper, the film seems to be a generic and straightforward musical horror thriller featuring vampires. But my favorite aspect of the movie is how it takes its seemingly simple premise to convey a complex, layered story featuring historical and political subtext. The film could’ve so easily had the threat of vampires serve as a metaphor for racism. But instead, Coogler explores more nuanced themes through its premise; the vampires represent assimilation under one unified group and hive-mind. Their ultimate goal to corrupt Sammie for his extraordinary musical talent mirrors the exploitation and cultural appropriation of Black culture, with music being incorporated to further reinforce the juxtaposed themes of individualism versus unification; while the music in the juke joint is composed of various instruments and voices layered on top one of another, the music from the vampires seem very coreographed, rehearsed, and in sync, once again highlighting their desire to assimilate and strip cultures of their originality.

The Deeper Meaning of the Blues Music in 'Sinners,' Explained | Marie Claire

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Mornings

riceandsoysauce4Leave a comment

There is something about early mornings that feels different from the rest of the day. Everything is quieter, slower, and a little more honest. The light comes in softly, and for a moment, it feels like nothing is expected of you yet. I have always liked that feeling, even if I am not naturally a morning person. It feels like a small reset before everything begins again.

I usually notice how calm everything is before the day starts moving. There is less noise, fewer messages, and not much pressure to respond to anything right away. 

I think moments like that are important. Life can get overwhelming and fast, especially with school, decisions, and everything else constantly happening. Having even a few minutes to slow down makes everything feel a little more manageable. It reminds me that not every second has to be filled, and that sometimes doing nothing is actually exactly what you need.

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Baseball

Halos_击Leave a comment

I had recently joined the baseball team at the beginning of the sports season. I haven’t done a team sport since I was like… 7 or 8, and I’m just getting into sports now. I don’t know what drove me to join baseball, but, at the same time, I would think it would be fun anyway.

After losing a game 3-13 (ouch.) I wanted to get better. Sure, I haven’t had any sports experience prior, but… It’s the effort that counts. As soon as I got home, my dad and I played catch.

It was nice playing catch with him because I like playing baseball, and he’s a good person to play catch with.

We had a game today, and we won 4-3! My parents were so happy to find out that we won, even though I was benched the whole time. I strive to get better, though, no matter what. Even if I won’t be put out in play.

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Rumi the Poet

riceandsoysauce4Leave a comment

I am named after the Sufi mystic poet Jalāl al-Dīn Muḥammad Rūmī, commonly known as Rumi. He is one of the world’s most widely read poets, known for writing about love, spirituality, and the search for meaning in a way that still resonates centuries later. Here is a list of my favorite poems by him:

  • “The Guest House”
  • “Where There Is Ruin, There Is Hope for a Treasure”
  • “What You Seek Is Seeking You”
  • “Stop Acting So Small”
  • “The Wound Is the Place Where the Light Enters You”

What I love most about Rumi’s work is how it feels both deeply personal and universal at the same time. His words capture emotions that are often hard to put into language, like longing, growth, and self-discovery. Reading his poetry feels grounding and calming, especially during moments of uncertainty.

Being named after him feels meaningful to me. It reminds me to stay open to change, to be reflective, and to look for beauty even in difficult situations. His poetry encourages me to think more deeply about life and the connections I have with others.

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Around the Corner

zombiegxrlLeave a comment

I feel as though time is moving more quickly than it should. I feel as though my senior year of high school only started weeks ago. I feel as though I just began new and more difficult classes, but in reality, I’ve been sitting through them for months now. When we were approaching the end of the first quarter, I remember thinking to myself, “You have to do that three more times,” and feeling defeated by the seemingly endless amount of work I would still have to complete to graduate. Now, we’ve begun the fourth quarter. It feels unreal that all the work and time I was dreading is now behind me. It feels unreal that high school is almost over. It feels unreal that I will be looking up at everyone during graduation, instead of watching from high up in the amphitheater seating. Although I’m relieved that I can leave behind the long and tiring years of high school, I’m still sad that it’s over. I feel like I’m saying goodbye to my childhood. Sometimes I think back to my first day in public school, when I received my student ID. It specified that the year I would graduate was 2026, and it seemed an impossible distance away. Now it is 2026, and that impressionable and innocent child has faded and worn. I hope she will not completely fade away after graduating, because innocence is too beautiful to lose forever. I guess they really meant it when they said it’ll all be over in the blink of an eye.

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Last 2 months of Junior year

Soccer11Leave a comment

The end of junior year is coming up, and summer is right around the corner. I’m excited for senior year, but I’m not excited to have to start college essays and applications. I know that I’m most likely going to have senioritis because I already have it this year. I’m also already stressed about what college I’m gonna wanna go to because I want to stay in California, preferably Southern California. I would really like to be in LA, but not in the middle of LA. I’m also excited for this summer, even though I probably won’t be doing very much or going anywhere, but it will still be fun to go to the beach, tan, and surf. This summer, I probably won’t have that much free time, though, because of soccer season and work, which will probably take up a lot of my time this summer. I’m really excited to see how next year goes and to hang out with my friends this summer. 

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Sunday Scaries

candystealer76Leave a comment

Sundays have this very specific, heavy energy that hits around 5:00 PM. The weekend isn’t technically over yet, but it feels like it is. Even if the day was good, the thought of Monday morning starts taking over. It isn’t always about having a test or homework due the following day, sometimes it’s just the dread of knowing the routine is starting all over again. It’s the part of the night when all I want to do is relax, but instead, I’m procrastinating on the one last thing I have to do while scrolling on my phone.

There is comfort knowing that almost everyone else is probably doing the exact same thing. We’re all just trying to stretch out the last few hours of the night as much as possible. Instead of being prepared for the week, sometimes all I can do is go to bed and make it tomorrow’s problem. By the time I’m finally ready for sleep, I usually just give up on trying to convince myself that the night is still young and that the weekend is over. I used to try to fight it and stay up as late as possible, but now I’m starting to realize that the more I dread Monday, the worse it actually feels.

Half of my Sunday is spent just waiting for Monday to happen, and it’s such a waste of a day. Most of the time, the week isn’t even as bad as I imagined it would be on Sunday. Even though Friday and Sunday are both on the weekend, I feel totally different on both days. On Friday, I feel like I have all the time in the world, and I’ll never feel stressed again. When it reaches Sunday, I always regret not just getting all of my work done during all the free time I had on Saturday.

What can cause Sunday scaries — and what to do about it | SBS News

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