Blog 55 - Fascinating thing in Nature.

I would have to go with Lightning as the most interesting in nature to me. I’m sure we’ve all been told what causes lightning, but in case you forgot, let me refresh your memory. In a cloud, when the warmer air rises, it tends to give up electrons (negatively charged particles) and as a result, becomes positively charged. So, at the bottom of the cloud, all the electrons that have been released gather in the cold air. The bottom of the cloud continues to get a greater negative charge.

At the same time, the ground is mostly positively charged. When the negative charge is big enough, a lightning flash occurs. This is because it is greater than the insulation in the air, which prevents it from happening. The lightning flash is nature’s way to maintain equilibrium; when lightning strikes, the charges are equally distributed between the cloud and the earth.

It is amazing to see the way natures achieves this. Who would have thought that something so beautiful, so striking (wow, an unplanned pun) is actually quite useful. Then again, almost everything that happens in this world happens for a reason. Lightning is not always good. Sometimes, lightning can cause forest fires, and a direct hit can kill a human being.

Still, it fascinates me. Sometime ago I found a windows 7 theme that had several lightning backgrounds. Five minutes later, it was my theme. Lightning is one of the rawest forms of energy transfer. I wouldn’t want to come into contact with it, but it sure is really nice to look at.  

Blog 54 - First Crush.

Her name was Toyin, and she was most beautiful girl I had ever seen. She was in my elementary school class for 3 years. She was the popular girl in school and so everybody wanted to be her friend. I’m pretty sure almost every boy in my class crushed on her at some point. I don’t think I ever even told her that I liked her. I probably had a crush on her for a whole year and I never really spoke to her at all. I mean we were in the same class, so we spoke to some degree, but for the most part when I got into any of those situations I’d probably start stuttering or something. I bet she probably thought I was weird. I was too young, and I had no game.

Anyways, I went through that phase. When I look back at how silly some of the things I did were, I am grateful that I was too young to actually know what I was doing. I’d probably have gone over it for so long. But it’s past, and I’m happy for that. I recently found her on facebook through some of my friends from elementary school. We haven’t talked much on facebook though: we barely knew who we were then, and we barely know who we are now.

So I guess that’s as much as I can write about my first crush. In other, unrelated news, the weather today was wonderful. I can’t believe the snow from yesterday melted that fast. Anyways, I guess its best I go to bed early ahead of tomorrow. Till then.

Blog 53 - Pet Peeve

 One thing that annoys me a lot is when people do not hold themselves accountable for their actions. I get annoyed when people try and shift the blame onto someone else. I don’t know why, but this really gets me. I am fully aware that is human nature to try and run away from trouble.  I understand that everybody is trying to look out for themselves, or protect themselves, but sometimes it’s just ridiculous.

For example, I was hanging out with some people last quarter, and the door handle in my common room came off. Now I live there, and I knew that the door handle was bad; it usually came off, and all we had to do was stick it back on. It was funny to see how they reacted. The one person that clearly pulled the handle off began blaming another one of my friends. This was not a serious problem, but he was quick to disassociate himself from the whole thing. Once I saw that, I began to look at him in a different light.

This might sound unfair to him but that’s just the way I think. I guess that I like to hold people accountable for their actions. I mean most of time, if I am ever the cause of a problem, I don’t try to shift the blame to anybody else. I hold myself most accountable. I don’t understand why other people don’t feel that same obligation. We should hold ourselves more accountable because if we do, there will be no reason to blame someone else for our shortcomings.

Blog 52 - Trip.

I would have to say that the trip to come over here to study was probably one of the most important trips I have ever taken. In high school, after carefully considering the academic situation in my country, My parents and I decided that it would be best for me to pursue my higher education somewhere outside the country. Since my older siblings also came to the same conclusion and ended up going to college in America, it was an instant option.

So I began to prepare to take the necessary tests to be able to apply to schools over here. I began to prepare to take the SAT’s and also the TOEFL (Test of English as a Foreign Language). I had been speaking English all my life, so there wasn’t really that much reading for the TOEFL. The format of the SAT’s however, took some time to get used to. I especially hated how most of the math questions on the test weren’t really math: they just seemed to be elaborate word problems, which was quite annoying. I took the test after studying for it for quite a while, and by that time I was used to this.

Another thing that made the process of getting admissions to college here were the lengthy application forms I had to fill out. In addition to writing essays, I had to send my transcripts and letters of recommendation, which was quite expensive because of the distance. However, the process as a whole helped me get more used to deadlines, and writing in general. I must have over a dozen essays on different topics on my hard drive right now.

So, after going through the whole process and selecting Ohio State, it was finally time to come over here to begin college. I remember getting on the plane, and feeling nervous, asking myself different questions like “Will I fit in?” and “Is leaving my family behind really the best option?” Two quarters in, I can answer those questions confidently. I have been able to adapt quickly, largely thanks to the fact that almost everybody here at Ohio State is so open and willing to help. I can confidently say that I made right choice.

Blog 51 - Important person.

Wow, this is hard. This question brings a lot of people. But I can only pick one and when it comes down to that, I would have to pick Martin Luther King Jr. Martin Luther King fought for freedom and equality throughout his life. The thing that really strikes me about this fight is the fact that for the most part, He did not use violence.

He always tried his best to make sure that all the demonstrations that were carried out were peaceful. He often rebuked his fellow protesters for engaging in violent movements. This made the difference as it made the cause he was fighting for even more important.

Martin Luther King fought for equal rights in America. He believed in a future where both blacks and whites could co – exist peacefully. Without his civil rights movement, there is no way that African-American people as a whole would have accomplished all that they have today. He paved the way for change in America. And because of all that he accomplished, African- American people have been able to assume positions of power, the most notable being the recent election of Barack Obama, the first African American president in the United States.

If I could meet him, I would love to know what drove him to do the things he did. I would like to know what motivated him, what gave him the strength to persevere in all that adversity. I think that this is a very important quality, one which it seems like I lack sometimes. I would love to know what is secret was, so I could apply it to my own life.

Blog 50 - Best present.

The best present I have ever got would have to be my Chelsea FC jersey. I am a huge Soccer fan, and I support Chelsea FC. It is an English team that plays in the English Premier League which is as important in pro soccer as the NCAA first division is to college. Three years ago, my sister gave me a jersey as a birthday present.

At the time, she was in college over here, and I remember that I mentioned that I liked the jersey maybe once or twice. So when she came back during Christmas, she came back with it. My birthday really is in May, but since I only got to see her once a year, Christmas was the only time she could ever give me anything. In addition to getting to jersey, she had personalized to say my surname and my birth date on the back.

I didn’t even expect it at all. After all, I never really asked for it. But she knew me well enough to know that I really wanted it, and she decided to get it anyway on her lousy college budget (I can definitely relate now). The fact that she did all that for me made the present even that more special. When I was going to college, that was most likely the first shirt I threw into my box. I don’t think that I ever travel without it: that’s how much it means to me. I don’t know what I would do if I lost it. Every time I wear it, I feel proud: proud that I had a sister who cared enough to get it for me.

Blog 49 - Job.

 I’ve never had a full-time job, and this is the only thing that applies to an extent. I’ve had this for over a year. And now I can use it:)

The motto of my secondary school, Loyola Jesuit College is ‘Service of God and Others.’ As such, service plays a very huge role in the lives of all its students. It should come as no surprise that every student, at the end of their fifth year, participates in what is known as the ‘Service Project’ - a 2 week program which has been a part of the school’s curriculum since its inception in 1998.

At the end of my fifth year, I also took part in this program, just as my predecessors. I was assigned to a primary school for children whose parents could not afford to send them to school. At first I thought there was no way that I would ever enjoy this ‘project’. I had never been a tutor and I didn’t think I would be good at it or even get along with the children. However, after some days, I began to enjoy their company. They were always eager to learn and I really admired their cheerful dispositions. Just walking into the class and seeing them after my day started badly could make the day a lot better.

At the end of the two weeks I was surprised to find that I had thoroughly enjoyed the experience. It was really hard to leave and go back to school. The children that I met made such a positive impact on my life and I’ll be forever grateful for such an opportunity.