Smart Packing

Recently I have listened to a piece of news about packing. When people go traveling, the first thing they encounter is how to pack all their things in one or two luggage. To make use of every space and to pack clothes and things in efficient way often bother us. The news, then, provides us some secrets to smart packing.

In order to start on the right foot to pack things, we need to make a list first. The list is useful, especially when we have to take great quantities of things with us. With the list, we will know what to pack and what is unnecessary. A good list makes us clear about things we need and spares us lots of time instead of hesitating on selecting things. If we write down the items we need, we can check them off before we depart. With this tip, we can make sure we prepare everything with us and go on our trip without worries.

Second, wrapping clothes in right way makes a great difference. The interviewer suggests us wrap the clothes in bundles when we are packing a bag. Bundle wrapping is a useful technique that can avoid clothes getting wrinkled. Moreover, it saves lots of space—the best to know for travelers. Bundle wrapping means that we overlap the sleeves of two shirts in opposite position, put pants in the center of them, and fold them into a bundle. This method is conceived better than just folding or rolling clothes individually.

Traveling is exciting, and a well-done preparation can make traveling more wonderful. This news teaches me a new way to pack luggage smart and fast. Next time, when I go on a trip, I will certainly try what the news suggests and see how this marvelous idea works.

Garbage or Art

Recently I‘ve heard a piece of news about garbage and art. Don’t feel confused when you see these two words combined together. Right, garbage and art! Some irrelevant things—or even contrary—are connected in a creative way.

Gignac and Santora came up with brilliant ways of creating art. Originally, Gignac wanted to defend his opinion that package mattered a lot. Therefore he figured a way to convince people who thought packaging is not important, that is, packaging something which originally people wouldn’t like. Trash is just what he searched for. Accordingly, he picked trash to find his materials. Gignac put the trash in cubes and sealed them. In his artful taste and novel arrangement, the cubes turned out fancy art work. Before, it cost only 10 dollars. Now, the price rises up to 100 dollars, and the products appeal the multitude that they cannot take their eyes off the creative and experimental art work.

Art is subjective, and open-mindedness might help people close to the hall of art. Gignac and Santora keep trying new ideas and materials to explore art. They think this kind of exploration is a fun way doing art. They even sell paintings which cost the same prices as the items they draw. They test people’s notion of art, and try to change people’s preconceived idea upon things. People often neglect the extra possibilities of things, and their art work provides people to reconsider what is valuable, what is beautiful, or let’s say, what is art. The impression of things might be different to each person, and we judge things by different values. However, if we can expand our acceptance of things, we might be able to get out of the cage of our fixed notions.

Garbage or art? The difference might be subtle. The art work challenges our perspective on things. The novel, courageous, and creative experiment is a new frontier of creating and evaluating art. As for me, trying to be open-minded and trying to think outside of the box is what I need to learn from now on.

Earthquake

This week, a terrible earthquake struck China, causing lots of people injured or dead. Troops, medical groups, and disaster relief officials continue rescuing people. Natural disasters are so horrible that no one can predict that such thing happened so suddenly. It really takes calm and courage to face the disaster. Keeping Rescuing people, controlling the situation, providing supplies, and keeping an eye on the aftershocks are important for China in these harsh hours.

This 7.9-magnitude earthquake caused severe destruction in China. In SiChuan, the epicenter, the strength of the quake made many building collapse. Lots of people are buried in the ruins, struggling to get out. Lots of people were dead because of this disaster. Troops are trying to rescue people from the debris of buildings. The rescuing process is difficult, but China tries to save as many people as possible, accordingly allowing organizations in other countries to give a helping hand.

In front of natural disasters, human beings seem trivial. Compared with the destructive power of nature, humans seem helpless. Though trivial we are, humans show the goodness of human nature when facing and dealing with the disaster in front. People try to do what they can, though we cannot change the things which already happened.

This earthquake causes pain and sorrow. The situation should be in control quickly. Human beings are fragile, but strong. I hope that the strength of humanity help people free from suffering and overcome the disaster as soon as possible.

Let Go

This is another my dear song time. The song, “Let Go”, in Keri Noble’s album is a wonderful piece of work. It lyrically states out the theme of the album—letting go of pressure, expectations, and things try to make us change who we are.

The song is simple—just through its simplicity, it flows the wisdom of life. In our lives, sometimes things just don’t seem right. We might become fretted, worried, or irritated by the things in front of us. Maybe the things or the people don’t meet our expectation. We might be disappointed and depressed. However, if we can try to accept that we cannot change all the things, we might feel much better. We are human beings, and certainly we have some limitations in various aspects. We should not and could not take control over all the things. If we learn to let go the uncontrollable things, we can regain peace of mind.

Letting go is not a passive and coward attitude; instead, it takes great courage. Every encounter, conflict, and problem in our lives seems trivial to the vast world, but significant to the individuals. It’s difficult for people to let go the heavy stones on our minds or to let go the precious in our tightly-hold hands. Nevertheless, some unexpected things might happen, and the experience of loss is inevitable. We have no power to hold the moonlight, stop the running water, or reverse the sunrise. When we face the reality, letting go could be a choice, which gives us a peaceful answer.

The lyrics say, “Life doesn’t go the way that I plan/ But I think it sees better than I can/ I try to control with all my might/ But when I let go that’s when things go right/ Let go.” Learning to letting go is a lifelong lesson, and I am trying to learn how. Trying hard on things is important. Also, knowing when to let go also tests our wisdom. Little by little, I am trying to learn what to fight for or when and what to let go.

Essay 2 Draft

A Case against Cell Phone Use at Elementary Schools

In this modern era, cell phone use becomes very popular among youngsters. The phenomenon soon stirs up a controversial issue, that is, whether students could use cell phones at elementary school or not. Teachers, parents, and students hold different opinions based on different concerns. In my point of view, I support that elementary school can restrict cell phone use by students during school time, for etiquette, learning efficiency, and health sake.

Cell phones could be used improperly by elementary students at school. Some students might see cell phones as inevitable and fancy gadgets. They might have fierce competition on the newest and the most fashionable mobile phones. They might treat cell phone as a fad and a token of status. Some students might even phone someone nearby, simply for fun. Students might easily feel restless in class while expecting a phone call. Some might even have no resistance on sending text message, making phone calls, or playing games during class. Mobile phones might go off during class, distracting both teachers and students. The interruption could annoy all participants in class and contribute to poor study quality.

Carrying cell phone to school could have other negative impact on elementary students. First, they would not fully control themselves against making or receiving a call. As what is mentioned above, they turn distracted easily. What’s worse, some experts even find the dependence on mobile phones even results in teenagers’ depression. According to some experts, some adolescents use cell phones at bedtime, which interrupts their sleep and makes them tired. Therefore, people could imagine the same problem when they use cell phones in class. The anxiety of making a phone call in class could interrupt learning and cause impatience and exhaustion. The addiction to mobile phone makes them cranky and depressed, severely affecting their social habits and behaviors.

On the other hand, indeed, there are some legitimate reasons for carrying cell phone with students. For example, when they suddenly change schedules, become sick, or encounter some unexpected events. Truly, cell phone could be associated with safety. However, the odds is rather few, and most of time, students can use regular phones or contact the school faculty to solve the problems. Some students might think cell phones are important connections in relationship. It could be true especially when lots of people have cell phones. However, students can still be in touch with their friends on phone after school. They could enjoy more time chatting instead of being struggled between lectures and phones. As to some special cases, school authorities could have rights to lift the ban to help and protect specific students.

To conclude, cell phones bring people great convenience, but the negative impacts should not be ignored. In my opinion, it is better for elementary schools to set some limitations on cell phone use by students. In this way, they can be focused and have better achievements on learning, instead of being attached to cell phone all day long. After all, sufficient time is left for them to talk on phone-- right after school.