Blog 4

Yoon Saechow

Dawn Blunk

Transitional English

April 29, 2011

Blog 4: So What’s So Bad About Being So-So?

            In Lisa Wilson Strick’s writing she tries to express that not being perfect at everything you do is not a bad thing.  Strick explains that you should enjoy an activity for what it is even if you are terrible at it instead of being so competitive that you lose sight of fun in the activity.  For myself, I am a very competitive person, but I have to admit I agree with Strick’s point of view. My friends and I are so competitive that we get pretty aggressive; taunting and name calling.  After reading Strick’s essay it made think how I had forgotten to enjoy an activity for the fun of it.  I recalled how one of my friends was mistreated by other friends and me when we played basketball, but he didn’t show us the same attitude when we played his sport.  Being so competitive can push people away, so just learn how to have fun.

            A few years ago one of my friends named Ramiro, didn’t know how to play basketball, but all the other friends and me never cared to teach him how to play.  We were so competitive that we just wanted to win, but Ramiro was just there playing for fun.  Pushing, shoving and elbows flying this was how aggressive the game of basketball was getting for us.  What were we going to win if we won the game of basketball among friends?  Ramiro told me, “Why you guys so serious? Why don’t you just have fun?  If it’s going to be like this I don’t want to join to play basketball with you guys or any other sport again.”  The next time we played he didn’t show up.  A few months of rejecting our invites, I spoke to Ramiro and asked him why he’s not showing up and what would he want to go play and he said,”Fύtbol, and I’ll teach you guys how to play and try to have fun, who cares who wins.”  We all agreed and we played and had a great time, not knowing how to play.  For once instead of having our war paint on our faces we all had a smile and had fun like we were kids in elementary. Being competitive is not worth losing a great friend over, but being competitive is not a bad thing if you know when to be and not to be so competitive.

Blog 3

Yoon Saechow

Dawn Blunk

Transitional English

April 22, 2011

Blog 3: Anna Quindlen

            Anna Quindlen’s explains in her essay how bad the United States has become because of out of control consumption, the United States has been consumed by buying wants more than needs.  Now we have storage facilities filled with meaningless junk that just collect dust and money.  The economy is on a decline because people spend money they don’t have through credit cards and wind up in debt, we all are digging ourselves a hole so deep we won’t be able to get out.  Anna tries to give a solution for this problem by suggesting that instead of buying things like a fancy cell phone; which will be outdated in a few months, spend the money on college tuition, rent and food.  I have also been infected by this disease of spending on meaningless things myself.

            A few years ago my girlfriend and I got a credit card just like everyone else and didn’t think that we would ever be in debt.  Buying a few items and not being concern that this was the start of a bad habit.  Buying one item after another and just thinking that we can pay it off when we have the money but this debt started to grow dangerously.  A year later we find ourselves owing a few thousand dollars and wondering what in the world did we spend it on, how did it come to this.  The majority of the items we bought were just meaningless junk that we didn’t need to buy.  The money could have been used for college or a car instead of nonsense.  After a few years we were able to take care of the debt and we both learned a valuable lesson.  The lesson I learn from this experience was to buy items that we need, and also avoid credit cards.   

Blog 2: Amy Tan

Yoon Saechow

Dawn Blunk

Transitional English

April 16, 2011

Blog 2: Amy Tan

“Fish Cheeks” is about a Chinese girl, Amy Tan, and her experience with a Caucasian boy and his family.  The Caucasian boy she had a crush on was coming over for Christmas Eve dinner with his family.  She was embarrassed because of their cultural differences, their Chinese Christmas Eve dinner and their table manners.  Though she didn’t understand at the time but this was all normal to her Chinese culture.  Later when she got older and over the boy, she realized through her mother’s teaching she be proud of her heritage and be proud of who she is.  I personally understand Amy Tan’s purpose for writing this article.  Growing up in a traditional Asian household, I have firsthand experience with the differences between Asian and American cultures.

            When I was younger and attending high school my mom used to drop me off at school and she would be playing Mien music very loudly.  During these moments I would sink down into my seat to hide from anyone I know who would be able to see me in the car.  Begging and pleading my mom to shut the music off or lower the music to the level of a dog whistle.  She would look at me and say, “No, I’m not shutting off or lowering the music.  Why are you embarrassed of who you are, do you even understand what the music is about?” All I could say was, “No” as soon as we stop and it was clear I would run out of the car, hoping no one heard the music or saw me come out of the car.  Later when I graduated, matured and understood more about individuality, I became more proud of who I am and my culture. Understanding that the music my mom was listening to was just music of love. 

Introduction/Bio

Hi, my name is Yoon Saechow.  I was born in Sacramento and now currently reside in Elk Grove.  I love food, this is what has lead me to the Art Institute, aspiring to become an executive chef.  I currently work at a restaurant, I started out as a waiter and later moved into the kitchen as a dishwasher.  Then moving on to the position of a prep cook and later an interim cook.  With the economy where it is I move back and forth from dishwashing to cooking.  Learning from some of the chefs has been a great reason why I have stayed at the restaurant.  I have two sisters and a brother, I am the oldest of my siblings.  Through completing college I hope to set a good example for them to follow their dreams.