The topic I picked is a cake order experience. I also included some other details and flashbacks. I like my topic choice for the personal narrative because it’s a topic that I’m quite passionate about. I feel like there’s a lot of can write, but at the same time, there’s too much I want to write. That is one of my reservations because I feel like I’m going to go off-topic. I need to tweak my wording and add more details to make my story interesting. However, it is also hard to include all my ideas when I only have 600 words. I hope I can get some feedback on which details I should include and which ones I should delete. Because I experienced everything, I might have missed out on some details, and they will need clarification.

Last year was my first year in Hawaii and my first time attending ‘Iolani Fair. None of my old schools have any carnivals or fairs (other than college fair but that doesn’t count). ‘Iolani fair was the first time I’ve attended a fair for a really long time. It’s a really different experience because I’m with my friends instead of my parents. In addition, I’m attending the fair a sophomore and not as a 5 years old kid. I didn’t really help out with the fair other than working my shift. To most people, they are probably really used to seeing the campus get transformed into a carnival every year. For me, I thought it was crazy how a school can bring in all the ride and fit them all onto that baseball field. To see the clips of the fair from my ‘Iolani acceptance video happen in front of me in real life was crazy. I was able to see the process of that fair being built everyday from my dorm window. There wasn’t a specific event that was my favorite. It was just a different experience, and I had a lot of fun just hanging out.

I’ve narrowed my topics to either moving to Hawaii or Bake a Wish. Both of these are more narrowed topics under a bigger event. Moving to Hawaii could be categorized under the bigger idea of adapting to constant change and gaining independence. I might also mention how this is my fifth school. If I choose to write about Bake a Wish, I will talk about my whole cake decorating/baking journey and the importance of time management. Personally, I didn’t find this really difficult because I was able to find a lot of topics I can write about. I feel like the actual writing part might be difficult because there are so many events I want to talk about, so I might lose focus. I will need to find one specific event and skip out the minor events.

Out of all the events I’ve brainstormed on my timeline, it’s either the one about my cake/ Bake A Wish or moving to Hawaii that’s most vivid.

I’m super passionate about baking and cake decorating. I’ve put in an immense amount of effort and time into this hobby. There are also so many small memories I could include because I’ve been baking for so many years. Also, the lead up to starting a club is pretty significant for me. I spent years trying to start a baking club in my old school, but I kept getting denied, and starting a club wasn’t supported by my old school. In contrast, how easily I was able to start a club as soon as I moved to Hawaii was such a big step for me.

The other event that’s super vivid is coming to Hawaii. It’s my first time attending a boarding school, living on my own, and being in the middle of the Pacific Ocean. I feel like I’ve grown so much as a person, and I’ve become so much more independent. Being always around people have made me less introverted.

I actually don’t know who I want to meet. There are so many inspirational people. I don’t really feel the need to talk to anyone, and waste their time with me asking them questions. If I really have to pick someone, it would probably be Tortik Annushka. I don’t think anyone will know him. He is an amazing cake designer from Moscow. He makes really modern, geometric cakes, and all his works are super clean and sharp (something that I struggle with). As someone who’s really passionate with cake decorating, I feel like I can learn a lot from him. I will ask him how he makes his signature concrete/ popcorn ceiling like finishing to the outside of his cakes. I will also ask him what it takes to have a successful cake business.

Overall, I like everyone’s presentation. A few people’s book talk really stuck out to me. I think Lani did a great job on her book talk with her concise but detailed summary. The book Soebeen chose also seems very interesting because I feel like I can relate to many parts of it.

I’m planning to read Shoe Dog for this quarter. I’m glad Reynn gave Shoe Dog a 10/10 and his positive comments about this book. I’ve actually started reading this book already because I found this book at the airport bookstore before my 17 hours flight back to Singapore.

It’s weird how I’m presenting not in front of the class. It feels less scary and more comforting because I’m able to sit in my chair and not be able to see my whole class. However, I feel like it’s a lot harder to engage with the audience. I don’t really know how to make eye contact and where to look because I’m in front of a screen.

A few presentations really stood out to me. I really liked how Christina showed the pictures in the book. I wish I’ve done that too because in The Devil in White City, there were also a few photos of the Chicago fair which really helped me visualize the grandness of the fair. However, I didn’t have my book with me so I couldn’t do that. I also really liked Dylan’s presentation. He had really good critics of what he liked and didn’t like about the novel. By giving specific examples, he’s able to let us understand better what he means with his constructive criticism. Micah’s presentation was pretty interesting. It’s nice to hear his opinion about the book because I’m planning to read this book for this quarter. Overall, all the presentations were pretty good.

I would prefer to only eat what I can carry in my arms out of the grocery store. There’s a lot of things I won’t be able to grow and not everything I want will grow in where I live. In addition, growing everything would be a really time and space consuming process. I enjoy experimenting with different ingredients and recipes so I can make full use out of the items availble in a grocery store. In addition, I get bored of one food item easily, so if I grow them, I will have a lot of that one variety. I don’t think carrying everything in my arms would be an issue. I honestly don’t need that much food a day anyways. Also, I can buy something big a flat, such a frozen pizza, and carry everything on top. I live pretty close to a grocery store. This would be a good workout and excuse for me to go out everyday, especially now during quarantine.

There isn’t anything crazy exciting for me to write about because I’m still in quarantine. I think I will be able to go out after April 4th. Honestly, I’ve lost count by now. So from the beginning of spring break till now, I’ve been stuck in my apartment. Other than the 4 + 17 hours flight home.

During spring break, I was able to occupy myself, and it surprisingly passed by really quickly. I picked up the piano again. It is a really hard (in my opinion) cover of Bohemian Rhapsody that I bought and wanted to play a few years ago. I managed to learn five and a half out of nine pages. I’m still working on it.

In addition, my parents also bought me a sewing machine. Because I couldn’t go out to pick a fabric, I decided to cut up my spare bedsheet to make a dress. My goal was to finish it before spring break ends, but I broke the sewing machine needle. I’m really close to finishing, though. I need to alter the size and add a zipper (which I will need to go out and buy).

Despite how quater 4 started, it still feels like a half spring break. I’m used to living on campus and having study hours. Now because school ends at 9 am (Singapore time) and I don’t feel the urge to start homework. I feel like I have more time because there’s no track and dance practice. I’ve begun to procrastinate a lot more.
However, at the same time, I feel kind of productive. I try to wake up at four every morning so that I can attend as many live lessons. The school days feel a lot shorter.

I managed to finish most of the body paragraphs. However, I still need to do my introduction and conclusion. There’s still a lot more things I will need to edit. I feel like I need to shorten my book review because I’m using too many quotes right now.

I didn’t start on my book talk yet so I will need to work on that.