WHY?s Up: The Last Day (Unofficial WHY?s Up Post)

.:*So Sad...*:.

(...about the last day)

So today is the offcial last day (well, hour really) of the WHY?s Up Oakland postsession; it's a very bittersweet ending. Sweet in that Summer Break is finally here; bitter in that we're not going anywhere tomorrow! Aww... but it's not the end of this blog! I'll still be posting about random stuff, and you can count on the Square Bear Rants to continue.

So in saying that I would like to say a few of thank you's:

• Mr. Lee and Mrs. Fitzgerald: for making this postsession possible in the first place, and also for taking us to new places (and familiar ones), and getting us to think critically about our enviornment. Oh, and for taking us to eat at places we would never even think of trying.
• Mr. Lee: for lending me a dollar for the bus yesterday.
• Beatriz: for offereing a piece of her sandwhich to me, even though I couldn't eat it because I was sick, and also for asking people if they could give us an interview when she was in my group in Chinatown.
• All the group Interviewers: they probably all said that they were never going to be the interviewer as well, but they did it anyway.

Yeah, that's it. Did if forget anyone?

WHY?s Up: Alameda

Alameda was pretty boring, in my opinion. There really wasn't that much to do, and I nearly went insane because of it. I only became excited when I saw this HUGE dog (the owner said she was a Bosnian sheep dog or something)! She was so pretty. It made me want to get a dog just like her.

We also went to the Alameda beach...yeah, I don't like the water. So you know what I did? I dug a hole. No, I dug TWO holes. That's how bored I was. The only fun part was when Olivia and Yesenia fell in the water, then it was not fun anymore.

Then I found out we were near a Borders (I practically live there, no joke). But here's the thing: NO ONE TOLD ME UNTIL WE WERE ABOUT TO LEAVE!!! I could have gone there, and then I would have had something nice to write about! But nooooooooooo! Let's all tourture Jackie!

*%$#@!

Square Bear is Taking the SAT

.:*Square Bear*:.

(Grr)

So yeah... this Saturday I have to take the SAT, and Square Bear really didn't study all that much. I get those Official SAT Questions of the Day from TheCollegeBoard.Com, but now instead of answering the question I just delete them. I mean, I didn't even remember that I was going to take the SAT tomorrow until I saw my e-mail with the Question of the Day.

I'm really not looking forward to it tomorrow, espcially since my friend said that it lasts like...5 hours or something. I don't want to spend a Saturday taking a test! And I have to be there by 7:45AM! C'mon people! I'm not fully awake by then! And I have to bring my own food! No, if they're going to torture me for that long, they should be feeding me!

Yes, I know I'm being unrealistic, but...yeah. I also don't think we should have to pay for this dumb test. If these people really cared about more of the poorer kids getting into colleges, they wouldn't make us do this. But that's just my opinion. But at least I have a fee waver! WOO!

WHY?s Up: Personal Growth (Part 1)

.:*Square Bear*:.

(Grr)

During this entire postsession, everyone has had to go beyond their comfort zone, one way or another. Myself included. When I found out that we were going to have to interview people, my immediate response was, "I'm never going to be the interviewer in which ever group I'm in." As of this moment, I've been the interviewer at least 3 times already (I don't know why I make promises to myself that I don't keep). But it's more than just going up to people; it's gaining confidence in yourself.

But it's not only the confidence building that's happened; you're becoming a more well rounded person by maybe trying new foods, or going into a community that makes you feel uncomfortable (and trying not to show it). Like for me, the Walnut Creek trip totally freaked me out because I wasn't used to that sort of enviornment, but I know next time what to expect and can feel somewhat more at ease than I was before. Maybe.

Anyway, now I don't feel as awkward as I did before going up to people and asking if I can interview them (though when it comes to the actual questioning, I still can't get the robot out of me...(T.T)). But feel a lot better about this postsession than when it first started...so yeah. YAY!

WHY?s Up: The Castro (San Fransisco)

So for those of you who don't know, the Castro area of San Fransisco is considered the gay capital of the world. With that being said, let's get on with this post.

Right, so the WHY?s Up crew went to the Castro yesterday to consuct more interviews. Needless to say, for most people (including myself) it was a very...interesting experience. For me, it was just really nice to see so many people unafraid to love who ever they wanted without being judged. For a lot of the girls, I don't think it was that big of a deal for them since there were mostly gay men (it surprised us all actually; we ecpected more lesbians to be out and about...hmmm). For the boys, well...they're slightly homophobic, so...yeah. Enough said, right?

We saw a lot of interesting things while we were over there. For Example, Hot Cookie, which is a cookie/ice cream shop have their own underwear that you can buy. They even have a chocolate covered banana in the shape of a man's penis. That was really interesting, since I didn't think it was possible to make a banana look like that. Yeah...I don't believe minors are allowed to get those though...

WHY?s Up: Lake Shore (Oakland)

.:*Lake Shore*:.

Yesterday the WHY?s Up crew went to the Lake Shore area of Oakland. The interviewing experience we had yesterday was probably the best yet. We had approximately a 0% rejection rate! (But that's probably because we were doing food, and people don't mind getting interviewed about food). However, that doesn't mean we got all six of our interviews; we lost time because we were waiting for someone at the Jenny Craig to come out so we could interview them. Oh well...

.:*Yogurt Deluxe*:.

(Bleh)

Anyway, before we did any of our interviewing, we had lunch. My friend and I went to Yougurt Deluxe. Bad experience for me. They use Dryer's ice cream... and it sucks. I got a green tea ice cream milk shake, and it did not taste good. It tasted kind of sour actually (but maybe that came from the fresh milk that they use; I've never had fresh milk before, so I don't know how it tastes). Their green tea shake has nothing on the one that I can get at Lord's Ice Cream in Castro Valley (now they make their own ice cream).

.:*A Rose*:.

(Rock Sculpture by Rick Botto)

Later, as a bonus we went to the Rose Garden (I didn't even know Oakland had a Rose Garden). On our way there we saw some awesome rock art by one Mr. Rick Botto (I believe that was his name). It was funny how me met him; we were just admiring the art when we hear, "That's some cool sh*t, huh?" I love it when older people use bad language. Makes them "cooler" in our eyes, I guess. Anyway, we get to the Rose Garden, and I'm just stunned by all the beautiful roses (they're one of my favorite flowers). So I take my camera, and I probably have enough pictures to make my own Home and Garden Magazine. I even got a picture of a squirrel. It was a fun day.

.:*Squirrel*:.

(Aw!!)

P.S.-All pictures were taken by yours truely

WHY?s Up: Farmer's Market and Peddle Boating (Oakland)

.:*Lake Merritt*:.

(Lake Merritt at night)

So on Friday the WHY?s crew went to Old Oakland (which is in the downtown area) to go to the Farmer's Market that is held there every Friday (since I've only been to the one on Fruitvale, I was expecting a HUGE crowd, but it wasn't as congested; don't get me wrong though, there were a lot of people). There was a lot of produce, music, clothes, food, and jewlery stands. My favorite was the one where they were selling these giant (okay, not giant) cookies; one bag, which contains 3 cookies is $3, but then they give you an extra bag of cookies (well, at least they did to me), so they cookies end up being 50 cents each! "Yay!" for bargins!

While we were over there, my friends and I went to this sushi place; and it's too bad that I don't remember the name, because the sushi was freakin' awesome! Well priced too (depending on what kind of sushi you get of course).

Also, Friday was our "Fun day", so the teachers took us peddle boating in Lake Merritt. It was super special awesome! In the boat, it was Delilah, Mr. Lee, and myself (of course). Delilah and I were peddling our little vessel along, while Mr. Lee was "sterring" (if you can even call it that) and taking video and pictures. Otherwise, he only helped out with the peddling when we felt like going "Turbo". It was uber fun. I even told my mom that we should do it together (espcially since she practically lives in Lake Merritt; she's always walking around the lake). :D