Oaklandish

 I live in North Oakland, which is usually considered the better part of Oakland, aside from the Oakland Hills. Compared to East Oakland and West Oakland, North Oakland is more “clean” and “safe.” I have lived in my neighborhood for almost all my life and it is located on the borderline of Oakland and Emeryville. Although it is considered as the safer part of Oakland, there is still a good deal of violence that occurs. The block that I live on is calm and quiet, but the blocks to the left and the right of mine have a little more commotion. Everybody knows everybody, so it definitely just feels like home.

I am who I am despite the neighborhood I live in. Growing up where I reside today, I was able to see a lot of different things and meet a lot of different people. The schools I attended were predominately African American and so was the neighborhood I grew up in. Being different from others, because I am Asian, I was still able to interact with the kids from the neighborhood and play with whoever. Most of my Elementary school life, I would spend most of my time at my late grandparents' house which was also in North Oakland about 20 blocks away from my house. This neighborhood was a little rougher than my side of the neighborhood. There were kids from the Elementary school, but there were also drug dealers and “crack heads.” As kids, my cousins and I were exposed to a lot of violence and drug abuse from people within our neighborhood, especially from the apartment building 2 houses down from my grandparents' house. Although they were all around friendly people, it was not the type of neighborhood some people would want to live in. As I went on to middle school and high school, I noticed a bit of changes. The apartment building was restored and a lot of new people set in and the neighborhood became a little more inviting, despite the young teens that were hanging out on the street corners. Growing up in the neighborhoods I've grew up in, I am definitely used to it, but I am not ashamed of it. I usually like to tell people where I am from so that they can see that I was not affected by my neighborhood and be able to understand that anybody from anywhere can achieve. I learned a lot from the people I hang around with to the neighborhoods I have been in and I wouldn't change where I came from for anything.

Quote: Marilyn Monroe

"I believe that everything happens for a reason. People change so that you can learn to let go, things go wrong so that you appreciate them when they're right, you believe lies so you eventually learn to trust no one but yourself, and sometimes good things fall apart so better things can fall together."

                                                   -Marilyn Monroe

Advertisements: My Opinion

          There are tons of different advertisements nowadays. Whether it's an advertisement about a great nursing program or about Coca-Cola, you can expect to find one anywhere. Advertisements of course, are meant to catch the consumer's eye to either purchase their products or invest in their programs, but some company's just take it a little too far. As if billboard ads aren't enough, company's have pushed the limit to placing ads on sides of buses, in classrooms, social networking sites, game applications on your smart phone, etc.

          I never paid too much attention to advertisements before, but once I did, they got to be very annoying. There are advertisements that aren't so beneficial for me, yet I must admit that it does catch my attention/eye when the ad is very colorful or has a catchy phrase. Some of the advertisements that do appeal to me most of the time are the company's products that I've already consumed products from before or products that I've thought about trying/purchasing. There are also some commercial ads that I find really funny and those appeal to me as well. For example, I like iPhone commercial ads, Coca-Cola, Jack-in-the-Box, Olive Garden, Foot Locker, T-Mobile, Bounty, Tide, Movie Previews and many more. Like I said, most of these are advertisements for products I've used or am using now.

          I admit, I get distracted very easily so honestly anything can grab my attention. It's not always a good thing though because I don't like wasting my time on something that I'm not interested in. I am usually

interested in anything that is well known like Nike shoes or a well-known restaurant, which means that I probably won't be interested in any new product. Even if it does catch my attention for a second, I try not to take interest in it. I'm not sure if reviews on a product is a form of advertisement, but I definitely check reviews before I try something new.           
          Some advertisements are beneficial and some aren't, some are very creative and eye-catching and some are just plain boring. Although I don't prefer annoying or pointless advertisements, it is the company's way of getting their products out to the consumers.

Favorite Quote

"The only thing we have to fear is fear itself"

                                                     - Franklin D. Roosevelt

Story Of My Life

My goal in life is to succeed and be able to provide for me and my family. Back when I was in elementary and middle school, life felt so much easier. I must admit, I was a very spoiled child. Both of my parents were employed and I was just growing up and living life. The start of high school is when things became hard for me. My father was unemployed and my mother was the only one working to provide for the family. For most, freshmen year is usually one of the most exciting years in high school, however not for me. I was unable to focus in class and my grades dropped drastically. Instead of doing my homework and class work, I decided to take on a job. I got a job at a local movie theater. While working, I was still attending school. I tried my best to stay focused in every class, but as a teenager, the money was in the way.

During my Junior year, I struggled to bring my grades up. I was still employed and working more hours than I should have been. By the end of the year, I missed a couple of credits and had to attend summer school and also had to take a summer course at a community college. Although I was still working, I knew now that my main focus was to do better. As Senior year approached, I was short 4 credits from being an official Senior. I was very disappointed, but I found the reason why. A teacher from one of the summer classes didn’t submit my grade yet. A few days later, it came through and I was proud of myself. Having worked so hard, I was only motivated to continue. Throughout Senior year, I had extra work to do, yet I was able to pull through and graduate.

            After high school, I quickly attended a community college. Like high school, I was still working and going to school. I was a bit more focused, but unfortunately I fell back into my old habits. I started working a tremendous amount of hours and fell off track once again. After a while, I had no interest in going to school. My main focus was to work and make enough money to pay off my bills. I became frustrated at myself and knew I needed to do something better. I had heard about Year Up through a friend and finally decided to get back up and continue my education.

            I am now enrolled in the Year Up program and I am willing to work hard and stay focused. I know I will succeed because this is something that I really want to do. I am certain that I will finish this program and get a good job and be able to help provide for me and my family. One of my most important goals is to have my parents be proud of me and to be able to tell their friends that their daughter is successful.