Julia's Justifications

I have now hit the point where I have realized I have no idea what I want to do with my life. I thought all I needed to do was get accepted into a university and that would be it. I had been preparing for this moment my entire high school career, but now that happened, I feel unfulfilled. The idea of leaving my hometown and family and going to a school where I know no one is scary to me. It is quite ironic since I am constantly telling my mom how sick and tired I am of my siblings and cannot wait to leave this place. I also feel that because of covid, I missed out on a good portion of my high school experience. I felt like I was just sixteen, but now I am eighteen and going off to college in a few months. It made me wonder where all the time has gone, even though I know very well where it went. I keep telling myself I probably would not have even gone to prom anyway, so I can sleep at night (even though it would have been nice to have given the chance). Another thing I have realized is...

  I have always been indifferent about my name—I never hated it but was not exactly that proud of it either. Now, I know I have the privilege of having a European name that does not get made fun of and butchered by others, or ever see the substitute teacher look at the attendance and struggle to pronounce my name correctly. I would say I have a relatively common name, sometimes there would be another Julia in the class, and with a couple in the grade. I suppose the only thing that bothered me was the Julia would have way more friends than me and I would just be the “other Julia.” People have actually called me this. I cannot ever forget the embarrassment when the chaperones were calling the names on a field trip, and she only said first names. Surely you would recognize that there are kids who share names, right? So, when she said “Julia,” I said, “here,” not knowing that there was another Julia on the bus. Realizing what just happened, I sunk deep in my seat. Basically what I am t...

  One thing I learned this week is that every first job sucks. Even if you think you will enjoy it, and everything will be okay, it won’t. Do it for the experience and references, and then quit. But whatever you do, do NOT work at a grocery store called Meijer. Do not do it, it is not worth the 11.50 per hour, which is not even that great. It had been a pretty typical week for me, except that my boss had scheduled far more hours than I was willing to work. Everyday I just woke up, did my online school, and went to my part-time job. A typical day. However, it seemed that the weekend was about to take a turn for the absolute worst. How is it that when things in my life are finally going smoothly, something has to go wrong? So, it is a regular day at Meijer in the deli department, as I am slicing meat and cheese for the customers that come up. I work four days a week, and it is usually not that bad. There will be the occasional customer, but most of the time, I am cleaning the counter...

One thing that has been bothering me lately is how indecisive I can be. I mean, I can’t even order a simple coffee without wondering if I should have gotten the other one. Last year, I got a new phone but ended up sending it back because I could not decide if I wanted Samsung or Apple (I ended up getting Apple).  To further demonstrate my indecisiveness, I recently got a job and. spent probably over two hours deciding what shoes to buy with my paycheck. It really should not be this complicated.  Especially now, I have become even more indecisive with college deadlines. While I am still waiting to hear back from the University of Michigan, I have started to consider other schools, since I know I am probably not getting in. Because college is not only an academic decision but a financial one as well, I have to take so many things into account. It is also quite unsettling that no matter what choice I make, there will be an opportunity cost (see, I did learn something from Economi...

#TeachLivingPoets In the poem A Tempest in a Teacup , A. Van Jordan characterizes Prospero as a old, heterosexual white man who fears the changing times of America. Even though the cultural shift that is occurring could benefit both parties, he is blind. From lines 1-6, Prospero explains how he did not get his dream job because it was given to a Black man. He is upset on how times are changing, as Black people are now able to get the same opportunities are whites. From lines 7-11, Jordan demonstrates how Prospero is able to financially support his family and send his son to school. He is not racially profiled from strangers on the street, and does not have to worry about whether his son comes home or not. From lines 12-16, Jordan demonstrates how he has hopes and expectations for his country, as it has always been there to allow him to succeed. Prospero is the model citizen for the country, with all worries free. From lines 17-20, Jordan demonstrates how Prospero does not have to worry...

  One time where I put the pieces back together was my sophomore year. I was really struggling in Geometry, and it did not matter how much help I got from my teacher, I just could not understand the concepts. I also did not understand how basically everyone else was getting it except for me . I remember the absolute dread of getting our tests back and not seeing the result I wanted, no matter how hard I studied. Since I had Geometry the first hour of the day, the dread followed me throughout my sleep. How was I supposed to prove that a triangle is a triangle, when the evidence is literally right there? It has three sides, does it not? (don’t come for me please) I have struggled with math ever since I could remember, so this was nothing new. I had spent so many sleepless nights worrying about math the next day, that I barely had any energy to do the work. I had to pretend I knew what the teacher was talking about, even though he explained it more than once. I will always be jealous ...