School.

Am I going about things the wrong way?

During high school, I took a ton of community college classes at both De Anza and West Valley because I was bored with high school academics, and wanted to get ahead for the future. I was able to take Vietnamese, architecture, drawing, psychology, human sexuality, survey of pop culture...it was fun! I enjoyed taking so many classes and being kept busy...and this is all on top of clubs like Yearbook, the National Honor Society, Future Business Leaders of America, and the Associated Student Body. Those were good times, I learned, I played, I community serviced it up and got my Associated degree even before I graduated HS.

3 years later...here I am in Berkeley, taking only 2 classes and working 28 hours a week with VSA and SASC as parts of my life. I'm working so much so I can pay rent, my own bills, my own food and whatever other expense I have so I don't have to burden my parents while two other kids are in college.

I should be here to learn right? To know all the details of the American War in Southeast Asia, in Vietnam...to take Asian American Classes, and Public Policy classes, and Business classes to learn as much as I can and make the most of my time here at Berkeley...academically...right?

BUT I DON'T HAVE TIME!

Exactly...I'm involved sooo deeply in VSA, sometimes, I spend more time doing VSA things than school. I love it, and everyone in it, and the time commitment is going to get greater and greater as culture show starts to get rolling. SASC, APAC, NSU, and just being out there to support other groups is so fulfilling and such a great experience.

I talked to a few people, and they were telling me that it's what you value, what experiences at Berkeley and in College that matters to you is what you should pursue, and I guess they're right.

I've always been in the mindset to get the minimum done, to take only the necessary classes to get out of here and to be able to participate in as many extracurricular things as possible. I'm just re-evaluating my choices right now...and feel that I should be learning more, so I KNOW KNOW stuff...I love what I'm doing, I just don't feel like I'm making the most out of my education at one of the freaking best universities in the world!

Sometimes, you just want to stop studying to memorize facts...to write papers that don't go anywhere...to build projects that don't matter to you and will never get built...sometimes you just want to go out there and DO SOMETHING in the world, to change it somehow into something BETTER. That's how I feel right now...kinda.

UC Berkeley...such a beautiful place with beautiful people
with so much passion and potential to
make this world a better place.

[picture take by me from a random digital camera from the 5th floor of Wurster before going home for Thanksgiving Fall 2006]