20s are tough.

I read an article that started what college students need to understand about managing time.. Something I struggle with a lot. 

1. There's always time.

2. Days will up faster than expected.

3. You get more done when you're in the zone.

4. Pursue activities that benefit you personally and professionally.

5. There's a difference between pushing yourself and burning out.

6. Multitasking kills focus.

7. Distractions CAN be controlled.

8. Accomplishing something small is the best way to start working.

9. More work hours don't always mean more productivity. 

10. Massive tasks are better to do in increments.

11. If it takes more than 20 minutes to start, change your task.

12. Use Evernote- take notes, don't force yourself to "try" to remember everything.

21. Larger objectives in mind help you get through your days.

social welfare... in Micronesia?

Wright (1947:23) best sums up this difference in values and standards of living: "If civilization were measured by flush toilets, ice cubes, machine guns, and sewing machines, then Micronesians were indeed savages. If however, civilization meant an economic system in which there was no relative poverty, but rather adequate food, shelter, physical security, and a social system in which all participated equally and actively in the material and aesthetic standards of community life, then the people of Micronesia were indeed civilized and had much to teach the rest of the world."

I LOVED THE WAY THIS WAS WRITTEN, I believe everyone on Guam should read this, maybe then they would have the courage to be as our ancestors were. Maybe then, they wouldn't have these "false hopes," of what America should be or have the "American Dream." What once was "We are the people of the land" are now saying "the land belongs to us."

To understand that land, our land in specific gives us an identity, a sense of belonging. It's not just another thing that can be bought, sold, traded, or condemned by anyone.

Golden Rules of Sleep

1. Don't spend more than 20 minutes trying to fall asleep. Read a book, write a letter, walk around. Better to have 5 solid hours of sleep than 8 restless hours.
2. Develop a sleeping ritual. Train your body to know when it's time to sleep. Even if you compromise some habits later, your body will become accustomed to certain patterns, making it easier to fall asleep.
3. Keep your bedroom at a moderate temperature. Also-- make sure your room is properly ventilated.
4. Avoid hot baths before going to sleep. Raises you body temperature, making it more difficult to sleep.
5. Avoid lights and noises when trying to sleep. Avoid loud music & electronics close to bedtime.
6. Avoid overeating at dinner. Increases level of alertness causes more frequent wake ups throughout the night.
7. Be active during the day. Makes it easier to sleep (another great benefit to exercise)
8. Stick to a regular sleeping schedule. TOUGH ONE!
9. Wake up with the help of natural or blue lights.H feel refreshed, blue lights mimic natural setting.
10. Warm your body when you wake up. Cools down to help you sleep better, warm up again to be fully awake. (Hot shower is always a great reward)

SLEEEEEEP

Sleeping is as important to your health as eating. . .

• helps to build a healthy immune system
• balances your appetite by helping regulate hormones
• helps you become energetic & successful while awake
• reduces levels of anxiety and depression

Lack of sleep can have significant effects on the hippocampus, an area of the brain involved in memory creation and consolidation

HUMANS DO NOT ADAPT TO GETTING LESS SLEEP... Sleep depriving schedules enable impaired judgement, reaction time and other functions.

• Amount of sleep you will need increase if you've been deprived of sleep previous days,
• If you get too little sleep, you'll go into what's called "sleep debt," kind of like being overdrawn at a bank.
• Chronic sleep debt raises the risk of obesity, heart disease, stroke & diabetes.
• Researchers have found that under certain conditions, disturbed sleep can even alter gene expression.

Most college students get 4-6 hours of sleep every night.

perfectionist.

Last week, in the middle of a lecture briefly stated, "we get so attached to the idea that everything has to be perfect." In that moment, I saw my life flash before my eyes. Once something doesn't seem right or doesn't go my way, I freak out.. I feel stuck. Not in the way that I'm "spoiled," and just rebel because "I want it that way," but in a way that I feel like nothing has gone my way so when it doesn't, I feel stuck because I want control. I'm tired of things not happening. I'm tired of sacrificing but that's what life is. Life is temporary, it's finding perfection in the imperfection. I have this idea that my life needs to be a certain way or it's not perfect, but to realize that my life is meant to be exactly what it is now, I'm suppose to be exactly where I am now.

Go GREEN!

Planting Native Trees for a Sustainable Future in Guam

Energy Conservation: Shading keeps your buildings cooler and reduces your energy needs for air condition.

Habitat for Fauna: By planting native trees, every patch of habitat becomes part of a high biodiverse landscape that nurtures and sustain a home for Guam's native fauna.

Air Purification: Trees remove harmful particles from the air. Trees help battle climate change by absorbing and converting atmospheric carbon to solid form.

Community: People feel more peaceful surrounded by trees and are more likely to be physically active.

Beautiful surroundings: Trees have an intrinsic and aesthetic value.

Reduced Run-off: Trees intercept stormwater by absorbing and dispersing water, and therefore mitigates the threat of flooding.

Increased Property Values: Homes, goods, and services sell for more in communities with trees.

Soil Stabilization: Trees will reduce erosion by binding the soil to the sloping land with their roots. As a bonus trees with increase soil fertility, beneficial for other plants.

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Learned more about trees, their functions, cultural uses!

TALKING TREES!

studying...

For one of my classes, nothing we discuss in class is on our test, only the chapter he tells us to read... I'm really struggling in that class, I'm good at memorizing places in geography because putting places with names seems reasonable, or in literature... talking about poetic tools and how their used in various poems... Every other class involves talking about the material, this is a complete curve ball.. I cannot use quizlet because theres no vocabulary, theres graphs but we don't need to know too much about them. I read the material maybe 2 or 3 times, high light... but still... haven't gotten an A. BAM.. As I typed this blog, I thought of paraphrasing. I highlight sections and rewrite certain parts, but paraphrasing each paragraph seems to be another route I can take. LOADS of writing but whatever gets me to pass, I guess.

for future generations!

On Arbor Day, October 14, my geography class was invited to the Island for Sustainability for extra credit. Dr. Underwood spoke for a few minutes, welcoming everyone however mainly speaking in regards to trees. He said, be as trees are with intrinsic values. He expressed his love for trees, spoke in Chamorro a few times. Ended by saying, the closer we were to trees would be the closer we are to finding ourself and where we stand in life. After his speech.. There was a little boy who also wrote a poem for trees in Chamorro, I was not too sure if he was chamorro but it was definitely pleasing to see and hear younger generations engaging in the culture and language. It was definitely great for me to see Dr. Underwood, someone much older than I am, and the little boy, much younger than I am.. engaging in traditions, in a bigger picture.. the environment. As we planted trees, one of the agriculture workers invited us to plant again.. on Oct. 22nd... On Saturday, October 22nd, I went tree planting in Merizo. It was possibly one of the most memorable experiences. I was able to see the hard work and dedication of those around me. It definitely takes a community to make a difference but it starts with one, connecting with multiple people and those people connecting with other people. I have been interested in extracurriculars such as this, environmental sustainability.. and, I got a chance to see my cousin enjoy the events also. She started to engage so much, that she also invited her friend.. next thing you know, there were three of us.. some may say "only three," but it's three more people that care about what surrounds us, what the future holds.

Assessments

In one of my classes,  I have 98% and above on about 85% of my work not including the 90% I got on one quiz and a 92% I got on one assignment. However, the two "assessments" that my professor gaves us I failed. I understood why I failed the first "assessment" because I really put no effort into it, but this next assessment was a 100 question test and I failed. I'm so torn because I really studied for it and I failed. She already said only one person in her last semester got an A, so I made sure to prepare myself as best I could.. but this semester only one person got a C and everyone else failed. It just makes no sense to me, she wants us to retake it but, I really don't feel like it'll make any difference. I will still fail the test, it was tough. It makes no sense to me that a professor who sees how poorly her students do semester after semester will continue to give the same test. HAVE YOU LEARNED ANYTHING?

Losing Motivation

I am currently at that point in the semester where I'm just losing all hope in my classes, feeling like there's more to life than school, anxiety and constant worry. I lose sleep over what's due and I am tired of it. For example, I've been so exhausted from school that I fall asleep right after class and jump up during my sleep because something else is due. I have yet to feel so free, but it kills me that I feel this way because school has always been a priority. I always strived for A's, and now... I'm stuck. This is the time where I need to suck it up and push because midterms are arriving and I'm still so lost.

never stop dreaming!

I have always had this dream or idea that I would get myself to play soccer again. I played when I was around five or six, and quit because I didn't have any friends playing on my team. ☹️ As I got older, I started regretting the decision I made. My step dad bought me a soccer ball, cleats, shin guards and more to get me to start playing again... But again, I didn't want to play because we just moved to Virginia and I knew no one. Then, moving to Guam in high school, I felt as if it was "too late" to join sports because everyone who plays was already used to it. blah blah blah. I kept making excuses. UOG then, sent me an advertisement which I think gets sent to everyone-- about Try-Outs! I looked at all requirements and saw I met all of them. 2.0 or 2.5 being the lowest GPA possible; I have a 3.4 or 3.5. I got so excited, but then... my insecurity!! I refused to go because this is for a University. After a while, I got asked to play on a team for Bank of Guam. I'm really hoping to play for Bank of Guam, improve and try out next year for UOG!

Social Welfare and Global Challenges

This semester I am taking a total of five class, one of which is Social Welfare and Global Challenges. As of right now, we are learning about the global sufferings of a variety of places due to the climate change. We spoke of Bangladesh last class, the community there is suffering tremendously. People there have to constantly move because of the flooding. The community leader said when it floods, there is simply nothing they can do but move because it is a completely flat land, there is no mountain to climb. While it floods, they also lose land. It is extremely unfortunate.

I had goosebumps watching the clip, the community leader said something in the lines of,  "Imagine putting all your funds knowing you do not have much, imagine putting everything you have into something, a house or a good and it gets destroyed by the flooding.. Imagine starting over again." Sometimes I fear starting over, I fear failure. However these people, not by choice, are going through this, starting over.. Not exactly failing because it's mother nature doing her part, it's something uncontrollable. Children are growing up in this setting, this environment. Although the government is trying to figure out ways to help with education and power there, their lives are affected. While I, sit here and type this blog on my very own laptop, living comfortably, those my age are fishing dangerously, risking their lives, going about their every day lives thinking that living that lifestyle is completely normal.