End of Semester
Hmm. What is there to know about Los Gatos High and the finals all of us students experience? Much to the chagrin of student and teacher alike, finals places a burden on what should be a smooth end to a semester. For at least half a year we (students and teachers) have become acquainted with each other. None of my teachers possess a "I-don't-know-x-student" complex, nor a "I-hate-you-all" complex. Seeing that, I must claim victory for the coexistence factor.
Last week, much as you guessed, we received finals. From Tuesday to Thursday, we would have two finals, each two hours, spaced apart by only fifteen minutes. The first finals I had were Algebra II Accelerated and Chemistry (I would've been in Chem. Accel. had they not done away with it). Throughout the final of Mr. Sakamoto, who decided to split it into three consecutive tests to complete, I, using the points listed by each question, dynamically calculated my grade. In the end run, I received an 89%. Though it seems small, keep in mind that a large percentage of my class earned 77%'s. For the class with the only A's and straight B's, it spells nightmare for others when they receive their report cards. As for myself, I have successfully rectified an earlier mistake of screwing up in the beginning of the class. My final grade of the class? 'B', exactly. Next semester will be different, and I plan to score higher, much higher, since there will be no apathy for the first two weeks like there was last time.
Wednesday, it was fun with History and German. German was actually hard for once. Frau Young assigned the National aptitude test for German students. I missed too many, in my opinion. I scored a B+ on it, but I am very disappointed, since had I gotten an A- or better, I would be eligible for a trip to Germany. History, I do not know. It was a somewhat easy test, and for the essay questions, I wrote a hell of a lot on them. With Mr. Betz, you never know how things turn out. I hope for the best.
Thursday was end day. I had Digital Photo and English 11 AP on the schedule. Digital Photo was fun. We turned in our projects and were free to do anything. Using my U3 USB drive, Tassadar, I uploaded my SC installation to the network. Eight of us, in moments, were lan gaming. I won after taking out the self professed RTS master through a combination of Archons and Scouts. What was really funny is that my strategy was Air-to-Ground attacks, and he had Anti Air massed. Ever seen a field of missile turrets three rows deep?
Shortly after this vegetation fest, the bell rang. In less than five minutes, I went from game-induced mindlessness to one hundred percent AP English writing level. Gods, that was interesting. Instead of reading a play, Ms. Smith decided it was time to do a pseudo-AP test drill. In two hours, we had to write three essays, dealing with three different prompts, unsure of which essay she would grade. In fact, she told us she'd pick a random one. That was a sweatfest. Twenty-four of us, all writing as fast as we can, trying to make thoughtful, well written essays. The first essay was not so bad, dealing with the rhetoric of an author who hates conductors (as in a symphony). The next one was bad. It was a meandering story about some guy and the disappointment expressed by his father at being left out in a sad kind of way. I tried writing about it as coherently as possible, but I feel I missed a lot of what I should've been writing about. The last essay dealt with the verse in Ecclesiastes (Bible) "For with much wisdom comes much sorrow; the more knowledge, the more grief." I wrote a lot on that, arguing for it. Using personal experience and logic, I composed an essay on it. I felt it was my best.
Soon I will know the results of the finals. But 'soon' doesn't help with the anxiety in waiting.