Showing posts with label york university. Show all posts
Showing posts with label york university. Show all posts
Thursday, October 11, 2012
Squirrels could take over the world 9
I was going through old pictures taken with my iTouch, and I found a picture of a squirrel from back in January. It looks like I took it at York University. The squirrel looks so cute holding onto the paper bag, desperately looking for food they shouldn't be eating.
Tuesday, June 19, 2012
I like newspaper on glass
Number 87 on my to do list: cover an active office's glass window with newspaper.
Check.
No worries. I read those papers before putting them up, and recycled them after gently taking them down. Happened some time ago after a class I had in winter 2012. I failed to cover every inch of the window though, since people inside the office were freaking out about the newspaper on the glass and found what I was doing odd.
Check.
No worries. I read those papers before putting them up, and recycled them after gently taking them down. Happened some time ago after a class I had in winter 2012. I failed to cover every inch of the window though, since people inside the office were freaking out about the newspaper on the glass and found what I was doing odd.
Monday, May 21, 2012
Squirrels could take over the world 8
I took a walk around York University Keele Campus back in April and saw a squirrel sleeping on the side of the tree's trunk. I our my camera to take a picture, but right before I pressed the capture button, it woke up.
Saturday, April 21, 2012
Environmental Studies at York University: Year 3 and 4
Year 3: 2010-2011
The third year environmental studies courses were very informative (details-wise) with what's going on in the present world. Since they were more specific than the first and second year courses, I found them more interesting and straight forward. The assignments were fun to do, so I didn't mind spending days on each report. They took awhile to finish though, so I ended up handing in a few things late.
I was still part of YAMA and archery club, but I didn't participate in their events or practices often. I wanted to get more sleep at home because I was always tired. I've never slept before 12 AM since third grade, so I gave up time with university friends to be at home. I already spent about 4 hours each school day traveling between home and school, and I wanted to spend more time with my readings and assignments.
At the end of the year, I did pretty good (academically). I was also inspired by my instructors to go out and volunteer with different environmental groups, so I spent my summer doing volunteer work and looking for a job. The experiences I gained from volunteering were priceless.
Year 4: 2011-2012
When starting the new school year, it struck me that 3 years had quickly flew by. I was in my last year and I still had not decided on what I wanted to do after graduation! I decided to just concentrate on my studies in my last year and leave the worrying of looking for a job I would be happy with after graduation.
I took a 60% course load because I had already achieved the extra credits in past summer terms. And was I glad about that! It turned out that most fourth year courses took up more time than 3rd year courses. I even ended up spending 18 hours on campus one day just working in computer labs. Tiring, but totally worth the experience. I admit it: I had fun.
What I loved about the fourth year courses the most were the readings, and the team projects or group work, which were amazing!~ I won't give you the details, but let's say that they were as thrilling as having 99% EXP and almost reaching the next level.
I also enjoyed a non-credit interest group on systems thinking that had sessions every other week. They were like lectures with discussion in small groups, but the presentations for each session was presented by a different member of the group each time.
After
I've finished my exams now. It feels odd to know that I won't be returning to school in September and now having to make multiple resumes and cover letters. In the next few months, I know I'll miss the lectures, the campus, and most of all, the people that made my post-secondary school life.
The third year environmental studies courses were very informative (details-wise) with what's going on in the present world. Since they were more specific than the first and second year courses, I found them more interesting and straight forward. The assignments were fun to do, so I didn't mind spending days on each report. They took awhile to finish though, so I ended up handing in a few things late.
I was still part of YAMA and archery club, but I didn't participate in their events or practices often. I wanted to get more sleep at home because I was always tired. I've never slept before 12 AM since third grade, so I gave up time with university friends to be at home. I already spent about 4 hours each school day traveling between home and school, and I wanted to spend more time with my readings and assignments.
At the end of the year, I did pretty good (academically). I was also inspired by my instructors to go out and volunteer with different environmental groups, so I spent my summer doing volunteer work and looking for a job. The experiences I gained from volunteering were priceless.
Year 4: 2011-2012
When starting the new school year, it struck me that 3 years had quickly flew by. I was in my last year and I still had not decided on what I wanted to do after graduation! I decided to just concentrate on my studies in my last year and leave the worrying of looking for a job I would be happy with after graduation.
I took a 60% course load because I had already achieved the extra credits in past summer terms. And was I glad about that! It turned out that most fourth year courses took up more time than 3rd year courses. I even ended up spending 18 hours on campus one day just working in computer labs. Tiring, but totally worth the experience. I admit it: I had fun.
What I loved about the fourth year courses the most were the readings, and the team projects or group work, which were amazing!~ I won't give you the details, but let's say that they were as thrilling as having 99% EXP and almost reaching the next level.
I also enjoyed a non-credit interest group on systems thinking that had sessions every other week. They were like lectures with discussion in small groups, but the presentations for each session was presented by a different member of the group each time.
After
I've finished my exams now. It feels odd to know that I won't be returning to school in September and now having to make multiple resumes and cover letters. In the next few months, I know I'll miss the lectures, the campus, and most of all, the people that made my post-secondary school life.
Tuesday, February 7, 2012
Snow, I miss you
I didn't bother to edit the image other than resizing it.It was a dark and snowy morning when I took this picture at York University Keele campus on the 27th of January, 2012. Why couldn't the snow stay for another week? Every time it snows it stays for about a day, then it rains. Slightly warmer days ensue and a snowy day comes by. The pattern starts over. Does anyone else miss the large amount of snow Toronto used to get?
In other news, I saw a squirrel sleeping on my neighbor's fence on January 7. Yes. It was warm enough for the squirrels to come out sleeping on fences again. I'm not sure if it's the same squirrel from September 8, 2010's post. That would be cool, unless squirrels normally like to sleep on fences (though that's cool too).
The following image is a screenshot of the sleeping squirrel from a video I took of it.
Saturday, October 8, 2011
Environmental Studies at York University: Year 2
Year 2: 2009-2010
After receiving a number of C's in my last year's report card, I felt ashamed of myself and wanted to drop out of school. I didn't want to leave all the money I spent in first year to be in vain though, so I decided to stay in school to see if I could improve my learning and writing on my own.
I became an executive of YAMA, which took up most of my time. I joined the archery club, but I didn't show up to the practices often.
My grades and work initiative improved a little. I still left a most of assignments to the last minute though, which caused huge amount of stress on my organs. There were a lot of assignments and reading logs to do! Year 2 was when I received my first A, but also my lowest final grade: a D+ (I was never suited for administrative studies). My GPA didn't improve by the end of the year, which was disappointing, but I learned a lot about how the government, economy, and various societies affect the environment from the second year environmental studies fundamental courses.
Year 2.5: Summer 2010
I took two summer ecology courses that had field trips around Toronto every week. It was a great experience, because we had the chance to do hands-on work. The courses were inspiring and it brought light to the subject of environmental studies. It was sad how they were only a month long.
After the summer term ended, I was sent to British Columbia to work in a restaurant. I took note of restaurant operations and how their impact to the environment could be reduced. I left British Columbia right before the start of my third year.
After receiving a number of C's in my last year's report card, I felt ashamed of myself and wanted to drop out of school. I didn't want to leave all the money I spent in first year to be in vain though, so I decided to stay in school to see if I could improve my learning and writing on my own.
I became an executive of YAMA, which took up most of my time. I joined the archery club, but I didn't show up to the practices often.
My grades and work initiative improved a little. I still left a most of assignments to the last minute though, which caused huge amount of stress on my organs. There were a lot of assignments and reading logs to do! Year 2 was when I received my first A, but also my lowest final grade: a D+ (I was never suited for administrative studies). My GPA didn't improve by the end of the year, which was disappointing, but I learned a lot about how the government, economy, and various societies affect the environment from the second year environmental studies fundamental courses.
Year 2.5: Summer 2010
I took two summer ecology courses that had field trips around Toronto every week. It was a great experience, because we had the chance to do hands-on work. The courses were inspiring and it brought light to the subject of environmental studies. It was sad how they were only a month long.
After the summer term ended, I was sent to British Columbia to work in a restaurant. I took note of restaurant operations and how their impact to the environment could be reduced. I left British Columbia right before the start of my third year.
Wednesday, October 5, 2011
Environmental Studies at York University: Year 1
In the last 3 years, I've grown to appreciate the environmental studies program at York University and enjoy what I learn in the variety of interdisciplinary courses. It's hard to believe I was frustrated with the program when I first started it.
This post will be one of three mementos of my last 3 years in environmental studies and at York University. I will also share a bit of information on what I'm studying in fourth year. My experiences with university clubs and residence will be included.
Year 1: 2008-2009
Most of my courses were under the faculty of environmental studies. Some common themes in each of those courses were environmental disasters, human contributions to climate change, consumerism, social issues in small and large communities, and the division of power between subject x and y. They were enough to make one feel depressed because the lessons always gave a 'people won't do anything that would actually benefit the environment if it means sacrificing a little wealth' vibe. One of my courses was a geography course which taught history and discourse. It was a little more enlightening than the environmental courses.
I thought that passing my classes was enough to make me happy but I learned it did not. The level of work and writing was much higher than I expected, so I struggled a lot. I used to be great with presentations in high school, but I screwed up group presentations with a sudden stage fright. After receiving a zero on an oral exam, one of my professors suggested I may have a learning disability and I should get help from one of the school's learning services. I didn't go because I believed I could improve my learning capabilities on my own.
I lived on residence in my first year, but I spent most of my time sleeping and hanging out with fellow residence friends. We would stay up until the next morning watching the food network, drinking, or talking about something related to anime, manga, or gaming. My parents called me almost every day in the first few months but gave up after I stopped picking up the phone. They used to give me surprise visits on Fridays to take me home and even sent their friends to pick me up a few times. I told them I wanted to stay at residence on weekends, but they insisted that I wanted to go home. What was the point of pressuring me into living on residence and spending that $7,000? At least I got to meet great people there and I had enough time to explore the whole campus.
I checked out a few clubs on campus throughout the year. I submitted a few comics and attended general meetings of the campus' newspaper group Excalibur, sat through a few of the astronomy club's awesome weekly activities, and eventually joined Yama anime and manga association. One of the members from YAMA showed a fellow first year and I around the campus's underground pathways. He didn't tell us that people usually get raped there until he led us to a sketchy tunnel. (I learned the next year that there's a worse rape tunnel somewhere else on campus.) The groups took a lot of my time every week because of their long meetings, but I don't regret taking the time to participate in their activities.
Throughout the year, I had a habit of falling asleep everywhere. I slept through my classes [in the front row], slept in random common rooms around campus, slept in cafeterias, and even while walking to classes. The bad part was that I wasn't aware I fell asleep until I woke up. I took a blood test during a doctor's appointment halfway into my second term and learned that I had iron deficiency anemia. I asked the doctor if I had to eat more food with iron in it, but she suggested I take supplements instead. I had to take iron tablets everyday after that but I still felt tired. (I feel much better now so the tablets must have worked.)
What I didn't like most about my first year was the long strike: it lasted from the beginning of November until the end of January. I spent most of my strike days looking for news on York University, reading comics and novels, and sleeping at home instead of finishing all my readings and assignments.
Year 1.5: Summer 2009
I wanted to experience summer school back in high school, but I never got the chance to because I had to take care of my younger sister. I figured I could try it out in university and maybe pick up the habit to do assignments ahead of time. The summer term was shorter because of the strike, so everything in the course was crammed. There wasn't that much resting time between assignments, but I didn't mind. My habits of keeping things to the last day continued though.
I think the only bad thing that happened that summer was spraining my ankle and having to use crutches. I sprained my ankle after jumping off a curb and landing on my ankle. It was painful.
This post will be one of three mementos of my last 3 years in environmental studies and at York University. I will also share a bit of information on what I'm studying in fourth year. My experiences with university clubs and residence will be included.
Year 1: 2008-2009
Most of my courses were under the faculty of environmental studies. Some common themes in each of those courses were environmental disasters, human contributions to climate change, consumerism, social issues in small and large communities, and the division of power between subject x and y. They were enough to make one feel depressed because the lessons always gave a 'people won't do anything that would actually benefit the environment if it means sacrificing a little wealth' vibe. One of my courses was a geography course which taught history and discourse. It was a little more enlightening than the environmental courses.
I thought that passing my classes was enough to make me happy but I learned it did not. The level of work and writing was much higher than I expected, so I struggled a lot. I used to be great with presentations in high school, but I screwed up group presentations with a sudden stage fright. After receiving a zero on an oral exam, one of my professors suggested I may have a learning disability and I should get help from one of the school's learning services. I didn't go because I believed I could improve my learning capabilities on my own.
I lived on residence in my first year, but I spent most of my time sleeping and hanging out with fellow residence friends. We would stay up until the next morning watching the food network, drinking, or talking about something related to anime, manga, or gaming. My parents called me almost every day in the first few months but gave up after I stopped picking up the phone. They used to give me surprise visits on Fridays to take me home and even sent their friends to pick me up a few times. I told them I wanted to stay at residence on weekends, but they insisted that I wanted to go home. What was the point of pressuring me into living on residence and spending that $7,000? At least I got to meet great people there and I had enough time to explore the whole campus.
I checked out a few clubs on campus throughout the year. I submitted a few comics and attended general meetings of the campus' newspaper group Excalibur, sat through a few of the astronomy club's awesome weekly activities, and eventually joined Yama anime and manga association. One of the members from YAMA showed a fellow first year and I around the campus's underground pathways. He didn't tell us that people usually get raped there until he led us to a sketchy tunnel. (I learned the next year that there's a worse rape tunnel somewhere else on campus.) The groups took a lot of my time every week because of their long meetings, but I don't regret taking the time to participate in their activities.
Throughout the year, I had a habit of falling asleep everywhere. I slept through my classes [in the front row], slept in random common rooms around campus, slept in cafeterias, and even while walking to classes. The bad part was that I wasn't aware I fell asleep until I woke up. I took a blood test during a doctor's appointment halfway into my second term and learned that I had iron deficiency anemia. I asked the doctor if I had to eat more food with iron in it, but she suggested I take supplements instead. I had to take iron tablets everyday after that but I still felt tired. (I feel much better now so the tablets must have worked.)
What I didn't like most about my first year was the long strike: it lasted from the beginning of November until the end of January. I spent most of my strike days looking for news on York University, reading comics and novels, and sleeping at home instead of finishing all my readings and assignments.
Year 1.5: Summer 2009
I wanted to experience summer school back in high school, but I never got the chance to because I had to take care of my younger sister. I figured I could try it out in university and maybe pick up the habit to do assignments ahead of time. The summer term was shorter because of the strike, so everything in the course was crammed. There wasn't that much resting time between assignments, but I didn't mind. My habits of keeping things to the last day continued though.
I think the only bad thing that happened that summer was spraining my ankle and having to use crutches. I sprained my ankle after jumping off a curb and landing on my ankle. It was painful.
Saturday, April 2, 2011
Squirrels could take over the world 6
As my parents are talking about how stupid I am to my other family members in the room next door, I shall share this picture and not do my overdue school work.Halfway through my Wednesday lecture at school, the fire bell rang. All students had to evacuate the building. I left the building at an exit different from my fellow students and waited for the bell to end. As I was waiting, a very fat squirrel ran up the tree next to me and proceeded to eat what I believe was a cracker. It spend about 15 minutes eating the cracker, then laid down and stared in my direction with its arms under its chin (if squirrels have chins).
It wouldn't stop staring at my direction! I tried not to pay attention to it but it kept... staring. I played solitaire on my iPod for awhile until a friend of mine jumped at me, scaring both the squirrel and I. The squirrel ran away and instead of greeting my friend, I said "you scared it away!"
We had a little chat about school and Pacific Mall afterwards. The fire bell was still ringing while we were chatting.
Sunday, February 7, 2010
Exam Day
I was at an exam today and in the middle of the exam, a fire bell went off. I eventually went back in and continued the exam. At the end when the exam proctors said "pens down" there were pens flying everywhere. I mean, as people were walking down to the leveled floor to hand-in their papers, their pens would fly out of their hands or bags and stay on the floor even after they've left.
After the exam I went to use the washroom, but there was yellow water everywhere: on the floor, toilets, toilet seats, and I don't know if it was on the stalls and I didn't bother to check.
What an exam day.
After the exam I went to use the washroom, but there was yellow water everywhere: on the floor, toilets, toilet seats, and I don't know if it was on the stalls and I didn't bother to check.
What an exam day.
Tuesday, November 3, 2009
Impressive Cosplay
I was at YAMA Anime Manga Association's Halloween event on October 29, 2009 and they were having a cosplay contest!
There were 7 cosplayers: each added their own touch to the character they were cosplaying as. Rock Lee (Naruto) had his sake bottle and poses, Black Star (Soul Eater) had his spiked up hair and his "Black Star was here" posters (the lady put up posters around the building), man in drag had his pants on under his micro skirt, Naruto (Naruto) had his super spinning blue yo-yo, pink lolita rabbit girl had her elegant stand, Scyther (Pokémon) had his blade gloves and moving mouth, and Hello Kitty Kenpachi had his head on. The Black Star and Naruto cosplayers are actually female. :P
Rock Lee vs. Hello Kenpachi with sound effects!
I have a third video, but it won't upload on YouTube. I'll update this post if it ever uploads.
Conclusion: York University has skilled cosplayers.
There were 7 cosplayers: each added their own touch to the character they were cosplaying as. Rock Lee (Naruto) had his sake bottle and poses, Black Star (Soul Eater) had his spiked up hair and his "Black Star was here" posters (the lady put up posters around the building), man in drag had his pants on under his micro skirt, Naruto (Naruto) had his super spinning blue yo-yo, pink lolita rabbit girl had her elegant stand, Scyther (Pokémon) had his blade gloves and moving mouth, and Hello Kitty Kenpachi had his head on. The Black Star and Naruto cosplayers are actually female. :P
Rock Lee vs. Hello Kenpachi with sound effects!
I have a third video, but it won't upload on YouTube. I'll update this post if it ever uploads.
Conclusion: York University has skilled cosplayers.
Sunday, May 17, 2009
Capturing Images
What I find awesome is furniture that are left outdoors. I found chairs in a desolated place along with two artworks one day. The air after the rain smelled nice too. I walked about some more and found a picnic table in a quiet and isolated area.
Monday, March 16, 2009
Silverfish
I don't like insects being near me unless there's a glass between us. Since I've moved into residence, I've met more silverfish running around than I ever wanted to meet in my lifetime. I'm cruel to insects, and even though silverfish aren't very easy to find everyday outside of this old building, I try to kill them. I spray aerosol febreeze at them to the point where they stop moving. I'd spray some more because I feel like they'll suddenly come back to life.
I met two juvenile ones minutes ago, but I don't know what to do with their bodies. Maybe I'll vacuum them during the non-quiet hours of the bulding.
I met two juvenile ones minutes ago, but I don't know what to do with their bodies. Maybe I'll vacuum them during the non-quiet hours of the bulding.
Friday, March 13, 2009
South Asian Mario Dance Party at York University
My friends and I were walking around York University's Vari Hall at 1 am for a cookie run when a group of people came out of a hallway pushing large decorations and wearing costumes. In the center of Vari Hall, the same people looked to be praticing a show with a Nintendo Mario theme mixed with South Asian dance styles. The music they danced to was a remix of a few pop songs, cultural music, and mario brother video game sounds. I would have recorded it if I brought my camera or camcorder with me.
What I want to know is what they were practicing for, because I would definitly look forward to seeing the final show.
What I want to know is what they were practicing for, because I would definitly look forward to seeing the final show.
Tuesday, February 17, 2009
Squirrels could take over the World 1
At my residence room in school, there's a hole in the window's screen--or mesh as many people call it. I call it "the squirrel hole." There are two windows in the room I share with my roommate. According to my roommate, a squirrel climbed the bricks of the building, nibbled through our fourth-floor window's screen, and entered our room. She woke up screaming when she saw it on her desk, and her scream was enough to make the squirrel run back out of the squirrel hole. Wish I was there to see the squirrel.
The squirrels on our campus only eat through garbage cans. They are often seen popping their heads out of the garbage cans. Does that mean that the squirrel mistook our room as a garbage dump... ? I wouldn't be surprised that the smell coming out of the room is attracting animals from outside. It's the fact that the animals would actually dare to climb to the fourth floor to get the food that surprises me. There's no way to get to the fourth floor from outside other than entering through the main or side doors or climbing the brick walls.
So I've come to a conclusion: squirrels could take over the world if they wanted to. They're smart and I'm pretty sure they could severely hurt someone when they're in a group even though they can't be found all over the world.
My father says otherwise. "Squirrels will become extinct soon. Maybe in ten years."
The squirrels on our campus only eat through garbage cans. They are often seen popping their heads out of the garbage cans. Does that mean that the squirrel mistook our room as a garbage dump... ? I wouldn't be surprised that the smell coming out of the room is attracting animals from outside. It's the fact that the animals would actually dare to climb to the fourth floor to get the food that surprises me. There's no way to get to the fourth floor from outside other than entering through the main or side doors or climbing the brick walls.
So I've come to a conclusion: squirrels could take over the world if they wanted to. They're smart and I'm pretty sure they could severely hurt someone when they're in a group even though they can't be found all over the world.
My father says otherwise. "Squirrels will become extinct soon. Maybe in ten years."
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