Taking Inventory

Whenever I go school supply shopping, I never know how much stuff to buy! I always forget how many notebooks, binders, etc. I used last year. So this year, I'm not going to let that happen!

I decided to take inventory of my school supplies now that the school year is over. I was curious to see if my estimates at the beginning of last year were accurate, and how well my supplies lasted me throughout the year (hint: they didn't last very long). Hopefully, next time you shop, you can use this data to your advantage :).

    Warning: though school is out, I'm still using math ;).

Binder Paper: 5 sheets left/200 bought before school started (but I did borrow many sheets from friends and ripped pages out of my notebook...) = 2.5%

Pencils: 3/27 left (but I bought led at the end of May, so again, they would have run out earlier)= 11%

Notebooks: 9/4 notebooks left/in use (I started out with 4, but ended up having to buy 5 more) = 225%

And since we love statistics, I broke notebooks down even further by subject: History, 2 notebooks; Math, 5 notebooks (!!!); Language, 1 notebook; English: 1 notebook

Sorry for the low quality, Blogger is having issues...

Binders: 1/1 left (yay, it's not even that damaged!) = 100%

Erasers: 5/1 left (technically, I started out with 1 eraser, but I acquired 4 more throughout the year and now I only have one 😢) = 500%

Rulers: 1/2 currently in use (interestingly, I've had this ruler since 3rd grade) = 50%

Protractor/Compass set: 0/1 left (I mean, I think it's somewhere in my room, but I can't really find it and I don't really use it...) = 0%

It turns out that the only accurate prediction was for the binder! As for the rest of the supplies, I had either extra or I had to not enough and went out and bought more. Or I just lost them. Oops.

Anyways, how many of your supplies do you have left? Are you usually left without any pencils by the end of the school year? Tell me below!

Florida Trip!

Hello from Florida! I'm on a 6-day conference here in Orlando, ready to blog about everything that happens!

Day 1: I woke up at 3:15 in the morning, got ready, and got to the airport by 5:20-ish. Then we flew to Florida and touched down at around 3:00. The planes actually looked very cool on the inside, and I have to admit, I'm starting to like Alaska Airlines!

At 4:00, the buses came and we all drove to the hotel. One thing I notice along the way is that there are so many lakes in Florida! There were 12 just on that drive! (Where I live, there's only one lake with the name of a queen, so this is kind of shocking!)

 The hotel is pretty amazing. There was free flavored water in the front, and as decorations there were trees, umbrellas, and mini waterfalls.

The rooms were also very luxurious, with plenty of space to walk around. Even the bathrooms had marble tiles everywhere, and looked very pretty.

For the rest of the day, we didn't really do much. I'd done some homework on the plane (alternating between notes and watching Mulan every 5 minutes), so I had time to watch a little TV and chillax. For lunch I'd gotten Panda Express, and for dinner I ate a Lean Cuisine meal (not that great, tbh). 

That's pretty much the end of Day 1! Stay tuned for more about sunshine and the rest of my trip!

Book Review: Prisoner of Night and Fog by Anne Blankman

Cover Courtesy of Goodreads

Goodreads Summary: In 1930s Munich, danger lurks behind dark corners, and secrets are buried deep within the city. But Gretchen Müller, who grew up in the National Socialist Party under the wing of her "uncle" Dolf, has been shielded from that side of society ever since her father traded his life for Dolf's, and Gretchen is his favorite, his pet. Uncle Dolf is none other than Adolf Hitler. And Gretchen follows his every command. Until she meets a fearless and handsome young Jewish reporter named Daniel Cohen. Gretchen should despise Daniel, yet she can't stop herself from listening to his story: that her father, the adored Nazi martyr, was actually murdered by an unknown comrade. She also can't help the fierce attraction brewing between them, despite everything she's been taught to believe about Jews. As Gretchen investigates the very people she's always considered friends, she must decide where her loyalties lie. Will she choose the safety of her former life as a Nazi darling, or will she dare to dig up the truth—even if it could get her and Daniel killed? From debut author Anne Blankman comes this harrowing and evocative story about an ordinary girl faced with the extraordinary decision to give up everything she's ever believed . . . and to trust her own heart instead.

My Review: How intriguing is this?! I couldn't wait to get my hands on this book as soon as I read the summary. Luckily, it lived up to my expectations.

    All of the characters were very well written. Gretchen was realistic and as cautious and doubtful as Hitler's close friend would be. Daniel's family also acted realistically for the time period. Reinhard, Gretchen's brother, was an interesting character, I like how the author formed a parallel between him and Hitler. I also appreciated Gretchen's mother and the resolution between her and Gretchen.

    The mystery was also interesting, though the culprit a little obvious, in hindsight. What I like best are all of the details of the story. Streets, people, everything has a name, and the reader really feels transported to Germany. The only problem was that I couldn't keep all of the names and suspects straight, but I think that just makes the mystery more realistic (in real life, there isn't going to be one suspect, one crime scene, etc.).

    My last complaint would be that the intro is a little overused: Gretchen meets a tall, dark stranger who keeps appearing and disappearing, saying to meet him at random locations through notes. Perhaps the author could have worked out this part a little better. However, reading the details about Hitler's life and all of the characters made up for any minor flaws.

    I would recommend this book for anyone looking for historical fiction on WWII, and give it 4 stars, as this is the best example I found for that time period. It's suspense and details will leave you craving for the sequel. (Plus, the cover is super gorgeous!) 

Studying Tips

Hello everyone! I know I haven't blogged in quite a while now, because school has been as busy as ever! I kind of feel like I've been studying less, but time is still moving by really fast? Can anyone relate?
Anyways, in my area, we have final exams soon :(. I've been buried under a few (hundred) textbooks and piles of notes for the past few days, but for now, I've resurfaced, ready to share a few last minute tips to ace your next exam! So who's ready to get studying?

1. Write out a schedule for your studying days. A schedule always makes me feel prepared and motivates me to get started. If you're someone who procrastinates, pull out the fancy pens and get to work!
2. Make sure to think about which subjects have the most to memorize, and study those a few days before the final only! Don't waste time memorizing your entire history textbook weeks before the final, only to forget everything later. Think realistically - do you need to memorize every fact, or just get an overview of the subject and dive into the details later?
3. Use Quizlet - but sparingly! I find Quizlet to be useful, but mainly only for vocabulary, as it grades based on if your answer is correct word for word. For memorizing concepts, I like to refer back to my notes instead. I also think that some modes are slightly more useful than others. For example, the Learn mode is very thorough, but it also takes about three times as long as the Write mode. Decide how much time you have, looking at that schedule you made. After all, you're the best judge :).
4. Take notes on material you might want to come back to again. In case you think you found some important concepts when reviewing, don't forget to jot them down so you remember them.
5. Try out different study techniques. I found the Pomodoro Technique and tried it out. This style involves alternating between studying for 25 minutes and taking breaks, and it at least helped me feel motivated to study for my math test a couple of weeks ago.
6. Just get started. Often times, I find that forcing myself to study is the hard part, but once I get serious, studying isn't so bad.

So how's your studying going so far? Or if exams are over, is there anything you wished you would have done differently to prepare? Tell me below!

My Thoughts on Percy Jackson and the Olympians and Heroes of Olympus

After some urging from my friend, I decided to try (finally) reading the Percy Jackson series by Rick Riordan. I ended up finishing the books in both of the series mentioned in the title within a month and a half, and now I have a lot to say!

First off, overall, I thought all of the books were great. They had snark, humor, and action that left me craving more after every book. The character development is awesome, and you can see the difference in Percy from The Lightning Thief to The Blood of Olympus. I've decided to split up the rest of my thoughts based on both series, just to keep ideas organized.

Percy Jackson and the Olympians:

• So the first book felt a little "meh" to me. I still wanted to read the rest of the books, and it certainly wasn't bad, but I didn't understand why everyone loved the series so much.
• After reading the second book, the fandom started to make sense to me. It drew me in better, and kept me interested. I also remember feeling slightly annoyed at Grover for creating an empathy link with Percy. It seems cruel. If Grover went down, Percy would go down, too, and this doesn't seem like a situation a friend would put another in.
• The last book was probably my favorite. I really loved the fighting, which surprised me. Even in Harry Potter and The Deathly Hallows, the fighting bored me. This time, I was wide awake, and rooting for the heroes! I will comment that I don't think Kronos used his powers enough, though. It's hard to believe that even someone manipulating time couldn't win a battle against Percy. I guess it just goes to show that being ultra powerful does not guarantee success.
• As a whole series, it earns 4.5 stars!

Heroes of Olympus:

• I was warned by many that The Lost Hero would be boring because Percy wouldn't be there, and I braced myself, but I found the book to be fine. In fact, I enjoyed it! Leo made every conversation hilarious, and it was nice to learn about new heroes. Although I really didn't like Jason (and still don't, #sorrynotsorry). He's pretty boring. Okay, so he lost his memory, but he never seemed to stand out to me. Everyone said he was a leader, he said he was under so much pressure, and he wanted to abandon Camp Jupiter for Camp Half-Blood. He never seemed to have any interesting thoughts, to be honest.
• Son of Neptune: Ugh, why did Percy lose his memory. I was mad at this, because I feel like it's not a proper way to add suspense. At least with Jason, I wondered where he was from. With Percy, I already knew his whole past, and was more annoyed than excited to see what he'd remember.
• Mark of Athena: Finally, everything is normal again. At least the two camps can meet up, even if "Leo" ruins that. I didn't really get Annabeth's quest, though. Maybe I wasn't paying enough attention, but I don't recall any change in Athena mentioned when the statue was brought out. Oh, and the ending: I was stunned.
• The House of Hades: I was afraid I'd only want to read Percy and Annabeth's chapters, but luckily, the rest of the POVs were interesting enough to keep me reading. This story captivated me at least as much as Mark of Athena did.
• Finally, with the Blood of Olympus, I was not disappointed. There was a solid lead up to a great, though short, battle, and a satisfying conclusion!
• I do have to wonder though: what did the heroes do in all of the books? Sure, they brought back a statue, battled some monsters, etc., but after each book, Gaea seemed closer to waking up, not farther. Maybe it's because heroes can't do that much damage to a sleeping Titan, but I feel like most of their work didn't make a huge difference in the end (besides closing the Doors of Death).
• Also I'm surprised that Piper's charmspeak was pretty much her weapon. I'd expect more monsters to be able to do it or resist it, but many seemed to fall under Piper's spell. Might convenient for Piper :).
• Overall, I may have liked this series better than the first, though both are close!

I tried reading The Hidden Oracle, but was honestly bored. The voice seemed too MG compared to the Heroes of Olympus, which I could qualify as lower YA. Plus, I'd grown too attached to the 8 demigods (and Nico and Reyna) from the last series to care about anyone else :P.

Anyways, what are your thoughts on the Percy Jackson books? Who's your favorite character (mine's Percy!)? Is reading Trials of Apollo worth it? Tell me below!