Road Maps

First of all, I love everybody's road maps! I think this project is really great in not only being able to define and present ourselves, but to learn so much about other people! All you guys are amazing, and I'm so glad we're all in the same class!!

Sharad
(P.S. I'm having technical difficulties with print screens from Windows Media. Is there a better way to get stills from videos? Aaggh I wanted to paste in pictures of all of yours, but it wasn't working out...!!)

You kind of reminded me of a chameleon, when you were talking about your personality changing when coming to America!

http://www.flickr.com/photos/specklet/218616814/

Sharad, I really think it's interesting how sort of transient you let your character be. It's really cool. You mentioned in your speech, I think, how you love traveling because you can take bits of other cultures that you like and apply them to your own life. You also mentioned how, "like an actor," you changed from an athletic and social child in India to a more scholastic and introverted boy in America. I think it will prove very valuable to you to be able to be so flexible and adaptable to changes in your life. (I also thought the pictures of monkeys were very cute, even though you said they were sometimes scary. I could see how them being around all the time might get annoying though!)

Callie

Yay, I got Callie's picture to work! Here's her picture about camp.

Callie, I think it's really great that you had so many constants in your life: Smokey, Snickers, camp and your friend Caroline. There were a lot of my friends in Houston who went to camp every summer, and it seems like such a great thing! I also liked reading about your older brothers! I have always wanted one, pretty much for the reasons you said! It seems like you have a really nice family (and it's exciting that your mom was a barrel racer!) I also thought Smokey and Snickers and your two new cats were adorable!

Emily

I couldn't get yours to work, and I was so sad! I wanted to see pictures of your "crazy Chow" family! I think my computer's just dumb, it loaded forever and kept freezing up... : ( Hopefully I can get it to work later!

Alex

The Duggars. My grandma was one of 12, so I guess we've got that in common Alex! http://www.hootingyard.org/archive/Duggars.jpg

I really liked reading about your family back in South Korea. My mom grew up in a neighborhood where she was right across the street from her aunts and a block away from her grandmother, and I always wanted that. I think it's really nice how you were able to grow up with your mom's side of the family, especially practically being raised by your grandmother. My grandmother was also one of twelve, so we've got big families in common. Although I have never been able to experience huge family gatherings like you described in your speech (with your dad's side of the family), my dad spent his summers in Michigan with his extended family too. He has so many cousins!

Maysie

A picture of her grandparents. She talked a lot about her family in the video.

This is going to sound weird Maysie, but your video inspired me! It made me want to get out and go do something exciting---and the music was really good too! I really liked how you talked about all the different pieces of your family. It's so great that you have so many different and positive influences. I also think it's interesting that you're so different from your mom. My mom and I are practically the same personality, and I can see influences of my dad's personality in myself as well. I think it's ultimately a good thing that you have someone so different so present in your life because you can each influence each other--as complements.

Jade

Jade had a lot of family pictures in the video! I think her family seems wonderful!

Jade, you were an adorable baby! Seriously, your whole video made me smile--your family seems so nice! (And the music was really relaxing, too!) I thought it was interesting that, like Maysie, you and your mom are complete opposites. I think it's wonderful that your mom and sister have helped you to come out of your shell. It seems like your family is filled with such positive influences. I really enjoyed learning about your volunteer experiences as well, especially how you said the stories you learn volunteering become a part of who you are as well. I love volunteering too!


Thuyen

She talked about maintaining her Vietnamese culture. Here's a Vietnamese dish that looks really good! http://www.flickr.com/photos/mmm-yoso/3130245188/

Thuyen, I was really inspired by your story. I liked learning about your culture, and I think it's great that you got to go back to Vietnam after all those years! I also thought it was really interesting that you found two such very different passions in your life: with sports and art. Who knows, maybe there are so many other things you don't even know about that you'll excel at! I love how your video showcased how driven and fun-loving you are.

Jose

The kookaburra!

First of all, I thought your speech was really good, Jose, and thank you for making me almost cry laughing so hard about the kookaburra clip. (And happy belated birthday!) I really liked the deep connection you seem to feel with animals. They're a very important part of my life as well, like they seem to be in yours. I also thought it was very interesting how you have such different career choices. Even though you said they were conflicted interests, I think both follow with the sense of "duty" you said you have. Caring for animals, like we did at the Zoo, takes so much. We had a duty toward them because their lives were in our hands.