Trevor or Simon,
I just visited my page and realized that my Flash project never really uploaded and I don’t think that I have it on my thumbdrive (the finished one) and I forgot to get the program from you guys so I was wondering what I should do.

A Flash presentation by Kathy Tran

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This is going to be the project that I am making better. To be honest, I haven’t finished it but I am determined to finish it and make it one of the best works that I have done so far, which will be pretty hard considering that I have done so excellent quality work already.

What I need to do is edit my buttons, because almost none of them work. Another thing that I need to do is add the information that I got from everybody in my interviews. Then, I also have to put the credits in also. I think that this project will come out the way I want it to.

HOW TO MANAGE YOUR TIME:
I. Podcast of techniques. “How do you personally manage your time?”
a. Residential Advisors at SMASH.
b. Students at SMASH.
c. Teachers at SMASH.
II. Common mistakes.
a. Myself (information from various sources).
i. Interview others of what they think common mistakes are and combine it all into one informative pod cast.
III. Experiences in different age group so that people navigate to whichever group they belong to (so they don’t have to listen to unnecessary information that does not affect them.
a. Teenagers.
b. Young Adults.
c. Adults.
IV. Last minute summary.
V. Credits.

First of all, I just want to point out the label on the left leg of the pi sign that says “this is NOT me”. This label is the opposite of me. Before the text, it was a plain white label and it was what some people thought of when they heard the name “Kathy”. I would actually like to change that. I don’t consider myself to be plain and simple; I am outgoing and a number of other things that do not go under the category of “plain and simple”.

My background is the pi sign because I have noticed that no matter where I go, I will never stop loving math. I find it very interesting because of that fact that it is never ending. No matter where I look or what classes I take, there will be more formulas, more functions, and most of all, more excitment.

Under my last name is the name “Chen” and it is crossed out. I looked it up on Wikipedia and it told me that the last name of “Tran” originated from the last name “Chen”. I think that they should be categorized as two different last names but that’s only my opinion. I just wanted everyone to know that my last name is “TRAN” and not “CHEN”.

On the far left side of my whole montage is the part of me that I represent most at school. I go to the Oakland Military Institute (OMI) College Preparatory Academy and throughout my years there, I have enhanced my leadership skills, and I have also obtained the rank of the highest non-commissioned officer in my entire school: Cadet Sergeant Major (three stripes on top, three on bottom, and a star in the middle). I think that OMI has been a huge influence in life because I have been there for four years now and I have watched it grow and improve as the years have gone by. I have been through what my school has been through and still going. I believe that I have a relationship with OMI itself because we have been together for so long that it feels like my second home because I am always there before hours, during hours, and even after hours. OMI has taught me so much about life that I feel that I am prepared to do anything. The leadership that comes with enrollment to the school has also benefitted me in a big way. I think that I have grown as a person because all the leadership positions that I have held has taught me a different lesson each and everyday. I think that I made the right choice in enrolling in OMI because it has benifitted me academically and spiritually. Without OMI, I think that I would not be who I am because when I describe myself, I never leave OMI out.

On the lower left leg of the pi sign is an open book. My mother told me the story of how I got my name and it goes a little something like this: (in my mother’s perspective) When I was in labor, I went to the hospital and I had to wait for eight hours before I had you. During this time, I read a book and it was about a girl named Kathy who was beautiful, smart, and friendly. When you were born, you came out feet first and they had to perform a c-section. Before they put me under the gas, I told your father the name that I wanted for you, which was Kathy, and he smiled at me.
That is the story of how you got your name. I didn’t look it up, I just thought it was a pretty name. But I think that it was a good choice for you because you are beautiful, smart, friendly, funny, and very special to me.

In the middle of the montage there is a picture of Vietnam. My parents originated there and I think that that is a part of me because it is in my blood. My parents have taught me the language and I have been speaking both English and Vietnamese since I was two.

The question mark and the “Baby Blues” image sort of go together. The question mark means that I am really unexpected at times. Sometimes, I am random and sarcastic and other times, I am straightforward and serious. The “Baby Blues” image is a portion of my randomness. I love this comic strip because it involves little kids, comedy, and my kind of simplicity.

On the bottom right corner of my pi sign is a stethoscope. Since I enter high school, I have wanted to become a doctor. I have watched many of the shows that are on TV and although I know that “Grey’s Anatomy” and “ER” don’t really tell me anything about the career, it still gives me a glimpse of what the life of a doctor really is. I have a pretty good idea of what kind of doctor I want to be and at this moment, I have hopes of becoming a well-known surgeon.

Finally, the word above my first name: “pure”. This is the only definition of myself that I consider to be true. I think that I am pure because I am original. I think that I am the only one around that will ever be like me. I have made a reputation for myself and I live up to it.

I AM KATHY TRAN…

The initial appearance of the avatar was “the girl next door” so it looked nothing like me, but I think that it would have been really freaky if it did look like me.

The first thing that I began editing was my facial features mainly because it was the first thing on the list to edit. I also started with that, because I think that the face is really the foundation for all the other things that I had to edit.

I think that the clothing and body features were easiest to replicate because they weren’t as complicated as the facial features. The clothing and body features were basic and easy and they didn’t take as much time as the face features did.

The most difficult features to edit for me were the facial features. I thought that they were extremely hard. At some points I actually couldn’t get things to work but eventually they compromised with me. The final product didn’t come out as I planned but they came out okay-ish.

I think that these were especially difficult to replicate, because they are the features that matter the most. As people, we distinguish the difference between others using the different faces that we see everyday, so this meant that we had to use up most of our time editing our faces so that we have that layer of familiarality.

I think that I modified most of the attributes for my avatar, but I don’t think that I could give an exact value. I might have missed out on some of the attributes, but they must have been the clothing and misc. items.

I think that there needs to be accessories, because people wear jewelry. This would benefit most of the people who wear glasses. I also think that the clothing area should be expanded because it is assumed that all boys and girls have that type of style when it’s not.

I don’t think that my avatar really looks like me at all. It just looks like a whole different person. It doesn’t really remind me of anyone but it does look like someone I would like to meet (freaky, huh?) so I guess I made myself a new friend. :]

These images are all things that relate to me. Starting from the top, the McDonald’s picture is there because McDonald’s is the only fast food restaurant that I prefer; the stethoscope is there because I have hopes of becoming a doctor when I grow up; the map of Vietnam is one of my origins; the books were put on there because I enjoy reading; the pencil is there because I like to express myself by writing things down; the OMI patch is there because that is the school I go to (AGE QUOD AGIS is latin for “do well whatever you do”); the Oakland A’s are my favorite baseball team; and I put the symbol of pi on there because I love math. Overall, the background is the “City of Oakland” sign and I put it there because I live in Oakland and it is my community.

To me, community is not just people who happen to live near one another, it is a family. In my community, I like to converse with everyone and eventually we will become close enough to become a family. Being a community is contributing and not being selfish. When things are done, they are done for the community and seldom for selfish reasons.

Take this blog for example; this is a community. We all know each other and have all talked to each other before. We are already a community because we are in the SMASH family.

Hey guys. This is Kathy. I just wanted to let you guys know a little about me if you don’t already. I’m a good kid but most people wouldn’t say the same thing; I can be sarcastic at times but that doesn’t mean that I’m a bully. Although there is not a lot about me, I can say that I am really easy going and that I am a particularly good listener. I believe that media is everywhere just as my friend Noel said. No matter where we look, there will be media whether it be a computer, the radio, newspaper stands, or even cell phones. I think that the media is a VERY important. It is a way of communication such as MySpace, Facebook, Yahoo and Google email. I don’t know where I would be without media because it is a part of me; without it, I would be lost. I would not know what is going on around the world and even in my own city. The media obviously affects me in many ways because it’s everywhere. No matter where I turn, I always have a source of media and that allows me to get through my day. I am actually very interested in technology and I would like to learn a whole lot more about it and I hope that this class will help me on that. I have gone on the internet and watched videos on youtube and chatted with my friends on AIM.Without technology, I don’t know where I would be. If I didn’t have access to the media or any technology at all, I would be clueless for the most part of my life because I would have no idea what was going on for the most part. I am thankful that we have the media here to supprt us no matter what.. My first time using any source of media would have to be when I was about six years old when my parents first bought me a little recorder type thing and I would go around and ask people random questions about anything that was on my mind at that point, mainly because I was six and NOTHING embarassed me when I was six, at least I hope nothing did. There are many ways that I can communicate with the rest of my community with the resources that I have. For instance, I keep in touch with my friends (old, current, and new) on my Myspace page, for those who don’t have a MySpace, then I keep in touch with them via Yahoo or Google email, and finally, I own a screen name on AOL Instant Messanger. Just recently, I did a radio interview with my friend for my school, the Oakland Military Institute but unfortunately, I don’t know whether it was aired or not.

My last words will be: I plan to learn many things in this class and it will hopefully get me more involved with media and the community itself.

SEE YOU GUYS AROUND!