MAYCOMB COUNTY: Is Maycomb a good place to live in?

a. You have conducted an interview with one of the characters in TKAM. Write out the interview transcript, taking note to demonstrate the essence of the character and his/her point of view.

The Character:

Dill

The Interview:

Is Maycomb a good place to live in?

My Aunt says Maycomb is great. I find that Maycomb is jolly fine. Scout, Jem, Cal and all. Maycomb is interesting too. With Boo and everything. Though i find Meridian better. But i find... um... the prejudice against the negros.

Too hardcore for my taste. But other than that. I like it. Alot. Why'd you think that i spend every summer here?

You find the Justice System prejudiced?

Yea. My Dad, who is a very righteous man, told me never to treat negros differently. He told me there were the same as us. Humans. He called it "racial discrimination". I find it sick. Sick sick sick sick sick. Like Boo stabbing people with scissors. Maycomb people hurt the negros. Its just not fair.

Do you think the people in Maycomb are friendly?

Friendly? Not as friendly as those in Meridian, but people in Maycomb... hmm.... friendly enough. Though there have been a few exceptions. Mr. Ewell is one of those black sheep. If i remember clearly, he was the one who tried to hurt Scout and Jem. Mr. Radley too. Nearly shot Jem. Um.. Mrs Dubose was never friendly to anybody, though i couldn't see any reason why. But there are more friendly people than unfriendly.

What are your views about the recent Tom Robinson trial?

It is not fair. Mr. Finch convinced the whole court that Tom was innocent. Yet, all those bad white men proclaimed him guilty. There was no medical evidence. There was no way Tom could have done such a thing. He was an honest man! Mr. Finch tried so hard. Yet, just because he was a negro, Tom had become ... guilty...

If this is justice, that how can i walk the streets knowing that i am safe from all those bad men?

Do you think Mr. Finch made the right choice when he chose to represent Tom?

Yes! Definitely a YES! His choice has motivated me to become a lawyer like him. I want to bring justice to all those negros out there who have been unfairly treated by the system. I don't see why white men don't like negros. Aren't they both men? Mr. Finch is inspiring. His choice to represent Tom has shown to me that there are still good people in this world.

Do you find any change in Maycomb after the court case?

No. None. Tom was forgotten. Like ashes scattered into the wind. He was forgotten.

So, Maycomb is not a good place to live in?

I find that Maycomb is a good place to live in. Only if you shut yourself up at home all day long, enjoying your life for what it is. The reality is just too ugly. However, if you are able to be righteous and have to courage to right wrongs, Maycomb would be a fantastic place to live in. In fact, the world would become your playing field. Wherever you go, you would be respected. Maycomb. It is a good place to experience things. With such diversity, you can learn alot from the "Maycombians".

Personality Test? More like a Mr Spelmer again.

The personality test.

It has changed. I can't believe it. When Mr Spelmer told us to do that test, i could swear that the results were less linguistic and more kinesthetic. To be absolutely frank, i don't see how a personality test will affect how we learn. From what i have observed, it is the system, the environment and the teacher whom will affect how we learn. To tailor the teaching style to each and every student is impossible.

However, some teachers have done it.

The next few blog posts will be "tailored" to my learning style.

Enjoy.

Jump Jump Jump Jump. Plop

WOW. All comers was so much better than last year. I didn't fail the first height! The stadium seemed so empty.Not many people.

First event- Long Jump

These SAA people should at least measure properly. The stepping that i used was screwed. 1 meter away from the board. How horrible! I could have jumped so much further!

First jump. 1 meter from board. Coach was like "!!!!!!! You are 1 meter from, the board!!!!" Then told me to move back 1.1m so that i can jump closer.

Second jump. Still quite far. Grrr. Was told to move forward 40cm. I was quite surprised. though 40cm away, can still jump 4.9m +

Third and final jump. Moved up. Coach told me. JUST GO! Overboard. Though by a bit, it was still counted as a fault. GRRRRRRR. Horrible rule.

Overall, quite a fruitful experience. But with a price. Strength sapped by a bit. But i still have another event looming.

Second event- High jump

My arch nemesis. The last time i came, i was recorded as:

Hum Qing Ze.

Jump: NIL

I didn't cross the first height.

But now. The tables have turned. With a new heart, i took the jump.

1.4m. (practice height). Crossed it twice. Already over the moon.

1.4m (competition start). Crossed it in one try. It was an improvement already.

1.45m Crossed it in one try. Amazed.

1.5m Crossed it in one try. Shivering with happiness

1.55m All three tries failed. probably because it was a above my personal best.

// Note to self, gotta overcome 1.55m//

Well, it was a great experience!

Let us All-Come

ALL COMERS TOMORROW! Until now, i still have now idea why on Earth it is called an all-comers. The number of people that attend are dwindling. The last time i came, i screwed up. Hey, i was just Secondary 1! No weights, no training, no experience.

Long Jump or High? Or both? If i do long jump, i'll be jumping in Mun Kit's name. Not that i mind, but i am sure Coach has a reason for not signing me up earlier. OH NO! He can tell the future! I'd better ask him for a few 4D numbers. I betcha i'll become a millionaire in a week! Arrgh. Such a tough choice. Or is it? I'll just try, so i won't have to stand at the sidelines and watch my friends get owned by the JC people. All-comers eh? Everyone come and compete? Hmm...

Wish me Luck!

There goes the first week,

ONE WEEK.

gone.

Thats fast. The days go by so quick. Is that supposed to be good or bad? Sighs. I never knew Secondary 2 life was going to be THAT difficult. I thought it would just be a eetsy bitsy change to the usual Secondary life that i have been experiencing. Big mistake.

EOY revision

When i first saw this topic, i wanted to just write the word "mug" and repeat it 200 times to fill the minimum word count. But "mugging" is so ambiguous. In case you don't know yet. "Mugging" is a collective word for just sitting down and working like a zombie. A zombie who still has some brains left.

To begin the revision.
Start with Animal Farm.
Read Animal Farm.
Re-read Animal Farm.
Hopefully read Animal Farm until you get the whole story in your head.

Next.
Read S's notes. All that 10 chapter note thingie which we did but did not hand up.
Make sure you understand what you are reading. To ensure, you can just open up MS Word 2007 and recreate the notes.

Then.
Look through the papers i just printed out.
Do them, don't just stare at them.

Overall, revision is just about (re)working and (re)writing and (re)doing and (re)reading and lastly (re)vising. Oh yeah, don't forget (re)working. I think i just mentioned that. Ah. All that revision is already getting into my head. Though i haven't started.

I guess its time to begin (re)vising. Should i follow what i just wrote ^^ there? Good question. I should start with (re)flecting. You would never want to make the same mistake again.It takes away the chance of making new mistakes. One thing i hate about life.
(re)peating things. Sometimes its absolutely neccessary. But mistakes,I don't think so.

So, yes. I shall NOT follow what i wrote first. Its time to sit and (re)flect. Count the number of (re)s this post has. It (re)peats alot eh. Well, this is the essence of revision. Repeating your mistakes once more so that it will not (re)peat itself when it is not wanted.

Major Blog Assignment

"Boulevard Of Broken Dreams"

I walk a lonely road
The only one that I have ever known
Don't know where it goes
But it's home to me and I walk alone

I walk this empty street
On the Boulevard of Broken Dreams
Where the city sleeps
and I'm the only one and I walk alone

I walk alone
I walk alone

I walk alone
I walk a...

My shadow's the only one that walks beside me
My shallow heart's the only thing that's beating
Sometimes I wish someone out there will find me
'Til then I walk alone

Ah-ah, Ah-ah, Ah-ah, Aaah-ah,
Ah-ah, Ah-ah, Ah-ah

I'm walking down the line
That divides me somewhere in my mind
On the border line
Of the edge and where I walk alone

Read between the lines
What's f***ed up and everything's alright
Check my vital signs
To know I'm still alive and I walk alone

I walk alone
I walk alone

I walk alone
I walk a...

My shadow's the only one that walks beside me
My shallow heart's the only thing that's beating
Sometimes I wish someone out there will find me
'Til then I walk alone

Ah-ah, Ah-ah, Ah-ah, Aaah-ah
Ah-ah, Ah-ah

I walk alone
I walk a...

I walk this empty street
On the Boulevard of Broken Dreams
Where the city sleeps
And I'm the only one and I walk a...

My shadow's the only one that walks beside me
My shallow heart's the only thing that's beating
Sometimes I wish someone out there will find me
'Til then I walk alone...

Analysis:

The first stanza shows how, at the beginning of the year, i "walk alone". Totally new to this school, i have no choice but to take the paths that i "have ever known" the ones that were familiar. I did not stay in school much, afterall there was not much to do, so i went "home".
... NEXT PARAGRAPH..
I walk down this "empty street", somewhere in Term 2. Yes, i have friends, but i do not have the one thing a student would love to have. No, not girlfriends... ... But results. My dreams of a fantastic single digit MSG (MeanSubjectGrade), has now become just another "Broken Dream". But this is just the beginning. My EP3 (Co-Curricular Actvity) isn't going too well. So, i walk on a whole "Boulevard of Broken Dreams".
...NEXT PARAGRAPH...
This Third Stanza is written very short, afterall, it just repeats " i walk alone", to emphasise how lonely i walk. I seem to be suffering alone. Though deep in my heart, my subconscious mind, i know i don't stand alone. The Fourth stanza, repeats i walk alone, but it ends abruptly. Its just like how my EP3 has improved drastically. No more the "noob" jumper who has no technique nor strength.
...NEXT PARAGRAPH...
The Fifth stanza is exactly how i feel during tests. No, i am not nervous. But, i feel alone. With nothing but my "shadow" beside me, i seem to be in a totally different dimension. A universe where i "walk alone". Due to all those horrid results that stand before me, i would naturally be worried. Sometimes, i just hope that the awesome A1 results would just "find me". But until then, "i walk alone".
...NEXT PARAGRAPH...
By the way, if you hear the song, all those Aahs and Aah-ahs don't sound like screaming, so yes. Its just some sort of noise. BUT, in the next stanza. It describes me fine. I "walk down the line" that "divides me somewhere in my mind". Wondering which side to cross over. The super-mugger (mugging in Singapore doesn't mean you rob somebody, but its just that you spend massive amounts of time studying) side, or the slacker side. Both sides don't suit me. So, i just sit on the fence. "Walking alone" on the "border line".
...NEXT PARAGRAPH...
I try to "read between the lines" during tests, but normally, i intepret wrongly. Someimtes, i just sit down and "check my vital signs", seeing if i am "still alive" after i see that massive C5 linger in my mind. But, i "know i am still alive" and i have no choice but to continue "walking alone" without A1s. The rest of the song is just a repetition, which is an emphasis on all i have said in the past 5 Paragraphs. I "walk alone", on the "boulevard of broken dreams". Annihilated probably by the shortage of hardwork? But i don't just eat chips all day in front of my telly. I guess...i would just have to keep trying. Hopefully, after the EOYs(EndOfYear exams), i would no longer walk alone...

Poem Response

How long more do i have to endure this excruciating suffering?
How much further to that elusive end?
How come i just fail to achieve that A1?

Fret not my dear, it will all come.
Its just a matter of time.
A matter of hard work.
A LARGE amount of matter.

No matter how high,
No matter how fast,
No matter how far,
There will be people better than you.

Does this mean you just give up.
NO!
Keep holding on to that silvery strand of spiderweb,
the web of your dreams.
Do not let go!
Keep holding on to that last strand of rope.
If you dare to let go, there will be nothing left to hold.

Whom do you listen to?
You, yourself, or your mother?
Your destiny is yours to control.
Grip it like a tiger's jaws going in for the kill.
Grab your destiny by the neck.
Drag it along with you.
Make it happen.

By, Hum Qing Ze
known by YueJun as "Grassoat"