Halloween is rather boring this year.

All the teens that I know, aren't really interested in Halloween it seems. From what I've asked around, most people aren't doing anything on Halloween.Not because of religious reasons, but just because nobody feels like it.

Like only probably 1/10 people in my HS, are actually going to do something Halloween-related.

I heard a lot of people are going to see some flicks, mainly horror ones of course.

I got all A's on my progress report. Here's my grades:

• English II - 91
• Aerobic Activities - 100
• Spanish III - 98
• Algebra II - 94
• World History - 94
• Chemistry - 94

Surprisingly, my last 3 grades are 94's.

Well that's what's been going on lately.

I handed out dum-dum pops this Halloween. The neighborhood is still new, so there wasn't much activity, I think.

I'm also quite sure that several people did a 2nd trip to my door. I'm not sure. I didn't pay attention to what people were wearing or anything. This neighborhood is rather boring for Halloween.

So that's about it so far.

I'm sure how to describe how tough, but it was just as hard as the PSAT, to me.

There's a ton of sections. The first 4 sections of the test have to do with English itself!

Let me think, here they are:

1. Reading
2. Spelling
3. Writing usage (grammar)
4. ? - forgot this one. It had to do with a kind of mix of all three or something. It was the first section

The question were rather dumb as usual, with twisty answers to choose from. Usually I'm good at spelling, but this had me worried.

Was it laboratory or labratory? (thankfully I thought labratory was misspelled)

What's the difference between prosecute and persecute?

Was belligerent hostile or insincere? (got this one wrong)

And all that plus more.

Then there was the Science section. Ugh.

Most of this section revolved around showing this one experiment, and had 6-8 questions about it.

Some of the answers were hard to sift through. Rats.

Then we had 4th period (where my class practically did nothing) and lunch, advisory, and all that.

After that, it was back to testing.

The first math section was as easy as pie.

The 2nd one, called "Computations" involved doing math directly. Like 2 + 2. Straight-forward numeral problems.

You couldn't use a calculator but you did have scratch paper. I got a lot done, to where I was pretty certain it was right, but others I wasn't even sure about! I ended up guessing those questions (you don't lose points on this test - only gain points!). It was timed on each section as well.

Then there was social studies. Another dumb set of questions. Some of these questions had me going - but all these answers sound exactly the same?

Man do I hate the IOWA test. It obviously has little to do with Texas curriculum.

I think this was even harder than the TAKS! At least the TAKS test didn't last forever, was much easier, and there was no time limit.

But the IOWA test, does look visually better and organized.

Well that's how my day went. At least I have little homework : )

Seems like all sophomores as JVHS will be taking the IOWA test. Funny, considering that we live in Houston, TX.

It's a first for this school. None of the the other juniors and seniors have ever taken the IOWA test before. Lucky them.

At least we sophomores don't have to worry about the TAKS field test, if I can remember what they even were. The IOWA test will replace that.

I despise all standardized testing. It's just too depressing, a worrisome burden for many students and teachers, and too much curriculum is spent on reviewing for these tests rather than learning something for real.

Well, the details of an IOWA test are very vague, but it's suppose to test your skills in the 4 core subjects - math, english, science, and history.

It's timed. It's long - only 4th period break just for lunch and a quik class.

That's all I know. I hope it isn't hard. It's not PSAT hard, my English teacher said.

So I just hope it's good. IOWA test is such a dumb thing.

I've been sidetracked this week, but I forgot to mention how I did on the PSAT's.

Well let me tell you - it was tough.

It was just like the booklets, stupid questions, stupid answers, and all that.

The math section was surprisingly easier than I thought, but the English section was just as hard. Rats.

The guides told us that wrong answers were only 1/4 a point off, so I took a stab and guessed when I felt like I could.

I also left blank spots : (

It was a long hour, but I got through it. Man do I hate the College Board.

Well it could have been worse.

Can't wait for my results in December. NOT!

Night the Light was awesome.

It's a walk for Leukemia, where as many participants that do the walk, the amount of money from rich companies goes into helping Leukemia patients and research.

I was a volunteer there. As part of JVHS Interact.

I moved some tables, helped with putting together balloons, directing traffic, and picking up a little litter.

It was in the Galleria at this place:

2000 Post Oak Blvd., Houston, TX.

It was kind of like a plaza between 3 buildings.

Well there was food, and music. The food was ok, your usual selection of free burgers and hotdogs. Although I was really hungry, and the burgers weren't really bad. I kind of liked them. And a free bag of chips. They didn't offer any sodas around though, but there lots of ice coolers with water bottles in them. They were free also, which was really nice. The food came from Tommy's Grill, right under one of the buildings near the plaza.

The music was neat. It was done by this cool band called "The Lost Boys Band" or something like that. They played a lot 80's music, and some contemporary ones. It was pretty neat. I never heard 80's music that close, but I kind of like it. There's a whole lot of soul in it. The way they played was so lively. Maybe I need to get out more often, but it was so cool.

And of course, with "Light" the Night, there had to be lights. There were some cool light-up balloons that were blown up. But we had a tough time distributing the color people wanted most : red.

The whole theme was red and white btw. As well, there were glow-in-the-dark bracelets Perry Homes gave out for free.

And the Galleria looks awesome during the sunset. I took some pictures, and maybe I'll update them on Spaces soon.

So that's how it was. I might post videos and pictures of it soon.

Man am I worried. The PSAT is coming up in 2 days.

English is the hardest section for me, based on the practice booklets. It's the vocab words, and comprehending the passages, questions, and even the answers. It's way too complex.

Math is pretty easy. I know most of it, but there are a few tricky word problems. Usually involving knowing some tricky equations or patterns to get through it.

I got a ton of work to do with that. I know it's a "practice" SAT, but I'm still worried. This will provide me a real look at the test.

Plus, I really want to get into JV Scholars, some little organization where it helps you prepare for the real SAT, and you have to hit a certain grade. It's pretty low, for the requirements, but I'm still worried.

Luckily, the PSAT is free, and during half the school day in CFISD. Pretty nice.

So I'm really worried.

Well not exactly perfect, but very good.

Here's how my day went (don't read if you're not interested):

Morning : Woke up on time. Made it on the bus. Also very cool, and nice outside - far from the usual heat & humidity in Houston.

1st period : Finished reading the play "Antigone". Medium-level homework.

2nd period : Our class's first aerobics video. Half the class spent on figuring out how to set-up the DVD thing. Embarassing movement of the body made by me (not fast enough, not "sticking my butt out" and that stuff). It was ok though.

3rd period : Homework wasn't due for a grade : easy quiz, and a quick past tense verb review. A lot of homework.

4th period : Got a lot of PSAT questions answered in advisory. Went around testing people. Got more answers during lunch. Alg. II class was easy - learning 2 super-easy new functions, and working in groups on 6 questions

5th period : Finishing up group Religion projects - mines was the last to go, and I read my section loud and clear. People didn't ask me to repeat anything as they were filling in the blanks on their own sheet. Not much else.

6th period - Test grades back - I got a 95! Yay! Chemistry is my lowest class right now, and a 95 really helps. Then, we actually did something fun today - we got around and organized sets of cards, by things like color, numbers, shapes, etc. Quite fun trying to find patterns and orders in things. All a preclude to the section on how elements are organized.

Well anyways, it was a pretty wonderful day. WELL, except for the fact, that this blog post won't make it again for awhile. For some stupid reason, the internet and phone are down. Meaning I'm going to have a ton of catch-up, even if it's the next day it comes back. Sigh.

So to clarify any confusion, this post was written on October 11, 2007. 10/11/07

Well, I have Columbus Day off.

Nothing much else is going on. School is getting slightly better. I'm trying harder than ever to be #1.

PSAT's come on Oct. 17th. CFISD is really cool, in that the school district is going to pay for the students to take the test, and it's going to be during school. That's really awesome how CFISD is really going to pay for our test-taking. Now students can take a look at what the SAT's will be like, and truly have something they can grasp, kind of.

So free PSAT's, and during a school day are awesome!

I still have feelings for this girl. Elizabeth is awesome. It's like she can do anything. She's really pretty, and really smart, and really nice. She has it all.

I don't think I'm good enough for her though. But I plan on telling her next week, of my feelings about her. However, I'm not interested in a real relationship. I've always been a loner, and I'm not into dating, or anything like that. I'm just really loose about things. A relationship would hinder my freedom.

So that's about it for now.