"I Want My Food!"

Dear (Mililani Zippy's Manager),

My family and I enjoy eating at your restaurant during the weekends and taking-out food on the weekdays since my dad works at night. We have been doing this routine for about 2 months now. My mom and I never seemed to have any problems with your customer service until not too long ago. It was about 4 weeks ago when my mom, my sister, and myself were coming home from Manoa. It was around 7:30 p.m. and my mom wanted to buy dinner instead of cook, mainly because she was exhausted and grouchy. Obviously my sister and I insisted in eating Zippy's, so we got their around 8:15 p.m.

I wanted to take-out our dinner since my sister and I had homework that needed to be done. We ordered our usuals, popcorn chicken, mini spaghetti, and mini pork  if my mom felt like eating it. The mini chicken is what makes my tummy and my sisters tummy go yummy most of the time, very golden brown, crunchy, and tasty. Although, we don't like eating it all the time. Our order number was in the 620's I believe. I'm not too sure of our exact number. 

My mom was already grouchy, but waiting for our food made her even more grouchy. We were waiting for our order for almost a half an hour. What made the situation more intense and my mom and myself more impatient was that, people who ordered before us got their food before us or 5 minutes after they ordered. For a moment, we thought,"Okay our food is still not done cooking". But, after 4 people got their order before us, my mom got mad, stood up and confronted the workers who were at the front desk.

They didn't seem to care about making us wait. Sure the workers said, "Sorry", but honestly, it wasn't too believable. I thought, "What the heck is their problem!" Really, facial expressions do affect the customers. I felt as if they didn't want to help us. Like they were working for the hell of it. It wasn't the first time that happened. In fact it was the thirds time. After we went through it multiple times, we haven't gone to Zippy's in Mililani, instead we chose to buy dinner from Tasty's or Locol Moco.

I hope my letter does make a change in making your customer service a better one, where people will enjoy not only eating their but taking food, "TO GO". I may not be the only customer with the same problem, their are others as well.

-Ariel Alexis Redoble

Risky Business TEEN PEER PRESSURE

Peer pressure is something teens deal with all the time. Teens are influenced by peer pressure. Not only do teens high-school lifestyles change, but also their home (family) lifestyles change. Some parents experience their child living an ordinary life of laughter, smile, and going to the mall with their friends, then one day everything changes to hell for both the child and the parent. The cause of that may be because the teen must have done something he/she did not want to do, but were persuaded by their "friends" in doing it; like ditching school, smoking, drinking, ect. Sometimes it is the parent who pushes their child much more into peer pressure rather than their peers. At times, parents don't really have a good feel on what their child is up to on daily basis. They can pay closer attention to their child's outside circle of friends and steer them toward more low-risk male and female peers. If the parents do not have a trusted communication with their child because they could be a single parent and they work 24/7;just don't really mind wondering about their child because they know he/she would never get into serious trouble, it would be much harder to understand them. It also leads to lack of patients and trust in the relationship which causes the child to loose affection for their parent. No communication, no trustful relationship, is no parental guidance. Teens fear discovery by their parents and other authorities. They also experience frustration because they sometimes cannot control themselves and their surroundings. Teens have a clear idea in their head that, "everyone else is doing it" which influences them and to blackout of their common sense and better judgement. Parents should know that peer pressure is something that children and other parents including themselves, experience one time or another. Parents should always encourage their child to develop a friendship with other teens with positive qualities.

i love my mom and dad

Dear Mommy and Daddy,

I thank you so much for accepting my decision of entering me into Moanalua High School. It has almost been about 2 years since I have attended Moanalua. I have graduated from being a freshman, and now i'm a sophomore. I have progressed a lot, that this year I'm getting a full good understanding of what "GOOD WRITING" means and what it includes. Last year, was pretty much a start of something new for me. I struggled so much that basically most of writing scores were all 1, 2, or 2/3. But, now that i'm a sophomore, my writing skills have improved from 1, 2, and 2/3, to basically straight 3's because I have practiced my writing.

This years theme was mainly focused on, "COMING OF AGE". I have written two essays, one based on my start of interest in film and photography and the second based on college. These two essays will show you how I have improved. Knowing that you are proud of me in whatever I do or choose do in life, makes me feel like I can succeed in anything.

My goals for this quarter seem easy, yet it takes a lot to complete. I would like to reach my goal of a 3.7 G.P.A. or better yet, higher. I would like to be able to have all 4's in my writing sklls. Being involved in clubs or maybe sports, will help me stay out trouble, or keep me working. I would like to have at least straight A's and B's in my report cards without any C's. My last goal is to maintain all of my other goals.

Love,

Ariel Alexis Redoble

College Essay

Being in front of the camera had been my favorite thing to do when I was six years old. Dressing myself up with bright pink lipstick, a glittery pink and purple ruffle dress, feathery white sandals, and a silver blue shiny crown. I clearly remember taking the camera from my parents room and asking either my mom, dad, or sister to take pictures of me. Twirling around in circles, curtsying here and there, posing after every snap shot, made me feel like a little princess. When I was eight years old, my mom decided to put me in a modeling class, known as Vogue's Modeling. She thought since I liked posing at home, that modeling every weekend for two hours would rather be exciting for me. Although, it was, then after a couple of months, I was drained. I began losing interest in modeling and posing in front of the camera, that I did the full opposite twist. I started taking pictures of people and different things. Taking snap shots of people when they are talking or doing something ends up being a picture that makes me fall off my chair backwards laughing with tears running down my face. I begged my dad everyday for my own camera. I waited for three long years, then Christmas came. Not only did I get a camera, but also, a video camera as well. I was totally stoked. I was on the side trying to figure out how to use them, like a little kid and their new toys. I was so eager to try out my "new toys", that I ended up being too attached. Everyday I would play with my camera at school or at home and my video camera for special family occasions. I did not know that you could edit pictures and videos at that time. I was later told about a program called, "Photoshop" does all the tricks for you and your pictures. I then asked my dad to upgrade the program onto my computer. I was amazed of what it could do, although I only knew the basic editing like clone stamping, opacity, brighten, and darken. I had created and edited amounts of pictures throughout the years. Taking pictures and editing them, was a hobby. Freshman year came, I was registered into Moanalua High School. I was enrolled in a program called, "Mene Mac" for GE (Geographical Exceptional) students. Since Moanalua is not my home school, I am required to be in Mene Mac. It is a program that media deals with media. It was my freshman, that I was introduced to another program called, "Final Cut Pro". It is a program to edit videos. I simply was surprised. It was a struggle at first, but then I tweaked a bit during lunch and after school, which made it fun for me. I got use to the different techniques of Final Cut Pro that I enjoy creating music videos, campus stories, and earth month videos. Throughout the years as I still attend Moanalua High School, I learned about NAT(ural) sounds, good lighting, B-rolls, different angles, the sequences(wide, medium, and tight), and good story lines. Creating a story line of my own and then creating it through film, is something I enjoy doing. I watch the news to help me get the idea of a good show.I also read to help me write an accurate script for my story line.

college

The college that I would like to go to after I have graduate from high school is, (California State University, Long beach). I have chose to go there, because they have a lot of opportunities. They have things that I would like to focus on, further on in life. I would like to take on Art Photography/Studio, Media, and Math. Unlike the colleges here in Hawaii, California State University has a lot to choose from. To me, it seems far away from home, but I would like to have a good education.

Department of Art : http://www.art.csulb.edu/
Online application for Arts : http://www.ced.csulb.edu/graduate/documents/smf_app.pdf

Making It Through

“It is better to try, instead of giving up,” I told myself repeatedly as I was 200 meters away from the end of my final lap. I tucked my chin in, for more force through the wind. My strides widened, to make me go twice as farther than the distance I was at. I started to breath in and out through my nose, so I would not be as tired and dehydrated. Staring at the ground while running, yet still in focus, kept me from looking up on how much more I needed to go, was my strategy.I wanted to feel as if no one was watching, and only I, was running the 400 meters, alone. Although, I had glanced from a side view, over my shoulder. I saw how close my position would be replaced, in just a few minutes. I pumped my arms in a form of a 90 degree angle. I took deep breaths and forming my back straight, thinking I would be running a faster pace.Instead it only made me in deep sharp pain, more than I was already in, to my hamstring and my groin. Knowing! Just knowing I would not make it, I was getting to a point of dropping to the ground and just watching my opponents zoom right pass by me, like I was not competing. Like I was not an aggressive competitor, yet someone who gives up easily. I began losing faith in myself, because to me, I am what you call a, “sorry loser”. Competing under pressure, is certainly NOT my idea of winning. My heart began to race, pounding hard that you can literally see my pulse. My mind went completely blank, not knowing if I should stop or keep on going. My legs began to shake as if it were to fall off. My feet ached so I would have not completed the event. I just could not handle the thought and feeling of losing a position to place for JV Championships at Kaiser High School. Right when I heard my team yell, “Your almost there, do not let go! PUSH PUSH PUSH!,” they motivated me, pulling me straight for the end. I realized winning the event would not only be for me, but for my team. When one of us loses, we all lose. When one of us wins, we all win. But, as for me, we are all winners. In the end, the sense of pain, sweat, and a drop of tear, was the look and feeling of victory and accomplishment of placing 4th at JV Championships.