Friends

This past weekend my best friend from elementary school came to visit with her husband from California. Since I'm the one that moved away I'm always the one friend going to visit everyone back in California. Now that we have a bigger house people are now starting to come visit us. It was so much fun having time with my school friend. We usually talk on the phone a couple times a week but it's so different when you can actually share your life with them for a few days. Now when we talk on the phone we can picture everything in our heads. Having visitors is definitely more tiring than people think. When we have visitors we make it a point to go to the beach or go to tourist locations to hang out. My friend was very jealous of all the things we did but I had to remind her that this is definitely not what we do every day. We usually are working and being responsible and don't have much time to just lounge at the beach all day. We got to take them out and teach them how to surf in Waikiki, go hiking through Manoa Falls, and go exploring on the North Shore. These were just a few things we did but it was just a great feeling to have such a close friend here. It makes me feel so comfortable and at home. I think it's funny how when you see someone you have known for a long time you just revert back to the way you behave with each other. We are definitely like sisters since we grew up together. :-) It was one of the best weekends I've ever had.

Starbucks

Starbucks has a brilliant marketing plan! I've realized that there's three main reasons why Starbucks is so smart. The first reason is because of their mobile app. I feel like being able to pay using your phone is so convenient for people. The next reason is because of their gold card. When you have a Starbucks gold card you can use it when ever you make a purchase and earn stars. You must earn 30 stars a year to stay at the gold level. Being at the gold level offers small discounts that make you feel special. Every 12 stars you earn a free drink of your choice. Any flavor and any size. This takes me to the last reason as to why Starbucks is so amazing. They have a great reward system! When they notice you haven't made a purchase in a while they will randomly email you a sale of $1 off your next drink or buy one get the second free. These are just three of many reasons that this company has so much power. I always have a great experience when I go to Starbucks. The coffee tastes good, the music is relaxing and there's usually a comfy chair to curl up in. Starbucks is also a place for me to focus and get work done. I think this company does a great job at marketing and keeping their customers happy.

Mechanical Energy

Last week I did a science experiment with my students about mechanical energy. They had to use the Engineering Design Process to make windmills using the supplies I gave them. Their supplies included one large index card, 4 jumbo size paper clips, a straw, 2 binder clips, string, and tape. I started with showing them a sample I made. Then talked about the goal, which was to design a windmill that will be strong enough to roll the string on the straw and hold binder clips. I told them that when I made mine I was able to hold 9 binder clips. So their goal was to beat my record of 9 clips. They first started with the first step of the design process which is "ask". I told them to write down any questions they may have before beginning. Then they made their plan, designed their model, tested it out, and figured out how to improve their model. The students really enjoyed this experiment and it was a fun way for them to learn about kinetic energy changing to mechanical energy. After completing the experiment I asked the students to go back and look at their questions and see if they can answer them. It was interesting to hear some of their realizations and how much they could improve their design. Some groups needed help with getting started on their design.  I noticed that the designs I thought wouldn't work ended up being the strongest designs. The kids were way more creative than I was. My design was very safe and simple. They weren't afraid to cut anything and actually put in a lot of detail to make it look like an actual windmill. In the end the strongest design was able to hold 15 binder clips. They were of course extremely excited to beat my record. :-)

TCC

Last week we got to watch all of the master's projects being presented on TCC. When I first heard about the TCC conference I thought it was this big conference we had to attend at the convention center or the Blaisdell. Little did I know that I would watch it all from my living room. I was shocked when I found out it was all online! So as I sat on my own couch listening to these presentations I thought it was cool! Not only do we get to listen to all these presentations but I can listen to them from home. I can even go back and watch more if I miss any because they are all recorded. Then I was wondering where all of the presenters were while they were presenting. I couldn't believe that some of the presenters were possibly presenting their master's project from their very own home. They could even be in their pajamas! Technology really has a big impact on this project. I was relieved when I found out next year when I present I can just do it from home. That will be less nerve racking because I get a bit nervous talking in front of big crowds. However, this isn't the best situation because a couple of times while I was watching my Internet connection went out and I had to restart BBC. Then I thought "what if this happens during my presentation!" Well, I guess I will figure it out when it gets closer. Maybe going on campus with reliable Internet connection is the best idea. Watching these presentations was really helpful to get an idea of what we will do for next year. I took notes on things I liked and can hopefully incorporate into my project.