Chinatown Teen'Zine Blog 華埠青少年網誌

青少年徵文比賽

2011-04-30T00:23:00.000-07:00

舊金山市立圖書館華埠分館舉辦二零一一年五月美國亞太裔傳統月青少年徵文比賽(中文組)

題目:讀書樂

收件截止日期: 二零一一年五月二十八日 (星期六)

詳情請洽華埠圖書館Jewel, 電話: (415)355-2888 or jewelchen@sfpl.org

評審將依原創性, 文法, 題旨相符等觀點評分

參加辦法:

* 邀請十二至十八歲青少年參加
* 限以中文書寫, 至少一千字以上

* 每人限交一篇文章

* 如以email交件, 請傳至chinatowntz@gmail.com
*如以郵件寄送或遞送, 請寄至: Jewel Chen, Chinatown Branch Library, 1135 Powell Street, San Francisco, CA 94018

*每位參加者須註明其姓名, 年齡, 學校, 年級, 聯絡電話及個人email

*得獎者限一名, 獎品為$50 Target禮品卡

*得獎文章將刊登於舊金山市立圖書館青少年網頁(華埠青少年網誌Chinatown Teen'Zine Blog)

Teen Essay Contest

2011-04-29T22:54:00.000-07:00

In celebration of Asian Pacific American Heritage Month in May 2011, you are invited to join a Teen Essay Contest (in English)
Topic: "The Joy of Reading"
Deadline: Saturday, May 28, 2011

Judging will be based on originality, grammar, coherence to the topic and more.

The rules:
* Age: 12-18
*Text should be written in English only, at least 1000 words
* One entry per person
*Submission by email to: chinatowntz@gmail.com
*Submission in person or by mail to: Jewel Chen, Chinatown Branch Library, 1135 Powell Street, San Francisco, CA 94108
* Include your name, address, school, grade, phone number and email address
*Essays will be devided into two age groups, middle school (Grade 6-8) and high school (Grade 9-12)
* Prizes for winners of each group: First place winners: Target gift card ($50). Second place winners: Best Buy gift card ($25)
* The winner's essay will be posted on the San Francisco Public Library's Teen web pages (Chinatown Teen'Zine Blog)

For information, please call Jewel at Chinatown Branch Library, (415)355-2888 or jewelchen@sfpl.org

Teen'Zine Gaming 電玩遊戲活動

2010-10-11T11:34:00.000-07:00

Saturdays, Oct. 23 & Nov. 20, 2010, 1:30 - 3:30 pm, 1st Floor Community Meeting Room, Chinatown Library

星期六, 十月二十三日及十一月二十日,下午一點半至三點半,於華埠圖書館一樓社區會議室

Let's play Wii games: Mario Kart Wii, Wii Sports etc. For teens & tweens, 8 to 18 years old. For more information, contact Jewel Chen, Tel: (415)355-2888

提供免費Wii遊戲: Mario Kart Wii, Wii Sports等,限8歲至18歲參加.查詢請洽Jewel Chen,電話:(415)355-2888

Teen'Zine Summer Gaming Day 暑假電玩遊戲日

2010-07-26T01:52:00.000-07:00

Friday, August 13th

3:30 - 5:30 pm

Chinatown Community Meeting Room

星期五, 八月十三日

3:30 - 5:30 pm

華埠圖書館一樓會議室

Let's play Wii video games in the community meeting room at Chinatown Public Library. It's a part of Teen'Zine program. For more information, please contact Jewel at Chinatown Library, (415)355-2888 or jewelchen@sfpl.org

暑假電玩遊戲活動將在華埠圖書館會議室再次舉行, 歡迎八至十八歲青少年參加.

2010 亞太裔傳統月青少年徵文比賽 Asian Pacific American Heritage Month Teen Essay Contest

2010-06-20T12:00:00.000-07:00

光照過去,現在與未來 (Lighting the Past, Present & Future)
第一名 (The First Place Winner)

By Shuang Cai Li
Galileo High School
05/2010

光在概念上是指照在物體上, 使人能看見物體的那種物資, 如太陽光, 燈光, 月光等. 光在某種意義上, 在多方面裡, 卻有不同的意義. 俗語說: “人有悲歡離合,月有陰晴圓缺”.這表明事物有著某種不同的面貌. ”光”, 像陽光般照耀枯渴的心靈. “光”, 像母親溫柔的微笑,給予失敗小孩一個鼓勵. “光”, 是社會每個人都應有的真心. “光”是奉獻的精神,奉獻他人就像陽光般給予他人的溫暖, 無論過去, 現在與未來. “光”始終照亮著我們世界的每一個角落.

在我們懷念的過去, 在我們不知道的過去, 在我們引以為傲的過去,卻有人像”光” 般照亮他人, 光照過去.

雷鋒是一個在中國廣闊大地上無人不曉得人, 他,不像華羅庚那麼聰明, 也不像毛澤東主席那樣權威, 卻有著中國舊時代”奉獻他人 – 光” 的精神.

雷鋒不滿七歲時就成了孤兒, 本家的六叔奶奶收留了雷鋒. 一九四九年八月, 中國人民解放軍路過雷鋒的家鄉.小雷鋒看見宿營的隊伍,一住下來便向老鄉噓寒問暖, 還幫助老鄉挑水, 掃地,買柴買菜按照價錢,不拿群眾一針一線.雷鋒看見此情景, 就從心底萌生了參軍的願望.

雷鋒找到部隊的連長, 當連長得知他苦難的身世後,告訴他還小, 並把一枝鋼筆送給他, 鼓勵他要好好學習, 長大才能當兵.雷鋒長大加入了中國人民解放軍, 立志為人民服務.

一次,雷鋒外出在瀋陽站換車的時候, 一出檢票口, 看見一位婦女要去吉林看大夫,車票和錢弄丟了.雷鋒用自己的錢買了一張火車票給大嫂. 她含著眼淚說:”大兄弟, 你叫什麼名字, 是那個單位的?” 雷鋒說:” 我叫解放軍, 就住在中國.”

五月的一天, 雷鋒有去趕火車去瀋陽, 帶了幾個饅頭, 披上雨衣上路了.看見一個婦女揹著一個小孩,還拖著一個女孩,艱難地向車站走去. 雷鋒走上前,脫下自己的雨衣給大嫂披上,又抱起小女孩陪他們一起到車站上等車.上車後,雷鋒看見小女孩冷得發抖,又把自己貼身毛衣脫下來給她穿上. 雷鋒估計她早上也沒吃飯, 就把自己的饅頭給他們吃.到了瀋陽,雷鋒還一直把他們送到家.

雷鋒雖然去世三十幾年了,他的事蹟成為不朽的過去, 但國家為了紀念,每年規定一天為雷鋒紀念日, 大力宣傳雷鋒精神, 要人們學習著這種奉獻如光一般的精神. 雷鋒就是全心全意為人民服務,難怪人們一見到為人民做好事的人就想起雷鋒. 雷鋒的精神照耀光輝的過去,也成為現在人們的榜樣.學習雷鋒好精神, 做愛國愛黨的中國人.

在科技發達的現在, 在人才濟濟的現在, 在糧食豐盛的現在, 卻還有像雷鋒一樣奉獻他人,捨己為人的人.

她,是在抗非典中隕落的一顆星星, 光照現在. 葉欣是1956年7月9日出生於廣東徐聞一個醫學世家,1983年被提升為廣東省中醫院急診科護士長.

2003年春節前後,一種病因未明的非典型的肺炎開始在廣州地區流行,中醫院開始收治確診或疑為”非典”的病人.面對突如其來的工作量,葉欣周密重新調班,安排加強班.葉欣身先士卒,便開始加班.

後來權度疲勞的葉欣開始出現發熱症狀,後來確診染上了非典.為了救治葉欣,醫院短時間內成立了治療小組,廣大領導也為了搶就葉欣提供了技術,物質,器械的支持.

就在葉欣最後搶救的,也是傳染給她”非典”的那位病患健康出院後不到一個星期,葉欣永遠離開了她所愛的崗位,戰友和愛人.葉欣生前是一個不求問達,只求奉獻的人. 葉欣去世後,她的愛人動容的說:”我和葉欣結婚22年了,但只有結婚那年我們一起在家過春節,其餘她全是在醫院度過.”

葉欣是在非典那段緊急時間身先士卒,不想自己毫無怨言的用她的生命去搶救病患,自己卻在非典期間感染過世.”光”是一種奉獻精神,就像蠟燭一樣,燃燒自己帶給人們光明.就像螢火蟲一樣,在黑暗中犧牲自己照亮他人. 你和我,卻又以什麼行為去為他人服務,為社會奉獻.葉欣卻以她短暫的人生,精采的人生奉獻病患,奉獻醫學事業. 朋友們,有時在馬路上扶老太太過路,在路上有垃圾時,彎腰去撿一下也是奉獻. 做好事,不分大或小,多或少,只要你願意去行動.

他名叫姜數軍,今年60歲了.是怡園社區居民,也是一名社區志願者. 姜數軍沒有像葉欣那樣偉大,但他做的一件件小事卻也讓人佩服.

平時姜數軍主動與社會居委會聯繫,盡他所能參與社會建設,希望以一顆奉獻的心服務社會,服務居民.有時社區水管, 門,窗,鎖壞了,姜數軍主動幫助, 居民有什麼事,一定找老姜,為人民奉獻,姜數軍沒有一句抱怨.

他,一個平凡的勞動者,一個普通的農民,也是鄉鎮一個無名小卒的會計,是我最敬愛也是最親愛的爺爺.

我爺爺今年60多歲了,身高沒有一米五,個子很小,是我們鄉下的一名鄉委員.爺爺總是早上六點多就起床了,開車去城裡吃了早餐就買菜回來給奶奶煮飯,下午一點多就開小摩托車去鄉委,整理帳目和統計帳目.我常打電話回去問候爺爺和奶奶. 有一次,爺爺生病了,住了幾天醫院,卻不打電話來三藩市告訴我們, 也是小叔打電話告訴爸爸我才知道,原來是腦萎縮. 我打電話回去,說:"爺爺,這麼辛苦不要做了,工資也不多,來來去去太辛苦了.”爺爺卻說: ”沒關係,如果我不去,鄉委不夠人手.我也做了十幾年.我喜歡為鄉親父老服務.再說,在家悶著呢.”

我知道爺爺是在安慰我, 爺爺就是這樣.在我很小的時候,爺爺就去鄉委了. 一做就十幾年.有次,還因為有人不知怎的, 打了爺爺.那時我還小,但爺爺還是隔天就又去工作,沒有理會.
無論是姜樹軍,還是我親愛的爺爺,他們都是一個樣,為他人奉獻,不管自己怎麼的,多苦多累一個樣.不說苦或累, 光照現在. 奉獻是一種如光般耀眼奪目的精神.

在遙遙未及的未來,在充滿希望的未來,還有一些祖國的花朵在學習著呢.

在美國的各間中學,高中,大學不是也有很多學生擁有著”光”嗎?他們身上擁有著無限的奉獻精神.

有一次,我和朋友們參加學校的義工活動,老師之前並沒有告訴我們是做什麼,只是說去就會知道了.我的心像綁著一塊大石頭,久久不能平靜.同學們也很担愁著,誰知老師說今天義工是保護環境,去分類垃圾,我們很快就分配到崗位,開始了工作.

在人來人往的街道上,垃圾桶一下子就滿了.我們把一桶桶垃圾分好.有幾個有禮貌的外國人說:”Thank you.” 這使我們的心得到滿足.讓我們覺得辛苦沒有白費,覺得街道也變亁淨了. 我們做好事了.為社會做奉獻了,是一件很有成就的事.

無論是過去,現在與未來,光始終照亮我們的世界,照亮這個廣闊和光明的世界.在這個世界中,有著許多過去,現在,與未來的人,有著如光一般耀眼的精神,光是奉獻精神, 讓世界充滿光,讓世界充滿溫暖.

2010 亞太裔傳統月青少年徵文比賽 Asian Pacific American Heritage Month Teen Essay Contest

2010-06-20T11:12:00.000-07:00

光照過去, 現在與未來 (Lighting the Past, Present & Future)

第二名 (The Second Place Winner)

By Stephy Li
Galileo High School

05/2010

陽光透過大氣層直射到地面深處, 到處每一個輕而可見的角落. 它給予了世界萬物的重生, 給予了到處流浪游人的撫慰.它用自己獨特的光芒,無私熱情的閃爍著. 只要它出現, 人生就有了轉機, 有了希望, 有了屬於愛的一大片空地.它為每一顆即將飛使的流星, 築起了溫暖而博大的萬里長城. 在它寬大的懷抱中, 包含了多少無法用言語去描述的真情流露,同時她聳立在世界各都的鐵塔之上,俯瞰世界各態,無形的散發出迷人的花香, 覆蓋所有麻醉的人心, 無可抵抗的病毒. 使它們得到了洗禮, 不再孤獨而黑暗, 從而得到寧靜與純潔, 去感受美與愛的交界之處.

孩童時期, 母親常唱著”月光光, 照地堂”的一首催人入睡的搖籃曲, 哄著我入睡. 那時, 我和姐姐一人一間搖搖床, 剛哄完姐姐, 又再哄我,所以房間裡在深夜時分,總會一陣唱歌的氛圍. 在我清醒之時,又輪到奶奶照顧我們. 奶奶把我們從搖搖床弄到地上,讓我們自由地玩耍.我總淘皮地爬出家外的沙地裡,翻出玩桶,豬八戒似的鐮子,飯勺,把沙子勺進桶裡,玩起煮飯的兒童遊戲之一. 開心又刺激地玩個一通.有時還更瘋狂地扮起小丑,弄得奶奶不停地幫我整理, 還常常幫我洗澡呢!鐘聲響個不停, 深夜了, 出現了一個熟悉的聲音,哼著歌,用手輕拍著我, 目的是想我好睡些, 輕輕的,輕輕的…………….

到了進入學習的階段, 我們的家從鄉下搬進城市地方,來到了一個嶄新而陌生的社區.在社區里有許多玩耍樂園,滿足了我的玩耍心理.母親幫我找了一家不錯的小學,新穎潔白的校服,品德兼并的教學風氣,熱情好玩的同學.在這件學校裡,開始了每天繁忙的學習生涯, 每天都有嚴格的學校規則和新的知識潛進我的腦海裡.我學到了許多從來未有過的知識與經歷. 回到家時,有一大桌熱騰騰的飯菜, 還有燉了許多的補品.但唯獨缺少一個陪我吃飯的大人.每當老師叫我們把一些重要的文件或功課交給父母時, 我總把它放在書桌上,早上起來,母親就把它以端正的字體簽好,附上一份營養早餐,還有……..

我的理想是做一名赫赫有名的律師,因此現在努力把學習事務做好.此外,還要學許多有關政治與國家法律方面的知識.因而每當深夜時分,總是累得躺在書桌上,睡得半熟矇矇之間,覺得有人把衣服披在我身上,好像窗戶外的風都吹不掉,吹不掉似的……….

在我身邊的這曙光, 無論何時,何地,何處,都為我閃爍.雖然我無法用昂貴的東西去償還它,但我願為這曙光,努力邁向充滿崎嶇而孤獨的人生之旅. 願為了它,留下夕陽落下而淒美的畫面.我願為你畫出你生活從未有過的幸福瞬間,讓你不再偽閃爍而哭泣,為閃爍而逝去美的容顏, 為閃爍而堅強不屈工作著,奔波勞苦般在寬廣的天空上獨自閃著.有一天你或許累了,休息吧!每顆脆弱的星星因在你寬大的懷抱已茁壯成長,不再孤獨,不再脆弱,不再受傷了.你細心的多年照顧,治療了他們不成熟的腦袋,遍替鱗傷的心靈,表裡不一的堅強外表.使他們打破原來面貌,變成一個全新的自我.在天空中也像你如此光耀.為那些像星星般的人,創造一個屬於他們的愛的一大片空地.

Teen'Zine Summer Gaming Day

2010-05-28T22:52:00.000-07:00

6/12, Saturday, 1:30-3:30 pm

7/2 & 7/9, Fridays, 3:30-5:30 pm

Let's play Wii video games in the community meeting room at Chinatown Public Library. It's a part of Teen' Zine program. For teens & Tweens, ages 8 to 18 years old. For more information, please contact Jewel at Chinatown Library (415)355-2888 or jewelchen@sfpl.org

Teen'Zine暑假電玩遊戲日

2010-05-28T22:41:00.000-07:00

6月12日, 星期六, 1:30 – 3:30 pm

7月2日 & 7月9日, 星期五, 3:30 – 5:30 pm

華埠圖書館將於暑假舉辦Wii電玩遊戲活動, 歡迎Teen'Zine會員及新朋友參加. 年齡限八歲至十八歲青少年, 地點在華埠圖書館一樓社區會議室. 查詢請洽華埠圖書館館員Jewel,電話: (415)355-2888 or jewelchen@sfpl.org

Teen Essay Contest in the Asian Pacific American Heritage Month

2010-03-23T00:37:00.000-07:00

The Chinatown Branch of the San Francisco Public Library presents:

In celebration of Asian Pacific American Heritage Month in May 2010,
you are invited to join a Teen Essay Contest.
The Topic:“Lighting the Past, Present & Future".
The judgment will be originality, grammar, coherence to the topic, and others.
The deadline: Saturday, May 29th, 2010, at 4 pm in Chinatown Public Library.
The rules:
- Age: 12-18
- Text should be written in English only, at least 1,000 words
- One entry per person
- Submission in person or by mail to Jewel Chen, Chinatown Branch Library, 1135 Powell Street, San Francisco, CA 94108. Include your name, address, school, grade, contact phone number and e-mail address.
- No e-mail submissions
- Essays will be divided into two age groups, i. e., Middle School groups (Grade 6-8) & High School Groups (Grade 9-12)
- Prizes for the winners of each group: The 1st place winners will get a Target gift card ($50). The 2nd place winner will get a Gap gift card ($25)
- The winner' s essays will be posted on the San Francisco Public Library' s Teen web pages (Chinatown TeenZine Blog)

美國亞太裔傳統月青少年徵文比賽

2010-03-22T23:14:00.000-07:00

舊金山市立圖書館華埠分館舉辦二零一零年五月美國亞太裔傳統月青少年徵文比賽
題目: 光照過去, 現在與未來
評審將依原創性, 文法, 是否符合題旨等觀點評分
敬邀十二至十八歲青少年參加
收件截止日期: 二零一零年五月二十九日(星期六)下午四點正
參加辦法:
- 限以中文書寫, 至少一千字以上
- 每人限交一篇文章
- 不接受e-mail交件
- 請將原稿以郵寄或遞送方式交給華埠圖書館館員Jewel Chen, 華埠圖書館地址: 1135 Powell Street (near Jackson), Chinatown Branch Library, San Francisco 94108
- 每位參加者須註明其姓名, 年齡, 學校, 年級, 聯絡電話及個人e-mail
- 得獎者限一名, 獎品為Gap 禮品卡一張($25)
- 得獎作品將刊登於舊金山市立圖書館青少年網頁(華埠青少年網誌, Chinatown TeenZine Blog)

Teen'Zine Holiday Gaming Day

2009-11-22T12:54:00.000-08:00

Friday, December 4, 2009, 3:30 - 5:30 pm

Saturday, January 16, 2010, 1-3 pm

Chinatown Branch Library, Community Meeting Room

Let's have some fun time at Chinatown Library. We will play Nintendo Wii games. Light refreshments will be served. It's a part of Teen'Zine program, free to tweens & teens ages 8-18 years old. For information, contact Jewel (415)355-2888 or jewelchen@sfpl.org

Teen'Zine假期遊戲日

2009-11-22T12:30:00.000-08:00

十二月四日, 星期五, 二零零九年, 下午三點半至五點半

一月十六日, 星期六, 二零一零年, 下午一點至三點

於華埠圖書館社區會議社

在這個冬季假期裡, 到華埠圖書館玩wii電玩遊戲, 備有免費點心, 參加者限八歲至十八歲青少年. 詳情請洽詢Jewel Chen, Tel: (415)355-2888 or jewelchen@sfpl.org

Something Green on Earth

2009-08-03T13:51:00.000-07:00

(Winner of Middle School Group, Teen essay Contest 2009)
by Nathan Schwarz-Lee

Something green on earth... the wonderful things I see outside are green to my eye, the only things that aren't green are the people who use the cars! I thought for a moment, then realized that if everyone in the world didn't use cars, the world would be much greener, and the grey and dull things would be minimized. The world is a beautiful place, for there are many green things in it. But if there weren't gas guzzling cars out there, imagine what it might look like! Imagine the verdant meadows and the sun soaked trees! Imagine the wild animals fluttering about!

The cards are roaming around
Attacking the environment
Being Chinese is like being bound
Too many laws and still a requirement

I'd rather smell Chinese pork buns
Than the toxic fumes of diesel buses
They are infinitely multiplying their runs
Never thinking about their passenger' fusses

The reason I listen to my Ipod more
When the birds used to be singing
Is because of the constant engines' roar
Who tore my silence from living

So now I am sick
Of all the world's cars
I moved away from the grime of the kick
Of society's cars and tar

However, being half Chinese and American, I'm disappointed with how both of those countries are acting on this. China is one of the worst polluters in the world and they're doing very little to change this. The U.S. is trying, but they aren't making a noticeable effort. So I say that we try harder to improve our care on the environment, and either create cars that consume no gas whatsoever, or completely eliminate cars.

I see a future, where all our lives will be green. I see a very bright future. But it will take a lot of work to make it. That is where the rest of the world comes in. Everybody can make a difference to our environment. If everyone helps, we will have a good chance of succeeding.

The Fight Against a Common Enemy

2009-08-03T12:49:00.000-07:00

(Winner of High School Group, Teen Essay Contest 2009)
by Edward Chan

Are people’s actions and lifestyles leading up to their own destruction along with Earth’s? Yes, Earth is on a collision course for destruction along with humans. The climate of earth is changing drastically and must be stopped before it leads to the end of Earth and its species. According to "Global Warming: The signs and The Science" by National Geographic, Earth’s atmosphere contains a gas called the ozone layer. As the sun heats the Earth, energy is received. Earth emits energy back out, but the ozone layer traps some of this heat. Overtime, humans give off more and more emissions called green house gases, which add to the ozone layer. This thickens the ozone layer, thus trapping more heat than usual. There is evidence that Earth’s temperatures are rising according to There are “disappearances of sea ice and ice packs, higher temperatures, melting ice caps, and climate changes.”(National Geographic) Earth’s temperature increases as a result, which pose catastrophic changes for Earth’s species’ way of life. The increases in temperature endanger Earth’s organisms. It causes catastrophes, such as floods, stronger storms and tornadoes, drought, loss of land and agriculture, disease, and rising sea levels.(National Geographic) Storms and tornadoes are stronger and occur more often, thus killing more people and leaving many homeless. Rising sea levels also flood land and cause land to disappear, which destroys many homes and kills people. More droughts occur and cause deaths and ailments, such as heat stroke. Agricultural land is also lost due to changing climates. In order to save Earth and its species, several actions must be taken. People need to find a strong leader, reduce greenhouse gas emissions, and control the population. If nothing is done to solve this problem and is ignored, then Earth’s destruction is eminent. Action must be taken now or Earth and its species are bound to annihilation.
Lifestyles today, contribute greatly toward global warming. The immediate culprits for creating global warming are transportation, energy use, and industrial/agricultural. Thirty-three percent of carbon emissions come from transportation, while 33% results from industry and agriculture and 33% from energy usage. (National Geographic) Transportation involves the use of fuel and automobiles. People constantly burn fuel by using automobiles. These automobiles, in return for convenience, release carbon emissions. Energy usage is the energy that people use to power their everyday lifestyle, which releases carbon. In order to get energy, fossil fuels, such as coal, are used. Nuclear plants constantly give off carbon as a waste product to gain the energy.
Also, agriculture and industry harms the environment by contributing to global warming by energy usage. Both use machines, which run on energy. All the excess carbon, which creates global warming, creates higher temperatures. Not only do these carbon emissions change temperatures, but it also causes illnesses. (National Geographic) As the future generations grow up down the block from a factory or a farm with massive machines, it becomes a part of their lives. As the one grows up seeing it everyday, the idea that it is normal comes to mind. And as one becomes sick, he/she doesn’t necessarily point figures directly at these massive machinery using industries. Instead, the blame is wrongfully put upon something else because people cannot detect the culprit as the disappearing emissions, which these industries release on a daily basis. People become blind as one usually blames a disturbance in his/her environment or lifestyle as a culprit of an illness.
Studies from scientists illustrate that with warmer temperatures Earth’s naturally occurring process of El Nino, which is the wind and water system in which warmer bodies of water is pushed by trade winds towards the colder bodies of water to mix together. (National Geographic) Trade winds are the winds that help move these masses of water. Due to warmer temperatures, these winds don’t move in the same patterns and actually become weaker. They don’t push the warmer water away from the equator towards the cooler bodies of water to mix. The water actually ends up staying in place and/or moving back to where it originates from, thus causing climate changes. These changes cause stronger and more frequent natural disasters, such as storms, tornadoes, and drought. It also causes illnesses, rising sea levels, loss of agriculture, floods, and more diseases. All these effects people and can all lead to death.
People have stood by far too long in denial and must face global warming as a problem and isn’t just a myth. Usually, people point the fingers at each other for multiple reasons, such as over consumption, capitalism from companies, population, and denial. People blame companies as well because they are seen as the leaders to our problem. Companies are often thought of as produces and manufacturers who run factories, which emit tons of carbon into our atmosphere.
To battle global warming, scientists have so far addressed it as an issue and are trying to spread awareness of its magnitude of importance. Overtime, people have tried to come up with solutions and/or built careers around going green, which means to concentrate or something that helps the environment. Different solutions that people have came up with are using greener technology to reduce carbon emissions, managing resources, reducing consumption, and finding a strong leader to put it all in motion.
People, such as Marvin Bush, CEO of Adura Systems from “Firm Sparks an Idea to Run China’s Buses.” are currently trying to improve our lifestyle to save our environment. Adura Systems is a company trying to use greener technology for transportation. He “developed an electric power train,” which is a battery that cars can run on instead of relying on fossil fuels. They operate with buses and other heavy-duty vehicles, which are amongst the leaders of carbon emissions from automobiles. Also, the Hybrid car is invented to reduce carbon emissions. It is a combination of burning fuel with electricity power, which helps reduce emissions.
There are other ways that support the change. The Bay Area Air Quality Management District has created a website that endorses its “Spare the Air” days, which are in effect now. (Bay Area Air Quality Management District) They are basically government supported days that try to persuade people to go greener and to save energy, such as taking public transit or bike instead of going to work or places in a car. In addition to change in transportation, the idea of supporting local community farms is starting to spread. Local community farms help reduce the need to release excess emissions of carbon by having food travel from great distances to get to consumers. According to "One with Nineveh: Politics, Consumption, and the Human Future" by scientists, Paul Ehrlich and Anne Ehrlich, “we must manage resources crucial to human welfare more effectively.”(Paul Ehrlich and Anne Ehrlich) Right now, there are things in place that are a step in the right direction, such as the use of Hybrid cars and the gradually slowing of using products that are harmful towards our environment. By reducing consumption and managing resources, the risk of depleting all of Earth’s resources is reduced.
Past solutions have failed because people suffer from denial and greed. People still don’t support or believe in some solutions because they still deny the existence and importance of global warming. Others are too busy trying to improve their own lifestyles, which is similar to capitalism. According to he Merriam-Webster Dictionary by Noah Webster, capitalism is one’s attempt to gain wealth through ownership and investment in exchanging goods or the production of goods. People don’t hesitate to destroy our environment to gain money. All they see is their desire to have more and better the own lives at the cost of the environment. Even companies control the government to do what they please even if it may not be in the best interest of the public and/or environment. And some people don’t even care. There is an old saying about how one tries to “live life to its fullest,” which means to enjoy life as much as possible before death. It is another issue because many people believe that once they die, it isn’t their problem anymore. This creates the idea of questioning the need to be conservative and to stop doing activities that may harm the environment. So instead of trying to help the future generations take on and defeat global warming, some are actually making it even tougher to solve the problem.
In order to fight global warming, people must form a group of leaders that leads everyone worldwide. This group of people consists of the most educated and more aware environmentalist and scientists, which is financially supported by nations worldwide. The job of this group is to spread awareness and to be judges over proposed solutions and decide whether or not they are beneficial or harmful in the short and long run. This group of people is the catalysts for the fight against global warming. It will help speed up the steps that are necessary and enforce it as well. Even as an individual, one plays in an important role. One’s job is to help form this group by either voting upon their successors in their nations. Afterwards, one must participate along with the rest of the world to make sure that these elected leaders do their job properly and without corruption. A major key to fighting global warming is to have strong leadership. Right now, people are beginning to think about global warming and some even try to help by suggesting their own solutions, which is a step in the right direction.
Forming a group of leaders specifically to target global warming is a reasonable solution because people have already been able to elect government leaders so why not global warming leaders? Having a group of leaders is different from previous attempts for a solution because it has not been done yet. Solutions that fix a trait, feat, or action of people have been thought of and/or created, but they haven’t really worked out so well because there is not enforcement and no one to have people do it. Although this solution may seem harsh and a bit controlling, it can help change people’s lifestyles faster to accommodate the little time that is available. Currently, our lifestyles are based upon individual ideas and rules that support the ideas of one having rights as an individual. Is it not worth it to violate these rules to save humanity? No, it is worth it because an era of change and possibly lower class lifestyles can allow Earth to live to thrive for many more years or decades, or even centuries.
There is always the bad with the good. Some difficulties that may be encountered are people who don’t agree and believe this plan can give too much power to the environmentalist and scientists, racism amongst the members of the group, no compliance from the people, and not enough financial support. People might not go along with the plan because people don’t want to be bossed around and have their lifestyles changed. Other people might not believe that it is a solution that is needed. Also, when given power, corruption is often not too far behind. The members of the group or the group entirely might become corrupt. An alternative can be just having one leader instead of a group of people to represent the entire world against global warming. This person must be strong and willed.
It is important for people to try even if difficulties are anticipated. By attempting to create a solution, a number of effects may occur. It causes others to become aware of the problem and create a sense of urgency. Also, more solutions are produced as a result from more awareness and a stronger sense of urgency. There is an old saying that it is “it is better to try than not to have tried at all.” If people don’t try, then Earth loses out on possible solutions. Everyone has their own ideas. If one doesn’t use these ideas and pose an effort, then these ideas are lost. In order to save Earth and its species, several actions must be taken. Good or bad, people must anticipate the hardships by not quitting at the first sign of trouble and planning out possible problems. People need to find a strong leader and reduce greenhouse gas emissions. By accomplishing this goal, life lasts for many more years as mutualism between people and Mother Nature is balanced. If nothing is done to solve this problem and is ignored, then Earth’s destruction is eminent. Action must be taken now or Earth and its species are bound to annihilation.

Work Cited:
* Paul Ehrlich and Anne Ehrlich. One With Nineveh: Politics, consumption, and the Human Future. Washington, DC: Island Press, 2004
* Bay Area Air Quality Management District. Spare the Air in the Bay Area. May 17. 511 Contra Costa, Autodesk,CCSF ,Department of the Environment, Charles Schwab, Chevron, Clif Bar, Genentech, Hacienda Park, Lockheed Martin Space Systems Company, Peet’s Coffee & Tea, Pixar, Safeway, Wendel, Rosen, Black & Dean ,Whole Foods Market , and Yahoo! http://www.sparetheair.org/index.htm
* David Baker. “Firm Sparks an Idea to Run China’s Buses.” San Francisco Chronicle. April 2009.
* Global Warming: The Signs and Science, Dir. Michael Taylor. PBS Home Video. 2005
* Noah Webster. Merriam-Webster Dictionary. Merriam-Webster Inc. 2006.

Global Warming: Why It’s Happening

2009-08-03T12:04:00.000-07:00

(Winner of High School Group, Teen Essay Contest 2009)
by Anne Fong

Global warming, what do those two words mean? If you ask, some people might say that global warming is the warming of the globe, just a temperature rise is all. Other people may say that global warming is more then just the warming of the globe. To them, global warming means more global disaster (storms, diseases, drought, fire, etc), more suffering in third world countries, and more greenhouse gases. Global warming is all that and more. It means overcoming more hurtles and obstacles.
To break down what has been happening we must first ask ourselves: how did the earth transform from a clean, green planet to a dirty, polluted planet? One of the answer lies within technology. With technology, we have cars, electronics, and home appliances. Technology has improved human life immensely. Technology has also harmed our planet immensely. All of these technology release a gas called carbon dioxide (CO2). The CO2 rises into the atmosphere and traps the heat coming from the sun. The heat warms the planet. This effect is called the greenhouse effect(1). It’s called “greenhouse effect” because a greenhouse is a building that keeps plants warm.
The greenhouse effect is all around us. And it's most likely going to worsen. CO2 emissions have risen so much that by 2050, scientists believe there will be billions of tons of it in the atmosphere(2). CO2 is the largest contributor to the greenhouse effect. The greenhouse effect is affecting the polar ice caps. The North Pole has been retreating since January of 2005(3) and is still retreating. With all this ice melting, the sea level rises. Wind currents that rely on the ocean to blow change patterns. A change in wind means climate change. Climate change brings more storms, more hurricanes, and more El Niño’s. Climate change also brings heat waves that can kill people. Hot temperatures also bring disease-bearing bugs and insects such as mosquitoes.[4] These are some of the effects of global warming.
How should global warming be prevented? We currently have a few methods to slow global warming. There is solar power, wind power, and hybrid cars. Other solutions include using less water, recycling more, driving less, and buying fewer appliances that release CO2. These solutions are good. In order to implement these solutions, we must begin with educating the public. People need to be aware of global warming, understand we are the cause of it, and be part of the solution.
Some suggested solutions include population control(5), consumption taxes(5) (taxes on luxuries), and conservation of natural resources. These maybe be effective, but there will always be an opposition or someone who will refuse to change. No matter what kind of solutions we create, there will always be a downside that will lead to more problems.
In third world countries, population continues to increase. With more people, there are less living space and higher consumption of resources, resulting in a greater release of CO2. Controlling the population in third world countries means involved educating of men and women not to have many children. In these countries, the purpose for females is to have children. Women in third world countries are not fortunate like the women in America. The women have no say on the number of children they have. They are being controlled by men. The problem with population control is that it will cost a lot of money and also take time to educate the men and women of these countries.(6)
Consumption taxes are taxes that are imposed on appliances that release the harmful CO2 gas. If taxes are raised higher, then people who cannot afford the luxury will not buy it. Taxes that keep climbing higher will discourage the poor and possibly the middle class from buying the appliances. The problem is that the rich who can afford it, will continue to live their usual, extravagant lifestyle.[5]
Conservation of natural resources means we must learn to consume less. For example, in order to conserve water at home, take shorter showers, don’t let the water run while brushing teeth or washing dishes, install low-flow toilets and showerheads, and use energy-efficient washing machines.7 And better yet, sun-dry the clothes instead of using a dryer. The only difficulty with this solution is that people are not ready to give up their long, hot shower custom. Not everyone can afford a low-flow toilet/showerhead, or an energy-efficient washing machine.
By identifying the cause of global warming, we have begun addressing the issue. By coming up with solutions and aware of the obstacles that we will face, with hard work, cooperation, determination, preservation, and dedication of humankind, we can slow down the global warming. Who knows, maybe we will reverse global warming.

Works Cited:
1.“Global Warming: The Signs and the Science”-DVD
2. “Six Degrees Could Change the World”-DVD
3. Nicklen, Paul. “Life at the Edge” National Geographic June 2007
Appenzeller, Tim. “The Big Thaw” National Geographic June 2007
4. Lin, Tiffany. “The Secret Drought” San Francisco Chronicle 16, April 2009
5. Ehrlich, Paul; Ehrlich, Anne. One with Nineveh: Politics, Consumption, and Human Future. Washington, DC: Island Press, 2004
6. Leung, Rebecca. “Sudan: Rwanda in Slow Motion” 60 Minutes. 20 October 2004; with correspondent Scott Pelley
http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2004/10/20/60II/main650457.shtml?source=search_story
7. “Sustainability Made Simple: Everyday Choices You Can Make to Protect the Planet’s Future” California Academy of Sciences 2009

Hope for Earth

2009-08-03T11:14:00.000-07:00

(Winner of High School Group, Teen Essay Contest 2009)
by Leanne Wu

People need to focus on Earth's deterioration. The world we now live in will not exist in the future if we continue to neglect the crisis of global warming. With overpopulation and overconsumption, our planet is being stripped of its natural resources. Factories and modern technologies, such as gas fueled automobiles, emit carbon dioxide, causing consequential damage to the atmosphere and our environment. In director Ron Bowman's National Geographic documentary, “Six * Degrees Could Change the World”, Earth's many urgent problems are displayed and explained. Earth is warming from depletion of the ozone, causing major glaciers to melt and sea levels to rise. The world's major cities will flood in a matter of a few decades. The rising temperatures also cause droughts. Just a 1 degree Celsius rise will turn the most fertile ranch land to desert, which affects food supply that is now in more demand than ever before. A 6*C cooling has caused the Ice Age. Imagine what a few degrees of warming will do. The future of every person on the planet is in danger, but the poor are the most vulnerable. As more people demand new technologies and products, the prosperous, large companies become richer as the poor become poorer. Big industrial nations are the major polluters of the world. The poorer countries will have to suffer the damage they did not cause.
The National Geographic documentary, “Six * Degrees Could Change the World”, reveals some of the underlying causes of the global issue. Global warming is caused by greenhouse gases, such as carbon dioxide emissions. Transportation is responsible for one third of the CO2 emissions. Heating homes, deforestation, agriculture, making cement and industry emits another third. Though electricity itself is not a carbon emitter, the power required to generate the electricity is responsible for the last third of CO2 emissions. The carbon dioxide is trapped in the atmosphere, absorbing solar radiation, heating the planet. This is the greenhouse effect. In director Michael Taylor's Global Warming : The Signs and the Science, the dangers of Earth's increased temperatures are explained. Increased temperatures melt large ice bodies. When masses of ice gets into the oceans, the natural patterns of the waters will change, causing more frequent and intense natural disasters. Melting ice also raises sea levels, putting coastlines and even some countries at potential risk of being flooded. Higher temperatures also cause droughts, destroying people's food and water supplies. Warmer temperatures bring about more, and larger insects that can transmit diseases. These diseases put animals and plants at risk of extinction. A problem of overpopulation adds to the issue because more people means higher demand for more of everything. Overpopulation also contributes to overconsumption. In One with Nineveh : Politics, Consumption, and the Human Future, Paul R. Ehrlich, Bing Professor of Population Studies in the department of Biological Sciences at Stanford University, quotes the modern scientific community, “...growing numbers of people, together with rising levels of consumption, especially among the world's rich, are threatening to the natural underpinnings of human life.” (7) Earth's limited resources cannot fulfill constantly increasing demands. In modern times, demand for extravagant, mostly unnecessary and even environmentally damaging luxuries, are skyrocketing. Large amounts of money are spent on these luxuries and not even attention is payed to the crisis of global warming. The government is also barely doing anything helpful to the cause, especially with corporation-hired lobbyists who can manipulate the government into enforcing their preferences and whatever they need to make more profits for the companies and themselves.
Many suggest little things such as switching to hybrid cars, using fluorescent light bulbs, and recycling reusable materials. In the CosmoGirl article, “American Waste Land”, Jessica Strul says, “What if you were to recycle all of your cans? See? You do have the power to improve the world.” The truth is that doing these small things simply isn't enough to make the impact. Not everybody is going to want to make the initial investment on a hybrid car. Hybrid cars use up electricity as well. Recycling materials also take up energy to fix and transfer those materials around, which doesn't do as much in reducing carbon emission as people think. It will take too much for individuals alone to save our planet with these little things. People must unite to make a difference, especially with the government's support . But it will be nearly impossible for the government to focus more on solving the environmental crisis with corporations constantly bribing it with money, turning them the other way. Corporations will influence government policy to benefit themselves with raised profits, whether it be through advertisements or taking in taxes, and they will leave the rest of the population to experience unfortunate financial complications. Stabilizing the population has been suggested, but there is the problem with religion. Some religions prohibit birth control. Many also believe that this means genocide.
As individuals, we must learn to rid our undeniable greed. The desire for lavish amenities is costing us our planet. Many of the 'finer things in life' are simply unnecessary objects that people desire in order to seek a little attention and make some impression of themselves. People do not need luxury, gas guzzling cars that cost more than some homes. Capitalistic minds are keeping the poor poorer and making the rich richer. To survive as a whole, society must take care of those who are incapable of caring for themselves. With enough attention to raise awareness from the public with the aid of the media, people will realize their unfortunate realities.
Education is key, which emphasizes the idea of more equal and abundant funding toward education systems. Many people must first obtain information of our global crisis in order to take further steps to help improve current conditions, and the ones who do know of global warming and deny the issue are simply consumed by self interest.
The government is no exception to having selfish motives. Money and power is its objective, as it is for the rest of the human population. In One with Nineveh: Politics, Consumption, and the Human Future, Paul R. Ehrlich states, “...the spread of Western economic values has helped to produce a dog-eat-dog world in which immediate financial gains too often govern people's relation with the environment and with one another...” (279) So the government, as well as everybody else, must consider the interest of the population as a whole before individual desires. People must learn to resist and ignore propaganda, for wealth and possessions are not reliable solutions to every aspect of their lives. Laws must be enforced to prevent people from carelessly abusing Earth's resources. In One with Nineveh: Politics, Consumption, and the Human Future, Paul R. Ehrlich states that consumption taxes on items and travel that create CO2 emissions must be imposed. Despite expected disapproval of raised water and gas prices, these must also be enforced in order to prevent wasting and further stressing the environment. Oil companies, car companies, and other environmentally negligent corporations mustn't be further encouraged by high profits.
Suggestions such as recycling are simple things that people can easily do to feel as if they are actually contributing to the solution of global warming. These 'easy-fix' solutions are so popular because people do not want to admit to their realities. Humans are innately selfish and competitive. It is vital to individual survival. But when one's greed causes another's anguish and extreme misfortunes, humans take a step back from evolving into better beings, which is what we strive for everyday. We can actually understand the underpinnings of Earth's many crises and perhaps find its solutions if we recognize, admit, and eliminate our own greed.
We humans cannot easily tell others to rid their selfishness, when we ourselves are flawed with our own greed. Human nature cannot be denied, but we ourselves constantly deny our own inevitable imperfections. Our current economy has taken some time to build, and people will not be willing to easily give up their desire for wealth. Most people are also too comfortably accustomed to their current lifestyles and it will definitely be a hardship to convert their thinking into a less capitalistic state. We must all recognize and eliminate our own, individual selfishness. We, whether rich or poor, can do this by supporting each other as much as we do for ourselves. Communities can host gatherings and all residents can contribute ideas that can benefit each other as a whole. As a big, connected group, people will acquire a better understanding of themselves as well as others through those around them, and when this happens, our greedy self interests diminish.
There may be no guaranteed solution to our crisis, but the future of the planet we humans have put in much effort to 'build' and have adjusted to as our homes is worth the attempt. In One with Nineveh: Politics, Consumption, and the Human Future, Paul R. Ehrlich states, “Dealing with population, consumption, and power will not be easy. But each day we do nothing forecloses options for creating a better future...” (15) Our every action determines our futures and the lives of future generations, so why not give Earth the proper treatment required to sustain life? We must care for our fragile, delicate home, from first conceiving the idea of global warming, to taking action to make big scale changes.

WORKS CITED:
*Bowman, Ron, dir. “Six * Degrees Could Change the World”. National Geographic, 2008
*Taylor, Michael, dir. “Global Warming : The Signs and the Science”. South Carolina Educational Television, 2005.
*Paul Ehrlich and Anne Ehrlich. One With Nineveh : Politics, Consumption, and the Human Future. Washington, DC: Island Press, 2004.
*Strul, Jessica. “American Waste Land,” COSMOGIRL, December/January 2009.

Why Live Green?

2009-08-03T09:15:00.000-07:00

(Winner of High School Group, Teen Essay Contest 2009)
by Daniel Xu

Countless centuries ago, the Earth was created. She became a planet capable of sustaining life on a large scale. She was the source of life for humans that inhabited on the planet. She provided them with food, water, and air, basically everything they needed to live and thrive on it. We humans owe her a great debt for all the things she has given us. Unfortunately, we have not paid and may never be able to pay our debt back fully. Worse yet, some of us do not realize this. It would be unthinkable if we did not repay what we owe her. And the best way to return her favor is to live green. We should start immediately living green, because doing so is good for the environment, money, and us humans.
What does “living green” mean? It is something that many of us struggle to answer and define. Most of us often associate the concept and practice of “living green” with something big, for example, treaties signed by countries to take actions against global warming. Also, most people think living green may require them to make significant and even life-changing sacrifices. Perhaps this is why many of us hesitate to act on the idea of living green. But as a matter of fact, living green can be any action or activity that results in a positive impact on the environment. Thus, living green can be done virtually by anybody, anywhere, and at any time. It is just that simple. The beneficial, “green” action does not have to be a big one. And we have no excuse of being reluctant to live green and thus pay back our due to the mighty Earth.
One advantage of living green is that it saves money. For example, carpooling can save some money. Carpooling is when a driver takes one or more passengers on a commute or short trip. My dad carpools to work and does see the benefits. Every workday morning, he goes to a place where carpool drivers wait for passengers with the same destination, San Francisco in my dad’s case. He notes that it is faster to take carpool than take bus or BART. Moreover, the entire ride does not cost him anything. It is also good for the environment, as there are fewer cars on the road than if drivers drive alone, hence causing less pollution. In addition to carpooling, resource conservation is another easy way to save additional money. One reason that some property owners pay too high water bills is that they excessively or inefficiently water their plants. Often, the plants are watered too much or the water is wasted by accidentally flowing to the pavement or the walls of a typical owner’s house. However, if the owners start to give the plants just enough water and are efficient in doing so, they will see the cost of their water bills to drop. Similarly, conscious usage of electricity will eventually pay dividends in the form of lower energy bills, as electricity is often wasted or excessively used. For example, simply turning off lights and non-essential appliances reduces electricity usage, therefore lowering the cost of utility bills, which obviously means less money to pay and more money to save. Another way of slashing utility bills is to replace old, inefficient appliances with energy-efficient ones. In addition, there is an advantage of owning solar panels. Homeowners who have installed them can make surplus electricity on sunny and clear days. They can expect to have a near zero energy bill and also sell surplus electricity back to the local energy company. The investment would pay for itself in a couple of years and a lot of money can be saved in the long term. Clearly, by using the minimum amount of all kinds of resource, savings will add up, and we humans benefit from that by having more disposable income.
Living green will also benefit the environment. Again, a good example is carpooling. It uses less gasoline because fewer cars are being driven, and in turn, less smog from cars is created. Because there is less smog being released, less pollutant contaminates the atmosphere of the Earth, leading to a less tainted environment. Also, the natural resource of petroleum, which is in limited supply, is saved because carpooling uses less gasoline. Another “green” possibility is to take public transportation rather than driving. It has a positive environmental impact, as transportation vehicles do not pollute at all or pollute very little compared to ordinary cars. These vehicles also tend to use no or little natural resources for their fuel, thus saving preciously non-renewable resources. Recycling is another simple green action that many households can take. For instance, instead of filling up limited landfill space with wasted paper, we can simply recycle it. All it takes is to put used paper into recycling bins instead of trashcans. The used paper can then be processed to make new paper and other paper products, saving extra trees from being cut down to make more paper. As fewer trees are being cut down, less pollution is created -- Cutting and transporting tree trunks require fuel. This contributes to a cleaner world. Also, having more trees on the planet contributes to a cleaner atmosphere, as they absorb carbon dioxide which is responsible for global warming. Metal and glass can also be recycled. When these items are being recycled, there is less need to mine their sources to satisfy demand. In short, recycling can conserve preciously non-renewable resources on the Earth from being depleted too quickly, save energy and money used to harvest such resources, and keep the environment cleaner.
Lastly, living green is good for human health. As mentioned above, my dad regularly takes carpool to work, and it has, in addition to the environment, benefited his health. In order to get to the carpool waiting area, he has to take a half-mile walk there. He finds that walking is good for his health. And for most public transportation users, they have to walk to the waiting stations. Walking regularly can improve their health. As I pointed out already, these types of public transportation produce less smog, keeping the air cleaner and benefiting human health. We breathe in fewer pollutants, thus reducing the number of harmful particles in our bodies and possibly extending our life spans. Also, changing the way we do our errands can have a positive impact on our physical well-being. Most people tend to drive cars to all of the locations on their to-do list. But such practice is wasteful and not friendly to the environment, in particular when the locations are within a walking distance. Gasoline is wasted in traversing short distances and unnecessary pollution is produced. If more people change the practice of driving to everywhere and instead walk whenever possible, all the human being on the Earth gets the benefit -- The Earth gets less polluted and humans get healthier because of a cleaner environment. True, some green actions entail some form of light to moderate physical activity, but we humans benefit from these actions.
Ultimately, living green saves money, conserves natural resources, protects the environment, and improves the health of humans. Being mindful and careful of our consumption of resources saves us from paying for wasted resources. Additionally, this helps conserve the limited natural resources on the Earth and saves them for use by future generations. Taking either public transportation or carpooling has a greener footprint than commuting work alone by car. Also, green actions are less harmful to the Earth, thus less harmful to our health. Moreover, taking certain green actions can improve physical fitness and health. To an individual, it may seem that green actions are just extremely tiny steps towards a cleaner future, but they become giant steps if more and more people recognize the need and importance to live green. Understanding the need and importance to live green can help us begin to appreciate all the things that the Earth has done and can do for the human being on the one hand, and realize the urgency to offer her our care and protection through green actions on the other hand. Hopefully, with this understanding, we will now start living green and fulfill our obligations to our beloved Earth.

Teen'Zine Gaming in Summer '09

2009-06-21T15:50:00.000-07:00

( For tweens & teens, ages 8-18)

Let's play Wii games: Super Smash Brothers, Wii Sports, etc. Bring your own game and play with others.
In June, & July
Fridays, 6/26, 7/10, 7/24, & 7/31
Afternoon: 4-5:20 pm
Chinatown Library Community Meeting Room
For more information, contact Jewel Chen (415) 355-2888 or jewelchen@sfpl.org
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
歡迎參加Teen'Zine暑假電玩遊戲日

限八歲至十八歲參加
星期五: 6/26, 7/10, 7/17, 7/24, 7/31
下午4點至5點20分
地點在華埠圖書館一樓會議室
提供免費Wii遊戲, 帶你的遊戲來與別人共同玩

Teen'Zine Gaming Days

2008-12-01T14:36:00.000-08:00

Saturday, December 6th, 2008, 1:30 - 3:30 pm &
Saturday, January 10th, 2009, 1:30 - 3:30 pm
at Chinatown Community Room

Come to celebrate Christmas & New Year by playing Wii, Playstation, X-box and more.
It's a part of Teen'Zine program, free to teens ages 12-18.
Light refreshments will be served in the community room.

For more information, contact Jewel at Chinatown Library (415)355-2888 or jewelchen@sfpl.org

歡迎參加Teen'Zine電玩遊戲活動日

2008-12-01T14:25:00.000-08:00

星期六, 十二月六日 (2008) 下午1:30 - 3:30 pm 及
星期六, 一月十日 (2009) 下午1:30 - 3:30 pm
地點在華埠圖書館一樓會議室
提供免費遊戲: Wii, Playstation, X-box 及其他
並備有免費餐點, 供參加者享用
查詢請洽華埠圖書館館員Jewel (415) 355-2888 or jewelchen@sfpl.org

Lunar July Ghost Month and Zhong Yuan Pu Du

2008-10-06T00:22:00.000-07:00

adapted from Ghost Festival-Origin

According to folklore, the gates of hell are opened at midnight on lunar July 1st, allowing all the suffering spirits to return and see their living descendants, and enjoy grand feasts. The vacation ends on July 30th, when all the ghosts must return to the underworld. Therefore, lunar July is called the Ghost Month.
Most folk activities in lunar July are related to wandering spirits, who are called good brothers. From July 1st to July 30th , the Pu Du activities, designed to placate wandering ghosts, are seen everywhere, and are the culmination of religious ritual for the entire year. In Chinese, Pu Du means universal deliverance.
Zhong Yuan Pu Du originated from the ancient ritual of offering sacrifices to malicious ghosts. In order to keep from being bothered by those who died of unnatural death, people would burn paper money and spread starch liquid to bribe and placate the fierce spirits. Fear of ghosts has resulted in a variety of rituals designed to ward off evil.
The term Zhong Yuan originated from Taoism. To Taoists Zhong Yuan, or the 15th day of lunar July, marked the birthday of Di Guan - Di meaning land, Guan, official - the god believed to be in charge of land. On this day, sacrifices are offered to Di Guan to thank him for his protection of crops. Di Guan has been referred to as Xung, a legendary virtuous ruler around the year 2200 BC.
The concept of Zhong Yuan Pu Du developed from a popular Buddhist story concerning Mu Lian who was the eldest monk disciple of Buddha.
After learning of the sufferings of his mother in hell, from the spirit of his deceased father, Mu Lian visited his mother and tried to alleviate her pain, with rice and water. But the rice and water turned to fire soon after reaching the mouth of his mother. Mu Lian then turned to Buddha for help, and was told that his mother's sins were so great that it would take the combined power of thousands of monks to save her. Acting on Buddha's advice, Mu Lian held a massive ritual on the 15th day of lunar July, chanting liturgies and providing abundant sacrificial offerings to save his mother's suffering soul from hell. Now, large-scale rituals are held on this day for the deliverance of all suffering souls.

鬼月及中元普渡

2008-10-05T23:50:00.000-07:00

摘自Ghost Festival - Origin

在民間的流傳中，每年陰曆七月初一凌晨，地府開鬼門，讓所有在陰間受苦受難的鬼魂，能夠趕回陽間去探望生前的老家和後世子孫，並且享宴一番。到了七月三十，假期結束，這些鬼魂又得重返陰間。因此農曆七月就被稱為鬼月。七月的民間行事中，大部分都跟被稱為「好兄弟」的孤魂野鬼有關，所以，從七月初到七月底各地的普渡活動不勝枚舉，這也是我們一年的祭祀活動中的高潮。
「中元普渡」的起源，根據記載就是古代的「厲祭」，「厲」指惡鬼。人們怕橫死凶亡的「強魂厲魄」來作祟，因此就燒些紙錢，灑些江水來賄賂他們，叫他們不要干擾人們。也由於這種怕鬼的心理，才有了這些各式各樣的祭祀祈求消災。
「中元」的名稱來自道教，而中元指的就是道教信仰的最高神祇「三官大帝」中的地官，因此七月十五這天，民間都會祭祀地官大帝，而地官大帝相傳也就是古代賢君大舜，所以民間就以祭祀地官大帝，感謝大地的福佑，作物得以生生不息。
「中元普渡」的觀念是來自佛教的「盂蘭盆會」。相傳佛陀的大弟子目犍連，也就是民間傳說中的目連，到了地獄，看見母親置身在餓鬼道中受苦，趕緊用缽子盛飯給母親解餓充飢，但是沒有想到飯一到母親口中，立刻變成火炭，不得下嚥，目連悲痛不已。
於是就以百味五果供養佛僧，廣結十方僧侶，舉行「盂蘭法會」，誦經施食，把母親的靈魂從地獄中救出，福報無量。宗教的慈悲精神，借著超渡的活動，來表達人世間的善意。

A Traveler's Journey

2008-07-12T14:18:00.000-07:00

(Winner of the High School Group, Teen Essay Contest 2008)

“Blink Twice, Look Once”
by Melissa Tsang

Living in a world filled with terror and fear. We all want to break loose and cast out the world once and for all. The scorching summer is to burn in rage and havoc.

As I lay down in the open grassy plains, I look up to see the clouds above. Then, I close my eyes one last time, before I drift away. Until Armageddon, the sun will never rise in my world every again. Not ever, again.

A little while passed until I awoke to the sound of chimes in the distance. It rang in my ear like no other sound I have ever heard before. Still partially sleeping, I rose and brushed off my pants. But there was no grass on it like I expected. I looked at the floor and was astonished to see that I was really sitting in the middle of what looked like an open ocean not far from ashore. But how? I stood there pondering on the spot because I did not know what would happen if I walked across the completely still transparent water. I could see the bottom of the ocean. I didn’t know that to do. Three more chimes sounded and I desperately searched for where they came from. I couldn’t quite locate the sound, but I then saw something shiny. The shiny object reflected on my eyes and I cautiously took one step towards the shore. That was a big mistake. A gaping whirlpool opened up under me and I felt like I was being pulled into the depths of the unmerciful waters. I figured that one step off my spot would trigger this and shatter the shatter the enchantment the water was under. My last memory before I was completely sucked in was that I could not trust anyone, or anything.

Am I conscious? Well, I don’t really recall how I got to wherever I am now. Did I drown in the abyss? I am here, alive? My surroundings felt different this time. I felt calm and relaxed sitting on a soft surface. I opened my eyes and saw that I spit out onto what appears to be a giant mushroom. I see the sun high overhead. I can infer that it is around noon. A monstrous caterpillar peered out of the leaves above. It towered over me menacingly. The caterpillar wasn’t gigantic, it’s just that I was small. I quickly hopped off the mushroom and dashed for a nearby swamp. I wasn’t quick enough. The next thing I knew, I was swallowed up, but not chewed, by the caterpillar I thought would give me a break. Everything was pitch black and I did not want to keep reliving this cycle over and over.

My eyes automatically flung open and my sense of awareness grew sharper because of the constant environment shifts. Under the large fronds of a palm tree which provided me shade, I laid on the soft silky sands of time. It felt somewhat familiar to my touch. A coconut dropped and barely missed me. I looked up and atop the tree stood a half-monkey, half-bird like creature. It spotted me and jumped on my head, digging its talons into my scalp. I tried to swing it off, but it didn’t work. It suddenly hopped off and dashed into the forest of palm trees ahead. I thought it was nothing to worry about so I kicked back and absorbed the sun’s rays and the tropic air. I couldn’t care less where I was or how I got here. I just wanted to relax and be left alone. As I was about to close my eyes and doze off, I looked into the waves in the distance. It seemed like they were rushing faster and faster to touch the shores. The currents blew harder and I was almost blown away. The powerful crashes against the cliff increased. The tide was coming in, a lot more than I expected. I turn around to see a 60 feet wave heading towards the shore about to smother me. Tsunami! I ducked behind the palm tree and crossed my fingers and hoped for the best. I said my prayers one last time before I was swept away again. The roaring waters engulfed and I gave in to Poseidon.

An instant impulse caused me to awake once more. This time it was different. I had landed atop a tall skyscraper in a more modern era, but not even close to my time. It was nighttime and I was trying to stay steady. I balanced on the tip and held on tight. The gusts of wind sent dust in my eyes and I could not hold on much longer. From where I was standing, I could tell it would be a far jump up here down to the busy city streets below. The lights illuminated the darkness of the night. The weather shifted, I could tell. Suddenly, I slipped and before I know it, I had scaled down 80 floors of darkness. I shut my eyes, trying not to look, but I didn’t need to see to know my fate was sealed.

The vast field of colorful flowers spread over the terrain. And I could make out gophers hard at work and butterflies fluttering the air. Bees were busy pollinating and making honey. I was safe and unscarred from the fall. How did that happen? Leaping up on my feet, I slowly danced through the beautiful petals, but watching carefully to make sure I don’t fall into a hole or anything. It felt like no one was here on this side of the world with me. After dancing, I was exhausted, so I flopped on the ground care freely. Staring into the clouds above once more, I saw the wisps of white cotton candy that I long to devour. I reached up and try to grab it by the handful, but that didn’t work. My eyes dropped and I heard a hymning melody of a bird I don’t recognized nearby. As I was lulled, I couldn’t resist but to dose off.

Floating amidst the clouds, I was actually just walking on thin air. Disbelievingly, I pounced on a cloud and it was stable enough to hold my weight, yet it looked so light and airy. The tickly sensation overcame me and I felt like I could do anything. The clouds formed a pattern that seemed like they were stairways. I was curious, so I walked up on each cloud that spirals up into more clouds. I hope the Giant isn’t up there. Well, this isn’t a beanstalk anyways. There was a key hovering straight ahead and I grasped it with two hands to ensure that it won’t slip away from me. The key glowed in my hands and I held on tight and kept following the increasingly narrow clouds up to the beyond.

As I climbed higher and higher, I approached two silver gates. I wonder where they lead to. To the left of the gates, there was a keyhole. And where there’s a keyhole, there’s a key to go with it. The key I was carrying matched the keyhole, so I slowly slipped it in and turned it. The lock clicks, and the gates open. I am free, to another realm where I can escape to. This is my home. There is no danger. There is nothing to hide from or be afraid of. This is my subconscious. This is the world we recoil to when there is nowhere else to go.

A Traveler's Journey

2008-07-12T13:48:00.000-07:00

(Winner of the Middle School Group, Teen Essay Contest 2008)

by Anna Skovajsa

Imagine, being able to travel to many places on a hot summer’s day or cold winter’s day. Instead of just being at home playing video games, or watching television, imagine yourself traveling to far away, exotic places that can be both pleasant and horrific for you. A traveler has to both give up their time to go travel to these places, and may carry so little things with them, or lots of things. Travelers are very lucky to go traveling and meet new friends, or even just to taste delicious foods they never had before. They can have it very tough, although it may be very exciting.

I have traveled to Japan, the country where my mother is from, and it is very beautiful there. They have good food, cool monuments, and even wonderful places to shop all you want! Traveling is very exciting, and very fun but is very tiring since in order to go to Japan, it takes about ten hours to get there. After a while, you get used to the long flight, but the first time I went there, I could not stand it and wanted to get off the plane. Excluding the plane flight, when you get there, you land at: Tokyo, Osaka, etc, you can go shopping after a long plane flight, and get something yummy to snack on as well.

Japan has a lot of history behind it, and has monuments that are over 100 years old! Like other Asian countries, Japan contains primarily a Buddhist religion, and a little bit of Christianity. Japan also has temples, that have Buddha in them, and there is this one temple in Kyoto that is famous for touching Buddha’s belly to grant you a wish if you are being good. Green tea, a famous tea in Japan, is very healthy for you, and originally comes from Shizuoka. Kyoto is famous for a lot of good green tea, and as well as sweets that go well with the tea. Not only does the tea in Japan sparkle, but the entertainment is so towering, it can blow you away starting from Rakugo, a Japanese comedy. Kabuki is a theatre performance, and people participating in this event, wears heavy white makeup with red makeup all over their faces. The costumes of kabuki are very elaborate and sometimes can show emotions like anger, sadness, or happiness.

Now, to the shopping or mall experience, you need to have myriad amounts of money on you, or you will miss out on things. Everything in Japan is so cool, that you will want to buy it; you will spend your money on things that you may not even use, but think it’s so cool, so you buy it. For example, there is everything “smelly” there, like a smelly pen, a smelly eraser, markers, and pencils, high lighters, led for led pencils, staples, and things you can’t even imagine. The clothes there are funky, and groovy, and not so much like American outfits, but is very cool. Nail salons usually have long lines outside of them since a lot of the nail salons hold fake nails that every Japanese female would want since it is the “in” thing in Japan, currently, Anime, or manga stores sell many comic books, and is really popular in Japan; likes in America, manga and anime is very popular, that they sell out as fast as Japan does these days. The shopping is pretty tiring after a while, but it’s worth it because you can get many things that you have never seen before.

When you’re too tired to go shopping, and look at things on sale, why not just relax at the restaurants, or cafés? Again, the restaurants and café’s are excellent, but are pretty expensive. There are things like cola floats, melon floats, gigantic parfaits, cream puffs, gelatin that can refresh you on a hot summer day in Japan. Sushi is really good, but don’t just look at the sushi course, but you should try the “donburi” course. A donburi is basically a rice bowl with numerous amounts of toppings, likes eggs, chicken, fish, etc. There are many restaurants that do special things on your birthday, graduation, and many other events and even special things like eating near the window from the 13th floor, and enjoying the magnificent view. There are many famous restaurants that have “all you can eat buffets” that are kind of different than other country’s buffets because in Japan, there are lots of them that you can make your own ice cream, or sweets, or eat all for a very low price like $5! Make sure to stop by at the little booths at the cellar of Japanese malls since there are booths filled with food that have free samples for everything they sell. Don’t get too carried away, or the power of food will swoop you away into being full.

When you are pretty tired from all the hard shopping, and easing, or traveling alone, there is always wonderful hotels, and resorts to stay in. The spas in Japan can put you to an ease from a long day. The hotels are gorgeous, and room service can be enjoyable. Some hotels even have a special thing to them like having a raffle to people who stay in the hotel the longest, and many more.

When you know you loved Japan so much, and don’t want to leave, you know that you have to leave; you can store memories from there. Whichever season you plan to go there, each season is very wonderful. Traveling is really fun, and can be tiring, but it’s worth it, and instead of just staying home and not wanting to do anything but watch TV, traveling can be very educational at some point, and can put smiles to the faces of each family member. Talking about traveling makes me want to go somewhere even more! Sayonara, a Japanese word that means goodbye, I say to you, and hopefully you can enjoy the fantastic experience I enjoyed; all you need to do to travel is to get a suitcase, and some family members to enjoy it with or alone, along with a traveling ticket, and a great attitude!

Post Secret: Extraordinary Confessions from Ordinary Lives

2008-06-07T22:03:00.000-07:00

Is the Book Suitable to Teenage Readers?

Written by: Mona Meng Xin Zhao

I believe the book "Post Secret: Extraordinary Confessions from Ordinary Lives written by Frank Warren" should not be removed from the teen sections in my opinion because of these following reasons (coming from a seventeen years old perspective):

- The book is a collection of myriad emotions and experiences people of all ages been through. The book can serve many purposes in teaching teens and adults about who they are, how they feel, and others' emotions.

- This book shows different sides of a human. Though it can not conclude that's how everyone would feel in a certain situation, but it will help us realize how many of our lives are so alike.

- This book can also help teenager realize not only most of us go through similar experiences, but we also have similar mixed emotions. This realization can help us break our barriers we built towards our unfamiliar classmates, rivals at school, and our parents.

- This book can benefit teens by opening their hearts and minds. Some people might think this book is inappropriate for teens because of various reasons. This book is raw, deep, taps into our most secret thoughts and "secrets". This book, in my opinion, will not desecrate teenagers' minds. It will not badly influence teenagers to "do bad things" or be rebellious, but instead it'll take us out of our comfort zones in life and be more mature.

In conclusion, I read this book and truly enjoyed it. Sometimes I will burst out laughing, but the next page can bring me to tears. This book is cathartic and simply human.

Happy Chinese New Year Poster Display (Photo Album)

2008-04-03T21:27:00.000-07:00

Flickr：Photos Came from Chinatown Teenzine Blog
新年快樂十二生肖海報展覽

Chinese Lunar New Year

2008-03-16T20:16:00.000-07:00

Chinese New Year Traditions
Written by: Jennifer Zhang

"Out with the old and in with the new” is the definition of Chinese New Year. The goal of this holiday is so everyone can have a fresh start and so everyone can start off the New Year with positive energy that will last for the rest of the year. Other names for Chinese New Year include: Lunar New Year or the Spring Festival.

Chinese New Year falls on a different date each year because it is based on the combination of the lunar calendar and the solar movements. It usually occurs in January or February. For the year 2008, Chinese New Year will be on February 7, which is the year of the rat when associated with the Chinese Zodiac.

Chinese New Year is so everyone may get a fresh start in life with positively flying around, but the events that people do on New Year's Day can impact someone's whole life for the rest of the year. Some things to watch for are to: be careful with one's actions, be selective with what one eat, greet people with joy and wish them prosperity. If these guidelines are followed, the chance is that one's life would be prosperous and healthy for one's family and work place.

Everything associated with the New Year should represent good fortune. There are different wishes for different people. One should wish for the best for everyone on this day. To singles, it may mean love and romance, while students would look for good grades. The sick may look for a healthy year and a cure, while the unemployed would look for jobs.

To make sure that one may have a good year, there are guidelines that one must follow. There is a process of how to act and what to do before New Years and on the day of the New Year. Before Chinese New Year a family should: clean the entire house, put away all brooms and brushes, pay all debts, resolve differences with families and friends, buy red envelopes, oranges, tangerines, Chinese candy, flowers, and new clothing. On New Year's Eve a family should have a reunion dinner, pay respects to ancestors and household gods, and open all windows to dispose of the old year. At Chinese New Year a family should decorate their house with symbols of good fortune (use colors like red, which stands for happiness and orange for wealth). Other symbols include oranges (good health and long life), persimmons (happiness and wealth), circular candy (togetherness), flowers (blooming year), and red banners with good wishes written on them.

Chinese New Year is not only about a new start, but it is also about family and the togetherness of one's family. It is a great time for reunion. Relatives come together to cook a simple meal and laughter is shared in the room. It is a really warm feeling and plus the food is great. Teen'Zine would like to wish everyone a Happy Chinese New Year 2008, year of the rat.

The Alcatraz Island

2008-03-16T20:03:00.000-07:00

The History of Alcatraz
Written by: Jennifer Zhang

Alcatraz was the home for violent and prisoners that don't follow the rules at regular prison. It was a frightening place to be, but it did not always started out that way. The island Alcatraz was founded by a Spanish explorer called Juan Manuel de Ayala and was also the first to sail in what is known as the San Francisco Bay. It used to be called Alcatraces, but it's now shorten to Alcatraz, which means“strange bird" in Spanish.

In 1850, the president wanted to set aside the island for use of the U.S. military reservations, but because of the California Gold Rush and the growth of San Francisco, the need for protection of the bay grew and the Army made plans to install 100 cannons on Alcatraz and it became a defense for the entrance of the bay. It also became the first lighthouse in the West Coast of the U.S. With Alcatraz as a military site, it also became the first military prisoner house. The necessary for defense died down after the Gold Rush and so in 1909, Alcatraz became a military prison. The nickname for this prison house became“The Rock". In 1993, Alcatraz was transferred to the U.S. Department of Justice and for use by the Federal Bureau of Prisons. Alcatraz was then decided to be used to deal with the most incorrigible inmates in the Federal prisons as a threat to the public about stopping rampant crimes in the 1920s.

Alcatraz is actually not as bad as books and movies portray. The average amounts of prisoners are around 260-275 and the prison never even reached its capacity of 336. Alcatraz did not held that many prisoners because only the most violent ones were chosen to go and the conditions were not all that bad. For instance, there is always one man to a cell and it is better than the other Federal prisons. Several inmates requested to be transferred to Alcatraz. Prisoners that are sent to Alcatraz are mostly ones who refuse to conform to the rules and regulations at the other Federal prison houses and not all are like Al Capone and other big life gangsters. The prisoners there are mostly considered violent, dangerous, and had great escape risks.

The four rights that a prisoner had in Alcatraz are: food, clothing, shelter, and medical care. There are other privileges that are earned through working including: family visits, prison library, and recreational activities. Once a prison official felt that a man is no longer a big threat and can follow rules, the prisoner is usually sent back to a Federal prison to finish his/her sentence or will be released. Prisoners usually stay at Alcatraz for about five years or so.

Even though it is about five years, there still were escape attempts made. Over the 29 years of working Alcatraz, there were 36 men who attempted to escape and had 14 separate escape attempts. Of these men, 23 were caught, 6 were shot and killed, and 2 drowned. Of the 2 men that attempted, but were caught, they were later executed in a gas chamber for death of an officer during their attempt.

Alcatraz may seem to a eyes of a person as a frightening place, but it was better off than most Federal prisons. I would say that the most frightening part is where a prisoner would look out and only see water. The feeling of isolation of land is pretty scary if you asked me.

*Some pictures come from alcatraz-island.visit-san-francisco.com.

The Passing of a Singer

2008-03-15T20:55:00.000-07:00

Selena: One of the Best
by Jennifer Zhang

Selena Quintanilla Perez was a famous star from April 16, 1971 to March 31, 1995. The time when she was a little girl to the time of her death, she showed everyone that she was able to succeed in this world no matter who told her what with nothing shot her down. Since she was Spanish/American, both Spanish speaking and English speaking songs arose from her albums that showed pride in her nationality. She had a tragic death that brought everything to an end, but no one would every forget Selena.

Selena was born in April 16, 1971 in Lake Jackson, Texas. Selena was the young one of a family of three siblings to her parents of Marcella and Abraham Quintanilla II. She was part of a musical group already called the Los Dinos. Abraham practiced music in his home. Abraham knew she had a voice for singing. Selena started singing only in Spanish, though she spoke English originally. In 1980 they started to succeed. Los Dinos moved on to Corpus Christi, Texas, and traveled around Texas playing everywhere to earn money. Choosing the Freddie label, they came out with their first album. Selena met Chris Perez in 1988. At the Nueces County Courthouse on April 2, 1992, Selena, at the age of 20, secretly married Christ. The once Selena Quintanilla was now Selena Quintanilla Perez to the public. In 1990, a fan from San Antonio, Texas eagerly wanted to open a fan club in honor of Selena. Since this fan, Yolanda Saldivar, knew Selena personally through a friend of hers, her request was approved and granted. The prosperous fan club was set up, but later the club along with another company started many troubles between Yolanda and Selena, leading to Selena's death. In 1995, Selena was approached by a record label to start recording her first English album. It was what she had wanted for a long time because English was her native language. Also in this year, Selena Ect. Inc. was soaring. Another boutique was opening up in San Antonio. Up to this year, everything seemed to be going right. Selena had a wonderful career in singing Spanish and now English albums, and her fashion business was expanding. Though, this same year, problems originated with Yolanda Saldivar leading to her death. Selena died on March 31, 1995, in Corpus Christi, Texas, after being shot by Yolanda Saldivar, the founder of the Selena fan club. Saldivar had been managing Selena's boutique in San Antonio and was about to be fired for embezzling money. Selena's murder sent shockwaves through the Latino community and her fans around the world mourned the singer's passing.

The First English Colony in America

2008-03-14T23:52:00.000-07:00

Ever Heard of Jamestown?
by Jennifer Zhang

Jamestown was the first English colony that first settled four hundred years ago. It was established on the North America continent that we see today. This was a really big event in history. When Jamestown was finally created, it affected a lot of people other than the English like the Native American population. The English started to take over the place and of America's east coast. Jamestown was a really new and special place, so a lot of stories were created there to explain the live of the people like Captain John Smith, Pocahontas, and Powhatan.

One of the first things that happened in Jamestown was when tobacco growth started. When the town was created, the people had to also create their first representative of 1619. They needed people and helpers, so slaves were transported there from Africa. There was also the first Anglican Church. The times were also tough for the people since they were not that familiar with everything. They only, just started a new place after all. They had problems with health and disease, hunger, and death. In the year 1609 was of the winters that the people of Jamestown had to endure. 70% of the settlers died because of this. Jamestown did survive through all of this because the English really wanted an empire and wanted to explore and kept the colony going because they were in a competition with Spain.

The expansion continued on May 1607 when Englishmen dropped their anchor in Virginia and built a fort on the peninsula of the James River and named it James Fort. James was the King in London that granted for the Englishmen to go there and named them the Virginia Company. After that day, they made a new settlement and invest in money from the colonization. The company had all the power to provide all the essential needs. They also wanted to open more new land and had the hope of finding gold. To make more profits, they had to build industries and they wanted to get lumber as their resources. They wanted to make a profit by sending things like lumber to England. To do this, they needed to discover a quick and safe route to the Orient to England.

Jamestown was actually a bad investment for the Virginia Company because the early people were not willing to do work for themselves and just wanted to make a profit. There was also a lot of disease with the marshy and swamp area that they were at and the fort that they build was not even that old. Jamestown was really unstable with all of these self factor, but they also have to deal with the warfare with the Indians and many other disputes. They were losing and was about to have a shortage of supplies.

Something that saved both settlements was new settles that came in at June 1611. A year later, tobacco was planted and profits were finally coming in from the exports. The Virginia Company organized all of the new families. Virginia Company got a royal control after that.

Jamestown was destroyed in 1676 at the Bacon's Rebellion and then was taken over by Williamsburg, which was the new capital in 1699. James Rive r is still shown as a historic place and is being preserved where people can see it and remind the old Jamestown history.

Help Prevent Television Violence

2008-03-14T00:41:00.000-07:00

The Marriage Counselor
by Jennifer Zhang

Meet Bob and his family. He has two children named Andy and Anna. They are the typical American family in the photo that was shown to me. The family is smiling in front of their brand new house. They even have a Golden Retriever. Who would have thought that this family was having so may problems inside?

Bob received a large amount of cash just by investing in the stock market for a year. He got a brand new car, a house, and a nice pack of cigars to hold around in his pocket. From the money, we decided to buy the good stuff for his family. His wife got the best fashion style with all the 18 Karat jewelry and his children got the latest video games. For Bob, he always wanted a large screen television set. He got that with ease. After Bob got his set, all he did was stay at home and watched all he can watch. He was a millionaire now and can just live out the next 40 years of his life on the couch with the stock listing on the side of his new television and that was exactly what he did. He would watch sports programs to drama shows everyday for seven days a week and have another screen just for the stocks. He would sleep and eat at his mini theater and ignore everyone around him. His health habit changed from golf to television programs.

His wife would come in and ask him to take a walk with her and the children, but his mood changed compared to before. He was grumpy most of the time and seems to have mood swings. He would talk, but everything he says had an example behind it that came from a television program. His wife annoyed with him and told him he was addicted to the screen and asked him to marriage his theater instead. This will cause big fight and Bob will end up throwing chairs at his wife and then locking himself in his theater. "He seems to think that what he sees on television is where all the excitement is. He thinks he can get all the experience he can get by looking at the drama shows.", says his wife.

It has been half a year and Bob didn't connect with Andy or Anna at all. They are teenagers, but he acts more like a media freak than they do. Bob finally began to see that looking at the television is not a good thing for him. His vision is blurring and his wife is mad at him. He notices his mood swings which he blames on the family that was forcing him to do things that were not of their business. He also notices that he dreams a lot more of vivid events that feels so real, but it was actually something he can recall back on a program that he watches. He starts to notice that he tries to be the characters on the programs and he can see these imaginary fighting scenes in his head. His family notices that he likes to act tough at times after an action movie or he would be sweet after a chick flick.

Bob's health and mood started to change only after half a year of his relaxation period because of his television programs and mini theater. Because the things shown on television are so feel and the emotions are something that we can feel, we love to watch it. Everyone loves stories and so does Bob. What Bob doesn't notice at first was how he started to actually be the characters that he can never be. He finally notices this and instead, quotes the television characters without knowing he is doing it. Even when he was sleeping, he dreams and recalls the events that happened, not in his life, but from a television program.

What Do You Like to Do during Summer Vacation?

2007-05-18T15:36:00.000-07:00

San Francisco's Aquatic Park
by Rose Gao

Ah! Right after the finals, the ultimate freedom comes. Summer is when all teenagers break out from the crazy teachers, staggering home works, gut busting tests, and the evil, back breaking, posture deforming (probably electric) chairs of school-dom. The sudden release of teenagers in the working world creates a population boom in many parts of the city. You, also a teenager probably wants to take part in these excavations. A question comes into mind. Which money guzzling, "fun" packed, head bobbing place should we go and spend our freedom days at?

And the answer is here, my friend, the beach right next to the Aquatic Park that is right next to the Pier 39 . It is that beach in which which the waves comes in and laps the burn-if-you-don't-wear-your-flip-flops sand. That same place where the wind blows in the natural smell of the sea and the salt in the water as well as fish breath. That beachy-sandy place where the sun shines the brightest and you see a boat says MCG and not MSG. Despite all these it remains a great place.

The sun always tempts you to lie on the sand and start a nice day dream. The wind brings in the coolness that cools us from the hot sun. The water making these lulling sounds that makes you forget about all the evil AP tests, SAT's, ACT's and finals.

If you stare up and away from the sun, interesting cloud formations are sure to bring back good memories and some humor (like the time I saw an elephant and big shoes.) Interesting people, like the balloon lady, come in once in a while to make animals balloons and speak to you in rhymes. Oh! How I hope to see that lady with the crazy hula hoop tricks with her pet retriever.

And of course you can't miss out on the actual fun of swimming in the waters. Of course for those people who will die in touching salt water, the beach is really close to the North Beach public pool. For those who are allergic to hyperactive-children-in-the-pool, you are on your own, man.

If you feel like shopping, you can always get up, pat off the sand, and max out your credit cards in souvenir shops, candy shops, ice cream parlors, clam-chowders, mini-dough nuts, uber-stuffy stuffed animals, decorative sea salt and pieces of cloth that wraps around your body called clothes. Did I mention there are street artists there too who paints Marilyn Monroe, Superman, and maybe even Mickey Mouse. You can meet the bush-man occasionally and even the metal, tin-man with his kid, the tin-boy.

If you don't know, Ghirardelli Square is also there with its high class, fancy-shmancy café (and that's café with an é), nice chocolate gelato, or just plain sugar-hyperactivity-induced chocolate.

So have fun and rebel against all things that make your summer dude-I-just-slept-the-whole-summer boring.

The First Teen'Zine Blog

2007-03-08T21:15:00.000-08:00

This is the first ever Teen'Zine blog site and boy are we excited! And with our annual Teen'Zine Showcase celebration right around the corner, we can hardly contain ourselves.
We look forward to hearing from the people who visit our website from all around the world. Let us know what do you think of our blog & website!