Symphony No. 5 in E-Flat Major Op. 82 - Jean Sibelius & The Parting of Hero and Leander - J. M. W. Turner // Semiramide: Overture - Gioachino Rossini & Untitled - Dora Maar // 3 Gymnopédies: No. 1 in D Major: Lent et douloureux - Erik Satie & The Thinker - Auguste Rodin // Cello Suite No. 1 in G major, BWV 1007: 1. Prelude - Johann Sebastian Bach & The Creation of Adam - Michaelangelo
final little push. I’ll be doing some work on my essay until probably 23rd, but interspersed with watching christmas films and going on dog walks, so fairly lowkey. fortunately the essay is super interesting + I’m so happy that this course has opened up so many different schools of thought and ways of reading in just one term! also extremely pleased with this table in my bedroom, now that my desk is gathering dust in my house for a couple of weeks. when I hurried back a couple of days ago, I did make it a priority to bring my laptop stand in my suitcase (people often ask - it’s this guy, and I couldn’t recommend it more! https://www.ikea.com/gb/en/p/braeda-laptop-support-bamboo-veneer-30384822/)
hope everyone is safe, well + starting to wind down for the holidays. it’s been rough, and weird, recently and, really, all year, and the news is getting difficult to listen to again, but we’ve all pulled through and a bit of indulgence is certainly in order now!
For my final project I’m redesigning the costumes in Bridgerton, Reign, The Tudors, The Last Samurai, and Pocahontas. I’m still in the research phase but I’m excited.
First year of high school has been an amazing 7 months roller coaster and I haven’t been having the time to be here, but it’s term break and I’m finally picking up French to stay productive!
2019.04.03 || I’m sorry for being away for so long! Exam weeks have been tiring and draining and I’ve just been sitting in my lump studying, and then took a whole week off to sleep. But now I’m back to the productive run! Have some biology notes with p l a n t s ☘️
Everyone has their own quirks. And you know what those are for you better than anyone else. And when it comes down to me, I have a few things I do.
Don’t take notes in class. Well, not unless it’s completely necessary, like an equation with some key example that I can use for further reference. The reason why this works for me is that I see lectures like a conversation with my professor. If you’re in a conversation with your friend, you’re not going to type or write everything down. Instead, you try to follow what your friend is saying, right? You’re not going to remember everything, but you’re gonna remember the key aspects that make the story. I used to take notes in class but I noticed that I focused too much on taking notes instead of the actual content.
Take notes a day or two after your class. This will force you to recall what your professor said. According to a psychologist, Jeffrey Karpicke, simply practising and recalling the material, students learn far more and at a much deeper level by recalling than using any other approach. First I like to write what I remember down on a page. After, I start reading the textbook and make notes at the margins of other examples or anecdotes the professor used. If I paid attention, all these things will pop up into my mind. Just trust your brain on this one, you’ll be surprised by how much you actually remember. (I certainly was!) And then I take these 2 notes and make my final notes on the subject.
Get your pets and talk to them (Or yourself). After I am done with the notes, I like to wait a day or two before I go back to them. I often open the book on the index page, where you see the chapter’s title, paragraph and sub-paragraphs and use this as a shortcut page to my presentation. I stand up before a whiteboard. I make sure Burger (my cute-ass doggo) and Mr Fantastic (my grumpy cat) are on my bed. I take a deep breath and I start explaining the concepts to them. The idea here is to recall and make sure you put the concepts into your own words. What do you remember? What is it about? Can you explain this with an example? What are the practical uses of said concept? Most importantly, use that whiteboard. It’ll make you feel like a professor and that you know your shit. Once I start talking, I’ll realise what information I truly don’t know. Then I’ll pick up my final notes and go through them and see if I talked about everything. After I’m done with my talk, Burger looks at me like “Shirou, where’s ma food?” and Mr Fantastic is fast asleep or looking at me like she truly can’t be bothered.
So experiment! See what works for you and what doesn’t. Not sure where to start? Then I truly recommend you to check the free online course on Coursera “Learning how to learn”. It truly helped me to lay a basis of getting my shit together.
Sometimes I want to get a brush pen and a Leuchtturm1917 and let my hand do its work. However, my values stop me from supporting the community in the way I initially wanted to, which is analogue for the most part. So I had to come up with a way to get my shit together, a la bullet journal style that was convenient, environmentally friendly and of course, work for me.
Thus my armour was born.
1. Laptop and stylus. My laptop is without a doubt the most useful tool I possess. Apart from the standard use of typing reports and using my friend Google to the max, I am able to download my college books, handouts and syllabus. But interestingly, it also doubles as an actual paper notebook because it is stylus enabled, so I can highlight and take notes on pdf’s, write and draw. I’ve got the best of both worlds. Can you hear my cry of joy in the background?!
2. Phone. Even though my laptop is basically my lifesaver, sometimes I just don’t wanna carry it around. I don’t plan on walking around with a backpack 24/7 and I don’t own a purse or a bag or whatever people use. That’s why pockets exist and I don’t carry much anyways. This is where my phone comes to play. It’s compact, fits in my pocket and above all, it syncs with all the apps I use to stay organized. All my files, available anywhere I go. Plus it also has a stylus. More cries of joy in the background!
3. Notebook and a pen. Last but definitely not least, I do own a notebook. With a refillable fountain pen. I know, I know. What was all that speech just above about not using analogue methods?! Let me explain. If you’re an artist, I think you might have the same problem as me. I owned a horrendous amount of sketchbooks and none of them was finished. So I made a little DIY Bullet Journal out of the empty pages. I only use the notebook for when I am not allowed to use my laptop, which is after 6pm, so I can give my eyes a break from the lights and prepare myself to sleep. There, I write and doodle to my heart’s content.
So my laptop, my stylus, my phone, my notebook and my fountain pen are all the tools I need to go to class and take notes. At the same time, they offer me a minimalist armour that allows me to be more productive in class and it helps me reduce the amount of trash I produce. Although both methods, analogue and digital, have their pros and cons when it comes to the environment, the tools needed for digital processes are fewer and it helps me produce less trash. At the end of the day, it all comes down if the method you’re using works for you and if you’re happy and satisfied with it.
