Tag: Informative

Part 114- 80%, acceptable or not?

Rovija Khapre 0 Comment School Life , , ,

 So, early blog, big stories. And, this isn’t just a story, to be honest, it’s a complaint. It’s a complaint, about the NISD grading system, and grading rules. This hasn’t happened just now, but over time, and every time we have an assignment. In my school district, and for most classes, there is a grading rule that the student cannot re-do their assignment or fix their grade unless it is below 80. I bring it up now, because now, something has happened, which I find upsetting, and I need to speak out for. So, in Science, I and my two friends partnered up together to do the Mars project. We chose, to solve problem 4- out of the different scenarios and solving options. We were to build a shelter, that can protect our colony form the harsh conditions on Mars. We followed all the requirements, but we got points taken off because we added too much. But, this isn’t about me. It’s about the whole grading system and all scores. 

I am one of many students who care deeply about their scores and work hard to maintain the 100% grade average and grades. Even if we get a 98 or a 94, we feel upset. We want to know where our 2 points went and what happened. Usually, it’s an ok thing if it’s like 98 or 93, not exactly ok but it’s fine, but when we get say a, 85, we freak out. I have had the feeling many times. Seeing the crushing two numbers that break all my hope for the day and fill me with regret and disappointment. We would want to immediately redo the assignment in the hope of a much better score. But, we can’t. Why is that? Because you aren’t allowed to redo something unless it is below an 80! It’s basically saying, 80 is an acceptable grade! 80%! Who thinks 80% is acceptable? I know I don’t, or those other students. We probably think this way because of the way we grew up/ were raised. My parents are Indians, and they raise me to work hard for everything. They want me to do my best and expect that I always do. This is common with a lot of Asian parents, to be honest. My friend is that, and she is like me, determine to always to her best and get the best grades. There was a joke, recently on Twoset violin, that is very true. To Asian parents, this is what grades mean.

A- Acceptable

B- Barely acceptable

C- Can’t eat dinner

D- Don’t come home

F- Find a new family. 

Sure it may be a little exaggerating, but it is true. According to most grading systems, A is 90-100, and a B is 80-90. It continues downward after that. Anyway, I took my school’s grading system to the STAAR test level. One thing every kid in Texas knows when they reach the 3rd grade is that they have to take the STAAR, starting from that year to high school. It’s a 4-hour long test, with questions up to 50. You have to take it for different subjects per year. Math and Reading never changes. Every year, students have to test on Math and Reading, and possibly another subject. 4th grade- Writing, 5th grade- Science, 6th grade- nothing else, and so on. Anyway, the STAAR is graded by category. Did not meet, Approaches, Meets, and Masters. Students go into taking this test, with the same mindset as any other test. Oh, it’s fine if it’s in the ’80s or at least meets. And in the end, it’s right. Don’t believe me? Check these out. 

Link: STAAR raw score conversion table
Link: Spring STAAR results- NorthwestISD
Link: Statewide summary reports- STAAR

Now, I may not understand a lot of the numbers in the chart, but I’m talking from what I know, see, and can infer from. Approaches- 27 to 58. Meets- 64 to 76. Masters- 81 to 100. I know that a lot of there are a lot of questions, the questions are difficult, the test takes a long time to do, and it is exhausting, but how can 64 be meets? 81 is master’s! I would rather say a 88 is masters than an 81 if I’m honest. 

I know the graph is a little difficult to see, so I linked the website above. It is the statewide scores link, and this chart shows the 2017-2018 vs. 2016-2017 school year scores. More people fall in the approaches and meets category than the masters. Only about 20% or even less, of students testing in that subject, that year, and that grade level, fall into the masters’ category. Even more disappointing, more people fall into the did not meet category then the master category. Why can’t most student test with the determination or thought of trying to aim for 100? I’m sorry if I’m misjudging and students do think this way, but I can’t see it well with the scores. How should we improve this? I’ll propose an idea. Raise the standard. I will openly say, that I have fallen into the meets and masters category, and I think, even once, approaches. I do try my best and so do others, but a lot of kids just want to get the test over with. No one likes sitting at a desk, testing for 4 hours, not being able to speak, get up, or move unless using the bathroom, having to wait until another person is done using the bathroom to be able to go, and then being quiet once done testing for who knows how long! I know the feeling. It is so boring and incredibly hard and exhausting to do! Anyway, if we raise the standard, I think students would at least try harder. Rias the STAAR grading/ testing standard. Change masters to 88 – 100. Meets to 70-88. Approaches 60-70, and did not meet 0-50. I think students will try harder. Knowing that the grades are raised and mastering or meeting is higher, they will try harder and work harder. 
This might also work if you change the grading system for regular tests as well. Change the policy of only being able to redo an assignment form under 80, to under 90. Try that. Kids may just be careless knowing that they can redo anything under an 80, and when testing or doing an assignment, just do it and hope for the best. Do we really want kids to have this attitude when they go to college, or even when they get a job? Just saying that 80% is fine will make kids into knowing that it is acceptable and only work for an 80. When doing a job, they may only think, I’ve only done 80% of the work, it’s acceptable. In college, I’ll only do enough to get an 80. Is that the mindset we want kids to have in the future or even to have right now?? I don’t think so. If you want more proof as to why we should raise the standard, I’ll show you.
Pull up the link for NISD STAAR results. 
What do the numbers say? 5th-grade reading- 14% do not meet, 86% approach the grade level, 64% meet, and only 40% master. Let’s check out a  different grade and subject this time. 8th-grade science- 8% do not meet ( improving), 92% approach ( Not that great), 72% meet, and only 43% master. Why is it, in every grade or subject, or even statewide, that mastering is either 4th or 3rd ranking for students falling in the category? Why not 2nd, or even 1st? I know it’s a lot to ask, but if we really do change the standard and grading system, it could help raise those numbers and help students do much better not only in tests but even in the future. I only want the district to try changing the grading policy for a couple of years and see how the STAAR results and test scores come out then. I believe that the grades will change and improve drastically, and become much better.  
So, consider the proposal, and why I am bringing this topic up. A bunch of students like me want to redo our assignment but can’t because it can’t be corrected unless it is lower than an 80, and such an attitude can affect thoughts of kids in the future and when taking STAAR tests. Think about it, if we change a small thing, can we change something that is greater and bigger, and even change the world? 

Part 113- Justice Ginsburg

Rovija Khapre 0 Comment Law and Justice, Life during Pandemic , , ,

 Hello. Today is Sunday, as we all know, and, today is blog post day. So, we have a slight change of plans. Um, so, Friday, September 18th, associate justice of the Supreme court Ruth Bader Ginsburg, or Justice Ginsburg, has sadly passed away. She has passed away at the age of 87, by complications from pancreatic cancer. Pancreatic cancer happens when cells in the pancreas begin to multiply out of control and form a mass. And, these cells have the ability to invade other parts of the body. So, as a tribute to Justice Ginsburg, we will talk about her life, what her main accomplishments were, and how she changed the world today. (Sources: HallofFame, The hill, Achievement.org)

Justice Ginsburg was an amazing woman. Her entire career was to eliminate gender-based stereotypes in legislation and regulations. She was first appointed by President Clinton to be Associate Justice in 1993, and is,”..the second woman to sit on the bench of the United States Supreme Court in its 212-year history.”  That’s pretty impressive. To be the second woman to sit on the bench. The second woman in the whole 212 years of there being a Supreme Court. She was nominated to fill the vacant seat of Justice Byron White, who was retiring. She graduated from Cornell University in 1954 with the HIGHEST honors in government, went to Columbia and Harvard law school, making Law Review in both of them, and graduating as the top of her class at Columbia. In 1956 when she entered Harvard Law school, “…the dean asked her and 8 other women to justify why they were taking seats that would go to men and a law school employee told her that women could not enter a room in the library which she needed to do research.” Still, even though similar events like this happened many times in her life, she refused to give up. I bet, that she really proved herself to all those who said no or didn’t accept her just because she was a woman. She continued to work hard to where she stood today. She argued gender-discrimination cases in the Supreme Court, which had persuaded an all-male 14th Amendment’s equal protection clause,”…applied to discrimination based on sex, not just race.”  Her and litigation on behalf of the American Civil Liberties Union, where she headed the Women’s Right Project, which drew attention. She helped write the ACLU brief in Reed vs. Reed, which was a case argued before the Supreme Court that involved discrimination against women in awarding the administration of a child’s estate. I know I’ve mentioned this many, many times, but I want to make it clear, because not only did she work hard for this, but also because me being a girl, it matters to me too. She argued cases of sex discrimination. There are many arguments about this topic. Many, many cases. One of the most important of these was Weinberger v.Wiesenfeld. After this victory, was followed by another in Duren v. Missouri. Even though she went through surgery for early-stage colon cancer, surgery for pancreatic cancer, and surgery to remove cancerous growths in her left lung, she refused to retire. Despite rumors of her retiring because of her advancing age and poor health and death of her husband, she did not retire. She stood her “ground” and didn’t give in, no matter what everyone else said.

“She did not want to leave her Supreme Court seat, and much of her legacy the court, in the hands of President Trump. In 2016 she said, ‘I can’t imagine what the country would be- with Donald Trump as our president. For the country, it could be four years. For the court even, I don’t even want to contemplate that.’ ” She even told her granddaughter just before her death, that her most fervent wish is that she would not be replaced until a new president is installed. “She tried to gut it out, to get to January when hopefully there would be a different president to nominate her successor. She was 87 when she died just a few months short of her goal.” Even though she wasn’t able to achieve that goal, she accomplished many other things and many other goals. Some which I haven’t mentioned before was writing books about her life, and in general, books by her.

I think, that Justice Ginsburg may have wanted to keep her seat, for some more reasons. She says that she didn’t want to leave her seat in the hands of President Trump. This may be because she was a liberal, and her views and beliefs in politics and such would have been different than President Trump’s. If she had given up her seat and had President Trump’s nominee to fill her seta, their views may have been different than hers and would change a lot of decisions that would have to be made. It would be n a different way and perspective then how hers had been. So, she was hoping that the next president would possibly have the same views as her, or nominate someone who has the same views as her. 

Justice Ginsburg was a remarkable, and amazing woman, who spoke out multiple times against sex discrimination. She fought for who she is and the equality and didn’t stop, no matter what in anything she did. Whether she was in college with deans who asked her to explain why she was here, or looking for a job and was refused one because they weren’t looking for women, she didn’t give up. She changed how we live and think today, and was true, amazing. I hope she led a wonderful life and passed away happy. Bye.

Part 112- China

Rovija Khapre 0 Comment Life during Pandemic, Politics and Geopolitics , , ,

So, this post is about China. China’s, One China Policy. Let’s get into it, no time for intros or any of that stuff.

Quick Background: China has two “labels”, one of which actually is China and the other which is just a name for Taiwan. The PRC-People’s Republic of China is China and the Republic of China is Taiwan. This actually is a basic explanation of why the One China Policy is there. What is the One China Policy? The One China Policy is basically, a policy that states that there is only one sovereign state under the name China. Like I said, this refers to Taiwan and China. So, Taiwan, or also known as ROC was a sovereign state based in mainland China but wanted to become democratic after China established Communism. 

Now, what the political problem, is that Taiwan declared the independence of China, but China claims Taiwan as it’s own or that it was once China. It is also an official PRC policy to force unification if peaceful unification doesn’t work. This means, that China was wanting Taiwan to become one with it again, or become part of China again, and Taiwan didn’t want to. The peaceful unification is most likely any way without violence. So, without that working, China decided to force unification, due to their policy. But why would they enforce such a policy in the first place? I know that there is a reason, and I’ll explain in a minute, but why? I mean, it is a good strategy to try peacefully at first, it always is, but still, if Taiwan wanted to be independent, why would you try to force them to re-join? I know that a lot of this same event happens all around the world, for example, India and Pakistan, but why would you try and force them to be one again? Taiwan wanted their own government of democracy, and to be their own independent country form China, and China wants them to become one again. Taiwan chose it’s independence and wanted to state its own government and “rule” or govern itself. Like, for example, Taiwan was sick and tired of being ruled by others, and they wanted to govern themselves and follow their own rules that they create.

Anyway, in mainland China, the CCP- Chinese Communist Party- declared the PRC, and create the reality of Two Chinas. After the creation of Two Chinas, the PRC began to fight a diplomatic war against the ROC or Taiwan over official recognition as the sole legitimate government of China. Like, there can only be one China government, I’m assuming they mean. Or, it could also mean, that the name China is under one sole government and because Taiwan-ROC- is under China, they are part of the same government. The second way sounds most likely to be correct. This may also be why Taiwan wants to change their passports. Oh, haven’t you heard? Taiwan has been wanting to change the names on their passports and it has been deemed official. (LINK) So, here’s what happened in case you didn’t hear. “On September 2, the government of Taiwan launched its new passport design with independent identity, deemed as official from January 2021.” Basically, Taiwan came up with a new design for their passports. the reason why was because, their original passports had” Republic of China” on them, and Taiwan wanted to get that changed, and so, they came up with a new design, that says Taiwan. See:

OCAC.R.O.C.(Taiwan) – News

This is the original or the first one on the left, and the new design one on the right. And, that’s reasonable. It’s reasonable and understandable about why Taiwan would want to change their passports. They aren’t a part of China anymore, but in fact, their own country and want to be recognized for that. They wanted to, ” …distinct Taiwan from China…” Continuing from Chinese unification, China never recognized the two Chinas. Again, I’m wondering if that refers to the part of, Taiwan is under the name of China and is therefore part of China. I mean, that is partially right. If it is named, it is under one name.  But think about it this way. ( BTW my example is not saying China and Taiwan are like fruit and pineapples and apples, it is only supposed to be an example, and hopefully, one that is clear and correct) Pineapple has an apple in its name. It is actually, not at all an apple. Just because it has the same word in its name, doesn’t mean that they are the same or one. They are two completely different things, but just have part of the same name. Anyway, China still claims Taiwan as its 23rd province. Plus, in 2005, they passed the Anti-Secession Law in order to, “…discourage independence of Taiwan independence sentiments, and in order to legitimize its use of force against Taiwan.” Wait, is that even possible? Is it possible for them to do that, to just say and state something that allows them to use force on another country and discourage them of their independence? Wait, what if the rules for such things are different. Like in the U.S., are there different rules or guidelines for passing laws or acts and such because it is a democratic country, as opposed to China who is a communist country? Would they have their own guidelines for doing something like that? Come to think of it, ARE THERE EVEN ANY GUIDELINES FOR PASSING ACTS OR LAWS?? Have 

I just been asking random questions over something that may or may not exist this whole 5 minutes?? I know that China claims Taiwan as part of them, but, isn’t it wrong to do that to another country. To pass an act that allows you to use force on another country isn’t that wrong. ( Thinking other than Taiwan and China) That country is its own independent country that is recognized as by the world, and you just want to pass something that, gives you permission to use force on them. That’s not right. That is very, truly, not in any way possible, right. It shouldn’t be right. It’s like saying, I’m allowed to do anything I want to you even though you are your own person, just because I want to. Why? But then, think of China’s perspective. We can’t always put them in the perspective of the bad side. They must have their own logical and fairly accurate reasons for doing so as well. When passing this law or act, or whatever it is called, China might have been thinking and believing that it is possible/allowed to happen because Taiwan is under the name of China- like mentioned in the other fairly-exhausting-minutes-of-writing paragraphs. They may see it as, if it is a part of us, it isn’t a big deal. This event is only happening within China, and not with any other country, so it is fine. 

Anyway, It has been, surprisingly, at least an hour of non-stop typing and researching, and it is getting late. I hope that this blog clearly discusses different facts and opinions on Taiwan and China, and is much, much better than the other posts before. See you soon.

Part 108- West Wing

Rovija Khapre 0 Comment General Topics, Law and Justice, Life during Pandemic ,

 Hi! It’s a new week, and I’m ready to get started on today’s post! I do want to mention a few things first. Firstly, I had Marathi Shala on Friday, as you know, and our HW that week was to write about our quarantined summer. My teacher asked me to read mine in class, with two others, and a whole bunch of other kids who were also wanting to read theirs. Anyway, apparently, she asked me to read mine because she was really impressed with my gardening, and learning Latin and Japanese, and mostly, writing a blog. She did ask for the link and I sent it to her and got a whole bunch of comments on how it was amazing and how mature I am. I’m got really embarrassed when my dad read the comments she wrote and sent it to the other parents- with permission of course. What’s a little awkward when I write this is that, I don’t know whether they- the other kids/students- might be reading this post when it comes out, and could end up reading about themselves, so yeah. Hi. I didn’t tell her that I have been writing for at least 6 years now, so that’s a little disappointing, but anyway, let’s continue.

The RNC- Republican National Convention- ended, so we are going to talk about something else- political related. I have been talking or I talked about West Wing before- the show, and I wanted to actually explain it a little further. It is, indeed a political show, about what goes on in the West Wing. It is a really good show, to me it is, and I really like it. It expresses a lot of the everyday issues that happen and how they all work to get these issues resolved. As well as, what it looks like on election days, through the campaigns and actually on election day, what they anticipate and wait for and do as they wait for the results. Even though most of the time the scenarios are dramatized for the, watch the series, effect, it is really fun, interesting, and amazing to watch. I really enjoy watching the episodes.

So anyway, here is a quick list of the main, or important characters.

Communications Director- Toby Ziegler

Deputy Communications Director- Sam Seaborn

Press Secretary- C.J. Cregg

President’s Personal Aide- Charlie Young

Deputy Chief of Staff- Josh Lyman

– Assistant is Donna Moss, she’s important in between

Chief of Staff- Leo McGarry

First lady- Abigail Barlet

President- President Jed Bartlet

These are the main, 8 characters, that stay throughout the entire series, besides Sam who leaves in around season 5. The other characters that become important, come in later, but mainly, these 8, are the ones who are the most important to the series. Plus, there is one more character, who is not necessarily a main character but is one of my favorites- Joey Lucas. Despite that she, yes she, is deaf and has speech problems, she is amazing and really good at her job. Anyway, that was a brief overview of, the series, The West Wing, and I hope you check it out. By the way, there is some crude language- which I always ignore- but otherwise, it is fun to watch. 

How 'The West Wing' Spent Their 2013

( From back to front, left to right, Charlie Young, C.J. Cregg, Toby Ziegler, Donna Moss, Sam Seaborn, Abigail Bartlet- First Lady, Jed Bartlet- President, { between front and back} Leo McGarry, and Josh Lyman)

Part 99- The candidates

Rovija Khapre 0 Comment Politics , ,

 Hi. I know that when my dad reads this, he’s going to be surprised. Why? Because I accidentally said that this would be my 100th post on Coronavirus log when I didn’t realize that I still had part 99 to write. My bad. The 100th part is coming tomorrow and dad has been stressing that the 100th should be of importance and a review of all posts in the series. Just now he was all about how he thinks its a big deal and he thinks I’m not taking it as seriously as he thinks I should. Well, now that it’s actually the 99th part, I don’t have to do that just yet. Anyway, the topic for today is about the vice presidnet candidates for Joe Biden. ( LINK )

So, as we know, Joe Biden hasn’t picked a running mate for the elections just yet. As I said in Part 98, this post would include his mate to be a female, colored, and well-educated candidate. It actually turns out, that he did pick the person I was going to talk about, to run as vice presidnet in his campaign. And that person is, no other than, Kamala Harris. She was chosen, today, August 11th, 2020 to be Biden’s running mate. This has been a huge topic lately. Who Joe Biden would choose to be his running mate. I was talking to dad, and he said that they would get more votes if his VP nominee would be a female, colored, and well-educated person. Kamala Harris does define all those. We also talked about how Presidnet Trump would be choosing his next campaign manager depending on who Joe Biden picks as his VP nominee. Because it is Kamala Harris, Presidnet trump most likely will be ready with a manager to match them. According to the link above, she has drawn praise from her “strong performance in the first Democratic presidential debate, when she attacked Biden for his stance decades ago on busing…” I can see why he would want her to be his running mate. She had beaten him before- I think- and it sounds like she had done it rather well and amazingly, and so, it makes sense for Biden to choose her. The same link says, ” …who is Black, comes in the wake of nationwide protests over police killings of Black Americans…” Yes, she may also gain the votes of many African Americans as she has been chosen. Apparently, there was a choice between Ms. Harris and Ms. Elizabeth Warren. In the end, Mr. Biden chose Ms. Harris, but, I read that Ms. Warren is known for taking on the financial sector, and if she was chosen, could have shaken Wall Street. She is in consideration for the No. 2 job. 

Kamala Harris had actually announced that she would be running in the 2020 United States presidential election on January 21, 2019. After they both launched their campaigns- Joe Biden and Kamala Harris-  senior members of the Congressional Black Caucus said that a Biden-Harris ticket would be an ideal combination to defeat President Trump and Vice-President Mike Pence. In my opinion, I’m quite excited about baout this choice. Ever since I found out that this was possible, and that Mr. Biden was choosing a female candidate, I was really excited to see who he would pick. I read that he would possibly pick Kamala Harris and sort of forgot to continue on the story, but now, he has announced that he has picked Kamala Harris. I think Mr. Biden has made a good choice. I don’t know a lot about Ms. Warren, as I believe she may have also been an option along with A.O.C.- Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, but, right now I think Ms. Harris is a good choice. She has experience in these campaigns and has defeated Mr. Biden in a presidential debate. I’d say, that she would be a strong opponent – basing my thoughts on the debate- and I can’t wait to see who Mr. Trump picks as his new campaign manager.

Well, I’m done for today. I look forward to writing the 100th part of our series tomorrow. I will not be writing after that, as I will be taking a break, and will get back to my next, 101st blog after school starts, which is next week. See you in the next blog!

Part 95- Greenhouse effect ( Global Warming Part 2)

Rovija Khapre 0 Comment Science and Technology, Social Responsibilities , ,

Hello!!! You may wonder why my post is a little early today, and I will tell you why. I have only two weeks of summer left so my parents have decided to cut down my homework and my schedule so, I can finish my HW anytime I want, and be free after that. I’m choosing to finish it in the morning because, I am working on a secret project in Minecraft, which I will not name, because, it is a surprise. Anyway, this is part 2 of the Global Warming Blog. We will be talking more about global warming, climate change, and candidate opinions, and, also talk about the Greenhouse effect. 

What is the greenhouse effect?? Well, the greenhouse effect is a process that warms the Earth’s surface. “When the Sun’s energy reaches Earth’s atmosphere, some is reflected back to space, and the rest is absorbed and re-radiated by greenhouse gases.” The absorbed energy warms up Earth’s atmosphere and the surface of the Earth. This is why cars heat up in the sun, as well. The sunlight passing through the windows of the car is mostly absorbed by the interior surfaces, then radiated back in the air as heat. It is a good thing, as it does absorb infrared radiation that the Earth emits, and then re-emits most of it, to warm the atmosphere to a comfortable temperature. 
Anyway, in the last post, I know that we talked about the different candidates’ opinions on global warming- or climate change- and I forgot to include one thing that I always do, which is, share my opinion. In this post, I’m going to share what I think about global warming.
Well, as a kid, my teachers or peers are always talking about global warming and how the glaciers and ice caps are melting because of it. Over the years overhearing this over and over again, one can only believe it. So, this may be on my kid-student- learner side, when I say that I believe in global warming. My belief may possibly change when I later become an adult or even sooner, but for now, I believe in it. Scientists have been observing this for possibly years now, and science has proven to be right A LOT of times. Although we may not see it now, but, in the future, when more ice caps or glaciers have melted, the oceans will have risen, and we will get flooded slowly. Slowly, slowly. Of course, a way we can try to slow down this process is by reducing the number of fossil fuels we use. Instead of driving to work every day, if it is close by, try biking or walking instead. For lamps, turn them off and use sunlight. Electric cars, lights, solar lights, and more. Reduce the number of fossil fuels used, and ask whether it is really necessary to use them. 
Anyway, I know that was short, but I think taht pretty much sums up my opinion. I don’t have a lot of thoughts on this subject, but, I definitely do believe in global warming. I think there is another part of this subject, as I have more facts on each candidates’ thoughts on this, or, I’ll have a new topic. BYE!

Part 75- Xbox X vs. Xbox S

Rovija Khapre 0 Comment General Topics, Life during Pandemic, Me and My Family ,

Hello everyone, today is July 3rd which means that tomorrow is Independence day. Due to COVID, a lot of the regular celebrations for this day got canceled, so I just wanted to wish everyone an early Happy Independence day because tomorrow is my break day, and I will not write- like every Saturday. So, without any hesitation, let us get started on today’s post. 

To be honest, I have no idea what to write in today’s post. I would just usually write something really random and out of the blue, but I think that I should just write randomly. Like, write, but write something random and not mediocre. So, I might be getting a new Xbox soon. I currently have an Xbox 360 and the only thing I even play on it is Minecraft. My most favorite video game and the only video game that I have actually ever played. I’m not a pro or necessarily good after playing for 3 years, I mean, I only play in Creative, na whenever I try Survival, I give up in the first few seconds. Because I have an Xbox 360, I could only get the updates up to teh Update Aquatic, so I cannot get teh Village and Pillage update or the Busy Bees update, or the brand new 1.16 Nether Update that came out on June 23rd, 2020. I did a bit of research, and I found out that I could not get them on my current Xbox, nor would they come anytime sooner. So, I have decided that I want to get an Xbox One. Now, I didn’t realize there were 2 versions. Na Xbox One X, and an S. So with a bit more research- and being told to do so by dad- I found out teh benefits and disappointments of the versions. 
An Xbox One X has more storage, quality, and such. It allows digital, disc, Blu-Ray, and other types of games. The Xbox One S Does not have as much storage or quality as this, nor does it allow disc games- which is a bad thing for me because I have a disc Minecraft game. The Xbox One X has 4K quality – or something similar to that- so, if you don’t have a 4K TV, you won’t get access to most of what is available. I don’t have a 4K TV upstairs so, yeah. The Xbox One S doesn’t have anything specific like 4K, so I’m good on that side- sort of. The Pricing is a huge difference though. The Xbox One X costs just about $499 dollars, and the Xbox One S is $199. $300 difference.  If I did get an Xbox One S, I would have to purchase an online Minecraft game- which is $19.99 extra- one-time payment- and is mainly for online games. Meaning, you need a LIVE profile. My dad has one, and I don’t. I did say that maybe I could use his account until Mumma allows me to, but he says that he’s not adding his profile to teh new one- if I get a new one. So, my best option is an Xbox One X, and maybe, I can get a used one for a much lower price.
I hope this was a bit informative and insight on the things I want list- which is very few actually. I hope everyone stays well and has a good rest of the day. I know I am because today has been a GOOD FRIDAY FOR ME!!!!!!! BYE!

Part 73- The news relates to me, hopefully

Rovija Khapre 0 Comment Life during Pandemic, Me and My Family , ,

You know what sucks the most in life, having an Indian dad. You know where I’m going with this. yup, dad has become once again, the most annoying person on the planet.  So, I was going to finish up a different post that I didn’t get to publish as my post for today, BUT, my plans have changed so, let’s get on with this. 

What I have read in the news that relates to me: 
Pretty much the only thing I can see or can find that relates to me is about the COVID cases. I probably do not have COVID, but to have more caution as cases may start to rise is relates to me. ( First, before continuing, please note that I am just figuring out what to do with this topic that just came up as I write this) 
Fauci: 100,000 cases daily possible is what I chose. Dr. Fauci from teh government’s top infectious- disease specialist says/ warns that teh U.S. could soon start to have 100,000 new Coronavirus cases a day “if this does not turn around”. He says that it would be a surge that would be more than twice as many as the record and three times as many as the peak of the original surge this spring. This means, that what’s coming next is going to me 2x as more than what happened this spring. There have been a lot of images of Americans gathering in bars or other crowds which is foreshadowing a greater surge in infections. I’m guessing that this is because more than half of them probably aren’t wearing masks. I mean, it doesn’t relate to me that much, but it does. It means that I have to be more careful, which I don’t really think is possible;le. To be honest, I pretty much do NOTHING in my house as I continue to wish for this pandemic to be over. I only go outside for morning walks, and otherwise, I don’t go far. But, that means that my parents, who go out, have to be more careful. I knwo that they are, with gloves, and masks and full-on hand sanitizing whenever they really need to or when they are in contact. Yes they do all this, but who knows, the virus could infect them even when they think they were protected enough. The world is changing by this. And it’s not in a good way. 
Is this only in the U.S. or is it going to be everywhere? Probably just in the U.S. Another thing, President Trump has said that he wants to reduce teh testing so there are fewer cases. First, less testing does not mean that teh cases will be fewer, but that the number of cases that are known about will be fewer. Second, I don’t think that’s a good idea. Yes, this is getting out of hand wildly, but it will probably is much worse if there is less testing. Fewer people can get hospitalized quickly and can actually know whether they have COVID or not. I don’t even know where we are on teh number of cases for the U.S. I stopped looking/ checking the numbers. All I know or think I know is that the numbers for cases have been going up, up, up. And they have not been getting better that much lately. 
Ok, I really have to go. I really need to finish something up, which is going to be trouble for me if I don’t do. Ok, signing off, bye! 

Part 64- Whiskey

Rovija Khapre 0 Comment General Topics, Life during Pandemic ,
Hello!!! Today’s topic is a very strange one. So, dad gave me a topic on whiskey, and a book to research and read about it. I have to say, I still don’t understand the greatness of Whiskey. Or Whisky, as they spell it in Scotland, Japan, India, etc. Except for the U.S. and Ireland. 
So, there are different types of Whiskeys. Scotch, Bourbon, etc. They all are different in different countries and made differently. Yet, they still are the same thing. A spirit, or liquor. Plus, they are aged. For years. And years. The top 5 major countries producing whiskey are Scotland, the U.S. Ireland, Canada, and Japan. 
Scotch- Scotland Whiskey- is traced back to the 15th century, and was initially valued for its medicinal powers, and early examples were of herbs and berries. Bourbon is more popular in teh U.S. and is more concentrated in Bourbon County, as there apparently is one, but around teh towns of Louisville, Bardstown, and Frankfort. In Tennessee, a different yet distinctive style of whiskey is made. An example is a brand- Jack Daniels. Crown Royal, a Canadian whiskey brand, and all Canadian whiskey brands are made from blends of different grains and combine rye, corn, and malted barley. Though Japan is one of the 5 leading whiskey producers, Japan has the youngest whiskey industry. The model for their whiskeys is single malt scotch. 
Moving on. Here are my thoughts. Why are people so into this? I mean, its just whiskey, and they all are. There are so many different styles, but they are all the same thing. It’s not a big deal. Right? OF course, many people would be shouting, ” You’re wrong! Whiskey is so unique!” I don’t understand what’s just so great about it! Plus, if you want to convince me, then give me a book that doesn’t just tell you the origins of all different whiskeys. Like the book, I am holding right now- dad. 
Ehh, but I guess it is cool that despite the fact that they are the same thing, they all are made in their own way. Like, the malts ( whatever they are) are different and how they are made, and what tastes better or goes better with them.  I guess you could say that it is pretty cool. 
Anyway, I hope everyone learned, maybe just a little bit about Whiskey, or more than they originally knew. To be honest, I did learn a few more things. Like, I never knew that there were multiple types or where they are common. Bye!

Part 62- Chaos of the World

Rovija Khapre 0 Comment Life during Pandemic , ,

Hello!!!!!! So, we haven’t done this is quite a long time, and I guess we’ll do it again!!

Today, there are 8,228,384 total cases worldwide, 444, 456 total deaths, and 4,289,098 recoveries. Nice!
So, as I have been mentioning through long paragraphs or short brief updates, there is a lot of BLM ( Black Lives Matter) protests around the world. Not just the U.S., but around the world. ( By the way, here is the link for the Great Big Story video I was referring to) SO, these have been happening because an officer pinned down a black man, George Floydon his neck, and kept doing so even when George Floyd was saying that he can not breathe. Sadly, Mr. Floyd died, and this action sparked up thousand of angry protestors to rally and shout that Black lives matter. Now, the police know that this officer did not do the right thing and he is in prison and fired. But, when teh protests got out of hand, the police have been using rubber bullets and tear gas to disperse the crowds. They’re trying, ok. And the police really want the protests to stop. But, just last week or last last week, another black man was killed, and even after he was saying that he has congestive heart failure when the officers were pinning and tasering him down because he forgot to DIM HIS HEADLIGHTS, they didn’t listen. What’s worse, is that a crew from a TV show was filming teh whole thing, and decided NOT TO HELP. One more. Just recently, another black man was shot because the police tried to handcuff the man, but he was resisting and ran away with the taser they were using on him. He actually was cooperating with teh police when they pulled him over from a Wendy’s and agreed to do a breath test. agin, protests have come and torched down the restaurant. It took firefighters about an hour to get to the restaurant because the whole place was swarmed with protestors. If you think about it, the police are just making this whole thing WORSE!!!!!
They want the protests to stop, but officers are just making it worst by killing 2 more people. UNBELIEVABLE! 
But, what happened and is on the news today is even worse! 3 officers went to a Shake shack for some milkshakes and are now being hospitalized. They will live, but their shakes had a foreign substance in them. The officials are saying that the substance was… BLEACH. Oh my gosh, this is getting out of hand. A chief of police said something- I can’t remember the whole thing said- about how the environment around us is not stable- I think it was stable- if officers’ food is harmful. I think it was something like that, not exactly, but close. this means, that our environment is not stable right now. People are torching and harming and hurting and screaming everywhere. It has become a mess. What have we all become? We have become a mess! Teh year 2020 was supposed to be good. It was supposed to be a cool year. 20-20. Like, 20-20 vison. Perfect eyesight. Good year!!! What has 2020 become instead???? A year with a deadly pandemic. A year with so many protests. A year with torching and riots.  A year with officers’ being poisoned with Bleach in their shakes. What has this year become????? This is the worst year I have ever experienced. In any way possible, can we give back the year 2020 for a new one? Or just skip it, and move onto 2021? ( By teh way the last 2 sentences are a joke.) 
Anyway, i hope this year is better in like, really quickly. Um, stay safe. Bye…