Author Archives: shirley.fung

Subject: Psychology 101 Fall Semester Grade

Dear Professor Keller,

I recently received a semester grade of a B- in your class, and am seeking for an appeal. According to the course syllabus, our final grade comprises of 4 paper grades only. My grades were sequentially A, A-, A-, A. No matter how it is calculated, this clearly is not a B-. I was wondering if you can help me change it. I can come by anytime during your office hours to show you my papers.

Thank you for your time and patience.

Sincerely,

Shirley Fung

Perspective of a Clock

Why is everyone staring at me? Sure, I make a lot of noise, but personally, I don’t enjoy the attention at all. Hey you. Stop looking. I’m not fascinating. You’ve been staring way too long. Don’t you know what you need to know already?

And you too! Why are you such a nervous wreck? You’re running late. I get it. But I’m changing! So stop checking me out every few seconds. And don’t you dare touch me. Only I get to put my hands on my body. You’re so rude.

But I guess that’s okay. I’ll call you rude. You can call me conceited. In my opinion, I make the best music. Some say I’m the worst. But who cares? Just because I can keep a steady beat hours on end and they can’t do it like me. Are you annoyed of me yet? Good. You should be. It’s about time.

        I am just another teenager trying to make it through college before living my dream. I want to become a product designer and visual merchandiser, which requires a lot of time management, patience, and creativity. So I would say that I’m the type to always strive hard and work towards perfecting these qualities. Perfecting. That’s probably another good word to describe my stubbornness. My closer friends always ask me why am I such a perfectionist, even when it makes me pull all-nighters a few times a week or when I don’t want to be? I guess it’s just innate. It’s not that I want to be perfect myself; I want things to be perfect for those I care about. I wouldn’t call myself a perfectionist though. I’d rather call myself a hard worker.

       My top 3 concerns for freshman year at Baruch are joining clubs that I actually enjoy, making friends, and of course, getting good grades without procrastinating. Freshman year in high school was when I gained exposure to many clubs. Most of them were pretty pointless. I don’t want to repeat the same mistake, waiting until junior year to finally find what I want to do. As for friendships, I’m always looking for long-lasting friends if not a mere acquaintance. Although sometimes, it bugs me when people I used to talk to don’t even say hi anymore. Lastly, procrastination is what I’m most concerned about. Although I don’t do it purposely, I hope I can get the school-related things done and out of my way before moving on with my personal life. I need to get into the habit of that.

       Studying at Baruch is much different from high school. This probably happens no matter what college I attend. College means more independence. No teacher is going to be pushing me to do my homework. There is no required gym. Things are much harder, too, in terms of looking for what I want. If I want to look for someone to sign a form, I’d probably have to run around the building asking before getting directly to a place. But it’s not that bad, I guess. I’m definitely enjoying the shorter days of the week.

       My first year at college will teach me that if I want something, I can’t stand around idly waiting for it. Since school started, I’ve definitely been more like this. In the past, I was more passive and shy about doing things. Although that’s how I am still, at least I learned to hide it.