On Baking Bread

Working with yeast to make bread has often been an intimidating endeavor for people. Unlike baking powder, baking soda and other chemical leavening agents, yeast is living and more difficult to control. Before the advent of commercial yeast in the 19th century, people used naturally occurring yeast to make bread. A medium of flour and water was used to culture the yeast and the symbiotic bacteria, this was called a sourdough starter or levain. The acidity of the sourdough starter kept harmful bacteria from growing it and enabled the yeast and bacteria to live without much competition. Bread made with levain is more flavorful than bread made with commercial yeast, however it takes more time and is more challenging. You need to allow the dough to ferment sufficiently in order to have enough flavor, but you can easily end up fermenting too long and end up with bread that's as sour as vinegar.
I was inspired by the beautiful blog Tartine Bread Experiment to try and make my own sourdough bread this summer. One summer of experimentation has convinced me that we are constantly learning new things in life. When you think you finally think you've got the handle on something, you fail or the results come out differently than what you thought they would be.

Samuel Taylor Coleridge

Samuel Taylor Coleridge was a highly influential English poet who lived a highly interesting life. He was good friends with William Wordsworth, and highly interested in philosophy. He is most famous for the poems "Kubla Khan" and "The Rine of the Ancient Mariner".
Here you can see his life in more detail.

How to Make Your Senior Year at GCA Very Good

It's nearing the end of the school year, and its kind of hard to believe that next year will be my last year at GCA. And since its my last year at home in Taiwan before I head off to college in the US, I plan on making the most of it.
One of the first things I'm going to do is trying to get rid of my habit of procrastination. As students who have it know, the spirit of procrastination is one of your greatest enemies in getting any homework or studying done. You either do what you enjoy instead of you're supposed to be doing or stare blankly at the work in front of you, reluctant to lift a finger, and end up with such a big pile of work you wonder how you're ever going to finish it.
The second thing I'm going to do is to spend more time with my friends and family. I've realized that I spend way too much time staring at a computer screen or buried in books and not enough time with other people. In fact the only person I really spend a substantial time talking to is my younger sister. That's just sad. I just need to figure out a way of spending time with my parents without getting nagged at for my schoolwork. Any suggestions?

Advice to Underclassmen

If there's one thing you should know about junior year in high school is that you should prepare and register for the SAT or ACT early. In doing so, you are giving yourself a stronger motivation to study and it also gives you more flexibility if you actually screw up on the test. I chose to ignore the fact that I needed to take the tests until January, and by then my options on when to take the tests were quite limited.
It's the same thing with applying to college. You don't need to make a decision about where to apply during your junior year, but you should have a general idea of where you want to go.
Before you select the place to want to study, you need to have a general idea of what you want to study. Look at your own interests and make a list of what you would like to study. Then, consider where you want to study. Pick a school that is strong in the area you wish to study. It would be stupid to pick a school known for its arts programs when you want to study science instead.

The Silver Fifty Sen Peices

I was surprised to be reading this story in British Literature, because the author is not British but Japanese. The story is written by Yasunari Kawabata,who won the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1968. Set in pre- and post- World War II Japan, the story is very short, only consisting of three scenes. In the first scene, the main character Yoshiko buys a glass paperweight with a carving of a dog after much deliberation. Yoshiko and her mother are shopping in the next scene. In the last scene, Yoshiko huddles in the ruins of her neighborhood and realizes how much she has lost to the war. It's amazing how the author uses so few words to strongly bring into focus how the inconstancy of life. The method Kawabata uses to state his message is subtle, but that's where the beauty of this story lies.

End of 3rd Quarter

It's always cause to celebrate when the quarter finals are over and a new quarter is in sight, and I'm sure that many of my fellow classmates will agree. No more studying til midnight! No more parents nagging you to study harder! And lastly, the return of free time! 

I did moderately well on the tests this quarter, but I'm not really a person who cares overly much about grades. If I did, my grades would be much higher. Alas, the current state of my grades can be attributed to reluctance to study and excessive procrastination. So let's hope that the arrival of a new quarter brings a renewed desire to learn, better management of my time and better grades!

Ode to the West Wind

Ode to the West Wind is one of the most famous works of the Romantic poet Percy Bysshe Shelley. Shelley lived a crazy and irresponsible life and died just before his thirtieth birthday. I highly disapprove of how Shelley lived his life, but even I have to admit that he really had a way with words. This is one of the most beautifully written poems in English.
Ode to the West Wind is stunning and beautiful in its majesty. Dramatic language illustrates the majesty of the West Wind and the inspiration that it gives the author. This poem is not quiet or shy. It possesses a kind of beauty and presence that draws the eye no matter wherever you are.

Thy voice, and suddenly grow grey with fear,
And tremble and despoil themselves: O hear!
                                                   -"Ode to the West Wind"
                                                          Percy Bysshe Shelley