Slice Of Life #211 - MAP Test - Tuesday, April 30th, 2019

    "Ugh." My friend groaned. "We have the MAP Test today."

    The MAP Test was a test that we took every year. The word MAP stood for Measures of Academic Progress. Every year, we took the MAP Test so that our teachers would be able to see how much we improved. Today, we were going to be doing the Math MAP Test.

    I quickly packed up my snack and walked into the classroom. I quickly grabbed my computer from the computer cart, opened it, and restarted it. Everyone was to shut down or restart and quit all applications so that you wouldn't get kicked out of the test.

    It pretty much about 56,000 tries pressing the power button before my computer would finally turn on. Everyone always got annoyed with their computers because it always took ages to turn on.

    But finally, my computer did turn on, and I turned on the NWEA Secure Testing Browser. This browser is incredibly secure; I had learned that over the years of MAP Testing. 

    After a while, my teacher let us all start the test. We all murmured: "Good luck," and started the first question. My first question was really easy. It took me about 10 seconds to work out the answer to the first question before I moved on to the second one.

    Not after long, the questions started to get really hard. Some of the questions were algebra questions, and it took me about 2 minutes just to understand what the question was asking. It then took me another 3 minutes to actually solve the question.

    Some of the questions I had never seen before, but I was able to work it out because I had done questions that were easier but were a base for working out the answers to the questions that I was now facing in the MAP Test.

    After a really long time, I finally completed the test, and when I got my answers, I was stunned. My results were higher than I expected. Happy with my results, I raised my hand and gave them to my teacher. And then, I shut the lid and took a moment to appreciate, the cold, fresh air. The test was over.

Slice of Life #210 - On The Highway - Monday, April 29th, 2019

    Tomorrow's the last day of April,  and I happen to have a math test tomorrow. Tomorrows math test is one of the big tests of the year, so I have to sleep early tonight. Later, I have a troop meeting to go to - for Boy Scouts.
    Last week, I received our troop t-shirt, so I have more than one choice when it comes to picking what to wear for Boy Scout meetings now.
    I am now on my way to my Chinese class. I have to go down on time from my Chinese class on time on all Mondays now because my troop meeting is after my Chinese class. 
    Recently, I also managed to earn my double gold belt. I'm also very happy because I managed to get 100 marks on my piano theory exam.
    I don't have anything to write about now, so I'm going to leave and go read now! Bye!

Slice Of Life #209 - Currently... - Sunday, April 28th, 2019

• My mom is mopping the floor.
• I hear the creak of my mom moving a few chairs.
• I have just finished my piano homework. I have also practiced a few songs on the piano.
• I don't know what to write about.
• I am texting my friends but none of them are online.
• Later, I am going to be going to a badminton class.
• YESSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSS! I have just received an email from my band teacher saying that I have earned my double gold belt! In band, we have a belt system where we play songs for our band teacher and she gives us belts according to the songs (if we can play the songs well). This makes me the first kid this year to earn a double gold belt! The double gold belt is the highest rank in the belt system. After the double gold belt, I just play a few scales for my band teacher to get stars next to my name.
• My mom has just told me that I'm probably going to go cut my hair just before I go to my badminton lesson.
• I actually don't know what to write in this post.
• I'm probably going to leave now! Bye!

Slice Of Life #208 - Night Of The Notables Practice - Saturday, April 27th, 2019

    Today, I went to school to practice for my Night of the Notables (NotN) performance. Every year, Grade 5 does a performance called Night of the Notables. Each class chooses a topic that we all believe is a potential threat to human beings and presents it to the parents and 4th graders.
    This year, for our NotN performance, our class chose plastic pollution as our topic. My group talks about plastic straws and the conclusion.
    Today, we came here to work with Mr. How, the high school drama director, and his students. We got this rare opportunity only because our school now is united (elementary, middle, and high school are all together).
    Mr. How and his students suggested a few changes. We would be on stage the whole time and just observe. After all the other groups were done talking, me and my group would walk forward.
    I would say: "What's next?" as I walked toward the front of the stage.
    I would then sit down on the stage first and we would start talking about plastic straws. We did it in a way so that it was like a conversation to the audience.
    We also worked on projecting our voices so that the people at the back of the theater (we were practicing in the Robert B. Gaw Theater) could hear us. This was really important, mainly because the theater was really large but also because there are 2 floors in the theater.
    I thought that working with Mr. How and the high school drama students helped us a lot. Our performance looks really good now! More updates are to come!

Slice Of Life #207 - The MAP Test - Friday, April 26th, 2019

    "Please open the NWEA Secure Testing Browser." I heard my teacher, Mr. Herbert, say in a serious voice as I walked in through the door.

    Oh, yeah! I remembered. We have the reading MAP Test today! The MAP Test is a test that everyone in our school takes every year. The MAP in the MAP Test stands for Measures of Academic Progress.

    The questions on the MAP test were computer generated. Everyone would get different questions so you couldn't copy from others. The more questions you got right, the harder the questions you would get. The more questions you get wrong, the easier your questions are.

    I clicked on my name and clicked the word confirm. After a while, a button that said 'Start Test' appeared in the middle of my computer screen.

    "When you see the words 'Start Test' on your screens, you may start the test. Good luck and all the best." Mr. Herbert told us.

    I took a deep breath and pressed the button to start the test. My first question popped up. It was an easy one. I quickly answered the first question and moved on to the next one.

    After a while, I some hard questions started to appear. I thought carefully about what the answers were and then clicked the answer button. After about an hour, I got onto my final questions. I answered the final question, which was a hard one.

    Then, a few words appeared on the screen indicating that I finished the test. I looked and studied my score before raising my hand to tell Mr. Herbert my score.

    After Mr. Herbert had my score, I looked at my test results one last time. I was proud of myself and my score.

    And, with the click of a button, I closed the testing browser and leaned back into my seat. The test was over.

Slice of Life #206 - Novel Knockout - Thursday, April 25th, 2019

    I'm in the car right now going back home. I'm just back from my Novel Knockout after school activity. Novel Knockout is a competition about books that my school participates in every year. Each year, there are two teams that get selected to represent the school in the competition. 

    Last year, my team got 3rd place. This year, we're hoping to get 1st place.

    My team is getting better and better, which is good. We have a few books that each person specializes in. Today, we took a test in teams. Because Chloe, one of my teammates was not there, we substituted her for Edwin, our team's backup.

    Our team managed to get the most questions right, so we were happy about that.

    We're getting ready and progressing fast! More updates are to come! Bye!

Slice Of Life #605 - Nothing To Write About Again - April 24th, 2019

I don't have anything to write about today so there will be no post. I'm sorry. We're closed for business.

    But, then, there has to be a post. So what should I write about? Nothing much happened at school today. 
    Because of that, I'm going to play Google's 2018 Halloween game and talk about what is happening.
    The game has started. My team is currently winning. I don't like this map because anyone can just come out of their base and steal all of your points if you enter from the middle.
    I am taking the right exit and going out. I am on the green team. I have about 10 spirit flames behind me. Now, I am entering my team's base and depositing the flames. My team now has 10 more points. I have also gained a speed boost.
    I am stealing spirit flames from other people. I am hiding inside my base, poking out when I see enemies and stealing their flames. Then, I run back inside the base and deposit all the spirit flames.
     Now, one of the enemies is trying to steal my teammate's spirit flames. Since I don't have any spirit flames on me, the opposition can't steal gain any spirit flames from me, so I am trying to distract the opposition and stealing spirit flames from him so that my teammate can go safely back to our base and deposit the spirit flames. I have gotten 7 spirit flames from the opposition and am now running back to the base.
    There are about 40 seconds left. I now have magnetism, which is very useful because it sucks the opposition's spirit flames and spirit flames that are lying on the ground.
    5 more seconds left! And, the game is over! We have won! I have managed to gain 222 spirit flames for our team.
    I need to go now! Bye!

Slice Of Life #204 - I Don't Know What to Write About - Tuesday, April 23rd, 2019

    I'm now in the car eating apples. I am also reading a Novel Knockout book because I really need to know the book well because me and my team are representing the school in the competition.

    It's drizzling outside, and the sky is blue. I'm currently on my way back home. I'm on my double gold belt now, so I really need to work hard to pass it.

    Today in our school, we celebrated Earth Day. We got to wear our own clothes - that were green or blue or had something to do with the Earth.

    In the Earth day assembly, there were quite a few videos of 1st graders talking to us about why we should compost or do things that benefit the Earth. 

    The videos were really funny, and most of us laughed the whole way.
    I'm almost at home now, so I'm going to go now!
    Bye!

Slice Of Life #203 - A Busy Day - Monday, April 22nd, 2019

    Today has already been a busy day, and it's just about to get busier. Currently, I am on my way to my Chinese class.
    After my Chinese class, I'm going to go back to school because I have Boy Scouts meetings every Monday. 
    I really have to read more books, especially the Novel Knockout ones, because I'm on the Novel Knockout team at school.
    Now, I'm almost at my Chinese class venue, so I have to leave now. Bye!

Slice Of Life #202 - Back From Ipoh! - Sunday, April 21st, 2019

    Today, I went to Ipoh to visit my grandparents. Recently, my grandfather was hit by a car in the leg, so we went to visit him to make sure he was okay. 
    According to him, when he was hit, he flew about 1 meter because of the impact.
    We reached Ipoh at about 8:00 in the morning. First, we went to my grandparent's house, then we went to eat. At first, we wanted to go to another place to eat, but we realized that there was a shop that was vegan only about 50 meters away from it, so we decided to go there and eat.
    I thought that the food served there was really nice. They also served really delicious cake, so I ended up taking away one slice of cake. Now, it's resting on the dining table, waiting for me to eat it.
    Today, I didn't go to the Lost World of Tambun because I have to go to school tomorrow. I can't reach home too late because I need some sleep so I can stay awake and survive the school day.
    Now, I'm going to go eat dinner. Bye!

Slice Of Life #201 - Sweaty - Saturday, April 20th, 2019

    Beads of sweat are dripping quickly down my face. In the past 10 minutes, I've been kicking a small ball (I don't know why I didn't just use a big one) towards the wall and diving (or sometimes just catching it) to try and prevent the ball from touching the sofa - basically the imaginary goal.
    Later, me and my dad may be going to play some badminton. I am now listening to music. I'm now listening to some funny orchestras playing (because of what happens on stage, not because of their playing).
    I'm gonna go now! Bye!

Slice Of Life #200 - Yeah! - Friday, April 19th, 2019

WHOO HOO! I'M ON MY 200TH SLICE!

But in this slice, I really want to thank a few people. Firstly, I really, really, really, REALLY want to thank my 3rd grade teacher, Ms. Victor, for introducing me to Slicing. 

    Other than that, I would also like to thank my 4th and 5th grade teachers, Ms. Kerr and Mr. Herbert, because they have constantly tried hard and never gave up in trying to improve my writing.

    I would like to also thank my parents, who always motivated me and gave me the time and space to slice every Tuesday. They've been through all the ups and downs in my life with me, and that takes real skill.

    Slicing has also improved my writing and typing skills a lot. Every week, I just come up and write about what's going on in my life.

    I've just came back from badminton practice, and am really tired. I have just finished taking a bath. After this slice, I'm probably going to go down and eat some more food (cause why not...) - probably just a slice of bread.

    I also need to practice my clarinet, because I'm really close to getting my double gold belt - I have 2 belts left - and I want to try and get it early next week. My plan is to pass a belt over the weekend.

    Now, I'm going to leave now because I have a few things to do. Thanks for all the support so far!

Slice Of Life #199 - Life - Thursday, April 18th, 2019

    For a second, I thought it was Friday, but it isn't. I have just taken my retainer out because I want to practice my clarinet and I can't play it very well with a retainer inside my mouth.
    I am now loading up a few games. As the games are loading, I am assembling my clarinet. I have 3 more belts to pass before I become a double-gold-belt-star. Yesterday, I tried to pass the belt that I am currently on, but failed because I realized that I played A for 2½ beats (tied it), but should have slurred A and G instead.
    Slurring notes means that I play the notes smoothly, and tying notes means that I add the beats of 2 notes together.
    Now, I have my clarinet assembled. I am listening to the song that I am going to play on the computer now.
    Unfortunately, I can't record yet because my mom has the phone. Now, it's pretty late, so I'm going to go now. Bye!

Slice Of Life #198 - A Trip To The Dentist - Wednesday, April 17th, 2019

    Today, I went to the dentist to get something to expand my palate - I think it's a retainer. I am suppose to take out the retainer when I brush my teeth and when I play sports/a thing to expand the space between my teeth.
    I think that I may have to take out the retainer when I am playing my clarinet. This is good because I get to take out the retainer and the retainer doesn't feel very good in my mouth.
    Other than that, I get to take it out whenever I go to P.E. lessons and when I go swimming every week.
    On the other hand, this can be very troublesome because I have to carry the retainer box everywhere I go so I can keep the retainer in the box.
    I'll keep you updated! Bye!

Slice Of Life #197 - Going Home - Tuesday, April 16th, 2019

    I'm going home! A book is resting on my lap. The book on my lap is a Novel Knockout book. Novel Knockout is a competition that my school participates in every year. For the competition, we have to read a few books and answer really detailed questions about them.

    Last year, I got qualified and selected to represent my school in the Novel Knockout competition.

    Last year, my team got 3rd place, and the other team also representing the school got 2nd place. This year, our aim is to get 1st place.

    Now, I'm about to reach home, so I'm gonna go now! Bye!

Slice Of Life #196 - In The Car - Monday, April 15th, 2019

    Today is Monday and I am eating papayas. I am on my way to my Chinese class now. 

    I have some homework to do. Tomorrow, I have a math test, but my teacher gave us a few practice questions just like the test questions, but with different numbers.

    I am actually looking forward to the test tomorrow because there are only 4 questions and all we need to do to answer the questions is to write the proper expression for the question.

    I'm going to go now. Bye!

    

Slice Of Life #195 - Badminton - Sunday, April 14th, 2019

    Today, I went for my first badminton class. When we first started the class, we just ran a few laps back and fourth between 3 badminton courts. I thought it was pretty easy, but everyone else looked like they were going to die. If they were doing the pacer test (a running test) in my school, they would have failed after just about 10 laps - and the healthy fitness zone is 4 times that number (not that most people in my school make it anyways).
    After we finished running laps, we did some actual training. The girls went first, so us boys got some free time to play with each other.
    After that, it was the boys's turn. Today, we practiced hitting the ball with our backhand and smashing upwards with our forehand.
    After practicing, we did some "cooldowns", where we jumped back and forth between our rackets.
    Our teacher made 2 kids do pushups because they weren't listening, and their pushups were terrible. They either bended only their hands or only their hips. They wouldn't have scored a single point if they were doing the pushups test in our school.
    After that, we got to do some more fun playing. I managed to beat everybody in my class.
    After that, I got to go home - and my parents let me eat lots of junk food!

Slice Of Life #194 - Currently... - Saturday, April 13, 2019

• I am playing theme hotel on Hooda Math (just like yesterday).
• Wait. I need to go to the toilet.
• I am going to work on a different hotel (not the one I did yesterday because it is already a 5 star hotel.)
• My other hotel is a 2 star hotel.
• Everyone is complaining that the queue for bowling and the cafe is too long, so I am building new ones. I am upgrading my elevators.
• I am building 2 more receptions because everyone is going to start complaining about how the receptionists are too slow.
• I have made a big mistake. I decided to build 6 suites and I am now almost bankrupt.
• Why does it cost $1200 to watch a movie in the cinema?
• Now, everyone's requesting for a pool... This is what everyone says: "It would be great to swim and relax in the pool."
• Well, tell you what. I don't have enough money to make a pool!
• There! I've got enough money and have built a pool for you. Happy?
• I am now working to being a 4 star hotel now. I am now almost a 4 star hotel. I just need more money and about 10 more rooms.
• I have built 14 more rooms.
• Now, I have $100,000 in the game, so I have to keep this status for a month and my hotel will become a 4 star hotel.
• Yes! My hotel is a 4 star hotel now.
• I am going to leave now! Bye!

Slice Of Life #193 - Currently... - Friday, April 12th, 2019

• Yay! It's Friday!
• I am playing theme hotel on Hooda Math.
• There's an advertisement playing about candy.
• Now out with caramel! Try now!
• I bet that their candy tastes worse with caramel - not that I'm going to try it anyways.
• Now, there's a really funny ad of a woman frantically chopping a piece of cucumber with a knife in each hand.
• Yes! I can play the game now!
• I am now loading a hotel that I made quite some time ago.
• My hotel is doing pretty good, but I do need more land, so I'm going to buy some more land.
• Currently, my hotel is a 4 star hotel, and I need more rooms for it to become a 5 star hotel. If I can maintain my reputation and not become bankrupt (which is pretty easy), my hotel will become a 5 star hotel in no time.
• I am now adding lots of standard rooms to my hotel. People are already staying in some of them!
• I am now adding some suites to my hotel because what usually ends up happening is you not building them and people complaining, saying that they "would like to stay in one but you didn't have one available". (And your reputation goes down.)
• Yes! Now, all I need to do is maintain this status for a month and my hotel will become a 5 star hotel!
• My hotel is now a 5 star hotel!
• Oh my... My reception is really, really, really crowded.
• I am building a new reception.
• Why does it cause $1080 to "swim in the pool" when all the people in the game do is sit on chairs?
• Okay. We're building more elevators because currently there are about 10 people waiting to use the elevator.
• I'm going to leave now. Bye!

Slice Of Life #192 - What Should I Do? - Thursday, April 11th, 2019

    Unfortunately, nothing much happened today, and I have nothing to write about. I am going to walk to my room to turn on the air-conditioning first.
    Now, I'm turning on music that I can listen to. I have decided to listen to The Tempest, which is one of the songs that our band is playing. (Click here to listen.)
    Today, everything's been pretty normal. Yesterday, I managed to pass my double purple belt in band, and I am now practicing my double white belt. After I pass my double white belt, I only have 4 more belts to pass before I become a double gold belt star.
    I've already completed and turned in my homework, so I don't have to do any more of that.
    Now, I'm just going to leave because I don't have anything to write about. I hope that my air-conditioning is cold by now! Bye!

Slice Of Life #191 - Dental Appointment - Wednesday, April 10th, 2019

    Today, I had a dental appointment with an orthodontist. I took an X-Ray first to check my teeth and how the insides were like.
    After a lot of talking, we soon decided to make (something I now forgot the name of). To do that, I first had to make a mold.
    The mold didn't taste very good. It tasted a little like toothpaste. When I made the mold for the bottom layer, it didn't taste very good, but I was still okay.
    When I made the mold for the top layer, I literally felt like vomiting. Fortunately, I persevered and managed to make the mold properly.
    Now, I'm going to go now because it is late and I need to sleep.

Slice Of Life #190 - Troop Meeting - Tuesday, April 9th, 2019

    Yesterday, I had my first troop meeting as a Boy Scout.

    In this meeting, we got assigned to patrols (groups). We elected Leo as the patrol leader, and Tobiah as the senior patrol leader. I would have been elected as the senior patrol leader leader, but we decided to let Tobiah do it because he was leaving at the end of this school year.

    After that, we had to give our patrol a name. The person that was leading us told us that there was an available patrol name called the Radioactive Gummy Bear Ninjas, and we thought that the name sounded cool, so everyone agreed and that became our patrol name. There was also a really cool looking patch for the patrol (the patrol has a patrol name and patch that is recognized by the Boy Scouts). Click here to view the patch - I don't know why the picture wouldn't load on this post.

    We also managed to complete a few requirements, and I will update you when I get my 1st badge.

    Signing off for now, bye!

Slice Of Life #189 - Excited! - Monday, April 8th, 2019

    Currently, I am now doing my homework. I have finished the easy part of it, and am now working on the harder part. I think that I may need about 10 more minutes to complete that part of homework.
    After I complete that part, I will have to do my math homework, and I will be done with my homework for the week.

This is a neckerchief.

    Later, I am going to be attending my first troop meeting as a Boy Scout. I have 5 minutes more before I have to go out, so this post will be short (tomorrow's will probably be short too because I want to go to band practice in the morning so I can get my double gold belt, and will write my Slice when I go up to class and am waiting for it to start.
    I don't really know what I'm going to be doing in this Boy Scout meeting, but I'm probably going to be getting a new neckerchief and a new handbook.
    I'm going to be signing off for now, so see you tomorrow! Bye!

Slice Of Life #188 - The Arrow Of Light - Sunday, April 7th, 2019

    I walked up to the stage and stood behind a table. My parents stood behind me, and my friend, Leo, and his parents were next to me.

    Today, I was going to receive the Arrow of Light, the highest rank possible in Cub Scouting. The Arrow of Light is one of the two badges that you can carry on to Boy Scouting.

    Today, I was going to become a Boy Scout, and I would no longer be a Cub Scout anymore. Our Cubmaster, Mr. Clay, went up to the podium to say a few words about us.

    Next, Ms. Sara, the Vice-Cubmaster, picked up a white bag from the ground.

    "Me and Ms. Sara," Mr. Clay began. "have gotten you a few things that we think you're going to find useful. First, we got you all a compass. A compass is truly essential in Boy Scouting, as you'll be going hiking and camping more now, and your parents won't always be there to help you find your way."

    Ms. Sara walked out in front of the stage, passing us all a compass.

    "As you may notice, not all the compasses are the same because it isn't easy to just walk out of a shop and get 15 of the same compasses."

    I got a compass that was black with a cover. The compass was also equipped with a small magnifying glass, which I knew was probably used for starting fires with dry leaves. Once, when we were hiking, I managed to use a magnifying glass to get some dry leaves to smoke, but I put it out once it started smoking ('cause why not? - No, it's just the fact that I didn't want to start a fire).

    "Next, we got you a spork," Mr. Clay continued. "When going camping, keeping things light is very essential. Because of that, we got you a spork, so you have a spoon, a fork, and a knife all in one.

    "And finally, we got you one more thing. Eye protection is very important, so we got you sunglasses!"

    Everyone gasped. When I got my pair of sunglasses, I realized that they were polarized - which means less glare from the sun!

    After we got everything, we continued on with the ceremony. We all got a gold pin with the Arrow of Light on it. After that, we had to put on a few stripes of face paint (blue, red, and yellow) to symbolize a few things - the Scout Law, Motto, Oath, and the Arrow of Light.

    And finally, the time came. I crossed the bridge from Cub Scouts to Boy Scouts - there was actually a small bridge that you had to walk across (I was the first to cross)!

    A few Boy Scouts quickly surrounded me and put a small strip of dark green fabric on my shirt, making me an official Boy Scout.

    When everyone had gotten their Arrow of Light, we all stood behind the table again. Our Den Leader, Agung, gave us a few presents. There was a personal note for all of us, and also a camera - with a secret compartment in the back with a film of all our memories.

    But most importantly, I had gotten my Arrow of Light.

Slice Of Life #187 - Sleepy... - Friday, April 1st, 2019

    I am pretty tired right now. Today's been a long day. I've just came back from dinner and finished brushing my teeth, but not before taking a short 5 minute nap on the sofa. 

    I'm going to play Type N Conquer because I need something to keep me awake. After writing this slice, I'm probably going to go take a bath and go to sleep.

    Extremely slow internet connection... Trying to connect. Refreshing. Failing. Loading... - 10 seconds later - loading.

    Go back to the main page... Wait! There's a team's mode now! I have to play that! I like playing in teams more because there's more interaction and teamwork rather than playing by yourself.

    Yes! The game finally loaded. Now, I'm choosing which team I want to be on. I choose to be on team blue.

    I am now invading the green team's land and taking away their territory. Now, lots of my teammates are coming from behind me and are typing away madly. We have now gained about 10 blocks of green team's territory.

    A few people from the pink team are now going forward and trying to defend their territory. I am now occupying their territory while my teammates are fighting. 2 pink people have been killed by my teammates because they are actually fast at typing (you have to type words to kill and gain territory in this game).

    A person from the green team is attacking my teammate. I am going over to help my teammate. My teammate died. I have managed to gain 1 block of territory. I am now retreating.

    Retreat. No! I died.

    I have re-spawned in the middle of our territory. We are now occupying about 50% of the whole map. We have lost a whole lot of territory. I am now occupying pink and green team's territory. There are 2 people now targeting me. Retreat. One down. Easy kill for the next one (because they both are really bad at typing).

    I have now cleared a whole patch of pink territory with another teammate of mine. Me and my teammate have now teamed up to kill another rival. We have killed the rival.

    I now see another person typing slowly. I am gaining ground and going closer and closer to that person. I have killed the person. There are 4 people now targeting me. Not a good idea to fight back.

    I am starting to retreat. I've killed one person from the pink team. A person from the green team appears and manages to kill another pink but dies too. I manage to take out one pink. I quickly retreat and rush back, clearing some land on the way. One of my teammates helps me kill the other rival.

    Now, I see another person from the green team coming towards me. The person types pretty fast. I retreat and start typing. I then move before the rival is able to finish typing my word. I quickly type the rival's word again. I kill him but die too.

    Now, I'm going to leave because I really want to go to sleep now. Bye!

Slice Of Life #186 - To Change The World - Thursday, April 4th, 2019

    Each and every person has the ability to change the world and make it a better place. Today, we had our 2nd Social Change Makers Conference (SCMC). This time, we had only 4 speakers instead of the 7 speakers that we had last time (I think 7).

    Because I was assigned the number 1, I was to go listen to what Dr. Hartini Zainudin had to say first, who was the only non-lawyer that advocates for child rights in Malaysia. Dr. Hartini is one of the co-founders of the Yayasan Chow Kit (Yayasan means foundation in Malay and Chow Kit is a place in Malaysia). Other than that, she also works for the UNRWA (the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees)
   Dr. Hartini's speech really surprised me. Dr. Hartini told us that some children in Malaysia don't have their rights because they are not Malaysian. This didn't really surprise me because Malaysia doesn't welcome refuges. Dr. Hartini then told us that over a 1000 kids were in Malaysian detention centers because they have broken laws or for some reason.

    Dr. Hartini told us that there were two kids the age of 16 that are now in jail for piracy. The two kids actually hijacked a Malaysian ship, and are now sentenced to jail for life. Just not long ago, a Malaysian movie came out called Pascal. I wanted to watch the movie, but then ended up not watching it because we never actually went to the cinema to buy tickets for the movie.
    Dr. Hartini told us that in the beginning of the movie, there was a scene where 2 kids hijacked a ship, and that that scene was actually based on the story of the two 16 years old kids. Now, Dr. Hartini is trying to raise money so that kids in detention centers can have the education that they require. Dr. Hartini and her task force are also now working with the new government to try and get a few kids out of detention centers (because they did nothing wrong) - they want to get at least five between the ages of 10-15 out.
    Next, I went to another class, where I listened to Mr. Arif Fauzy talk about the SPCA (Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals). Mr. Arif works at the SPCA and also left us with a few interesting facts. According to Mr. Arif, if a male cat is not neutered and a female cat is not spayed (if their reproductive organs are not taken out), over the course of only a few years, the two cats would end up producing lots of cats, which would then produce even more cats, and so on. Over the course of just 9 years, there would be over 11,000 new cats if the cats' reproductive organs are not taken out.
    After that, I went to listen to an advocate for straws talk about the organization that she volunteered in, Tak Nak Straw. In Malay, tak nak means no, so tak nak straw means no straw. Apparently the woman's daughter (I forgot her name) had talked to the managers of the restaurants that she liked to go to and convince them not to use straws anymore. She also talked about plastic and it's effects on the Earth in the ocean. She also showed us a picture of a straw stuck in a turtle, which I thought wasn't very good. I hope that the photographers decided help the turtle take the straw out of it's nose.
    Finally, we had our school librarian, Ms. Suji DeHart, come to talk to us about the composting that's going on at our school. Apparently the composting machine from the old school has been brought here, and we still use it.  

    To use the composting machine, we first have to put our food into a hatch through the top of the machine. The machine then grinds and softens the food so that it can be turned into compost. After about 24 hours, some compost comes out from the bottom of the machine, ready to be used (and the compost smells pretty good). I also learned that the middle school gardening club also uses the compost to plant food and plants and then sell it to our cafeteria, which I found cool because what we're doing is getting the money that we pay them back.
    Every person has the capability to change the world. But to change the world, we have to first put it into action.
    So, as a kid, I strongly believe in the fact that we need to act now before it's too late. So let's go do it.

Slice Of Life #185 - Back To A Normal Life - Wednesday, April 3rd, 2019

    Okay. I'm back from the US now, and things are back to normal. Somehow, I'm not suffering from jetlag - mainly because I am sleeping at my normal bedtime now.
    At school, I found out that I didn't really miss much except for some math worksheets that I needed to complete - which I have already completed because the worksheets were really easy.
    I also missed the first 2 chapters of our read aloud book, which doesn't really matter because I already read the book in 3rd Grade.
    It was also pretty fun to be able to get to talk to my friends again after the long break. My friend, Adam, had bought a book that - was basically a history book (but the book claimed that it was a little less boring than usual) - I thought was boring at first, but then realized was pretty good and funny.
    For homework, I have to do a few more things before I complete it. I'm not too worried about not being able to complete, because I have until Friday to complete it, and I only have 2 more things to do.
    For one of them, I have to make a Brain Frame about a Human Rights Activist's life (social studies homework). I'm going to be making mine about Martin Luther King Jr. (mainly because I can't think about anyone else).
    I'm gonna' get started now! Bye! See you tomorrow!

Slice Of Life #184 - Fire Hazard - Tuesday, April 2nd, 2019

    Warmth surrounded me as I went inside the restaurant. I felt relieved to finally be able to stop shivering.
    I went inside and sat down. My parents's friends were already there, and they had pushed the tables together for all of us.
    Just then, I saw a waiter come out from the kitchen. At first, I thought that he was going to take our orders.
    But he didn't.
    "I'm sorry, but according to the company's rules the tables have to be separated."
    "How many inches?" A friend asked, just for fun. "1,2, or 3 inches?"
    The man didn't answer, but judging by his facial expressions, he looked really annoyed.
    "Can I inquire why this rule is in effect?" I asked him. He didn't answer me.
    "Sir, who put this rule in effect? It's terrible!" I said again. "Why is this segregation happening?!"
    "I'm terribly sorry, but they're orders from the management." The man said as he started moving the tables. None of us helped him in protest.
    Because all the tables were separated, we came up with a new solution. We sat by the side of the table so we could at least see each other.
    "I'm sorry, but you can't sit like that. It's a fire hazard." The waiter said.
    We all laughed. "I'm assuming you're joking, right?" Another friend asked.
    "No, I'm not."
    "So we're going to have to eat on separate tables?"
    "Yes, sir. I'm terribly sorry."
    "So, what you're telling all of us is that we're blocking the way to the toilet and that people won't be able to escape in an event of an fire?" I questioned him in a bold voice.
    "Yes."
    "But why is the table behind us allowed to do the same thing?" A friend asked again.
    The waiter walked to the table behind us and told the people sitting there that they had to move so they weren't blocking the way to or out of the toilet.
    Because we had to sit separated from each other, that meant that we couldn't talk to each other easily.
    And because of that, we left the restaurant in protest...

Slice Of Life #183 - Goin' Home! - Sunday, March 31st, 2019

    I'm going to be going home soon. Currently, I'm in the airport. I've just passed security checks and am now sitting on a comfy sofa.
    I am reading an article, and am now searching up a word that I don't understand.
    Got it! I have the definition now  but I'm going to go play a game on the dictionary called 'How Strong is Your Vocabulary?'.
    I hear rock music blaring out from two speakers to my right.
    Okay, I'm back. Apparently the game is really hard and I got nowhere close to beating the 1st level.
    But the other games are hard too. I still can't beat the beginning level of another game.
    There's an ad playing on the large screen now, and it's about watches.
    Next year, the annual conference that we're now coming back from is going to be hosted by Indonesia, which is good because I won't be suffering from jetlag when we get back - I'm probably going to be suffering from jetlag when I get back to Malaysia, which isn't good because it means that I'll be sleepy in class.
    Now, a person is now talking on the loudspeaker, telling everyone that there's one passenger that needs to get onto the plane because it's going to leave soon.
    I have to say, it's been pretty fun in the U.S.
    Just today, we went shopping for some vegan food that Malaysia doesn't have to bring back to Malaysia. We also bought 4 popsicles, where me, my family, and a friend all ate one.
    Now, I have to go because we have things that we need to do. Bye! See you tomorrow.