Join the library, the City of Mission Viejo, and other local groups for this great event for teens and their parents!
Earn community service credit while attending valuable workshops. There will be a resource fair plus a complimentary lunch. Don’t miss the guest speaker, Larissa May!
For more details, see the program here.
The first month of the new year, 2024, comes to an end but it is still not too late to make 2024 resolutions! Goals are hard to set and achieve especially if it’s hard for you to commit to long-term stuff, but using SMART can help you achieve the goals for 2024 whether it be to lose weight, get better grades, or even start meditating. So what does SMART stand for?
S – Specific
The S in SMART means “specific.” This means that your goal has to be specific and it can not be broad. You can be more specific with your goal by using the 5 W’s: who, where, what, and why. You can also use how in this when making your goal. An example of being specific is instead of saying,“My goal is to get better grades,” you can say “My goal is to turn my grades from C’s to A’s for the second semester of high school.”
M – Measurable
The M in SMART means “measurable.” This means that your goal has to be measurable. By being measurable, it means that you can track your progress. If your goal was to lose weight, you could track your weight on a scale at the end of each week.
A – Attainable
The A in SMART means “attainable.” This means that your goal should be attainable and not impossible. You can state how this goal is attainable. For example, if your goal is to start getting a better sleeping schedule, you can eliminate some distractions, such as going on your device before you sleep, so the goal is attainable.
R – Realistic
The R in SMART means “realistic.”This means that you should be realistic in making your goal and that it can be achieved within the amount of time. Ask yourself questions such as “How will I complete this goal by the end of the year?” so that you can be realistic with making your goals.
T – Timely
The T in SMART means “timely.” This means how you will time your progress. You can time your progress in various ways such as writing down in your planner every week or daily to achieve your goal. For timely, you have to write down how you’re going to time your progress. An example of this could be that you will read 2 books to 5 more books than last year by December 31st, 2024.
This is really helpful and I apologize if my explanation was not clear enough but this has helped me a lot. I had to make a goal for my English class and although I was obligated to do the assignment, it actually is really helpful for I have stayed consistent with my goals for the new year. So if you really want to be productive and achieve goals for 2024, I recommend using the SMART method.
Curious about student loans? Does saving for the future seem daunting? Then check out this FREE workshop at the Mission Viejo Library!
Now, I am going to assume that not everyone knows who Marie Kondo is. Marie Kondo is a Japanese woman who has various TV shows and books about organization. My mother, along with many other moms, has watched one of her shows at one point or another. So when I talk about ¨Marie Kondoing¨ my room, I mean cleaning and organizing my room. Even though, and I will admit, I don’t particularly like cleaning/organizing in my free time, I did when I was super bored one day. The results of my cleaning, I am extremely happy about. So here are the pros of cleaning my room:
AND FINALLY
The method I used to clean my room was the Marie Kondo way, which involves feelings. What you do is hold up each item and ask yourself, ¨Does this bring me joy? Does it have a purpose or a reason?¨ Doing this, I realized how much stuff I had that was useless and brought me no joy whatsoever.
My now clean room makes me feel ready for the school year and all the stress that comes with it. I really recommend cleaning your room for a less cluttered mind and a more calm mindset.
Books by Marie Kondo are available to check out from the Mission Viejo Library. It is also available to download for free from Libby.
This is just a short little post of me thinking about life, but a question that has been on my mind lately is “does a perfect day really exist?” What even is perfect?
Some sources on the internet say that a perfect day happens when ‘everything goes just the way you’ve planned it to be’, and I guess that is possible- to an extent. Can every little detail really go the way you’ve planned it to be? I don’t believe in perfect days, but I do believe that some people who consider themselves to have perfect days don’t really have perfect days, but rather happier and more positive mindsets. Though on that note, I think that if you want to at least have an okay day, you need to have some general conditions/expectations set in place that you want to be vaguely fulfilled. Those expectations also need to be reasonable because you can’t just claim that you need the atmosphere to be 62 degrees Fahrenheit at 10:31 AM to have a perfect day (even though nobody would probably do that). The weather has its own agenda going on for itself.
I have tried to have perfect days on purpose, and it never works, at least in my experience. In fact, things seem to go even more wrong when I’m consciously focused on doing them right. In the rare occasion in which things do spontaneously go according to plan, I’m always interrupted by some thought or event that doesn’t exactly ruin my day, but ruins my ‘rhythm’ (not my mood, they’re kind of different, I can’t really explain it!). The event wouldn’t even necessarily have to be bad, but more of something I wouldn’t have been expecting/wanting at that moment.
But I guess these average days are always just a reminder for me that life is real. Everyone and everything around us has its own plan, and the Earth doesn’t adapt to us- we need to adapt to it. So I think the key to having an above-average or at least a pretty good day is to try your best, surround yourself with everything that makes you happy, and live and love the mundane 🙂
I used to be silly. I used to never have to worry much! I had what I needed. A Lot of the
time I didn’t even realize when things were wrong. I just didn’t care. I felt as light as a
feather. A young youthful child who simply didn’t have time for anyone else’s nonsense
or foolishness. I would talk to others not filled with much anxiety. My head wasn’t spinning. My brain wasn’t on the verge of exploding into a million pieces all at once. I was a kid.
Now I have more of a purpose. I have dreams and worries. I have people in my face telling me who I should or shouldn’t be. Sometimes it even feels like my destiny’s already chosen before I get the chance to speak.
I want to make my own decisions. Not letting others choose my path for
me. I want to feel happy and fulfilled. The feeling of winning the lottery. Or even just pure joy.
Having your work pay off. After the long nights of studying and sleeping. I want to be
successful. I’d do anything to make my parents proud of me. The feeling of being smart.
Being sure of yourself. Is something I’ll always strive for. Despite all the dreams and goals, I
hold myself up to. I don’t want to waste my life away behind a desk. I love learning new things.
But I want more in life. I want to be more than a person who goes to school just to go home and study. There’s so much more to my life than school. I don’t hate school. I hate killing time. Time is precious it’s something you can never get back no matter how much you beg or cry. It can run away from the tips of your fingers. It’s limited. And you never know when the clock will end. As much as I love making my parents proud. I have life. I have so much more to me.
I don’t wish to be stuck in a never-ending cycle of work, sleep, and eat repeatedly. I want to
live a life that’s meaningful. I want a real reason to be here. Even when things get rough. I want
a life that’s worth remembering. One that’s worth all the pain, stress, and troubles that come
along with living. I don’t want to be trapped in this box. One that most people see, to live the
rest of the entirety. I want to feel and be free. Not being held somewhere against my will. I don’t
want to be in an unhappy home. I wish to travel the seas! To discover missing parts and pieces of the world. I want to make a difference. I want to help others! I want to be someone, not just another body behind a desk. Not just another waste of space. Not just another hopeless girl. Not just some failure who wished but never did. I want to be. I will be someone who tried. Who does her best when it comes to everything and anything! No matter how impossible it may seem I can do it!
I want to be the sea against the storm. Staying in place no matter who or whatever comes in my way. Life has more of a purpose than sitting around waiting for one. Waiting for a miracle to fly out of the sky. Laying flat into your hands. When I leave earth I would like to know I left making a difference. I wish for better. Better for those who deserve it but never received it. Better for those who are struggling to fight for what they deserve. I am going to live a fulfilled life. One with not only purpose. But with meaning. I wish to be surrounded by those who matter to me. I will be the difference. I will do what I’ve always wanted to. I’ll stop caring what others think. I will live a carefree life. Filled with meaning. My special purpose. This time I won’t hide away like the sun in the rain. Yet I will soar above the clouds like a spaceship with no landing. Heading wherever the path takes me.
Investopedia is a website that provides financial advice about stocks. There are countless sources that teach you how to invest. Also, you can look to Investopedia for information about how stocks are doing, as it shows if they are falling or rising.
However, all of these aside, my favorite resource on Investopedia is the Stock Simulator. This feature allows users to “purchase” fake stocks with virtual money. This way, beginners along with more advanced stock owners can experience the stock market without having to risk their own money.
In order to play this Stock Simulator, you only need to create an account with Investopedia. After you get that taken care of, the website is free to access. To start off, you are given 100,000 dollars (buying power) to purchase whichever stocks you would like. But, don’t worry, Investopedia also shows you if a stock’s value is projected to increase or decrease, and whether you should buy or sell the stock. Fortunately, Investopedia provides this type of help on purchasing stocks, so you can choose the right stocks to virtually invest in on the website.
Some stocks that I have found to be successful on Investopedia and in the Stock Market recently (as of November 2022) are the Goldman Sachs Group Incorporation share and the stock of Costco Wholesale Corporation.
If you’re interested in purchasing a share in a stock in real life, I highly suggest you try Investopedia first to research a bit about it. You can learn how to manage your stock as well as how to choose stocks wisely. Also, purchasing the stock in Investopedia before you buy in real life can help show you the patterns of that stock. Enjoy trading stocks on Investopedia!
Typically this isn’t the book I would generally want to read because I don’t think it’s entertaining reading about psychological ideas. However, this book came across me when I saw it at my friend’s house and asked to borrow it. The beginning of the book made it to the point where it wasn’t tolerable to read that I ended up sectioning different parts every night for me to read in order to just get it out of the way.
As time went on, I kept an open mind reading this book, to see that the information was only trying to help me. Atomic Habits turned to be one of my favorite reads this year. I’ve learned so many valuable lessons through this book especially how to maintain/break habits.
James Clear cleverly uses athletes, comedians, big brand companies to help the reader get a grasp for how they became so successful. He documents a four step process to make habits more versatile in the daily use: making it obvious, making it attractive, making it easy, and making it satisfying. Just by reading about how to maintain a habit, inspired me to start fixing a routine and lifestyle that best suited me.
If you are interested in a book that can truly changes your perspective of life I recommend reading this book. Habits are more then they seem and help dictate the way you decide to live your life.
-Madison C.
Atomic Habits by James Clear is available to checkout from the Mission Viejo Library. It is also available to download for free from Libby.
School’s out means for those of us still receiving an education summer break starts. Summer break is the most amount of time a student is gonna get. Many of us especially before we’ve graduated high school don’t know what to do over the long summer break. Many have trouble being productive or finding something to do. With fewer responsibilities, you are given more chances to work on yourself. Summer is the best time to deal with all the personal problems you’ve been dealing with.
You can always try and get a job. If you are old enough getting can help you get real-world experience and spending money that you can use while you are out with your friends. Though it’s also the time that you can spend time on your hobbies without worrying about wasting time. One great way to spend your time over summer break is to volunteer. Without any responsibilities from school, you can spend your time volunteering for programs you care about and want to help. Not only will it help your college aps but also makes you feel better about yourself when you know you did something good for your community.
Another activity you can spend your time on is learning a new language. This goes especially for those of us kids that have one or two parents that can speak the language, you can’t. Like when you are at a family gathering but your aunts and uncles speak a different language. Or when you live in an area that has a lot of speakers of a different language. Even if you relate to none of what I just said, learning a new language is still a great way to spend your time. You’re still learning without doing something super academic. Also, learning a new skill set can not only help you or save you time in the future, but also gives you a sense of achievement.
The last thing that is great to learn over the summer is to learn how to cook. For those of us that don’t know how to cook, you’ll most likely eventually find times in your life that you have to cook for yourself. However, by the time that happens some us still can’t make a home-made meal for ourselves. We all know that home-made meal are cheaper and sometimes tastier than eating out. When you’re a broke college student living in an apartment, we’ll all learn to appreciate the skill.
These are my suggestions of what to do if you’re having trouble figuring out how to spend your summer break. However, you don’t have to do any of what I suggested- it is your summer. Though, you’ll probably not regret learning new skills over the summer.
-Luke G.
I recently got back from a family vacation, where we visited the Disney parks in Orlando, Florida. As a grand finale for our trip, we stayed at the Galactic Starcruiser.
For those who don’t know, the Galactic Starcruiser is a Star Wars themed hotel where you can role play as either a rebel, a scoundrel, a First Order supporter, or a Jedi Knight. The more you interact with the characters in the hotel, the more plot is revealed to you. The main plot that everyone knows is that you are all on a space vacation ship called the Halcyon. Everything seems normal onboard, but a First Order lieutenant is commanded to join the passenger on the Halcyon to monitor it for rebel activity.
From there you can either choose to join the side of the Resistance or the side of the First Order. You can also play both sides and be a double agent, leaking information to the other side. In addition to your initial choice, you can train with the Saja to become a Jedi, join Raithe Cole’s gang of scoundrels, join Sandro’s musical group, or help two mystery characters make a love connection.
While I loved this experience very much, there are a few things that I would change about it.
First of all, the plot is too centered around the Rebellion. What I mean by this is that most of the activities onboard are for the rebels; like secret meetings, a heist, and defending the ship from the First Order. There are also two surprise rebel guests that come about, who you won’t want to miss.
Secondly, it’s too hard to join the First Order. There are only three First Order characters you can interact with; Lieutenant Croy and two Stormtroopers. Only Lieutenant Croy is able to give you missions, and he is incredibly hard to contact. Over the course of a full day where I was actively looking for him, I only saw him roaming the hotel about three or four times.
Finally, I think that there should be less big plot lines and more small ones. By this, I mean that there should be more side quests to fill time. On the Starcruiser, there was one main plot that moved very quickly and was really hard to keep up with, so I think it would be better if there were small chunks of plot that intersected towards the end.
Though I would have changed a little bit about the Starcruiser, it was definitely an unforgettable experience. The characters were all great and friendly, the decorations were amazing, the food was very creative, and it had really impressive modern technology. If I have the chance, I’ll definitely go back again to try another path, but in the meantime I’d highly recommend it for you all!
Mission Viejo Library Teen Voice 