Many college students face a number of pressures.

For instance, many students have to

manage a job while at the same time balancing their school work. This can be very stressful
for a college student. Students also face many financial pressures. For example, numerous
students have to pay for their college on their own. This gives them no other alternative but
to take out student loans. Which could leave them in debt for many years. Another example
of financial pressures for students is having to support a family while attending college.
Supporting a family while attending college can be extremely difficult. Finally, many college
students go to college in different cities and states and have to make new friends and adjust
to a different atmosphere. Being a college student can be very rewarding but, there may
also be a lot of pressures that need to be dealt with.

My least favorite genre of movies is horror films, because they usually are influential,
disturbing, and depressing. (b) To begin with, horror movies are too influential, which can
cause people to do bad things. (c) For example, I went to school with two people who loved
horror movies, especially movies that dealt with serial killers. One day these two classmates
were caught with weapons and diaries that explained their plan to duplicate what they saw
in some of the horror movies they watched. (d) Another reason why I dislike horror movies is
because they disturb me from my sleep due to the content of these films (ghosts, killers,
monster's etc). (e) To illustrate, the other day, my two best friends invited me over to watch
some scary movies. We watched The Strangers and Paranormal activity, and after we watch
these films, I went home and did not sleep all night; I kept thinking that someone or
something was in my house. (f) Third, I do not like horror films because they are depressing;
people always die in them, and I do not like to see that, especially if I already had a bad day.
(g)For instance, one day I had the worst day at work and school. When I came home, my
roommate was watching a horror movie, and at least ten people died within the first 20
minutes. Seeing this did not make me feel any better but worse. (h) To conclude, these are
all the reasons why I dislike horror films.

My favorite place to vacation is Maui, Hawaii because it has relaxing beaches, great weather,
and the people are friendly. (b) First of all, Maui has the most relaxing beaches, which helps
people clear their minds from all stress. (c) For example, during the year, I live in California,
which is very stressful from school and work; however, in the summer, I am on the beaches
of Maui. When I am on these beaches, I listen to music and just stare out into the water, and
no thoughts enter my mind. (d) Maui is also my favorite place because the weather is so
comfortable; it is not to hot and not to cold. (e) For instance, every morning, every
afternoon, and every evening, the sun is warm, but there is always a refreshing breeze
known as the trade winds, which really makes a person feel in a good mood. Even when it
rains in Maui, the weather is not too cold; it still stays warm. (f) Finally, I like Maui because
the people are so friendly, which makes the atmosphere that much more pleasurable and
peaceful. (g) To illustrate, every time I go into a store, a restaurant, or even out on the
streets, everybody is always greeting you saying Aloha. The local people always have a smile
 on their face and are always calm with the tourists. (h) In conclusion, for all these reasons
Maui is my favorite place.

True Friend

A True Friend

Many people believe they have true friends; three is no doubt in my mind that I have the
best one out there. His name is Craig Jones, not is he only my boyfriend he is the best friend
I could ever have. If Craig wasn’t in my life right now I probably wouldn’t be in school or
making other important changes in my life. He has shown me so many wonderful qualities in
myself that I was just throwing away. My most favorite quality I admire in Craig is that he
would never insult me or make me feel less of my self for any reason. During the span of our
relationship he has put up with some lies that I have come clean with and that is another
huge reason why he is so wonderful. He can see that I love him too and that it was
courageous for me to come out with my past. He looks pass the past and loves me for the
person that I am today. A true Friend is one that is always encouraging and stands behind
you in every decision that you make. I look to Craig for advice in tough decisions, and even if
we disagree he still stands behind me in what ever decision I make. Those are some genuine
qualities of a true friend.

~(c)Ashley Neill 2005~

When I was a little boy in elementary school, the neighborhood kids and I all looked forward to
playing so many games in my backyard during the long summer holidays between grades. For
instance, one of our favorite games was whiffle ball, a kid's version of baseball. All we needed was
a cheap plastic bat and a cheap plastic ball and we could entertain ourselves in the backyard from
morning to afternoon. Or if we broke the bat or lost the ball, we would play "Red Rover, Red
Rover." To play this game, we would join hands in two opposing lines and hurl ourselves at the
locked wrists of the opposing team, trying to break through their line. Once the sun set, our
favorite game was hide-and-seek. My backyard was perfect because there were lots of bushes and
trees where we could hide out of sight of the kid who was "it." Even on rainy days, we had fun
activities out in the garden shed in the corner of the backyard. For instance, we would often act out
our favorite TV game shows, like "Let's Make a Deal," or sing along to the theme song from "The
Monkees," a popular TV show about a rock-and-roll band, on my little record player. Even now, fifty
years later, I still look back on all those fun summertime games out in my backyard with a lot of
fondness.

favorite childhood games

History Toys

My favorite childhood toys reflect the places I lived in when I was young. My favorite toy as
a child of seven years old was the dried fallen branches in the woods. There was a small one
behind our house and it provided endless fun for me and my brothers and sisters. Collected
sticks and branches became our castle, our fort, and our play home. Wood pieces gave us
play swords, fishing rods, umbrellas, and jungle gyms. They were my best childhood toy
because they contained so many other toys. What I most loved to play with at eight years
old was dirt marbles. We lived in a neighborhood where there was an eternal pit of mud on
the strip of grass in front of our apartment. My brothers and I would mix the smooth mud
with sand from the side of the road, roll it into balls and leave them to dry in the hot
afternoon sun. We would hit them against each other to gain points and arm our slingshots
with them. The toy of my last year of elementary school that I obsessed about was stickers.
At that time we lived in a narrow alley with shophouses all long it and we children would buy
from there stickers and products that included free stickers of robots, cartoon characters,
and spaceships that we would collect, trade, or compete for in sticker flipping games. My
cherished toy as a new teenager was my bicycle. We lived in a soi with lots of pavement and
no cars. I was head of the bike gang and we would set up ramps for jumps and design
obstacle courses for racing. Now I have started university and am no longer a child but I
think happily of these toys of childhood which show a history of where I have been and what
Bangkok used to be, thankful for the young adult that I am because of them.