Because it’s frustrating. I love math not because it’s easy or that I can pick it up right away. Math is something that I need to study for, I need to do all these practice problems and really need to understand the concept to be able to get to topic. But that’s why I love it so much, because it’s not like other subjects which are easy to pick up, easy to study for, and everybody can be really good at them. Math is something that is frustrating. It’s a struggle. It’s something captivating and you truly have to understand it to love it. I’ve only started liking math since the start of high school and maybe that’s because all the middle and elementary school, I could easily pick it up. It was just another throwaway subject for me because it wasn’t challenging. Although ever since high school, I’ve been getting into all these hard math classes, and actually realizing how fun and lovely math is because it’s hard to understand. You need to work for it, to try to get an answer. That’s why I love math because you have to try to be able to understand. That’s the beauty of it since most things in school you normally don’t have to work for. Its just an easy quick 30 minute study, but math actually has you do the problems and understand the topic. You have to put together the puzzle as a whole, before you get it.

I’m a big fan of Sabrina Carpenter because of her hair. Now, I’m not saying that I don’t like her music or anything else about her, all of those are great. She has cute and super girly songs, and the music videos that go along with them are always super funny! But I’m a big fan of her because of her natural curly hair. I have the same type of curly hair as her, and it’s even the same length. But I just love it that she doesn’t always straighten it like all the other pop stars who do. She actually does her hair and tries to make it curly, which is something I have been struggling with. Her career has impacted me because its caused me to try and wear my natural hair more. Before Sabrina got big, I would always straighten my hair because I thought it looked way neater and cooler that way. Even though straightening it before school everyday took an hour, I still did it because I wasn’t confident wearing my curls. But ever since I’ve been seen Sabrina wearing her hair curly and not trying to hide it. I’ve been trying to do my hair curly more, and wearing it not straight, I think the last time my hair was straight was seven months ago. This is why I’m such a big fan of her hair, because it’s help me realize that I should wear my natural hair more and not try to hide it. Her career has caused me to be confident with my curls and I never want to straighten my hair again!

At first glance, the song Dark Carnival is the most hated on the Brat album. Its clashing rhythms and unconventional structure are rough and a different type of artistic choice from Charli XCX. But I believe that the Brat album was made to challenge listeners, inviting us to not just passively hear the song, but truly listen and explore the many depths of it. Dark Carnival forces you to not play it as background noise, but try to resonate and truly hear its jarring shifts and tones. The repeated line “Under the lights we thrive, in the dark we’re alive.” Isn’t just a random poetic line heard throughout the song. But a nudge to the listener to think of how we put a mask on in front of the public eye. But in the dark, referring to being by ourselves, we our are true selves and don’t have to fear being faced by hatred from others. It’s a change from the usually positive and romantic songs on the radio, because Charli XCX calls us to dive deep into our emotional state and rethink why we hide. Musically I believe that Dark Carnival is a song that pioneering and bold. It’s experimental hip-hop, layered vocals, and glitchy percussion forces us to try and resonate with something not bubbly and perfect as many pop songs. The song can sound ugly and chaotic when passively listened too, but when fully enjoyed by a person who’s immersed and not multitasking you can hear the beauty this song ha to offer. Although unconventional, I believe that Dark Carnivals friction between discomfort and revelation is what makes it the best song on the Brat album.

For my Connections puzzle, I chose four niche categories based off my interests that could confuse people who aren’t familiar with them. Each one shares a link that could trip up the normal player and cause them to lose. The easiest category is called Functional Dog Roles, and the four words are Sighthound, Gun dog, Herding, and Retriever. These aren’t just dog breeds, but dogs with specific jobs. Sighthounds help humans hunt by spotting prey with their good eyesight. Retrievers and Gun dogs assist in bird hunting. On the other hand, Herding dogs, are trained to move livestock and help farmers watch their animals. A dog lover would immediately pick out these four working dog breeds! The second category is named Culinary Concepts and its four words are Truffle, Fermentation, Sous-vide, and Shimeji. These words go beyond the home kitchen and enter the world of gourmet cuisine. Truffles are rare mushrooms, primarily used in fine dining. Shimeji being another mushroom prized for its unique taste and texture. With the two techniques of Fermentation and Sous-vide also being used in high end restaurants you wouldn’t find anywhere else. These words are ingredients and techniques loved by chefs and foodies who care about food on a deeper level. The third category, called Wild Biomes, and it contains the words, Biome, Fungal, Permafrost, and Forager. This sections focus’s on terms related to survival skills and natural ecosystems. Only people who study natural systems and landscapes could figure out this connection. A Biome being a large scale ecosystem like a Tundra or Rainforest. Permafrost is a unique ground only found in Arctic biomes. Fungal refers to mushrooms and other fungi that’s found in many biomes. With Foragers being people who primary live off the land that the diverse biomes on earth provide. Finally, the hardest category of my Connections puzzle is called Niche games. With Overcooked, Bullet Hell, Wild Hunt, and Rougelike being its four words. These are video game titles or sub genres that most casual gamers wouldn’t know. With Overcooked being a chaotic co-op cooking game, Bullet Hell a dodge it and precision game, Wild Hunt a ghost hunting game, and Rougelike a difficult try not to die game popular with hard core gamers. A common video gamer wouldn’t be able to recognize these titles and not understand their connection of nicheness.