please delete

[pupzee]

xxxxxHi there! My name is pupzee, but I usually go by pup! I'm a very passionate person in general; I like to blame this on the fact that I'm a cancer. However, there is my one main passion, the thing that can make me happy even in my darkest moments. It might sound silly, or you might think that I could put my passion into something more important, but I can't deny it. Anyone who knows me understands how much this passion means to me. The thing I am most passionate about is One Direction. I can't possibly outline all of the reasons why in a short essay, but I will try to communicate my passion as effectively as possible!

xxxxxLet me start at the beginning. It was March 2012; I was an active member of tumblr, and I kept seeing these 5 boys on my dash. I finally decided to look into them, and it turned out to be the best decision of my life. From that moment on, my world became engrossed by One Direction. Their music made me inexplicably happy; in fact, it still does. I listened to their debut album, Up All Night, on repeat for months. When Take Me Home was released, I felt my love of One Direction grow even more, which I didn't think was possible. It kept happening; each album - Midnight Memories, Four, and Made in the A.M. - brought more and more music that could boost my mood from any point. My absolute favorite song of theirs would have to be Olivia, for reasons you can probably discern. I really admire how far they've come; they have come into their own and found the type of music they want to create, and I am beyond proud of them.

xxxxxI am also lucky enough to be passionate about a band who is so genuinely awesome. I truly believe in each member's character; they're all so lovely and they really care about their fans and their own passions. They each dedicate significant time and money to charities and do special things for the fans. They are so clearly grateful for what we have done for them and they make sure to remind us of that fact whenever possible. Moreover, they have stayed grounded and kind throughout their rise to superstardom and I admire that so much; everyone who meets them comments on how respectful and wonderful they are. Even as they are exploring solo ventures, they are giving back to us in all the ways they can think of and they have remained kind and genuine.

xxxxxI would also like to mention that some of my best memories and overall greater moments in life are from One Direction concerts. I cannot even explain how grateful I am that I got to attend several of their concerts; unfortunately, I was unable to see them on their first tour, but I got to go to their other tours. The energy in a stadium full of One Direction fans is...indescribable. It feels like nothing else I've ever felt. Each time, I lost my voice from singing, or screaming, at the top of my lungs. Every year I would count down the days until I could next experience that feeling. As One Direction are on a hiatus, I was devastated when I couldn't get tickets to see Harry on his solo tour this year, but I know that one day I'll be able to get back into that atmosphere, hopefully sooner rather than later. I can't wait until then!

xxxxxAs you can tell, I could go on and on about all of the reasons I am so passionate about this band and these boys. Hopefully I have helped you understand, at least to a certain extent, what it is about One Direction that makes me love them so much. As I previously mentioned, I have other passions that are probably more productive, but when I think of passion, I think of One Direction. They've been an integral part of my life for over 5 years now, and I can't imagine my life without them. I know for a fact that I would not be the person I am today if I had not found them. I will never forget what they have done and will continue to do for me through their music, and I don't foresee this passion fading any time soon.

xxxxxI am applying for:
xxxxx1. | Store pets |
xxxxx2. Trade: Rare/VR
xxxxx3. ♡ Faves

xxxxxI would just like to say thank you for this incredible opportunity! It was so much fun to write about a topic I really enjoy, and hopefully you enjoy
xxxxxreading it! I hope you have a wonderful day and that life treats you well. c:

[Kyo_Kai]

 

What am I passionate about? That’s a good question. Not much, in all actuality.

I love video games. Who doesn’t? They’re games after all. I love worlds where I can escape to a life I would imagine is better than mine; one where I can pretend to be someone else. I’ve chased these games, World of Warcraft, Guild Wars 2, Final Fantasy 14 and a slew of console games.

But that’s not the subject I chose. I chose my greatest passion.

I won’t pretend like I had the worst childhood, but I certainly did not have the best. When I was 11 my single mother got involved with drugs. It was really difficult to see this once vibrant, strong, funny, happy, social butterfly turn into a paranoid, cruel, deadened creature. I did not know what was happening, really, but my grandmother took me in so that my mother may seek and get the help she needed, unencumbered. Those were some very dark days but they are too long and too numerous to retell here.

My grandmother did her best to take care of me, and she did a good job. She worked hard to provide and then some. I had been homeschooled for many years and by the time I was 15, my grandmother came up with the idea to buy an RV and for us to travel around the United States for a year. And we did! We had some really grand memories, too. Some scary ones, as well. From the RV sliding down a hill, to forgetting to lower the TV antenna, to being in the right area to see “Extreme Home Makeover” being filmed, or an impromptu Willie Nelson concert, we saw and did a lot of new things. We had a lot of fun and definitely some harrowing moments.

Then I went to college. Every single Friday my grandmother would drive up to visit and we would have lunch or dinner, then she’d drive back. Eventually she followed me and moved to my college town and was a huge help during my academic years. When I only had 10 minutes between classes, she would be there waiting with a sandwich or smoothie and a hug. We became even closer than we already were.

After I graduated, we decided to move out of the intense Texas heat to a better climate for my grandmother. We moved to the mountains of North Carolina. We’ve always lived in apartments but when we got to the mountains, we decided a house would be good. So I bought a house. And I take care of my grandmother. Since I graduated in 2012, her health has been on a steady decline so I clean the house, fix dinner, take her to her doctors, and anything else she needs. She has many mood swings and some days are really dark. She forgets things often, now and I get blamed for many things. Sometimes she says things that cut so efficiently and irreparably. But some days are good days, and we laugh and smile. It wreaks havoc on my soul, I know it does, to try so hard and it still not be enough; to hurt so much inside but put a cheerful mask on best I am able. But as long as I hide it, all should be well enough.

My passion is my grandmother. To take care of her a fraction as well as she took care of me. I fail a lot, but I will keep trying to be a better me than what I am now. For her.

I am applying for:
| Store pets |
Trade: Rare/VR
♡ Faves

This was unembellished, true, and I may have cried through writing half of it.
Thank you for reading and for this opportunity.

[NightFlame22]

Hi! I'm NightFlame22 ^.^ Thank you so much for this chance, and I wish the best of luck to everybody <3

I am applying for:

The UR Malk
The sunback
Elements

For a while, I wasn’t sure what I was passionate about. I had many interests, for sure: rocks and minerals, painting, nature, baking, astronomy, math… I could go on for a while. I could get excited and talk for a while about any of these things, but as far as true passion goes, I think I was lacking a bit in most if not all of them. I was starting to worry, as I got older, that I would never find the thing that was right for me. I took a graphic design class my senior year of high school; I had plans to major in that for college, and I figured I’d try to turn my love for the fine arts into something a bit more practical. Turns out, I’m much better at graphic design than painting, and I find it easier to focus on such things as well. I graduated high school feeling a bit more confident in what I wanted to do, although my future career was still a bit foggy.

All design majors were required to take the same courses their freshman year. This was partially so that everyone could sample different aspects of design, and also partially to weed out those who didn’t take the major seriously. The design school at my university is a fairly competitive one; there are rumors that you can be cut halfway through your third year simply because the staff doesn’t like your style of work. Needless to say, they don’t mess around. One of these required courses was a class that challenged us to come up with creative solutions for unique problems. This of course sounds like a fantastic entry-level class for up-and-coming designers. We were soon to discover that it was more or less design hell.

This class was nothing like the one I took in high school; at least for that one I was designing CD covers and business cards and other graphics that had practical uses. For my college course, I was building cardboard chairs, paper lamps, and two-feet-tall words that were scattered around campus. While there is nothing inherently wrong with such projects, the restrictions placed upon us were rather ridiculous, and the applicability of them later in life was questionable at best. We weren’t ever allowed to use glue or tape to hold them together, and everything had to be cut by hand. I’ve had both of my wrists in braces just from working on my designs. I was starting to doubt my choice of career; I felt lost again, and this time there was nothing I could think of. Design was the only thing I was good at and interested in, but if I couldn’t do that, what options were there?

I finally discovered my true passion while at lunch with a friend. Our conversation had led to me explaining various aspects of design such as graphic design, industrial design, web design, etc. I started to cover the topic of package design, and then it hit me. This was what I loved to do. It was a good mix of graphic design and industrial design, another path I had considered but realized wasn’t for me. I could design the logos and whatnot with my experience in graphics, and building prototypes for the package shape would satisfy my desire to work with my hands. It was a revelation I wasn’t expecting, but one that made me feel much better about my future. Finally, there was a job out there for me!

I was lucky enough to have an opportunity to test out my interest in package design. There was a package design blitz sponsored by the local paper company, and it was being advertised on campus for us design students. I was part of a group of students of various years. The prompt was to design a package for glass drinkware, and you could choose whatever brand or container shape you desired. I was put on graphics duty, as all other members of my group were industrial design majors. I had a fantastic time coming up with a new style for the company we chose, and I felt the package we made was actually quite neat! I felt as though I was meant to be working there. We had a chance to work with actual professional designers, and I received a few compliments on my skill with the programs I used. I ended up being the one to design the final product! This confirmed my hopes, and now I finally feel as though I have a plan for my life. I’m excited to see just how far I go!

[Moonshadow3]

(edited my applicants)

[f1owercrown]

Gaahh, I put this off for so long but I knew what to write about. Hopefully I don't miss the deadline! ; v;
Alright, here I go. Doing this at 1:30 AM.

{ I. }
I never really had a problem with love when i was a kid. I was raised well by my parents, I had great friends, good grades and a good school, and I was at the top of my batch. Was there really anything else I could want?

Of course, it was a social norm back then, having a crush on someone. I didn't find anyone in my grade school batch to be that particularly attractive though, so I let the comments slide. Fourth grade, however, was the turning point of my life, and the start of it all-- a new guy had transferred to our class. He was cute, funny, and kinda good at math. I noticed he was constantly looking at me, and I'd get butterflies in my stomach and skipped heartbeats. What the hell, right? It was so odd to feel that way, yet it made me happier than anything I had ever felt in my nine years of life. When he talked to me, he always smiled and teased me, and it made me feel sappy, cheesy, but happy.

Fifth grade rolled in, and I wasn't classmates with him anymore. Sad, right? Turns out, later during the year, he was already crushing on another girl! The feeling was unlike any other -- jealousy, sadness, anger. He was mine, wasn't he? Why was he with someone else? No low exam scores/grades or losses in competitions made me feel this level of negativity. Was it my fault?

I fought a good fight, of course; deals were made, risks were taken, tears were shed, but eventually I still lost him to the other girl. What about first love, I hear you asking? Pssh. It was over.

Of course, because of this situation, I had changed completely as I moved up to high school. I became a romantic lunatic desperate to feel some sort of fluffiness again. If I wasn't experiencing it with someone (as, you know, rejection is also normal for me lol), I at least had to find some other way. I turned to sappy romance fanfics and anime. The extremely idealistic stories portrayed by them engulfed me, and I started falling for more guys than your number of fingers and toes combined.

{ II. }
Boy after boy, rejection after rejection. I was high on the idea of romantic love; low on the actual feeling of being romantically loved. It was unhealthy. High school classmates started complaining, aren't you getting a bit too flirty? Aren't you falling in love so easily? Aren't you getting hurt?

I was getting hurt. Everything piled up. Here's the story of my sweet, sweet downfall.

When someone finally, finally reciprocated, I was happy -- oh god, nothing made me happier than seeing someone smile because I was doing something right; nothing was sweeter than keeping myself comfortable around the other person. I felt as if I could melt in his arms and just be there, happy, secure, comfortable. Romance was the best feeling ever, I'm not going to lie.

However, there comes an end to it all. Whether the boys I've broken up with were basketball players, "cool" kids, sweet talkers, or just regular joes, there was always one reason I'd like to think why they broke up with me: I wasn't good enough. It got me staying up late at night. Where did I go wrong? What was I lacking? Maybe I'm just not pretty, talented, or smart like my other classmates? It's me, it's me, it's me. I'm the problem.

Where I had made up for love for various boys, I lacked in love for myself. I eventually began to hate and loathe myself, push people away, and sometimes I'd cry at night thinking my self-worth was equated to how much romantic love I was receiving. It was a poisonous thought.

{ III. }
When I was so, so fed up with myself, I did something I've never done in years -- call my best friend. I was crying because my insecurities surfaced as always, and she consoled me like old times. I told her, no one loves me, I'm not worth anything, my life without any guy loving me isn't worth much, is it? And her reply to me was:

Love comes in all forms. For example: I love you, okay? You're worth more than you think, and I can back that up.

It was a quote that stuck to me. Love that wasn't romantic? It was an idea I haven't touched upon in years. Sleepless nights led to midnight thoughts that told, maybe my self-worth isn't just measured by how much boys like me, but how much I like myself as well. Maybe my happiness can revolve around love and enjoyment from family and friends, too. Maybe, if I just talked more to my best friend, my mom, my childhood friend, my classmates; if I just learned to be proud of myself, my achievements, my talents, instead of searching for answers from romance itself -- maybe, maybe, maybe, I could feel that same kind of happiness again.

And so I did. I slowly distanced myself from any feeling of romance. I practiced myself to dismiss the thought of it and just focus on myself first. It's been a while since I did something I liked doing, like drawing and writing stories. Self-love slowly grew back in me; I had more easily moved on from certain situations that would have haunted me for long had I not given time to myself. Eventually, I had cried less than I used to, and I learned how to console myself and be more positive.

I then built back bridges I once left rotting. I apologized to my best friend for neglecting her; I had told my parents a lot of things I hadn't told them in years; I had my childhood friend come over to my house and talk about our experiences in our different schools. I was recovering from my years of toxic thoughts and sickening, romantic feelings. I was finally exploring other forms of love. And it made me happy.

{ IV. }
I wasn't fully convinced, however, that romance still wasn't the best feeling. That was, until I met two sweet boys who accompanied me on a coffee date one night. We weren't particularly close before that setting, but it was surprising to me how well we clicked -- I wasn't at all anxious to tell them stories of my past, how I thought romance was the only form of love, etc.. They continued conversations, had a good laugh here and there, and there wasn't a dull moment that night. When I went home around 11 in the evening, I finally realized: there was a content feeling in my chest, like I had connected so much to these people; these were the people who made me feel at home, made me comfortable, and I know it wasn't just anything shallow. The best part was, it wasn't a feeling of romance; more of friendship. It was a new area for me, and I felt really happy discovering that romance may not always be the best form of love.

This is a story about my passion for love, how I was once blinded by my passion for romantic love, how I've come to discover all forms of love, and how I'm learning to appreciate them all. ^^

I think this was really long, but I hope you enjoy reading it as much as I enjoyed typing it! <3 Every word for it is true, no matter how petty "I really hated myself bc boys don't like me" sounds like. I was an extremely insecure child before bc everyone here and there was falling in love but no one wanted me, and I had self-esteem issues bc of all that. ; v; I'm okay now though and more content! Still crushing on a guy like old times lol my romantic sides will prolly never die down but don't worry, I love him as a friend so much more, it makes my heart swell every time I talk to him about anything under the sun. He's one of my closest and we have a solid relationship. <3

And before I forget--

I am applying for the following:

1. Cinnabun
2. | Store Pets |
3. 2016 - Summer Vacation

Thank you so much for this opportunity!

[Teemocat]

bump

[Reigncat]

"In 1st place is J422!" I was shaking, so surprised and elated that we had won. Still in shock, we ran up the stage to recieve our certificate and plaque. All that work, agony, laughter and stress has been boiled down to one moment where we as a team, sat in our chairs clutching each other, each hoping that we would be the team that win and proceeded on to Internats.

FPS, the three letters in an acronym, are what I am passionate about. What does this program entail? First, you are given a topic that could pose a problem in the future such as Identity theft or 3-D printing. Then, we find problems within the topic in a future scene. Using those problems, we find the underlying problem. Then, we try creating solutions. By using a grid and criteria, we rank those solutions and then we write a detailed essay about out final solution that we though was the best. You have to do that all in 2 hours which may sound like a lot but once you are thrown in and the timer starts, its stress and writing. Or rather "think hard, write fast"

"The acronym stands for Future Problem Solving," those were the words uttered by my 4th grade teacher. Her name was Ms. B (for privacy reasons) and she was going to be running the program at our school. She was telling us about what it was, how you could join, the times and more information. I was listening intently, knowing that this would be something I would love and be good at until I heard the time of after-school on Thursdays. I knew then, I couldn't join but I promised myself to join the next year.

So in 5th grade, I entered the lottery to get into the program. The results were handed out and I didn't get in. I teared-up, unable to really process what I felt. I was definitely sad but to what degree? I thought that FPS was now something that was in reach but in a lottery, it quickly became out of the question and only a dream.

I judged too quickly for someone wanted me to join their FPS team. I happily accepted, ready to put all my effort into trying and getting into State, the next level of this competition with Internationals being the final level. Yet, as time progressed and the State qualifying test became closer and closer, it became clear that they had no heart in FPS. They bailed out during the qualifying test but I wasn't done yet so I kept writing and writing until 2 hours has passed. Then, I learned that sometimes, you have to carry the team. I had finished FPS on a bitter note.

Then, in middle school, my friends wanted to start their own independent FPS team. Ambitious yet playful, we found ourselves a coach and worked hard. We thought of crazy solutions concerning peanut butter and brain implants. We thought of weird challenges that were stretching the limits of sensibility and we rigged the grid. All our hard work went into trying and getting into state for our last year in the Junior division. After this, we will be facing older, better, smarter, and more experienced teams meaning that there was little hope for us to win Internationals. We had decided that this year was going to be our year no matter what.

Being invited to State was our first milestone and when we arrived there, that was when I realized I came here with something to prove. There are no words to describe the atmosphere that was around us. We were relaxed for we knew each other well. But, there was tension because there was always nervousness. We hung out in the lobby, playing chess, reviewing over our research, and just chilling. And when our test was administered in a room, we were both prepared yet unprepared. Posed with a problem, we frantically scribbled down answers, desperate to finish. When time finally ended, we looked at each other, hoping that we placed.

As you can tell, we won and now we are going to Internats. Why am I so passionate about FPS though? It has also allowed me to connect with more people and become closer with my friends. We stayed in a cabin together, enduring pressure together and tried our hardest together. FPS has given me another chance to bond with my friends and share something in common. However, not only that but it also gave me the ability to write fast, work under pressure and be able to remain calm. Those are all skills that I know will come in handy later on so developing them now will be beneficial. Finally, FPS is just plain fun. Although it may seem like homework and school, the topics pose interesting questions, you can come up with weird solutions and you can also help to solve humanity's problems.

In 1 week from June 1st, my team will be boarding a plane to fly to Wisconsin. There, we will compete in Internationals and our hope is to place. We have confidence and we are prepared for this year to be our year. We have worked hard but most importantly, we are doing this with our hearts. I want to end what may be my final year of FPS on a sweet note.

I am applying for:
| Store pets |
Sunback
| you're so deer to me |

[felix.]

ANNOUNCEMENT YAY

i'm extending the end date to june 10, since i was busy and didn't answer any questions for awhile. i'd like to give those people a chance to enter. everyone else feel free to edit/not edit/do whatever

[Princess Taozi]

NOTE: Hello so yeah I thought I would try to enter this I hope it is okay to I know you sent me that donation and it was amazing of you to but I thought I'd try my hand at this sinceigottatryokay but yEp here is my essay (I'm in Summer and still writing essays? Wow going to hit you with that MLA formated with a bibliography essay and making sure I include those bomb transitions between paragraphs let's goooo- don't forget that double space too...okay maybe not that that will be a bit too much but here we go for this probably terribly worded and weird essay! Let's start off with that stron MLA format heading (this essay just a bit too intense IM SORRY I HAVE TO MAKE EVERYTHING A JOKE I APOLOGIZE) Okay now onto the essay! (Also I will probably edit this essay later on after I post it)

I am Applying for-
1. The Sunback
2. The BEG
3. The CEG

Princess Taozi

Felix.

Quitting: Writing Contest! [EXTENDED]

6-1-17

By Princess Taozi

Okay so I can never write a good topic sentence so can I just say I'm sad my MLA heading for some reason the letters are smaller I will never understand how to code in CS. But to preface my writing I will say that this peice focuses on something that might sound ridiculous to be "passionate" about I feel like that word might be a bit too much when describing this certain thing since it will make me seem like someone who spends their time 24/7 on the phone which is not true (well my parents will tell you a different story). But I guess the thing is a mix between Instagram and Digital art.
Now I know first thing you think is that why I'm writing my essay on Instagram is something about likes and gaining followers and no it's not really about that or posting photos I'm not passionate in Instagram in the sense that I think too much about posting and dream about being famous or something, I simply use Instagram as a means of sharing my artwork. I'm not very good at art but yes I do it solely for fun mainly, but starting a year (more than a year ago) I started meeting and making new friends on Instagram, talking to people more and what not and here is I guess a story about two people who really mean a lot to me they're what you would call "Internet Freinds" and while many would think oh I probably just say we're freinds but we never talk or something like that I do feel and care for my freinds who are across the Atlantic Ocean in Sweden just as much as I do the freinds I see face to face.

First off (take not of that transition phrase), it all started in December 2015 I was actually following an account that drew dogs (as many people on here and Instagram do and what I do) and I ended up entering a contest with that account. Little did I know that this user would actually eventually become one of my closest freinds on this site, well let's just say there was a lot of awkward dms that went something like this "You like EXO! Cool! Who's your bias?" "Kyungsoo!" "Oh wow he's cool mine is Tao!" "Oh Nice!" "..." "...". So yes not the most quality convos and later I ran into another artist who I art trades with a few times and we also had awkward exchanging of Kpop biases customary of whenever you meet another kpop fan for some reason. But fast forward to March 2016 one of my freinds held a Livestream on picarto of course meant for art but me and my other future freind joined and what began as a peaceful livestream became a long late in the night (early in the morning for them at this point) stream where we bonded over watching ridiculous YouTube videos like Google translate Kpop videos (google translate forever has the best vocals of anything) and eventually formed a squad I guess made a group chat and everything.

Now part of me is always scared with convos with people since it seems like everything falls flat but our chat just took off we talked every single day nonstop and I'd just be in schhool getting way too many Instagram notifications. It is almost surreal looking back at those days since we've actually changed a bit like we look back at old screenshots all the time and laugh at how cringy we were in the beggining. But with the constant talking we developed many inside jokes, I became a Mafia boss of a duck mafia, one freinD is now a bee, and another freind we always joke about her age since she's the oldest, and many more things that are all just things where it's just a group inside joke can't explain. But while we have had our highs joking around or them teaching me random Swedish words we've all had lows long vent periods, and sad things happen but it's amazing that we can always talk about it and be open and everyone is there for each other, the thing is people might think Internet friendships are not the same but to me after more than a year of near constant talking and getting to know each other I feel the same way for them I feel for "normal" freinds I care about them just as much as freinds where I live. Only problem is I have to find a way to be able to visit Sweden and see them but my mom mentioned a possibly trip to Europe next year so mmmm I've been lowkey pushing for Sweden.

Not only do I have these freinds I have met so many more people and have just been more comfortable to talk to them? I have a freind living in the states and we always have deep conversations about school or just joke about things, and I'm planning on sending a package to them soon with some gift art and what not. Even if some conversations don't last I've been able to keep up a conversation better online than in real life I'm just more smooth and social online? Maybe that seems crazy and makes me seem like a crazy introvert but I guess it's just me.

To conclude, Instagram has helped me meet people from many different backgrounds and be able to talk to them and get to know them, joke around and laugh, and also be able to share my art (which is sort of trashy I wonder why anyone follows me lol).

[felix.]

bump