#011

It's back to school, ladies and gentlemen.

Yesterday was simultaneously one of the best and worst days of my life.

Let's start with the good news.

I got several tests back, and the results were rather satisfying:

• Maths: 16.25/17.

• Mental calculation: 5.5/6.

• French vocabulary: 18.5/20.

• Another French test: 17/20.

• English: 18/20.

EXCUSE ME???

I would like to point out that I sat both maths tests while feverish. Apparently, my immune system and I have different priorities.

And before anyone asks, yes, I have been doing well in maths since the beginning of the year. We are maintaining the standards.

Now, onto the less exciting part of yesterday.

As part of our 3ème curriculum, we have to complete an observation placement around January–February. Back in September, I decided to aim for an international organisation, preferably somewhere connected to child rights, public health, and education.

I contacted several organisations in the United States, including UNICEF USA. Their Youth Engagement Team was genuinely lovely, but unfortunately, they couldn't accommodate an international observation placement. They recommended contacting UNICEF Tunisia instead.

So I did.

Two follow-ups and MANY phone calls later, I am still waiting for a response.

Fair enough. Organisations have procedures, limited capacity, and approximately seventeen thousand emails to deal with. I understand.

But then came an interesting development.

I have a classmate, whom we shall call Red. He initially wanted to complete his placement in sports journalism. After I mentioned my interest in UNICEF, he became interested in the same opportunity.

The difference? He has connections.

He told me yesterday that he was quite close to securing the placement. When I asked whether he could introduce me to his contact, his response was:

"Ehh, I don't really want to. Good luck."

Well.

That was certainly a contribution to the conversation.

I won't pretend I wasn't annoyed. I've been pursuing this since September, researching, emailing, calling, and following up. I have the academic results, the initiative, and a genuine interest in the work. What I don't have is an established connection.

And sometimes, that is the part you cannot solve by simply working harder.

Anyway, I found another route.

I remembered that UNICEF USA had previously responded to my enquiry, so I wrote back explaining that I had followed their recommendation but hadn't managed to reach the appropriate team in Tunisia. I asked whether they might be able to forward my original request or direct me to someone who could help.

Will it work? I have no idea.

But asking costs me nothing.

And then, naturally, I went to cry next to my seven-year-old brother.

His advice was that if I wanted it, I could do it. He then suggested that I should STOMP into UNICEF with confidence and tell them that I had already emailed, nobody had answered, and I would now like a meeting.

I think we have identified the family's next career counsellor.

He hugged me, and I felt considerably better. Not that the situation had magically changed, but sometimes a little encouragement is all you need to get back to thinking clearly.

So, that's where things stand.

I have no confirmed placement, no convenient connections, and no idea whether UNICEF USA will be able to help.

But I have another lead, and I intend to follow it.

Besides, I have a reputation for collecting sidequests. It would be rather inconsistent to stop now.

#010

New Sidequest Unlocked

You know when I start an entry like that, it is never good.

Near the end of the evening, I opened my computer, pondering what was going to be attacked today. Unsurprisingly, I chose a competition. Two competitions, matter of fact.

Poetry.

Ever since I was a child, I have enjoyed writing poetry. Not in a child-prodigy kind of way, but I used to write poems and song lyrics simply because I found it fun. It was a hobby.

But today, I decided I was going to turn it into a way of developing my English writing skills.

So, I went on Google, searched for "international poetry competitions", chose my victims, and destroyed them.

Well, sort of.

So far, I have submitted an entry to one competition, while the other is still waiting for me to choose the right theme.

Frankly, it was the first time I had written something so explicit and accusatory. I was genuinely accusing the reader. And it has a pretty dark ending.

But it was intentional.

In short, the poem is divided into three sections. The first is essentially me presenting the "evidence" or "facts". Then, the opening phrase is repeated, almost as a return to the original argument. In the following four lines, I explain how everything affected the protagonist, before ending with two lines that reveal the final consequences.

I'll share a tiny excerpt, just to give you an idea of its tone:

Atrocities have been endured, by men and women,
Yet we don’t seem to react like true humans.

I am honestly debating whether I should share the entire poem here or not. For now, you'll have to settle for those two lines.

And that, ladies and gentlemen, is how a peaceful evening turned into another sidequest.

#009

I am glad to announce I am no longer fighting with my inbox. 

I finally got a response.

And it's a pretty positive one.

If you're new here, I'm participating in the International AI Startup Challenge (IASC). Though it officially starts this upcoming Monday, I began contacting organizations and students last week, asking for help distributing my research survey or connecting me with students willing to participate in interviews.

And last night, I got a response.

This morning, I sat down and analyzed it (okay, maybe not, but you get my point).

UW Bothell Career Services had called my research focus cool and directed me toward three student organizations that could be relevant to my research.

WHAT.

BECAUSE YES, I AM FREAKING OUT AT A UNIVERSITY CALLING MY RESEARCH FOCUS COOL.

You have to have a stone heart not to react to that.

For context, I'm conducting customer discovery for my startup challenge, trying to understand students' experiences presenting their work, projects, and skills online. I'm gathering feedback through a survey and looking for students willing to share more in interviews.

And now, I have three more organizations to contact.

Three.

Do you understand what this means?

MORE EMAILS TO WRITE.

I KNOW. SO EXCITING.

Jokes aside, I'm genuinely grateful to UW Bothell Career Services for taking the time to respond and point me toward relevant student organizations. When you're a student working on an independent project, having someone take your outreach seriously and give you a concrete next step means a lot.

So, if anyone from Career Services happens to read this: thank you!

Consider this my very official public declaration of gratitude. I was going to call it a public apology, but that would be a rather confusing way to thank someone who has done absolutely nothing wrong.

You're welcome for that clarification.

Naturally, I immediately put the email in a label called "Evidence Vault."

Yes. Evidence Vault.

It sounds like something a detective would have in a crime documentary, but I promise I'm not investigating anyone. I'm simply keeping a record of successful or encouraging outreach, because apparently my entrepreneurial journey comes with a digital archive.

And honestly? This response was VERY well timed.

I was genuinely starting to lose hope in my startup. The survey wasn't exactly overflowing with responses, and sending emails into the internet sometimes feels like throwing a message into the ocean and hoping a particularly literate fish finds it.

You research, write, rewrite, check that your email doesn't sound like spam, send it, and wait.

And wait some more.

Eventually, you start wondering whether your email address has been blacklisted by the entire United States.

Dramatic? Perhaps.

Accurate to my emotional experience? Absolutely.

But this response reminded me that outreach takes time. People have their own schedules and responsibilities, and a lack of response doesn't necessarily mean nobody is interested. Sometimes, you just have to keep going long enough to find the people willing to engage.

Now, before anyone plans my victory parade, let's be clear: one encouraging email does not validate an entire startup. I still need to gather responses, understand students' actual experiences, and see what the evidence tells me.

I'm not about to declare myself the next big thing because someone called my research cool.

Although, for the record, I will remember that compliment for an unreasonable amount of time.

But this is still a win to me.

Not because I've achieved the final goal, but because something I was beginning to doubt received encouragement from someone outside my immediate circle — and came with an actual next step.

Wait. That sounds like something I should say when I win.

But to me, it is a win.

And what do we do after a win?

We celebrate.

And then we get back to work.

Thank you again to UW Bothell Career Services for the response and recommendations, and to everyone who takes the time to read, respond to, or participate in my research. Every bit of genuine feedback helps me understand what I'm working toward.

As for me?

Time to get back to writing emails.

My inbox and I are not done with each other yet.

Unfortunately for it, I have a keyboard.

#008

I have reached a new level of coding. 

I first started learning Python in February because I wanted to understand the systems around me. I didn't want to specialize yet. But near the end of June, I decided to specialize in web development.

I learned HTML and CSS, then started working on AI-assisted projects (I'd rather be transparent). I genuinely thought that was the final boss of all bosses.

And I was out here flexing “I code full-stack” to every person I met.

WELL, MY COMPUTER LAUGHED AT ME AND THREW REACT AND VITE AT ME.

I thought I knew development. I was wrong.

I learned React and Vite, and that's what I'm using to code Our Shared Shelf. And what do you mean I am juggling email automation, multiple databases (in short the whole backend) AND the frontend? 

Even when I tried coding it with AI assistance, it was STILL hard.

And here's the suspicious part: it has been weirdly calm on the bug front. Since I started coding with React, I haven't had a single bug. No servers crashing, no mysterious errors, everything running exactly the way I want it to.

Naturally, I'm beginning to suspect this is the calm before the storm.

But hey, at least there's a rainbow at the end.

I'm so dedicated that I'm currently writing this from my brother's soccer practice. I'm literally sitting on the sidelines with my computer like a madwoman, typing away while everyone else is watching football.

Worth it, though.

I think that's enough coding for today. Our Shared Shelf will keep growing, but I have homework, tests, and an entire school year to survive first. Maybe I'll finish the website in December. Maybe later. Who knows? For now, Nightshade and I are clocking out. The books can wait.

#007

Yesterday was one of those days that leaves you exhausted but somehow still wanting to do more. I had music school until 8 p.m., and honestly? Worth it.

A few weeks ago, I got accepted into the National Conservatory of Music of Tunis, where I'm studying violin and solfège (basically, learning how to read and write musical notation).

The thing is, the conservatory has its own report card. Which means that in January, when my first semester ends, I'll have TWO report cards: one from day school and one from night school (as I like to call it).

Because apparently, one academic life wasn't enough for me.

Yesterday, I also got to sit at a coffee shop with my dad for two hours. We each worked on our own things, I had a caramel frappe in hand (my fuel, obviously), and I was COOKING SOMETHING BIG for you guys.

AAAAH, I am itching to tell you about it SO BADLY. (I know I already mentioned it in my last entry, but LIKEEEEE.)

Anyway, I have a few chores to get through today. Nothing too crazy. Then I NEED to take an everything shower. And THEN, finally, I'll sit down and start coding what I've been preparing for you guys.

Do you think I can have it ready in a week? Because I'm genuinely tempted to try.

I'm talking about Our Shared Shelf. It's already in the navigation bar, and there's a little placeholder sitting there for now. But not for long, hopefully.

ALSO, CAN WE TALK ABOUT HOW I FINALLY NAILED DOWN MY BLOG'S THEME?

YIPEEEEE.

It's finally starting to feel like everything belongs together, and I LOVE that for me.

But, of course, while one project is coming together, my inbox for the OTHER project is looking suspiciously silent.

UGHHHH. EMAILS.

Why is building something exciting so much fun, but waiting for people to respond to your emails so PAINFUL?

Anyway. Back to the plan: chores, everything shower, coding.

Our Shared Shelf, you're next.

#006

WOW...

Vacations are over in, like… a WEEK? And I still have A LOT of homework left for next week. So, for now, I’m going to let the startup work I did last week simmer and focus on school. Priorities, people. Priorities.

I’ve been adding a few things here and there around the blog, including this VERY CUTE navigation bar that took me THREE DAYS to get done. Don’t ask me why. I genuinely have no idea.

BUT there’s this tab called “Our Shared Shelf” that currently says Coming Soon.

And it says that for a reason.

STAY TUNED. Because I have something coming for YOU guys. Something you’ll actually be able to participate in. It’ll probably take a little while because I still have to get everything figured out, but I might be able to cook something up with this idea.

So, for now? CLASSIFIED.

I also have to write approximately 15 pages of my book for that competition and get the whole skeleton of the story down. Here’s what I’ve been thinking: what if I start by writing the prologue and epilogue first? That way, I could nail down where the story begins and where it ends, then build everything in between around those two points.

Does that make sense? Because in my head, it does. Now I just have to make it happen.

Yesterday, my whole family and I deep-cleaned the house. And when I say deep-cleaned, I mean DEEP-CLEANED. I got rid of HALF THE STUFF IN MY ROOM. No joke. I was throwing away things dating back to 2022. At this point, I was basically conducting an archaeological excavation of my own belongings.

And honestly? I LOVE how my room looks after rearranging everything. I’m also discovering that I apparently function on to-do lists and spreadsheets now. Who am I? What happened to me? Why am I suddenly organizing my life like I run a multinational corporation?

I still have to organize my two wardrobes, though. Like, FINAL FINAL. Because yesterday, I somehow managed to mess everything up again. So I’m going to get those sorted out once and for all, and THEN I’ll start tackling my homework.

(Please ignore the fact that I said I was prioritizing school and immediately started reorganizing my entire existence.)

Speaking of yesterday, after the whole deep-cleaning extravaganza and what I can only describe as a Mexican mop situation — yes, we literally threw water on the floor and scrubbed it like we were simulating a flood — I decided to take a math quiz.

At night. After all that.

A graded, mandatory math quiz.

Because apparently, I have free will and choose to use it against myself.

AND I GOT 28/32.

Which translates to 17.5/20.

WHICH IS NOT BAD AT ALL.

Honestly, I’m pretty happy with that, especially considering the circumstances.

I’m just glad things are starting to look up. My room is cleaner, my blog is coming together, my projects are slowly taking shape, and I have spreadsheets now (still processing that one).

The only thing looking suspiciously empty at the moment is my email inbox.

Which is… interesting (and annoying).

But we’ll see.

For now, I have wardrobes to conquer, homework to finish, a book to write, and a classified project to work on.

Normal vacation activities, obviously.

Photo Dumps Coming VERY soon xoxox