Interests and Expectations

I have always been really fond of economics. So, I was pretty excited about doing this special, more intensive economics class rather than what was originally planned. I hope to better comprehend economic principles so that I can easily discuss and debate topics with economic thinking, something along the lines of game theory, except maybe not as intense. Rather, I really want to improve that sort of insightful thinking in economic terms.
As far as my interests are concerned, I'm very invested into the stock market. When it was happening, I got extremely involved in Greece's economic crisis and its impact on the world's economy, as well as the debate on the Federal Reserve raising the interest rates. Just about anything regarding the stock market entices me, so I guess concerning very current events, China's failing stock market is on my radar. My other passions include drawing and more drawing, so all of my interests definitely lie on opposite poles of the spectrum.
By the end of the semester, I hope that I'll leave the semester understanding economics well enough to carry me through more complex thinking through college. I don't want to just know the terms and principles; I want to argue, discuss, and project ideas or solutions to problems with not only our economy, but also other nations' economies. I want to be able to use what I learn in economics to study and understand the world with an informed, economic rationale.