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viancajenn · 4 months

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A Short Story of Mine

I am Via, short for Vianca, and I want to share a little something as blog about my life.

First off, I am the youngest or second child in my family. My mother is a med tech, and my father is an electrician. He quit his job and worked in our store. They always do their best to support us financially and mentally and to love us unconditionally. Also, my sister and I have our differences, but we always look out for each other. There's nothing more I can share about my family because I'm one of those lucky children who have an amazing and supportive family. I am a very simple, ordinary girl, having a simple life with my family, relatives, and friends. We have lived close to the shore since I was a kid, so basically, I love the beach. I'm kind and friendly, but very shy.

Back in my elementary days, I was a very naughty, joyful kid, and playing was only in my head. I also get bullied a lot because I'm taller than my classmates. Even though I'm offended by that, it's ok, and it's part of my childhood. While reflecting on my childhood memories while writing this blog, I realized that back when technology and gadgets were not that popular, I'm lucky because I got to experience a very happy childhood. Playing a lot with cousins and friends outside and at the beach was such a blast. Tumbang Preso, Pantentero, King-King Cross, and other games that do not require using technology are memorable, unlike today's generation, where mostly kids are prone to games on their screens. I was also an honor roll student in my elementary days, so when I was in sixth grade, I did not take my academics seriously and graduated without an honor, and I can see my parents disappointments. Thinking about it, maybe they're just not used to it because I was an honor roll student, or maybe they just want the best for me and in the future.

When I was in high school, I did my very best. That's why I'm back again for the honor roll. Even though I did my very best, there's always this comparison with my classmates, and I felt so down, especially when your own parents compared you to others. I just learned to accept and move on. High school life is a continuation of fun in elementary life. It's fun when you have the right group of friends to help you in your academics and, in the same way, share a bond. For me, I can say I have no talent, but I try to participate in activities at school such as drawing, majorettes, color guard dancing etc. just to experience it.

Moving on, grade 10 and grade 11, or senior high, pandemic strikes. Long story short, the Corona virus 2019 affected all aspects of life. It was hard in every person's life, especially for me learning through distance learning. In my senior high school, it was my first time to transfer schools, and it was virtually because of the pandemic. It was all new because I'm not used to distance learning, and at the same time, it was stressful because I have to balance my time between household chores and our store. I also remember that I had to finished my schoolworks the same day as my birthday, and I did it anyway. I only met my classmate in grade 12, and I did find some new friends who have the same vibes as me. I was happy because they also made my senior year of high school memorable.

Stepping into college as a freshman, I am undecided on what I am going to take as my program. I just want to learn in the medical field, but I am not sure what program I would like and what would best fit me. I just take pharmacy, and the second option is medtech, but both of these I'm not sure about. In the end, I chose pharmacy because my Tita is a pharmacy and we have a store, and that's what came to mind. I also met new friends and got to know my classmates and teachers. Unlike elementary and high school, college life challenges me, but I did not take college seriously because of my personal problems, and I'm kind of overwhelmed by the thought of failing and disappointing my parents again. But I will try hard again, so things will be better for me. Moreover, I realized that even though this program is not what I expected, I have learned to love it and can't wait for more memories and to take what I have learned in the future. I'm hoping that I made the right decisions because my parents are worried about finances, especially since my tuition is expensive, and if I shift programs, it will be difficult for me, so there's no turning back now. I know their sacrifices and mine will all be worth it in the future. Lastly, I'm thankful and blessed for God that everything worked out for me and he never neglected me through the ups and downs of my life.

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enragedbees · 4 years

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Wretched/Deluded

Pairing: Prinxiety, side Logicality

Summary: As Virgil helps Logan get ready for a date, he reminisces back to when they first met in high school.

Warnings: Swearing (If I missed anything, please let me know!)

Words: 3030

Song rec: Factories by Autoheart (This is less of a theme for this chapter, but more of the theme I’m using for the fic in its entirety!)

A huge thanks to the lovely @fall-sunflowers for being my beta reader!!

Taglist: @xionbean @thenewlarislynn @emo-disaster @darkstrange-son @starwarsdestroyedme

I love reading your comments! Please let me know what you think! :)

Read the companion to this story!

——————————————-

Chapter 1: To Put Together Me

~ -222 days from The Beginning ~

Virgil heard the front door of his apartment slam shut.

He switched the tab on his laptop from Tumblr to LinkedIn and got up from the couch, leaving the screen open and facing out as if to prove that he’d been doing what he was supposed to. His roommate walked through the kitchen, grinning.

“Hey.” Virgil walked across the room and leaned against the wall. “You look happy.”

“I am.” Logan opened the refrigerator and grabbed a water bottle. “I have a date tonight.”

Virgil grinned. “You finally asked that guy you met?”

“‘Finally’ seems rather melodramatic. I waited a perfectly reasonable amount of time before asking him out.” Logan cracked his water bottle open. “I’ve only known him for two weeks.”

“And for two weeks you haven’t stopped talking about him.”

Logan rolled his eyes. He took a drink and set the bottle down. “How goes the job hunt?”

Virgil grimaced and sat back down on the couch. “I can’t find anything worthwhile.”

“Maybe I can ask Patton tonight if he knows of anyone who’s hiring.” Logan offered. “He knows the city well.”

Virgil scoffed. “You can’t ask that on a first date. He’ll think that’s the only reason you took him out.”

Logan’s eyes widened. “Okay, I won’t.”

Virgil grabbed his laptop. “When are you picking him up?”

Logan checked his watch. “About two and a half hours.”

“And what are you wearing?”

Logan looked down at what he had on. “I was just going to wear this.”

Virgil stopped. “You’re kidding, right?”

“No. What’s wrong with it?”

Virgil shook his head, eyes wide. “You can’t wear your daytime clothes on a date! Especially not when he’s already seen you in them that day. Do you want to look like you don’t care about going out with him?”

“Well, obviously, not,” muttered Logan.

Virgil sighed loudly and stood up. ”Come on, I’ll find you something.” He clasped Logan on the shoulder. “I guess some things never change.”

Logan rolled his eyes, but he was smiling. “It’s not like I’m helpless without you.”

“You’d like to think that, wouldn’t you?” Virgil lightly pushed against Logan into his room and started to rifle through Logan’s closet.

~ -3110 days from The Beginning ~

Virgil Terek had no friends.

And he was okay with that. He enjoyed being alone.

It’s not like he wasn’t likable. He wasn’t an outcast. People were nice to him and he was polite back.

Virgil just didn’t make an effort to put himself near other people. If he auditioned for the school musical, he’d be immediately adopted by the theater kids. Same with choir, or art, or any kind of sport, all things he could excel at. He simply didn’t want to.

Virgil didn’t want to join a group where he’d always be on the outside. He might have had a couple friends, but he was too far behind to ever be a part of some tight-knit collection of people who had been in that club together since childhood. Virgil would sit with them at lunch, hang out with them on the weekends, go to their birthday and graduation parties. But they wouldn’t ask to work with him on group projects in class. They wouldn’t pick him for their team in gym. Every time they made plans, it would be, “Oh, and you can come too, if you want, Virgil.”

And it was far too dangerous to have a single best friend, instead of a group of people. Virgil would never depend so much on one person. He’d just get hurt when they left for someone else.

Virgil was happy where he was. At lunch he sat in silence with the other kind-of-loners like him and did homework. At home, he read or wrote or listened to music or watched television or dicked around on his phone. Virgil was content.

The lack of friends eliminated distractions from what really mattered to Virgil. He could focus on what he wanted to do, and never had to worry about not having enough free time to do it.

Virgil Terek entered the ninth grade with complete indifference. By that point, he had learned his place in the world. As long as he maintained his grades and took all his required courses and interacted with his parents every once in awhile, nobody bothered him. He was free.

And Virgil had never had a problem maintaining his grades. Being categorized as a “gifted student” sometime in elementary school, he never struggled with completing an assignment or needed to study for tests. Virgil was placed in the advanced classes throughout elementary and middle school and had no problem breezing through them without trying or even enjoying it.

He took Geometry CP freshman year because it was the logical next step. He had no idea how much different an advanced high school course was from an advanced middle school course. When Virgil didn’t immediately understand a concept, he didn’t ask for help. When he only halfway understood the quadratic formula or didn’t memorize the order of the postulates and theorems, he didn’t study, because he had never had to before, and everything worked out on its own. Virgil started getting the worst test grades he had ever received in his life.

A few weeks into the course, he was barely pulling a D+. His parents and teacher kept getting on his case, Virgil didn’t know how to fix his grades, and he felt his freedom slipping away.

Other students complained near him about doing poorly, but their worst was always a grade Virgil would kill to have again. And the most annoying part was the new student in his class who never complained, who never was unprepared or confused, who seemed to have already mastered every topic in the course yet participated and accomplished classwork with vigor like it was the most interesting thing going on in his life.

Over the course of a few weeks, Virgil saw his irrational hatred of the kid intensify. Every time he got a poor test grade or failed assignment, he grew angrier at the kid who had no problems with the material. Everything about him annoyed Virgil. He was a freshman who had just moved into town, and he was still better than Virgil. He was very tall and very thin, which should have made him awkward, but he wasn’t. He dressed every day like he was going to work, tie and all. He spoke so professionally, almost robotically. He was stuck up and arrogant and took every chance he could to correct someone. But he had an A+ in Geometry.

Virgil, slumped at his desk in class while the teacher passed back their most recent tests, let these thoughts stew. He begrudgingly took the paper his teacher handed back to him, upside down and folded, with a stern but encouraging glance in Virgil’s direction. Virgil grimaced and turned it over.

A big red D- sat leeringly at the top of the page. Virgil sighed. He looked to the front of the room at the new kid, who was flipping through the test, observing it with noticeable interest, looking over the unmarked pages before setting it back on the desk with an obvious A+ at the top.

Virgil rolled his eyes to himself. None of his closest acquaintances were in the same math class, and he didn’t feel comfortable asking the sophomores and juniors in the period for help. This kid who didn’t know Virgil and therefore, didn’t have a reason to turn him away, might have been Virgil’s only chance to get his life back to normal.

He groaned inwardly. He wished he had another option.

When the period ended, Virgil walked up to the kid, who was packing up his backpack.

“Hey, how’d you do on the test?” Virgil asked. He hated small talk, but he was about to ask a complete stranger for help, and Virgil felt that he at least owed it to the kid.

“I got one-hundred percent,” answered the boy. Virgil resisted the urge to roll his eyes.

“Cool. I didn’t do so well.” Virgil slung his backpack over his shoulder and they walked out of the classroom. “I’m Virgil, by the way.”

The kid furrowed his brow. “Like the poet? What kind of a name is that?”

Virgil glared at him. He decided didn’t need straight A’s that badly. “Alright, fuck off.” He started to walk away.

“Wait, I’m sorry.” The other boy at least looked sheepish. “I don’t have much of a filter or an understanding of social etiquette. I tend to speak whatever I’m thinking without realizing the effects of what I say.”

Jesus, this kid. Virgil was sure he had just recited that from a textbook he picked up somewhere. He sighed. “Okay. I don’t think that makes it better, though.”

The kid stuck his hand out. “Pleased to meet you, Virgil. My name is Logan Schlenke.”

Virgil gingerly shook his hand and they continued down the hallway. “Okay, so here’s the deal. I’m kind of doing really badly in Geo and I can’t help but notice that you know what you’re doing.” He sighed. “Is there any way you can help me when I don’t understand what’s going on?”

“You want me to tutor you?” asked Logan. “Sure, I can do that.”

“It’s not tutoring, I just want a little help with the content.”

“That would be called tutoring,” Logan offered.

“No, I don’t need –” He stopped himself and gritted his teeth. “Fine, whatever, call it tutoring,” Virgil muttered. He bit his lip. “But you’ll do it?”

Logan stopped. He looked at Virgil thoughtfully. “I’ll help you under one condition.”

“Seriously?” Virgil groaned. “What is it?”

“It’s become evident to me that in order to have a productive and enjoyable high school career, one must be on good terms with their classmates,” Logan said. “I’ll help you understand Geometry if you help me to understand how to interact with people.”

Virgil raised an eyebrow. “I don’t think I’m your best choice to learn people skills, man. I don’t know if you’ve noticed, but I kind of keep to myself and don’t talk to anybody else.”

“That’s not true,” Logan commented. “I’ve seen you talking with lots of people and everyone likes you. Besides, I don’t want or need actual friends. I just need to get along with the other students in the school.”

Damn. This kid. Virgil was already regretting the decision. There had to be an easier way to pass Geo.

He let out a breath. “Okay. I’ll help you.”

Logan stuck his hand out again, and Virgil shook it. “It’s a deal,” Logan smiled.

The two exchanged contact information, and Logan walked into his next class, leaving Virgil shaking his head in the hallway.

Over the next few days, Logan went to Virgil’s house after school and worked with him on the content they learned in class.

“Your main problem seems to be that you never learned how to study,” Logan noted. “If you practice teaching yourself the concepts you don’t understand in class, soon you won’t need someone to reteach it to you.”

Virgil scoffed. “Why should I teach myself something when there’s a teacher getting paid to do it?”

“Teachers or other professionals are useful to help explain a concept to students. Not all teaching styles work on everyone, so sometimes it’s necessary to find out how you learn best and teach it to yourself,” Logan explained, maintaining a remarkable amount of patience. “You should also pay attention in class more often.”

Virgil tried to help Logan interact in social situations, but he had no idea how to teach him, or if any of what he knew would work for Logan. Logan tried his best, though, putting the same effort into studying people skills that he did in his schoolwork.

“So, maybe, when you want to say something, just…don’t, for a bit. Until you think it over and decide it’s an acceptable thing to say,” Virgil offered.

Logan’s eyes narrowed. “You don’t think I’ve tried that?”

Virgil rolled his eyes. “Look, dude, I’m not really sure how it works for you, anyway. But if you want people to like you, you can’t say things that make you look like an asshole. Just…calibrate, I guess.”

Logan’s eyebrow raised, but he said nothing. He jotted something down in a notebook.

“And you have to lose the tie.”

“Why?” asked Logan, genuinely confused.

“Nobody wears ties to school unless they have to dress up. Don’t you own, like, a single t-shirt or something?”

Horror flashed across Logan’s face. “Why would I wear a t-shirt to school?”

“So you look like a normal human teenager and not a child trying to run for president.”

Logan pursed his lips but wrote in his notebook again.

Virgil took a breath. “Tomorrow, try wearing jeans, a nice t-shirt, and an unzipped hoodie. And brush your bangs forward a bit, your hair doesn’t have to all be going in the same direction.”

Logan looked at Virgil like he had told Logan to wear nothing but a bathrobe to school, but he wrote it all down.

And the next day, Logan walked up to Virgil at his locker, wearing skinny jeans with a brown belt, a long-sleeve gray and white raglan, and a green hoodie. He had his hair swept to the side, falling gently over his forehead, just high enough so it didn’t impede his vision.

“Whoa.” Virgil grinned at Logan.

Logan smiled sheepishly back, hands in the pockets of his hoodie. “I feel ridiculous.”

“You look great, man,” said Virgil. And he really meant it. He could already feel a difference in the energy surrounding Logan. He could feel the other students no longer seeing him as an outlier or a stranger, but as someone who could be anyone else in the school. He’s one of us, they seemed to think out loud.

And, for the first time, Virgil realized that Logan was actually a really attractive guy. He just hadn’t known how to express himself. For some reason, Logan had tried to confine himself to a professional, more mature style. But in this outfit, he looked comfortable, relaxed, more laid-back and easygoing. Though he was almost definitely nervous of switching up his style so suddenly, Virgil could see in the way he carried himself that Logan felt more like himself in this outfit, not trying to prove to everyone that he’s someone he’s not.

They began walking down the hallway. “The most important thing about wearing this today is being confident in it. It won’t have as much of an impact if you doubt yourself.” Virgil said. “I know it’s a big change, but you’ve got to believe that you do look good.”

“You told me I did,” Logan said. “I have no reason to distrust you.”

As they walked, a few kids in the opposite direction smiled or nodded hello to Logan. He smiled back

“How do you feel?’ Virgil asked.

“I feel good.” Logan nodded. “I had no idea how much something as small as what I wore could have an effect on how I’m perceived.”

“You’re already starting to seem like a real person to the others,” Virgil smiled. “Keep this up and I’d bet anything you could get any girl in the school.”

Logan laughed out loud. “We’ll see. How did you do on the pop quiz in Geometry yesterday?”

“I got a B,” Virgil grinned.

“Well, that’s certainly an improvement, but I know you can do more. Are you free again this afternoon?”

Virgil sighed. God forbid he be proud of less than his best. “Yeah, my place again?”

Logan nodded and turned into his first period classroom for the day.

As the days passed, Virgil slowly grew more confident in his abilities to learn and understand things himself. He noticed that he started asking questions in class when he was lost, and he noticed seeing Logan smirk with pride every time.

Logan slowly grew more accustomed to social interaction. His robotic syntax and word choice didn’t change, but with the change in style, it began to seem quirky and intelligent rather than just arrogant. And though he still, with nothing but good and helpful intentions, corrected anyone who was wrong about anything, Virgil helped him to do it without making the other person feel stupid. Logan made friends, built connections, and started making a place for himself in the school.

Virgil soon became confident in his ability to study and learn things on his own, which was a huge source of pride for him. He didn’t think he’d ever be able to properly study. As one last benchmark, Logan went an entire chapter without tutoring or explaining anything to Virgil.

At the end of the chapter, his teacher handed him his test, upside down, with a pleased smile. Virgil turned over the paper to see a 96% A crowning the top.

Virgil ran up to Logan at the end of the class as they walked out together. “I can’t believe I did it!”

Logan grinned. “Congratulations.”

“Man, I could not have done this without you. Thank you so much for everything,” said Virgil.

“You’re welcome.”

Virgil pulled his phone out. “Do you want to come over today? I have to text my mom but I know she’ll be fine with it.”

Logan furrowed his eyebrows. “Is there another class you’re having trouble with?”

“What?” Virgil looked up at him. “No, no. Not for studying. Just to hang out.”

Logan raised his eyebrows.

“Like, for fun?” Virgil continued.

Logan’s face lit up. “Okay. Sure.”

He turned and walked away, beaming. As Virgil watched him go, a realization hit him. He had been trying for so long to get his life back to normal, back to being alone and untethered. But now, he’d never be able go back to that life.

“Goddamn,” he muttered.

Virgil Terek had one friend.

He walked away, shaking his head and laughing at himself, but unable to keep a smile off his face.

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thewritingstar · 5 years

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98 that’s a lot of questions I wonder if you could answer them all 🤔🙃

*Deep sigh and putting my hands together* BOI IF YOU DON’T THINK I CAN ANSWER ALL THESE BITCHES!! YOU COME INTO MY ASK BOX AND TELL ME “i WONDER” HOE DON’T WONDER ANYMORE.

don’t come for me like this anon.....here ya go.

smh

i answered all of these and it took forever so yall better read this shit

enjoy bitch

1. coffee mugs, teacups, wine glasses, water bottles, or soda cans?

-Mugs

2. chocolate bars or lollipops?

-both im a sugar addict

3. bubblegum or cotton candy?

-bubblegum

4. how did your elementary school teachers describe you?

-prob either really quiet or really loud

5. do you prefer to drink soda from soda cans, soda bottles, plastic cups or glass cups?

-I hate soda

6. pastel, boho, tomboy, preppy, goth, grunge, formal or sportswear?

-I really like pastel and goth styles

7. earbuds or headphones?

-earbuds

8. movies or tv shows?

-Both

9. favorite smell in the summer?

-Vanilla

10. game you were best at in p.e.?

-Flag Football (stealing the flags) and badminton

11. what you have for breakfast on an average day?

-dont really eat in the mornings but prob granola bar or left overs

12. name of your favorite playlist?

-Shower lol

13. lanyard or key ring?

-lanyard

14. favorite non-chocolate candy?

-Sour gummi worms..that shit is CRACK

15. favorite book you read as a school assignment?

-Great Gatsby

16. most comfortable position to sit in?

-apple sauce or on one leg

17. most frequently worn pair of shoes?

-all black converse

18. ideal weather?

-warm and sunny

19. sleeping position?

-stomach, side, in a ball

20. preferred place to write (i.e., in a note book, on your laptop, sketchpad, post-it notes, etc.)?

-Laptop or phone

21. obsession from childhood?

-My little pony, littlest pet shop, Disney, elephants, Chinese food

22. role model?

-Tara Strong, Walt Disney, Francis Dominic

23. strange habits?

-tugging my hair, biting my nails, wiggling on my heels like a penguin and going up stairs on all fours (when im home)

24. favorite crystal?

-answered

25. first song you remember hearing?

-American idiot- Green Day

26. favorite activity to do in warm weather?

-Eat

27. favorite activity to do in cold weather?

-Eat

28. five songs to describe you?

-idk Cartoon theme songs lol

29. best way to bond with you?

-make me laugh or talk about disney

30. places that you find sacred?

-Flower gardens

31. what outfit do you wear to kick ass and take names?

-anything with my high heel boots

32. top five favorite vines?

-Road Work Ahead, Oh my god he on X Game mode, What the Fuck Richard, This house is fucking nightmare!, Happy one year babe! Im 27.

33. most used phrase in your phone?

-YEET, Yall and bitch

34. advertisements you have stuck in your head?

-Stanley Steamer, The First5California.com song

35. average time you fall asleep?

-now its 12 am -1 am... use to be like 10pm

36. what is the first meme you remember ever seeing?

-oh god that was so long ago i dont even know but it was one of the first ones like pepe or some some

37. suitcase or duffel bag?

-suitcase

38. lemonade or tea?

-raspberry ice tea

39. lemon cake or lemon meringue pie?

-dont like lemon in my desserts

40. weirdest thing to ever happen at your school?

-A condom was thrown on my desk in french class (it was unopened thank god)

41. last person you texted?

-my mom

42. jacket pockets or pants pockets?

-Jacket pockets

43. hoodie, leather jacket, cardigan, jean jacket or bomber jacket?

-HOODIE

44. favorite scent for soap?

-Vanilla or tropical

45. which genre: sci-fi, fantasy or superhero?

-Superhero

46. most comfortable outfit to sleep in?

-Big shirt and no shorts (underwear obvi)

47. favorite type of cheese?

-I fucking hate cheese

48. if you were a fruit, what kind would you be?

-Strawberry or Lemon

49. what saying or quote do you live by?

-Its always fun to do the impossible- Walt Disney

50. what made you laugh the hardest you ever have?

-For my birthday my friend got my a “Sorry for your loss” card and i cried for 30 mins

51. current stresses?

-um everything..college and being the only snacc in my household

52. favorite font?

-comic sans

53. what is the current state of your hands?

-Still have both of them

54. what did you learn from your first job?

-That people are assholes

55. favorite fairy tale?

-Disneys Rapunzel

56. favorite tradition?

- My grandma got all the grandkids pjs on Christmas eve every year and we would wear them to sleep

57. the three biggest struggles you’ve overcome?

-Anxiety, Depression (sorta), Dropping my churro on the ground at Disneyland

58. four talents you’re proud of having?

-Quick Wit, Art abilities?, Standing on my head and making weird ass noises

59. if you were a video game character, what would your catchphrase be?

-Already answered

60. if you were a character in an anime, what kind of anime would you want it to be?

-A really cool and cute magical one!!

61. favorite line you heard from a book/movie/tv show/etc.?

-From Once Upon A Time, honestly they ave the best quotes. “So when I win your heart, Emma- and i will win it-it will not be because of any trickery, but because you want me”- Killian orrrrrrr He smells like forest”- Regina

62. seven characters you relate to?

-Juvia (FairyTail), Star (SVTFOE), Mabel (Gravity Falls), Maybec (Kingdom Keepers, sassy and artistic), Bubbles and Blossom (PPG) and Belle (beauty and the beast)

63. five songs that would play in your club?

-Boyfriend: BTR, Dancings not a crime: Panic!, Bang bang: Jessie, Ari and Nicki, Read you, wrote you: Drag race lol and Busted from Phineas and Ferb because I can

64. favorite website from your childhood?

-Webkinz, PetPetPark (STILL SALTY ABOUT IT) Club Penguin, Build a bear, Poptropica, i played every game yall

65. any permanent scars?

-only emotionally

66. favorite flower(s)?

-Roses and water lilies..and every flower cause they pretty.. oh Dahlias too

67. good luck charms?

-petting my dogs.

68. worst flavor of any food or drink you’ve ever tried?

-Mango anything or Cherry. I hate cherry flavoring.

69. a fun fact that you don’t know how you learned?

-I have a great memory so i usually remember how i learned it, but.. Did you know that the water on the Jungle Cruise in Disneyland is 3 feet deep and dyed brown? Plus the water in all the parks is a special mix that doesn't contain chlorine because alot of people are allergic so its safe to touch? (learn from a disney doc)

70. left or right handed?

-right

71. least favorite pattern?

-those ugly ones on leggings.

72. worst subject?

-Math or english (haha and i like to write)

73. favorite weird flavor combo?

-Grapes and teriyaki sauce. if they on the plate. ill just dip them in. I have an addiction to teriyaki sauce.

74. at what pain level out of ten (1 through 10) do you have to be at before you take an advil or ibuprofen?

-I dont take any unless I have my period and my cramps are usually at a 10 so i try and take it when they at a 5

75. when did you lose your first tooth?

-when i was young

76. what’s your favorite potato food (i.e. tater tots, baked potatoes, fries, chips, etc.)?

-I LOVE potatos: Fries and mash are best plus baked. I HATE chips thou

77. best plant to grow on a windowsill?

-Any bright flower or ivy

78. coffee from a gas station or sushi from a grocery store?

-coffee, dont like sushi

79. which looks better, your school id photo or your driver’s license photo?

-AHHHH my license is soooooo bad. I had strips of red in my hair (got it when i was 15-16) and i didnt know they took your pic at your permit test. Its awful. School is def better and my senior photo pops.

80. earth tones or jewel tones?

-Jewel

81. fireflies or lightning bugs?

-Fireflys (arent they the same?)

82. pc or console?

-Console

83. writing or drawing?

-Both but im better at writing

84. podcasts or talk radio?

-Podcasts but I dont listen to alot.

84. barbie or polly pocket?

-I played more with Littlest Pet Shop and My Little Pony lol (i have 400) prob Barbie thou

85. fairy tales or mythology?

-oooooooofffff cant decide

86. cookies or cupcakes?

-oooooff i love both but cupcakes

87. your greatest fear?

-wasting my life away.....or heights...certain bugs

88. your greatest wish?

-to be happy and have all my dreams (life, job, romance,etc) happen. Plus going to every Disney Park in the world.

89. who would you put before everyone else?

-Depends on the situation but sometimes you need to take care of yourself before others. If you arent doing good, how the hell you suppose to take care of others.

90. luckiest mistake?

-hmmm idk being born

91. boxes or bags?

-depends on what im carrying but prob bags

92. lamps, overhead lights, sunlight or fairy lights?

-I love fairy lights

93. nicknames?

-any mispronunciation of my name, Dean, Big D (yes people call me this), Star, Sassafras and some more that yall dont get to know :) You can give me a nickname if ya want

94. favorite season?

-Spring and Summer

95. favorite app on your phone?

-Tumblr, Snapchat, Tsum Tsum

96. desktop background?

- Its items from super mario and mario kart

97. how many phone numbers do you have memorized?

- Eight

98. favorite historical era?

-oof im a history buff but I do love Greek and Roman because I love mythology...Maybe even 1800s.

hi if you got to the end of this then I love you and for proof leave me a 🐰

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drumie · 6 years

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Salutatory Speech.

So as Salutatorian, I was told I would have to write a speech focused on the history... I find that a bit challenging, but here it goes.

A very long time ago, the universe did not exist. There was infinite mass and density, and said universe couldn’t take it, so there was a boom. A big bang of sorts…

Then in the late 90’s and early 2000’s we were born. One of us, in fact, was born on this very day. I want to wish Alicia Hernandez a happy birthday. (sing alicia happy birthday)

So we were born. Our worries were few, but substantial. Two of my personal struggles included catching the next spongebob episode and drinking chocolate milk too fast.

We started pre-school. My only memory from there is getting sick on one too many pigs in a blanket. We met some of our first friends here. Simple times.

2004 - Facebook was created.

2005 - Youtube was created.

Then we started Elementary school. I was at east ridge. Our worries here included getting the last breakfast pizza that was left over because “adam wasn’t here and he would want me to have it.” They included obsessively cramming for spelling tests, memorizing multiplication facts, and taking our first TAKS test. TAKS test. Feel old yet?

2006 - Twitter was created

We moved onto 4th grade at SIS… The turf wars began. And for the folks that don’t know, there were two different elementary schools that brought up Kindergarten through 3rd grade. And then these two schools would feed into SIS, Sweetwater Intermediate School. This was our world now. Where we came from defined a person… were you from east ridge, or were you from south east? And I’m ending the beef now, East Ridge was the better of the two. Only kidding! It didn’t matter. There were good things from both schools. I’m just glad that hating and judging people from where they’re from is only something 4th and 5th graders do.

I digress. We’d rack up AR Points ca ching! We’d party like the year we were born… Flamingo fling. Not many worries, but we were still in a hurry, learning about history and Martin Luther King. And those days remained romanticized because again, our biggest concerns only included passing a TAKS test and… our first puberty class.

2010 - Instagram was created

Speaking of puberty, here came middle school. Oh my God. Puberty was like Everyone telling you to look both ways before crossing the street to watch for cars and then a falcon swoops down from the sky and attacks you. Folks I thought that was it for us. As soon as coach Huskey said “Let’s go hit that creek” I recall thinking to myself “yeah I’m going to die in the next few hours.” I found my passion: Band. I also found what I thought was my passion: Football. I remember one day Kiante hit me and I was like “I don’t think I like this very much.” Life got real. Technology took off. We all got phones, social media, iPads. Remember how cool we thought we looked with all of our decent selfies camwow retro logo in the bottom left? Instagram, Snapchat, facebook, tumblr (lowkey though), Jokebox, iFunny, Youtube, and for the first time, We stopped going to older people for help and we got online and googled it. We were the pioneer generation that was raised by technology. Surrounded by information in the times of our lives when we needed it the most. We began to comprehend the different weights of life. As a middle schooler I pulled a few all-nighters to finish projects and homework… I may or may not have procrastinated on. Our priority list was fine tuned. School and extracurricular were up there now. But memes, relationships, and social media were among them as well.

2012 - Vine was created

Then came High School. lots of smells in high school have you noticed that? The big room smells like shredded tires and hard work and dedication with a hint of Trent tears scattered here and there. You could always tell when bunsen burners were on because the science hall always smelled unpleasant. And Mrs. Melendez’s room when she would burn those Orange Buttercream Scenses that smell like fruity pebbles oh my god.

Smells like the big room, bunsen burners, teen spirit, and those scense’s are the things I think I’ll remember the most.

I learned a few important things in my time in High school that I’d like to share with you.

Freshman year I learned that if you’re unhappy in your situation, you have the ability to change it. Whether it be relationships, extracurricular, or any aspect of life, you can change it. I also learned that social media can be a cruel blackhole, that can distort views, reputations, and relationships. Even more so today. Tread carefully.

Sophomore year, I learned the true value of hard work thanks to Mrs. Judith Brentz. She taught us many valuable lessons, the most important being “how to use our heads for something more than keeping your ears apart.” I also got my first B… Thanks Mrs. Mac. I also got my second B… Thanks Mrs. Brentz. I also learned how to rid my life of toxic people, and for the first time I began to see the world for what it really was. All the variables, and the factors that can play into what, when, why, and how we think the things we think.

Junior year was the toughest for me. Between band, Round 2 of Brentz for chem 2, Coach Mayes, Work, and family…. It taught me that you can’t do everything you want to, and at the same time get enough sleep. I also learned that it’s healthy to rock the boat every now and then. You’ll either get humbled, humble someone else, or if conditions are just right, a healthy mix of the two.

I also learned probably the most important lesson I’ve learned thus far. This applies to everyone listening, Teachers, families, current students, etc. If you don’t get anything about my longwinded speech, please hear this.

My junior year, I stopped worrying about grades, and I started doing the best I could to learn and retain everything that was being taught to me. Numbers are just Numbers. But what we should understand is that we have the world’s most powerful computer between our ears, and once we start using it, we become unstoppable. There are people that will disagree with what I’m about to say, but stop trying ace tests. Stop trying to do the bare minimum to get by. Learn and retain the information, and those good grades will come. I guarantee it. And class of 2018, it’s not too late to apply to your lives. Whether you’re going to college or not, this is a fundamental principle that can be applied across the board, and I encourage you to do so.

Alright back to jokes.

My senior year I learned lots. Like how you can overcook a TV Dinner and still get food poisoning, ruining your chance for perfect attendance that year. Once I started seeing colleges I started learning how a world that I thought was so big is about a whole lot bigger. I learned that if you fall asleep exactly 47 minutes before the first bell, you’ll wake up and be in a sour mood the entire day. I learned that once people figure out that you’re doing a speech at graduation, everyone wants a shout out. I also learned that you can market shoutouts and get a headstart on paying tuition by selling them for a dollar a piece. I also learned that I should've thought of that sooner and not just the night before I gave the speech. Nobody bought shoutouts. (this was what was originally written, but nick gomez bought a shoutout lol)

But our priority list is strict now. When we have to be where and with who? Some of us are paying bills, we have to worry about finances, college tuition, student loans, our next meal, car payments, gas money, textbooks, toothpaste, medical, dental, water, electrical, internet, phone bills. Oh my God I thought I wanted to be an adult but this isn’t what I meant. Of course, those are all things we should be concerned about.

I for one have my priorities just a little bit different

My biggest worries are still catching the latest episode of spongebob and drinking chocolate milk at the right speed.

So welcome. I hope you enjoy tonight's ceremonies. I’m going to wrap this up with a few thank yous, and we’ll get on with it.

Thank you God, for the many blessings you’ve laid upon my life as well as the blessings you’ve given my friends and family. I know I tick you off sometimes, so, I just ask that you’ll bear with me. I’m still learning

Thank you to my dad. You’ve taught me a lot. The most memorable being the wisdom you passed on from my grandmother in heaven… To never take life too seriously.

Thanks momma. You make me laugh like no one else can. And you get me the way no one else can. You can bet everything you say I’m gonna steal and make it my own. I love you.

Marlee, you’re the only one that gets me emotional anymore. I’m so proud of you. I once described you to a friend as a little packet of sunshine that grew arms, legs, and a face, and now you just walk around spreading happiness and joy. I’m glad you made your own path and didn’t follow in my footsteps. I know you’ll continue to make me proud with everything that you do.

Band - Thank you for giving me a place I belong. I’m odd, and yall were okay with it. Without you, I wouldn’t be standing up here.

Directors - Thanks for making me feel at home. I still cant wait to call yall by yall’s first names here in about an hour.

Teachers and Administrators - Thank you for bearing with me. I know I was a thorn in yall’s side from time to time with scandalous assignments and requests. And Mrs. Reyes and Mrs. Little… I made it.

(With the exception of what’s bolded, the other shoutouts made were ad-libbed and did not have a concrete order. I recall thanking other teachers, friends, and family, and shouting out nick gomez, lauren rodriguez, and trini and bell.)

And last but not least, I’d like to thank Jeff Stein and Richard Ferguson for keeping me on their staff after numerous hiccups on 96.7 FM, 1240 AM, KXOX. Good times, great country. For the job opportunity you’ve given me, you helped ease the financial stress that comes from being a poor high schooler, and a soon to be college student. I cant thank you enough.

And in closing. Heed this warning, everyone listening.

We are strong.

We are persistent.

We are mustangs.

We will go on.

We will succeed.

We will prosper.

We are coming.

We are graduating

We are the Class of 2018.

Thank you, and God Bless.

“Salutations” //Trent(on) Hicks. May 25, 2018

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sgreffenius · 3 years

Link

March 2, 2021

That’s quite a euphemism, isn’t it? Moved away.

The Germans invented Nazi Nazis. Jerry Seinfeld invented the soup Nazi. Now we have statue Nazis, who pull down statues of Abraham Lincoln. We have diversity Nazis, cultural appropriation Nazis, microaggression Nazis, firearm Nazis, trigger warning Nazis, N-word Nazis, cisgender Nazis, food Nazis, Halloween costume Nazis, and now Theodor Geisel Nazis, also known as Seuss Nazis.

If you want to cancel something, why don’t you cancel yourselves, and your insane desire to purify everything you see, hear, touch, taste, or smell? Why do you not recognize that even a small degree of intolerance just piles hate on the rest of your sins? Germans wanted purity of their race: they erased their own history, and rampaged across Europe to serve their ideal of a master race. Consider where they arrived with this twisted thought.

Today’s culture warriors give no heed to their own direction. Self-appointed adjudicators say to politicians and other public figures, “As soon as you mention the Nazis, you’ve lost the argument. Twitter will crucify you.” Well, I’m not a public figure, and I don’t give a damn what a Twitter mob might say about me if I were. Culture warriors have decided - yes, decided - that intolerance, erasure, and a vindictive desire to dominate their opponents will yield what they now call equity. It has already led to hell.

Every nation in trouble seems to undergo paroxysms of hate, to cleanse itself of people it perceives as deplorable, even sub-human. White nationalists want their country back. Anti-racists respond, “Never, we will extinguish you before that happens. In fact, we plan to extinguish every trace of your existence, whatever your motives might be. Our cultural memory will contain no record of you.” So divisions deepen.

Blind lunges toward intolerance and purity leave the culture lame, leaderless, fragile, and ultimately broken. We want to declare that people of good will can repair destruction of extraordinary magnitude, but in fact they have to start over. Germans laid waste to other cultures, as other nations laid waste to Germany. Little of what Europeans built over generations, including families, survived the two wars. Europe after the second world war did not evolve or descend from Europe of two generations before. Old Europe collapsed, and rebuilt itself on cinders.

Is that what we want for American civilization? Do we believe that teachers - carriers of our culture charged with transmission of values - do well by our children when they ‘move away’ from Dr. Seuss? Do the children they teach even know why they call Dr. Seuss a racist, or understand what they mean when they say he teaches racist values? In fact, teachers want to bar children from the joy of Geisel’s books in order to Nazify their own belief system. “We will make people conform to our outlook,” they say, “even if five- and six-year-olds in our classrooms never see Geisel’s old cartoons with images we dislike.”

Teachers have already accused parents who want to see their children back in school as racists. The word has become the all-purpose epithet, designed to win every argument. In fact, it merely signals that you do not plan to listen. It signals a threat: fall into line, or we will brand you. If you object to being called a racist, you must be one.

As in Ray Bradbury’s Fahrenheit 451, our cultural memory may rest with people who remember our culture’s great works of literature. Theodor Geisel’s work has a secure place in that canon. Fortunately we can memorize his work readily enough. Our grandchildren will have to hope that someone remembers him.

We might want to note that March 2 is Theodor Geisel’s birthday. On the day set aside to remember him, Read Across America Day, schools aim to erase him this year:

Starting in 1997, the National Education Association, in partnership with Seuss Enterprises, used the day as an organizing event to promote childhood literacy. The U.S. Senate unanimously approved several celebratory resolutions praising Dr. Seuss’s “success in encouraging children to discover the joy of reading.”

This joy began to fade in 2017, when the NEA announced it would reduce its emphasis on Dr. Seuss to encourage diversity. An article on the union’s decision warned that “a connection to the legendary children’s author no longer comes without criticism,” citing another report that asked “Is the Cat in the Hat Racist?” This year the transition was complete: My daughter’s public school in Washington sent an email to parents saying it has “moved away” from the focus on Dr. Seuss.

Of course, an elementary school librarian might quietly choose not to replace a copy of Horton Hears a Who! with a binding broken from years of use. That is not what happens here. The school sends a message to every parent on March 2, to make sure parents know the school has ditched Geisel. Do they expect parents to throw away their copies of Dr. Seuss books? Do they expect parents to stop reading Dr. Seuss to their children? What can possibly explain the true aims of the Seuss Nazis? All we can say for certain is that they regard Dr. Seuss as a cultural mistake.

Seinfeld’s Soup Nazi Nazified his soup kitchen. He demanded obedience and conformity to his demands, threatened retaliation for non-cooperation, and altogether mistreated his customers. Seuss Nazis do not quite reach that level - though NEA and AFT Nazis surely do. Teachers and unions that represent them are similarly authoritarian in their expectations that we will follow their direction. Otherwise, why announce their disapproval of Geisel so pointedly?

President Biden even issued a proclamation for Read Across America Day, a document that conspicuously omits mention of Geisel or his work. America’s children and parents can do without this author. The president concludes his proclamation with these words:

I call upon children, families, educators, librarians, public officials, and all the people of the United States to observe this day with appropriate programs, ceremonies, and activities.

Just don’t read Dr. Seuss. If school children across America want to read or hear Horton’s famous plea, “A person’s a person, no matter how small,” they’ll have to wait until they are grown up. Then perhaps today’s Seuss Nazis will have died.

#Dr. Seuss

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monawriter2020-blog · 4 years

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Home Schooling: Educating the Teachers

It's 5:30 a.m. on a summer day. I should be sleeping like the rest of the world, ensconced in a woolly blanket of certitude that there is no work today, only vacation. But I can't really sleep. It's the first day of school, you see.

There is an old theory of learning that says education isn't about teaching students new things but only about reminding them what they already inherently know.

It's a high-minded theory that assumes everyone is what my old college president would have termed "educable," that knowledge, like truth, is not relative, but exists on its own plane running parallel to ours and may be accessed by revelation school leave letter for my son.

One need only be shown the hidden path to the oracle's chamber, so to speak, and all will be unveiled.

Sometimes, though, it's not the student but the teacher that needs to be shown the way.

Perhaps we are so inured to others' needs, so accustomed to our own convenience, that we modern folk oftentimes don't pay heed to the tragedies occurring before our very eyes. Particularly for parents trying to educate our children, there seems to be a wall in front of our eyes that shields us so often from the truth.

We place our children in schools in the hopes that they will learn what is needed for them to survive in this world: facts, figures, social aptitude, an inquiring mind, an entrepreneurial spirit.

And we will show up and be supportive at school assemblies, classroom field trips, endless fund-raisers, sporting events, etc., ad nauseum.

We provide classroom supplies, chaperoning, transportation, library staffing, even office support, all in hopes that we are furthering our children's education by setting a good example and freeing up the teachers to do "what they do best."

Too often, though, what parents get out of this bargain isn't what was promised. Instead of bright, energetic, go-getter scholars, what we are handed back is children who are lethargic, beaten down and drained of any creativity they once had. We get kids who are indoctrinated into political correctness -- which is to say the art of arrogant whininess -- but who can barely multiply. We get kids who have been taught in "science" class to recycle to "save" the planet, but who can't explain to you how an airplane stays in the air or how an internal combustion engine works. We get kids who have been forced to memorize Dr. Martin Luther King's "I Have a Dream" speech and participate annually in Cinco de Mayo but who can't explain one contribution of white people to the world other than bringing disease to North America.

In some schools, it's not unusual for as many as half the students to drop out before their senior high school year. Of those who hang in there, many seniors can't even pass an eighth-grade-level exit exam to get their diplomas.

And just to add to parental enjoyment, along the way, the children have almost certainly been exposed to gay sex, oral sex, premarital sex, contraception, abortion, illegal drug use, alcohol abuse, nihilism and atheism. All under the auspices of the school, and all before sixth grade -- kindergarten, if some legislators get their way. Recess and that after-school time before parents come home provide ample opportunity for kids to put into practice what they've learned in "skool."

Parents may seek relief in private schools, but often what they encounter is no better, just more expensive. If you are rich enough, it is still possible to buy your children a real education. If you're merely well-off, more likely what will happen is you will pay through the nose, and your children will receive an education that is relatively free from the sex- and drug-teaching curricula of the public schools, as well as the more violent forms of playground bullying. But for the most part, the rest of the teaching agenda is the same, particularly if you live in a state like California, where private schools are so regulated that they often just give up and use the same books, the same curricula, same time tables and same test "preparation" procedures as the public schools. If you're lucky, there might be some time to squeeze in a little religious education.

That was our experience. Not being much of a corporate yes man myself, we've often been on the lower rungs of the economic ladder. Still, we managed to put our son into private schools despite the cost. Sending him to our local public elementary school was out of the question. The first time we went to that school's office, there were three children being treated by the school nurse after getting beaten up in the halls. The second time we went to that office, the police were there having a "chat" with a boy who looked like he was in about fourth grade.

So we got our son into a local private school, with high hopes of better things. Now, when he started kindergarten, he was almost a whole year younger than the rest of his classmates because of the oddity of birthday cutoffs, but he still tested above many of them. That glowing moment didn't last long, however. Soon, we were told that our boy needed a speech therapist because he had trouble pronouncing certain syllables. We took him back to our local public school, which actually had a real speech therapist on staff, and after five minutes she pronounced not only was he normal for his age, but he was exceptionally bright and seemed like he was a few years ahead in his vocabulary, even if he couldn't quite pronounce his "th" sounds yet.

After we got over that hurdle, we learned that he was being picked on at school. Despite the school's supposedly strict "no bullies" policy, our son, who was a year younger than most of his classmates but also taller than almost all of them, was in the same classroom with a boy who was almost two years older than most of the kindergartners. So now I found myself having to explain to my gentle 5-year-old how to handle an 8-year-old developmentally challenged gorilla who liked to express himself with his fists. We finally got the principal to take action after the teacher did nothing, but at the expense of his teacher now viewing us and our son as "the enemy" for getting her in trouble.

And that was just the beginning of our experiences with private schools. At one point, our boy must have seen something on TV at the same time the class was studying Christ's Passion in school, and he made a comment to somebody, somehow, somewhere, "Oh, just kill me." I think it was because he used the wrong color crayon or something. Suddenly, our then first-grader is supposedly likely to kill himself, he could be a danger to others, yada yada. So we take him to his first shrink, who pronounces him normal but unusually imaginative and, surprise, verbally gifted, and says that the boy was just acting out something he heard. We were not really surprised, but we were still relieved that everything was normal.

Let me tell you, though, after something like that gets around, nothing's normal ever again. Suddenly, we were the pariahs who were raising the next Columbine kid. We couldn't buy a play date at that point. And our son was aware of it. He started hanging his head when he walked, playing by himself at recess, and we'd catch him calling himself "stupid" when things went awry. At that point, we had an opportunity to apply to another school. We went through all the hoops and got positive feedback from the interviewing teachers and so forth, but one of the deciding factors turned out to be a letter written to the new school by our son's kindergarten teacher. We weren't allowed to see the letter, but the tone of the interviewers changed drastically after they read it.

Fortunately, we had another opportunity to get into a different school, this one Catholic, which is our denomination. Once again, we had high hopes for better results. Once again, those hopes were dashed. Our son wound up in a classroom with a first-year teacher who right off the bat pegged him as a troublemaker for whatever reason. This teacher, we later learned, had a habit of yelling at the kids, and she took out much of her aggression on our son. He began hating school and not wanting to do the incredible amount of homework they piled on every night. The next teacher was much nicer, but by then the damage was done. Even though our boy was capable of doing his homework perfectly (when he wanted to), he regularly flunked tests because they were time-limited and he would panic because he could hear his past teacher screaming at the kids next door.

Just to add insult to injury, we finally realized that the curriculum at the school was the same state-created curriculum at public schools. They used the same texts and applied the same ridiculous schedule of 8 to 10 subjects per day, which hardly allows any time to absorb the information, much less understand it. The parents whose kids were doing well in class, we later learned, were going to Kumon classes after school. When our son needed extra help with multiplication, we were told he must be tutored. Well, the tutors at the school didn't have time for us. We approached the youth director because her teens need service credits to graduate high school. No one volunteered to tutor our son. We were finally told he MUST have a professional tutor. We were given a name, supposedly of a parishioner, but no contact information. This person was not on record with the parish or the school office. The principal, who had recommended him, never came forth with a number. We contacted the church's nuns. This particular order is charged with teaching children. That's their gig. Within five minutes, the got back to us and said one of the sisters would tutor our son, but they wanted to talk to his teacher before setting up a schedule. They talked to his teacher apparently, then suddenly they weren't available to help out.

So in the final analysis, our own church school, using lay teachers to teach state curriculum out of state textbooks, happily accepts thousands of dollars in tuition but is unable to properly teach the children math, forcing parents to supplement with either a program like Kumon or, in our case, nonexistent tutors.

We spent somewhere between $25,000 and $30,000 on tuition, uniforms and other expenses in the vain hope of giving our child a decent education. All that happened was a gaggle of overpaid strangers slowly strangled his curiosity and crushed his desire to learn, leaving him a bundle of nerves at the age of 8.

Sometimes it's the educator who needs to be reminded of what he already knows. My child is too important to me, and I think someday to the world, to leave in the hands of a capricious public or private education system that, ultimately, is designed to produce conforming drones, not thinkers. We, as his parents, cannot simply stand by and watch the life being squeezed out of him like the juice from a lemon.

The reality is that we, like most parents, have allowed this to happen for far too long because it was convenient to let our son be raised by strangers.

No more.

We had started supplementing his education with materials from a local home schooling program when he began having grade trouble and as a "backup" because of the monkey business school administrators liked to be up to, such as putting new students on "probation" for no reason.

We've decided to take the plunge and just home school. It will be a change, for sure, and a lot of responsibility, but the incredible improvement we've already seen in our boy's attitude and aptitude is making it worthwhile.

I've encountered many parents with stories similar to ours. We apparently are part of a growing movement to take back education from the millers who are running the system.

Having been through the system myself, and having seen what it nearly did to my child, I no longer believe in "reforming" the education system, reducing class sizes or raising teachers' salaries. If the government insists on dabbling in education, then what is needed is a wholesale elimination of what we have now. A replacement system would start with teachers who are trained in a subject other than "education," have an administrator-to-teacher ratio on the order of 1-to-20, eliminate the nonsensical scale of grade levels and let students achieve at their own speed in the needed skills.

#schoolleaveletterformysonsamplepattern

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vibarsophiakyla · 4 years

Text

You Never Walk Alone

February is known as the month of love. The celebration of Valentine’s Day is also celebrated at this time of the year. Every couple will be having their moment while the singles will most likely just treat themselves outside just to celebrate this event. Another occasion to be celebrated in this month is my birthday, I was born on February 3, 2002, in Quezon City. One might perceive me as a lovable or romantic type of person because of my birth month but I’m not a fan of lovey-dovey things or chick flick kind of moments, others might argue with this but I’m regular tsundere. My name is Sophia Kyla D. Vibar, the unexpected 4th child of my parents. I am the offspring that my family did not expect at all, I wasn’t originally a part of their plan to just have 3 children. A proof of this is the huge age gap of my brother that was born before me, he lived as the youngest for 11 years until I came.

The most memorable part of my childhood still has something left onto me up to now. It is the scar on my forehead that was the main reason why I have bangs since I was a child. An accident happened to me when I was only 2 years old wherein I slipped and my sunglasses cut through my forehead, resulting in a couple of stitches. My mother and sister told me that I didn’t show any emotion when it happened, I became numb as I stand up from where I fell and just told them that there was blood on my forehead as they panic and hurriedly take me to the hospital. I couldn’t remember most of it but it is quite funny if that was really what I did because it explains my personality as I grow up. This just shows how playful and clumsy I am as a kid. That experience taught me two things though, one of them is to stand up again after falling like nothing happened and it will be good again after learning from it, and the other one is simply, be careful next time. I don’t want another scar to form on my forehead again, do I?

Growing up, I was a shy student at school that doesn’t talk much to my teachers and classmates. I didn’t like interacting with others because of the fear of getting bullied. Students in a private elementary school scared me as they were loud and hit each other most of the time. Yet, as I’ve continued getting to know my classmates, I made a quite few friends and adjusted well. Although I was still shy to talk to others and continued to stay low-profiled, I was contented that I had a small group of friends that I can comfortably speak and joke around with. Having a huge age gap with my siblings wasn’t easy. I was still in grade school at that time and they were already in their high school and college years, in their maturity stages. As they were busy in their school, I didn’t have the time to bond with them that much, especially because they are a lot older than me and have different interests. I tend to get lonely before but also thankful for school because I have classmates and friends that were the same age as me and I can relate to.

My elementary days were just mostly my awkward journey growing up. When I entered high school, however, I learned to come out of my comfort zone. Coming out of my shell (the shy and awkward kid) wasn’t an easy thing to do. My friends had to push me at my limits just for me to take part in certain activities in school. I was peer pressured, in a good way, that is. I saw the other side of the road that I never even bothered to take a glance at when I was in grade school. The people around me showed me that exceeding my expectations is possible. When I reached the last year of junior high school, I suddenly went all out. My friends made me joined an event in my former school and my defense, my adviser had to use my mother just to force me to sign up. Although it got me so stressed out and pressured, I just learned to enjoy it because I was already there. Also, my family and friends were there to support and comfort me. I was thankful for that particular event because I had the chance to socialize more with my other schoolmates and get to know them well. Good things happened after that realization of coming out from my comfort zone and I still live up to it today.

With all the things that I’ve said, what I learned most is valuing the people around you. Giving importance to those people that you know who will support and stay by your side no matter what happens. As the famous phrase goes “No man is an island”, one can never live alone. Even an independent person relies on others sometimes if it’s too much for him/her. As that phrase is used by many people already, there will be a new one instead. You Never Walk Alone. On every journey, we always have someone who has our back and will stand with you, will walk with you anywhere. Having another person with you is a beautiful feeling, may it be your significant other, friend, or family, it doesn’t matter, as long as he/she is with you until the end. He or she must never let you walk alone by yourself.

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evenstevensranked · 7 years

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#47: Season 1, Episode 1 - Swap.com

A true piece of Even Stevens history right here, guys! This was the very first episode to air... ever! It premiered on June 17th, 2000 (yes, 17 years ago!!!) and introduced us all to a baby-faced, comedic boy wonder Shia LaBeouf. And a bright, young actress (pre-Kim Possible) Christy Carlson Romano.

Strangely enough, our first glimpse into the Even Stevens-verse is an episode centered around a one-off character. Louis desperately wants to possess a rare trading card. Ernie Morton, the school nerd, owns the card and is willing to give it up for a price: A date with Ren.

This one opens with Louis and Twitty at school in some computer/Geography hybrid class. As their teacher begins a lecture on Afghanistan, we get the very first actual dialogue of the series, and it’s pretty good imo:

Teacher: Now, if you turn your attention to Afghanistan... Louis: [shouting at the computer with joy] YES!!! Twitty: Louis, it’s just Afghanistan. What’s the big deal?

Of course, Louis isn’t celebrating over the wonders of Afghanistan. He’s talking to someone online who’s willing to sell him what’s clearly supposed to be a knock-off of a rare and highly coveted Pokémon trading card. This is so funny in retrospect because the entire planet was playing Pokémon Go! last year. Points for maintaining relevancy! But basically, Louis really wants to own a Roaring Drycon... Which is not a Pokémon, but is definitely supposed to be a Pokémon:

Yes. The internet used to look like this.

It turns out, the seller of the card is none other than Ernie Morton. A frankly nasty, unhygienic, arrogant, nerdy creeper to say the least. Thank god he’s a throwaway character and only here for this one episode. He tells Louis that the price he’s asking for is a date with Ren.

Louis says to himself: “Why couldn’t he just ask for something easy? Like my mom’s Volvo.” - This is a small, but interesting parallel to Boy Meets World and was only brought to my attention when I read through this ranking of every BMW episode. Apparently, Cory puts on music, Topanga asks where he got it from and he says “I don’t know. It came with my mom’s Volvo.” Idk. Like I mentioned before.. there are a few (stronger) similarities between the two shows. I might even start a similarities tag, lol. But, yeah. This really stood out to me for some reason.

There’s a scene where two girls approach Twitty all flirty in the hallway and Louis makes them run for this hills after awkwardly shouting “WAAAZZZUUUP?!?” at them. (Which I’m assuming is a reference to the classic Budweiser commercial that premiered in 1999 and became a popular catchphrase.) I’ve seen so many gifs of this. I’m even guilty of using one on my about page. Louis tells Twitty that he made the deal with Ernie, explaining “Ernie just wants to hang out with a popular girl, and I happen to live with one.” Once again, reminding me that Ren is supposed to be popular! I still think it’s cool that she’s not the stereotypical, vapid popular girl you usually see though.

Ren really wants to beat this chick Adrienne Dunmore for Service Volunteer of the Month. She’s currently falling behind her and needs to work 4 more hours over the weekend. We see another one of Ren’s early placeholder BFFs, an Asian girl named Jewel. Random, but both of Ren’s placeholder best friends were minorities. Doesn’t really mean anything, lol. Just something I noticed.

Ren staring at Adrienne all green with envy after checking their volunteer hours. But, can we talk about how Ren’s entire bellybutton and stomach is showing?! What the heck, Disney?! I know it was in style I guess. But, for an 8th grader? Also, aside from it being purple... It doesn’t really seem like something Ren would wear. Probably just a first-episode hiccup.

And here’s Jewel. She’s also very peppy like Charlotte.

We see the Stevens family at home that night celebrating Ren’s birthday! There’s a pretty funny bit where Donnie gives Ren various pictures of himself, blissfully unaware of how narcissistic he is. The show makes good use of this later on. One particular picture of Donnie “on vacation” is seen on Ren’s bedside table in After Hours! I love good, subtle continuity! It helps make their world feel a little more real.

Donnie’s gift in this episode.

...and here seen in S1, E13. This is actually pretty funny. Another photo he gave her of himself playing baseball can be seen in the bottom/left, too. Haha, perfect. The only weird thing is that it looks like she has some strange Donnie shrine, lol wth.

Louis obviously forgot to get Ren a gift and tries to play it off by saying “I got her a thing. It’s a very very nice thing. But, I got it over the internet. These things don’t just pop out of the screen” with a mouth full of cake. It’s funny, but also a little sad. Steve says “Oh, Lou. Not again...” (which I hear perpetually in my mind whenever Louis messes up) before the entire family clears out of the living room -- disappointed as he rambles off his excuses. Oh, god.. I’m seeing shades of Uncle Chuck.

Louis is wracking his mind trying to come up with a way to get Ren and Ernie to hang out together alone. Once he gets an idea, there’s a bit where he knocks on her door to tell her. It’s been gif’d a bunch and is a very popular post on here. Being clever (and selfish) he tells Ren there’s a program called “Adopt A Friend,” where you hang out with a needy young person for a day as some form of community service. Okay, I’m actually dying now that I have to write this out, oh my god. LOUIS!!!!!!! He tells her that Adrienne Dunmore is considering doing the non-existent program, which piques Ren’s interest. We get a voiceover of Louis telling her about Ernie, blatantly lying about the kind of guy he is. Using words like “nice, giving, helpful, and great!” This is juxtaposed against a montage of the real Ernie doing various things that are the complete opposite. He’s basically the worst kind of human.

Cut to the mall now! Ren meets Ernie and wow he didn’t even try to look good.

I can tell ya one thing -- If this was The Bachelorette, Ernie Morton would not be receiving the First Impression Rose.

For whatever reason, Ren treats him like a special needs child or something? Talking to him in simplified English, slowly and loud as if he’s deaf or has trouble understanding. Louis said he was NEEDY! Not impaired in some way! (Well, maybe socially impaired...) This bit is kinda funny but it’s also kinda like... Wut. Anyway, Ernie takes Louis aside and gushes about how he can’t believe he pulled off this date. He does this really creepy/annoying thing where he sticks his tongue out constantly and I hate it. Ew.

But, yes. Ernie is under the impression it’s an actual date. He even says he’ll only give Louis the trading card after he gets his “goodbye kiss.” Problem, indeed.

Louis spends the rest of the mall sequence sneakily running around like a freaking stalker... hiding in plants and behind newspapers -- to make sure Ernie doesn’t try anything, and that no one from school sees Ren and Ernie together.

The worry in his eyes and lack of discreetness is making me laugh harder than anything else.

Ren spends 4 hours with Ernie and actually ends up having an okay time. She genuinely thanks him for “a wonderful afternoon” after taking some photobooth pictures together -- and that’s apparently good enough for Ernie. He gives Louis the card!!! Louis is stoked, but then the remorse starts to seep in. (I love remorseful Louis, though. It helps gives him more dimension.) He notices Ren window shopping and staring at a pearl necklace ~longingly~ before they head home.

Ren is super excited to turn in her hours at school (going above and beyond, writing an entire paper on her experience) only to discover there is no “Adopt A Friend” program. Yeah. I’d be pissed, too. Not only that, she finds out that Ernie has been telling the entire school that they’re dating. She lashes out at him in front of everyone saying she wouldn’t date him if he were the last guy on earth and storms off. A little harsh, but is it really? Ernie was way out of line spreading fake intimate stories and lies.

Ernie left in Ren’s dust, being made fun of.

This show has a lot of heart. You actually feel for Ernie here. But you also feel for Ren because she was played by Louis. But, you ALSO feel upset for Louis because he knows he f’d up. The conflicting emotions. That night, Ren is fuming after she figures everything out. Louis hides from her by hooking himself onto the back of his door. This is also a pretty popular/memorable scene. We get a micro-mini mirror talk here, as well! I love the Season 1 mirror talks honestly!!!

“Man. Tell 20 or 30 lies, and right away you’re a bad guy.”

Ren discovers where he’s hiding and we get a line that’s not exactly great, but was used on a lot of Disney Channel commercials back in the day. (“What are you doing back there?”/ “...Just hanging out.”) But a line I do like is when Ren asks “HOW AM I SUPPOSED TO SHOW MY FACE IN SCHOOL AGAIN, HUH?!” and Louis dryly responds “May I suggest plastic surgery?”

After talking through the situation (the cover image of this post) we find out that Louis ended up trading in the Roaring Drycon card for money to get Ren the necklace she was looking at for her birthday. Awww. Ren loves it but hates the idea that he got the money from his scheme. She comes to terms with her own faults though when Louis makes her realize she only hung out with Ernie for selfish reasons. Can we also talk about Ren’s Y2K rubber band, pigtail hairstyle in this scene?! I 100% wore my hair exactly like this in elementary school -- with blue bands and everything, because I saw Ren Stevens wear her hair like that. Miranda Sanchez rocked this look too. Why was this style ever a thing? lol. Who came up with all of these crazy Early 2000s looks?!

In the end, she turns around and gives Ernie the necklace. Apologizing & saying “This belongs to you.” Really??? WHAT A WASTE. At least keep the free necklace, Ren! Ernie and Ren makeup and he asks for a friend-to-friend hug. It’s kinda nice for a split second, but then we see his friends pop up and snap a photo of them ~embracing.~

AGAIN WITH THE TONGUE THING! What a creeper. x

This was a bit of a slow episode in retrospect. It’s super clear in my memory because Disney usually beats the first few episodes of a series into the ground. It’s a pretty safe and predictable plotline. Not a horrible episode, but definitely nothing too unbelievably special either. Not the greatest choice for a first episode, imo. Ren and Louis don’t really get to shine 100% and really flaunt that bickering sibling dynamic that the show is based on. It basically switches from Ren and Ernie sharing the screen, to Louis and Ernie sharing the screen. I mean, that sibling element is definitely there. But, you don’t really “get” that Louis and Ren are opposites always at odds. Louis just seems like a little brother who means well but messed things up for his sister, here. You also don’t really get to know anything about Louis as a character, his interest in comedy, or any of that.

There aren’t a lot of laughs, either. But to be fair, it’s the first episode!!! Much like All About Yvette, the show obviously hasn’t really hit that signature Even Stevens stride! So, taking that into consideration.. It’s pretty solid and entertaining enough. I was going to rank it higher for the mere fact that it was the first episode to air and it isn’t totally bad, lol. But, I think I’m okay placing it here. Something else that’s a little “off” is that it’s missing that signature swing-jazz style music throughout the episode that’s so prevalent in others down the line. It uses mostly generic, quirky sitcom music. Another sign that it hasn’t found its place as a show just yet.

This episode actually recently aired on Disney for their “Firsts on the First” marathon! They aired the first episodes of some of their most popular shows over the years to celebrate the New Year. Did anyone catch it? I did! I was actually home sick that night and it made my day so much better to see baby Shia’s face back on my television, honestly.

Thanks for reading! How do you feel about this being the first episode ever? Chime in below as always.

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trenthix · 6 years

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Salutatory Speech.

So as Salutatorian, I was told I would have to write a speech focused on the history… I find that a bit challenging, but here it goes.

A very long time ago, the universe did not exist. There was infinite mass and density, and said universe couldn’t take it, so there was a boom. A big bang of sorts…

Then in the late 90’s and early 2000’s we were born. One of us, in fact, was born on this very day. I want to wish Alicia Hernandez a happy birthday. (sing alicia happy birthday)

So we were born. Our worries were few, but substantial. Two of my personal struggles included catching the next spongebob episode and drinking chocolate milk too fast.

We started pre-school. My only memory from there is getting sick on one too many pigs in a blanket. We met some of our first friends here. Simple times.

2004 - Facebook was created.

2005 - Youtube was created.

2006 - Twitter was created

2010 - Instagram was created

2012 - Vine was created

Smells like the big room, bunsen burners, teen spirit, and those scense’s are the things I think I’ll remember the most.

I learned a few important things in my time in High school that I’d like to share with you.

Alright back to jokes.

My senior year I learned lots. Like how you can overcook a TV Dinner and still get food poisoning, ruining your chance for perfect attendance that year. Once I started seeing colleges I started learning how a world that I thought was so big is about a whole lot bigger. I learned that if you fall asleep exactly 47 minutes before the first bell, you’ll wake up and be in a sour mood the entire day. I learned that once people figure out that you’re doing a speech at graduation, everyone wants a shout out. I also learned that you can market shoutouts and get a headstart on paying tuition by selling them for a dollar a piece. I also learned that I should’ve thought of that sooner and not just the night before I gave the speech. Nobody bought shoutouts. (this was what was originally written, but nick gomez bought a shoutout lol)

I for one have my priorities just a little bit different

My biggest worries are still catching the latest episode of spongebob and drinking chocolate milk at the right speed.

So welcome. I hope you enjoy tonight’s ceremonies. I’m going to wrap this up with a few thank yous, and we’ll get on with it.

Thank you to my dad. You’ve taught me a lot. The most memorable being the wisdom you passed on from my grandmother in heaven… To never take life too seriously.

Thanks momma. You make me laugh like no one else can. And you get me the way no one else can. You can bet everything you say I’m gonna steal and make it my own. I love you.

Band - Thank you for giving me a place I belong. I’m odd, and yall were okay with it. Without you, I wouldn’t be standing up here.

Directors - Thanks for making me feel at home. I still cant wait to call yall by yall’s first names here in about an hour.

And in closing. Heed this warning, everyone listening.

We are strong.

We are persistent.

We are mustangs.

We will go on.

We will succeed.

We will prosper.

We are coming.

We are graduating

We are the Class of 2018.

Thank you, and God Bless.

“Salutations” //Trent(on) Hicks. May 25, 2018

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mercerislandbooks · 6 years

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A Q&A With Local Kindergarten Teacher Marilyn O’Neill

The Mercer Island Reporter comes in my mailbox every Wednesday, and last week they featured a cover story near and dear to my heart. That story had a poignant moment at Island Books last week.

Families across the island sent their kindergarteners to Marilyn O’Neill’s class at West Mercer Elementary for 22 years (she taught at other schools on the island too for a total of 27 years). On May 5th, a group of seniors about to graduate from Mercer Island High School gathered at Island Books to honor Marilyn with a special gift: a re-enacted photograph of her final kindergarten class.

It’s moments like these that remind us of the deep and meaningful community history that winds its way through our doors. Marilyn and her students shared their memories and marveled at how quickly time passes, filling our store with friendship and love.

Marilyn is a kindergarten teacher who touched many lives on the island, but to me, she’s my friend and neighbor. She’s known my children since they were only a few days old, and while she’s officially retired, you wouldn’t know it if you saw her in my neighborhood. It’s a special day at our house when Marilyn stops by to collect my 5-year-old twins and almost 3-year old. Off they go to help her plant peas in the garden, pick raspberries, or play on her sport court. On the way she has slyly taught them how to properly hold a pencil, trap a raccoon, and process big and difficult topics like death, sadness, and love. She is our not-so-eccentric Mrs. Piggle Wiggle.

Marilyn is also an avid reader and occasionally joins us at the Island Books Open Book Club. As she celebrates the graduation of her last kindergarten class, I wanted to share some of her thoughts on our blog.

–Miriam

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Island Books: How has Island Books played a role in your life on Mercer Island?

Marilyn: I just love how the store has always been there, first with Lola Deane at the helm, then Roger and Nancy Page, and now with Laurie. Island Books exudes a spirit of community that’s remained consistent throughout its history. I’ve enjoyed countless author readings and book club discussions there over the years.

When I was at West Mercer Elementary, it was a tradition in my classroom to bring a “birthday book” for the class. See the picture below to see what I mean. These books almost always came from Island Books, personally recommended to parents by the staff who knew what the whole thing was about. I still have a few of the books from my classroom and they bring back fond memories. The children took such pride in introducing stories they loved to their friends. It was a wonderful way to spread excitement about reading.

Island Books: What were three favorite books you enjoyed reading to your students over the years?

Marilyn: I always loved reading Tillie and the Wall by Leo Lionni at the end of the school year. It’s the story of a mouse who wonders what’s on the other side of a wall and figures out how to break down barriers and bring the mice on both sides of the wall together. I like most of Lionni’s children’s books.

Miss Rumphius by Barbara Cooney is a story about how the narrator's grandmother found a way to make the world a better place. This one gives children plenty to think about and aspire to.

Yucky Worms by Vivian French is my favorite “grandma” book. It tells kids all they need to know to become a wormologist. Perfect for a grandma to read to their 5-year-old after sharing some time in the garden together.

Island Books: Okay, enough about children’s books. How about three of the books you most recently enjoyed reading yourself?

Marilyn: I loved The Boys in the Boat by Daniel James Brown for obvious reasons, as many of us on the island did. Brown was a memorable guest at Island Books and his page turner about the University of Washington crew team felt very close to home. The Short Nights of the Shadow Catcher by Timothy Egan is another favorite biography. I just finished Trevor Noah’s Born a Crime which I found so fascinating. I like nonfiction that transports me into other times and cultures.

Island Books: Kindergarten is a magical year because it’s when most kids first learn to read. Do you have any thoughts for parents as their children take on this new skill?

Marilyn: Obviously things are so different now with all the technology around, but I always thought it was important to build special traditions around reading. I've always liked to play with the stories and find ways to bring their ideas into the real world. After reading Yucky Worms, I liked to get out in the garden with little ones and show them how to make friends with the worms in real life. Or reading Miss Rumphius could easily lead into a discussion about how each of us could do something to make the world a more beautiful place.

#miriam landis #marilyn o'neill #mercer island #miss rumphius #the boys in the boat #the short night of the shadow catcher #born a crime #tillie and the wall #yucky worms

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