Spring Break: The Teaser

I feel bad saying I hate spring break, but let's be honest... it just makes 4th quarter seem even longer and more pointless. It teases you into thinking you're free, then BAM just kidding. YOU'RE STILL TRAPPED. Waking up the first Monday back is practically torture. Pure evil. It makes me want to cry. Sometimes I do.

And to make matters worse, your teachers inform you it's time to hit the ground running. They say things like "4th quarter will probably be the hardest" and "I know it's a lot of work, but you just have to do it." Is there possibly a better way to plan the year so as to avoid cramming everything into the last nine weeks? My thoughts for the entire first day back can pretty much be summed up by:

Then comes the homework, the lack of sleep, the destruction of any potential social life until all that's left of what used to be a fairly cheerful high school student is:

Someone save me.

What I go through every day

As some of you know, I have a church class before school that starts at 6:20am. Thus, I wake up at 5... which usually goes something like:

I then proceed to shower and get ready for the day, starting with:

(no joke, I do this)

I sit through my church class:

Then school starts...

First hour is always good, because this is how I feel about my teacher:

Then I get to second hour, and feel like this:

Of course, third hour comes next, accompanied by:

Who knew creative writing would be so much... writing?

Then comes fourth hour:

Followed by my favorite, AP Calc:

And finally, sixth hour:

at which point, I have no motivation to do anything productive and spend most of the hour counting down the minutes til 2:35. And when that bell finally rings and releases me from the monarchy that is high school:

Nine and a half hours down, eight and half left to go...

Just Recently...

... I got a medical bracelet for my peanut allergy. I thought it was a sort of right of passage for a kid who is allergic to everything but bark and sand. Little did I know I would get pulled into a secret club  I didn't want to join.

First off, its like being handcuffed!

 I put it on and was like, "Ok, this I can handle," but there literally is no conceivable way for me to take it off! Please take into account I am a claustrophobic so being in a handcuff does not make me happy...

Secondly, it seems that every time I see someone else, and they happen to notice it,  the conversation always goes like this: 

...

After 6 years in band...

... I finally realized how people who are not in band view the band. This came to me while watching some movie about professional players when we had a sub in band. The audience was made up entirely of the elderly and their grandchildren. Along with the many snide remarks I made, I had to think "Is that really what we look like??" The result? This awesome look at how people view high school "band geeks."

So the other day...

...I took a test.

No big deal right? It happens all the time... and I mean ALL THE TIME.
However, during said test I came to the realization that taking a test is a lot like being in jail.

*Note: I have never been in jail, and never plan on it. Sorry in advance if this is some what stereo-typed :)

1 . Solitary Confinement 
By solitary confinement, I mean make-up tests. The teacher puts you back in the ante room guarded only with a pencil or two, a desk and the test. What the teachers don't realize is that after the door shuts that room becomes a torture chamber. Every click of a pencil, every shuffling of a paper is magnified to 1000000 decibels.
Not to mention the temperature in that room is about 15 degress warmer, so you pretty much:

For the entire class period. Its enough to make any one insane.



2. Wardens 
In the event it's not a make up test, the verdict is even worse. Every person has one teacher in their schedule who walks around the room, hands held behind their back, just walking... and looking... and walking.

Sort of like:












As if taking an exam wasn't torture enough!
And don't get me started on sneezes and coughs. It's common courtesy that when someone sneezes everyone says "God bless you." (or if their feeling foreign, "Gesundheit.") However the teacher usually takes this as a sign of rebellion and:

Around the room for the next minute, blaming the anarchist who dared to sneeze! Sometimes its all I can do not to bang my metal cup on the bars and rattle my handcuffs in protest. 

3. Sentencing 
Judges give out probation and prison time, teachers give out test reviews.

a. Weekend Offender (Misdemeanor) 
This is when the teacher gives out a review that is meant to be done in a weekend. Normally I can handle it, but sometimes I feel like that review is hanging over my head until Sunday, at which point I have to face the music, put on my orange jumpsuit and cowboy up to the kitchen table.

b. Life Sentence (Felony) 
This refers to the infamous Final Exam Review Packet. It's so large and daunting you have to carry an extra backpack to school.


Now, I know jail is a terrible place... 
however, there is one reason that jail is better that taking tests...



...Prisoners get recess

Now that my rebellion is finished, please excuse me while I finish my homework and study for all the rest of my tests :) 

Some kids...

We had a sub today in Gov, and after getting our work done, Erin and I talked and people-watched our fellow classmates. With 7 minutes left in class, one girl stood in the doorway and then walked away like:

After she was gone, we looked at the teacher... who was completely oblivious. The natural reaction we had?

How some kids get away with things is a mystery to me.

Why I Hate School...

Reason 23979:

I have to interact with people...

Now, don't get me wrong there are some people I can stand talking to, like my friends.

With my "lunch friends" the depth of our conversations go no further than the occasional:

With my close friends I can do whatever I want, and not worry about being judged... even dancing like this:  

 that's the beauty of friendship, you see. 

That being said there is still about 1,000 people who either I don't  like or I don't know, who I still have to interact with on a daily basis... A Conversation with a Non-Friend can go one of a few ways: 

Way # 1: Talking to a Hot Person 

The way I want to talk to them: 

(You know, dazzle them with my undeniable charm... )

Sadly, it rarely happens that way. Usually I embarrass myself  by doing something like this when they walk past my desk:

.

.. or worse I just completely shut down and: 

 or 

Way #2: Being Forced to Partner with Someone I Don't Like 

This is a daily occurring tragedy  for me... since there are very few people I can actually stand being partners with.

 My reaction usually starts as an internal temper tantrum, during which my whole brain goes: 

After getting that out of the way I usually resort to during said group assignment on my own and if the Someone I Don't Like asks a question I just give them the Erin Death Stare: 

Way #3: The-Person-Who-Is-In-Your-Friend-Group-But-You-Have-No-Clue-What-to-Say-To-Them-Because-You-Aren't-Actually-Friends 

This is actually the most horrific situation, because you feel obligated to talk to them about something, but the only thing in common is that you played Just Dance 3 together a some mutual friends party 3 years ago.

Usually I end up sitting there all: 

 

and just silently pray that the encounter is over quickly. 

Way #4: The Weekends... 

I literally see no one on the weekends. And it is perfect. 

Its a mutual understanding that on weekends I talk to know one. I can practically hear my mom saying 

But as I said before, and I'll say again :