Work Ethic.

Does it even count anymore? Some people can fall asleep in every class yet still ace every test and correctly answer the questions your teacher attempts to trip them up on. As someone who still believes that work ethic is a dying skill that is still very aplicable, relevant, and valuable in this world, I am frustrated by the little it takes for some people to get by in high school these days. If you think about it, high school is only there to assist you in building your resume for colleges. In those resumes, two numbers that are the most important are your GPA, and the number representing how well you did on a standardized test. The people that are naturally smart and are good test takers are the ones whom which I am jealous of, the colleges will never know that they turned every assignment in late because they finish every test with flying colors. Past college, when we enter the real world, no business seeking workers is going to know that the applicant sitting n front of them is one of the laziest people there is because they got into a good college and graduated purely based on how well they could take a test.
Maybe it is because I was not blessed with photographic memory or having the ability to naturally understand math. Maybe it is because I was a gymnast for 12 years and the importance of hard work was instilled at my brain when I was just learning how to form sentences. Maybe these are the reasons that I will always be rubbed the wrong way when I am confronted with someone that has never had to work for what they want, and therefore does not have the motivation or work ethic to get things done when they need to be done. Life is unfair and I know it. Some people are just blessed with incredible talents and they choose to just ride them as long as it will take them. Others, the majority of us, who have to buckle down and really concentrate to get things done might have a disadvantage, but hopefully in our future work ethic and dedication might  become important once again.
JSL

Groups.

You are who you hang out with.
It is a simple fact. Even if you do not have the same beliefs or morals with the people you hang out with, in people's eyes you will be associated with them and all their ideals. And if you are hanging with people who do not have very strict guidelines for themselves to follow, your lines may begin to appear a little fuzzier the more time you spend with them.
You should not care what people think. I would say that is a point-blank fact but there is some grey area around it. Let me revise: You should not care what irrelevant people think of you, however, your friends that want the best for you, your parents, adults that respect you, should not fall in that category. Believe it or not the reputation you have with the people who you should care about is what is going to benefit you in your life. Your teachers are the ones writing recommendation letters, you friends are the ones that are sticking up for you (or at least should be), and your parents love you, and to love you is to care about you and see you make the best version of yourself present in all situations.
If you hang out with people that disregard authority, do not mind people's feelings, or do not hold any of the standards you hold from yourself you should not let them be influencing you.
I am in high school, I understand how difficult this can be. It is hard enough to find a group of people that all like you let alone are actually all decent people. Once you find a group that will accept you it is often really tempting to conform because no matter what kind of people they are, it is better to be included and invited than it is to be alone. People in high school also seek out the best offers, so if you are trying to find that good group of people and you find one person, the makings of a good group, that one person might jump at the opportunity to hang out with another group because apparently a party is more appealing than just a night with you and them.
Do not let the ever-changing friend groups of high school define you. And just start laughing and move on when the group of friends who you thought were your friends turn out to be awful and go seek out the individuals who will always care for you.
JSL

Wake up call.

Thank goodness they could handle it.
It is deeply saddening that it takes something devastating to happen in order for people to make a change, to be nicer for example. People are bullied all the time in high school. Maybe someone is not bullying one person but is just a mean person, and for some reason most of the time we accept the fact that it just happens. Only when something tragic happens is when teachers, students, communities demand a change immediately.
This was a wake up call that no one was expecting. I did not know this girl, but a freshmen at my school was pushed the the brink by people, and she felt that pushing back was no longer worth it. Battling not only bullying but also the darkness of depression, this girl felt alone in a school of over 1500 kids. Twitter blew up with pictures that had been taken at football games with her, posts expressing how they would be there for anyone if one should ever feel this way, and many more regarding how great she was as a person and how much she will be missed. This was a little more than a month ago. Shortly after this happened we had a school-wide assembly promoting the importance of being kind. The goal was to make a kinder school and I believe that it did make a difference, for about a week. The wake-up call to bullies and mean people jolted them but did not defer them from being who they are. And the bystanders, are still just bystanders, and often just brush things under the rug when they are presented with situations where they have the choice to help or not.
Sadly bullying not what is used to be. If only it was. It would be so much easier to prevent someone from punching someone in the face, than to delete the mean test messages that are sent out or shush all the gossiping that occurs behind closed doors. Bystanders are the root of the problem in my opinion. They conform to be friends with whomever they are around and disregard people's feelings when they are not standing right in front of them. No wonder there are so many individuals that feel alone, in high school, people are really good at making you feel like you are.
What makes me the most upset, angry even, is that this wake up call did nothing to change my school. From my observations, the nice and considerate side of people disappeared in just a few short weeks. If I had any inclination that I had been mean to this girl, it would hang over my head for the rest of my life.
If I had been mean to anyone with knowledge of it, I would thank God Himself every time I saw their beautiful face in the hall way. Thank the Lord, they decided that ledge was not very appealing to them. Sadly, this revelation has not rang through the halls of our school yet, hopefully we do not need another wake-up call to change things.
JSL

Bubble Wrap.

You're all precious little snowflakes.
A phrase my favorite teachers often uses when making jokes regarding my generation. This teacher claims that we are babied into thinking we are all the most important things ever and participation ribbons are going to get us nowhere in life. He always  goes on to say that it is not our fault though, he says its okay that is the way you were raised you do not know anything different.
To an extent, I agree with him. I think my generation is one who thinks that we are entitled to things. Things should be handed to us on a silver platter and things are never our fault.
Bad grades?
Teacher's fault.
Not an all-star athlete?
Coaching issue.
Debts are piling up thanks to college loans?
Make college free, it is not my fault I did not apply for scholarships or saved money throughout high school and college. It is not my fault that no one taught me how to be smart with my money, make them pay for my college because they did not teach me what the real world was going to be like.
I believe that the generation that I am in is going to get hit below the belt when they reach the real world. As kids, we have been wrapped so tightly in bubble wrap that nothing can harm us. No parents saying "rub some dirt on it" just hugs an kisses and a new pony. Because everything has been handed to us, why would we expect anything different when we venture out on our own? I am a junior in high school and I still know next to nothing about taxes. I can teach you the best ways to memorize things right before a test or how to suck up to your parents to convince them to say yes to something. These are very valuable skills do not get me wrong, but I am worried about what the future has in store for us all. Thank goodness mom is only a call away and we are blessed with the all-knowing thing called Google.
JSL

Meaning.

There are plenty of words I could write in this blog that would seem unprofessional, and offend the older generations. Four letter words weave in and out of sentences as I talk to people in the hallway, even to some teachers if we are on that level of formality. If  you see someone flip someone off in the classroom, your first thought is that they were only joking with their friends. Heck, there is even an emoji for it now. Words and things that were once found offensive and inexcusable are now used in a whole new context.
I myself do not swear. My dad rarely does and he told me that it was because there are plenty of more intelligent words out there that could be used in place of them. As I went through middle and now high school and my peers around me began to expand their vocabulary in that direction, when faced with an argument they found it more difficult to get their point across using only these four letter words as their aids. I however found that an extensive vocabulary demonstated in  an argument can be most intimidating and very much useful.
Another reason why I chose not to swear is because I have to spoken with people who do and some have told me that once you start you can find them starting to slip in places when you do not intend for them to. For instance, around your parents. Now, knowing that once you start swearing, it becomes difficult to stop, I  do not understand why people who swear do not attempt to stop themselves for doing it. One of my worst fears would be me accidentally swearing in an interview, and having that be the thing that prevents me from getting the job. One slip of the tongue can cause plenty of repercussions. This can happen even when you do not curse, so adding those words into your vocabulary only gives you more danger areas to avoid.
The musical Anything Goes touches on this subject. There are so may more things that are widely accepted nowadays. There are more things you can get a way with in a proffesional setting that some may make the claim that there is no reason to filter yourself at all. This means that my whole view of never swearing is pretty pointless. Maybe the tables will turn again and the meanings of the words will be redefined, so the young and the old will be able to agree.
JSL

Grand Ole Times.

Nashville Tennessee, a once in a lifetime experience.
Show choir is a growing activity nation-wide, and I am fortunate enough to be apart of the famous Happiness Inc. Every four years Happiness travels to Nashville, Tennessee to compete in Show Choir Nationals against some of the best show choirs in America. We preformed on the Grand Ole Opry stage where many famous artists have stood and sang. Although lots of the members of our choir are not the biggest country fans out there, the experience on that stage in indescribable. Because of the tough competition and with how our show turned out for the competitive season, we did not know if we would make it past the prelims and be able to preform again in finals the nest day. Standing on that stage very well could have been the last time preforming for over half of out choir.
We were siked.  A number of  people from our other choirs made the trip down to Nashville and we could hear them loud and clear as we stood on the other side of that curtain, waiting for it to rise. They started singing "If you are Happy and you know it" and everyone on stage sang along on stage. We could only hear the front row from the stage, but my mother later informed me that the whole place was belting it, all of us on stage included. High school can take its toll on everyone especially  when everyone is trying to make everyone around them happy. It is especially hard in my opinion when you have students from all different grades with pre-decided friend groups in one choir and you tell them to act like a family. This year has been very difficult for me in that regard, however clapping my hands and singing that song on stage is something I will never forget.
Sometimes in high school there are going to be people who attempt to derail you and step in the way of you making memories. Now if the memories you want to make involve bad decisions, they are probably just looking out for you, keep them around. But those people who just try and prevent your from making good memories, please just push aside. I can tell you from a personally that if I would not have had my mother and good friends to tell me that those people do not matter, I would have wasted this once and a lifetime trip dwelling on something insignificant people said. Keep making good memories, do not allow yourself to remember only the bad moments in high school.
JSL

Sanitation.

Whenever I see something in a movie or T.V. show where there is one person stomping grapes in a bucket, I am disgusted. Which, I believe is a natural reaction to have. The first thing I think about is the stinky feet sweat that is being mixed in with the grape juice, or the toenail fungus. Now I do not consider myself a germaphobe by any means, but some people think about the worst-case scenarios, like I do when I think about grape juice, as they regard everything in their day to day lives.
I think the line that I draw with what is unsanitary is fairly reasonable. Bugs should be no where around food unless you are outside, and if a fly lands on it while you are out there you probably will survive. If your teammate is thirsty and is not kneeling over by illness, let them have a drink. It is not like it is a stranger who might have just gotten done eating cockroaches or something. Plus, you should get over that pretty quickly if you ever plan on having a significant other, unless you are only planning to kiss them right after they brush their teeth. Washing your hands is something you should be doing regularly, but do not make it an obsessive habit. I personally think that a lot of the germs on your hands that you acquire throughout the day will in the long run only build up your immune system. Give your body a chance to build antibodies and fight against the illnesses you are so afraid of.
I understand that a phobia is a phobia and sometimes people are not able to prevent themselves from seeing the very worst things, and I feel bad for them. If I have chocolate cake at a graduation party and a fly lands on it, I am still eating that cake. To some people though that fly will have stolen that pleasure from them and I truly feel bad for them, because it was probably a really good cake. Maybe those who do not have an actual phobia of germs but just do not like them could just think of the heads up your body is getting throughout the day with the different germs you encounter.
Eat the cake.
JSL

Stress.

In high school, there will be points in the year where stress becomes a chronic state, rather than just an adjective used to describe yourself for one particular day. Some of these instances will be in the crunch time of your sport season, the weeks leading up to finals, and when your friends are all in a spat. As someone who gets overly stressed and has had multiple weeks filled with stress induced stomach pains, one may think I am not qualified to give advice on such topic. I, however believe that I am fully capable and will proceed to write this anyways.
In any instance where you feel stressed, you first need to analyze the situation at hand. You need to determine if the problems you are faced with are really worth loosing any sleep over. In most cases, they usually are not. Getting worried about a big race, meet, match, or game will only keep you from doing your best. Studying all night rather than getting a good night's sleep the day before a test may seem to work, but for finals, there is not enough hours in a night for it to work. If you do not know the material, there is little you can do the day of, or in the wee hours of that morning. Allowing an argument between anyone that does not involve yourself, is a waste of time. That does not mean do not care if others come to you with their problems, listen and give your best advice while always staying neutral. When you get involved, things never turn out the way you wish them too. My best advice, is to stay out of others' petty personal problems. Of course, this does not include situations where right and wrong is being questioned. In those instances you should always firmly stand with the side which you believe is right.
One way to prevent yourself from being stressed is to stay very organized. Make yourself a schedule and keep it up to date. Constantly put things you need to remember on a To-Do list. The times we usually get stressed out in high school are for reasons that could have been avoided. When I get stressed out, it is usually because I have let myself believe that I can be in two places at once, but sadly, they have yet to invent that technology. Do not allow yourself to get behind or let your responsibilities become cluttered in your head. This is the best way to avoid stress in general.
Even the most organized people still get stressed unfortunately, and even if you follow my advice to avoid stress at all costs, it still may happen. It will happen. We are in high school, and stress in inevitable. Do your best to roll with the punches, just start laughing whenever you can, and look at the bright things in life. Never let stress get in the way of you being happy because I have yet to think of something that should be placed over you having a good day. 

Judging.

We all criticize others of doing it. We all do it ourselves. I believe that it is a natural occurrence that one must cautiously think about to refrain from the act. Why though? Why do we constantly judge others and compare ourselves to the ever-changing idea of "perfection" when we all know perfectly well that "perfection" does not exist? I ponder this question and also wonder why we all waste so much time in high school when we revolve everything around that idea. Do we just not know better?

In the blog Jade's Declassified School Survival Guide, there is a post on "Insecurities".(http://jadeirish.blogspot.com/2015/09/insecurities.html?m=1) This post poses the perfect question, "Why are we all insecure?". My answer to that is that we are all worried of others judging. We are worried about others doing the exact same thing we do to them. In my opinion, this prevents people from allowing their true personalities to shine, burying them deep in a shell of assimilation where no light comes through. I have heard people say college is the time where people find themselves, and I think that makes high school a place where we are judged to the point of where we do not even know who we are. Which adds on to the list of things that make high school the painful experience it is. 

Another thing we all tend to do that goes hand in hand with judging is assuming. The best people are the ones who stop rumors in their tracks and confront the person whom it is about. Every situation is only awkward if you allow it to be, and most likely the person will truly appreciate you asking. Sometimes, our closest friends are not able to ask us whether something said was true. Do not be that person. It is really aggravating knowing that no one is sticking up for you and people tend to do to you, what you do to them, therefore making it a win-win. Also, when you do discover what people say about you, and it is maybe not a great thing, just start laughing because irrelevant people attempt to drag people to their level to make them feel better about themselves. Those are the people whom we all have to be the very nicest to. 

I have also mentioned before the concept of sensitivity, this is relevant when speaking of judging because we all do need to not care what others think. As chichè as it sounds, it is one maturity point you will hopefully achieve during your years at high school. Now, I do tend to bag on high school a lot, not all of the experiences have been the most pleasant for me, and this blog attempts to aid other in avoiding those situations. However, if you make a conscious effort to not judge others, attempt not to assume things, be up front with people, and try to not care what others think, high school will be great! It's a long, difficult list to complete, barely possible, but achievable. 

Organization.

Two AP classes, three varsity sports, speech, drama, and a job. At the beginning of the year, I also had another job on top of all that, so one could say I have some experience scheduling. During the summer, with two jobs that always conflicted, stressful did not even begin to describe the situations it had put me under. Even with a detailed planner and a color coordinated calendar, stressed-induced stomach pains filled a couple of weeks of my summer. Now know that this is not an argument against being involved, that is the complete opposite of what I would advise. The two jobs is the one thing that got me into trouble, so if you gain any knowledge from this post, do not get two jobs in high school, it is not worth it. And back to being involved, get into as many things you can without overwhelming yourself. There are so many opportunities in high school, search for every one that interests you. The busier you are, the more organized and focused you have to be. The more free time you have, the more time you have to slack off. Being in so many activities, the responsibilities that I have placed upon myself, in my opinion, has better prepared me to face what ever obstacles life has to throw at me.
On to how I possibly fit everything into a 24-hour period. First, prioritizing is key. School should obviously come first, so make sure to plan times to get homework and studying in, because with as busy of a schedule as mine, the snowball effect becomes twice the size of the avalanche. Having a color coordinated calendar and a planner is also a necessity. If I was not able to write everything down, my days would spiral out of control. Here is a tip, every time you tell yourself, "Oh, I will just remember it." JUST START LAUGHING and pick up a pen. Even if you do remember everything, it always helps me get through the day when I can cross things off my list because I know when I am done I can get to what is the most important part of my day, sleeping. Make sure you schedule that in with all the other things, some of the best days I have are the ones that I know that I am getting more sleep than usual. Now, I have mentioned my color coordinated calendar multiple times, and I hope you have realized its importance to me. Now color coordinating works very will for me, the bright colors makes the long days a little brighter, but if it does not work for you, I will not be offended.
From one busy bee to the next, good luck with your future endeavors, make time for yourself, and know that it is possible to be extraordinarily busy and still enjoy ever moment of your high school career.
JSL

Seniority.

Seniority is something you need to respect. The only time it becomes a problem is when underclassmen start to step over their boundaries. In middle school, when sitting on the bus, I used to always get so frustrated when the older kids would make such a big deal about the back of the bus. We were all going to the same place, what was the big deal? This was the big deal, they needed to feel bigger, they wanted to have power over the little kids. Now in high school it gets better, it is not as big of a deal because people start taking classes together and the maturity levels grow to be on the same plane. However, seniority  is still a big deal to people, especially in football games and in drama and other things. This is my best advice when it comes to that, if you make the most of wherever you get to sit, and be humble about positions or places you get over an upperclassmen. Here are some other pleasant gestures you could do for upperclassmen:
Give up your seat for them at sporting events
-Cheer loud for every team (this is one of the seniors largest pet peeves)
-Congratulate everyone in everything they do (people deserve the credit for all the work they have done)
-Know that you will soon be the ones who sit in the front
You will get older, give it time.
Now being an underclassmen once before, I understand the frustrations that come along with the idea of "seniority". Even as someone who supposedly one who has the power over underclassmen. This  is not a power I use often, or at all really, but I appreciate when it is acknowledged. But as I said because I have been an underclassmen, as an upperclassmen, I do my best to treat underclassmen just like anyone else, as long and they know that I may be a bit older and wiser than they are. It has been working for me so far, so keep that in mind when you discover how agitating the underclassmen can be. Rather than being meaner than is necessary when you get to your reign of power, remember you were once in their place too.
JSL
  

Salt.

While baking, most of the time the recipes are very exact. However, when someone is telling you their own recipe, especially grandmas, the get a little lazy with the exact measurements. Although a "pinch of salt" is not completely accurate, you know well enough to not dump a whole handful in. If you did allow too much salt to infiltrate your batter or dough, your end product will not be appealing or as scrumptious as it should be. However, some recipes call for salt. It is neccisary to put in to complete it, and that is how you should treat your days, a little salt is okay, but not too much. Another thing that is very important to pay attention too when it comes to baking is paying attention to how long you keep the goodies in the oven. In order for the the treats to taste just right, they have to be baked the right amount. The best chocolate chip cookies are the ones that are completely done, but not "done" too much that they become hard or burnt. When something is too "done", it does not taste very well. 

Being "salty" is a slang reference that o have no clue where it started, but I for one use it all the time. When someone stares that they are "salty" they could be peeved, rubbed the wrong way, upset, frustrated, or just done. Being "done" means almost the same thing. However, this slang term takes a more literal meaning and is typically used when you are finished dealing with a situation you are presented with.

 When a teacher gives you a bad grade on something you worked hard on.

Salty.

 When someone is spreading false rumors about you.

So done.

When you thought it was Friday but it is only Thursday.

Salt.

When you are running late for school in the morning and then you cannot find a parking spot.

Just done with the day. 

Now because I do not aim to be a hypocrite, I have to defend my case for my reasoning as to why I say these things so much. When I state that I'm "salty" about something, or I'm just "so done" it usually is me referring to a small situation that I felt people around me needed to know my opinion on it and then it does not bother me after that. I consider myself a overall happy person so little things that I make those comments on do not usually ruin my whole day. Others, on the other hand, let their salt consume them, or they forget to take the literal meaning of being "done" and allow it to drag on the rest of their day. 

Do not do that.

Do not let those things consume you. Allow it to happen, then move on with your day. We all have bad days but I feel as if people in high school like to dwell on them. They like to tell everyone about what terrible day they are having, rather than trying to forget about it and allow it to become a good day. I have had a lot of bad days, and I cannot wait to get out of high school, but I do not let that change my overall happiness. So you suould not either.

It is okay to add just a pinch of salt, or allow your cookies to be just the right amount of being done, but be careful when you bake. I consider myself to be a proffesional baker, one time I made home made brownies and this kid wanted to propose to me right then and there, (Joking obviously) but my rainbow cupcakes are certainly something to beat. Plus, it's easier to just start laughing when you have a house full of perfectly made goodies than if you have a messy kitchen with salty cookies and the fire alarm going off in the back round.

Big Picture.

"There are REAL problems out there, and petty drama in high school is not it."
High school students are often labeled as those who believe their whole life is represented by the situations they are in right now. Adults often remind us to think of how this will affect us in the future.
"This is not going to matter in a year, a month, it is not the end of the world."
They preach this to us every time we come home crying, time and time again hoping that one of these times we will finally understand they are speaking the truth. As much as we hate to admit it, wisdom only comes from years and our parents and adults we speak to usually have plenty of those. I am now realizing this as a junior in high school, way later that I wish I would have realized it, but there in fact is more to life than these halls of my high school.
We are reminded that there is a bigger picture we should look at other times besides when we are caught off guard by petty problems. Such as when we read bibliographies, listen to history lessons, or watch movies with sad endings. However, those humbling thoughts are quickly silenced when our own problems reappear. I am sure that I will forget this sediment sooner than later,  but as of right now I am taking more things with a grain of salt as my time in high school dwindles. The reason for this was my good friend sharing her philosophy on life one late night on a show choir trip. She was able to open my eyes, though unintentionally, to the real problems there were, versus the minute ones we are faced with in high school. Now having a better perspective on how insignificant time, individual people are, and little letters on the tops of papers, I am able to enjoy high school more than I did before this conversation. High school can be really awful and I am sure that I have not seen all the hurdles it has put in front of me yet, but when I take a step back and look at the actual hurdles others are going through, and the ones I might actually have to face when I am older, these ones seem miniscule.
I wish more people could realize this, because if everyone saw the big obstacles that lie ahead in their own paths, or even in the lives of others, why would continue to place these itty-bitty, annoying, and idiotic hurdles in the lanes of others to trip them up. They should rather be preparing themselves to jump the big ones ahead, and worry about themselves. And if they already think they are going to finish this race in one piece, then they could help others by deterring those who refuse to stop placing the little hurtles in others lanes.
The sooner people realize how few days we have left, hopefully the sooner they will understand that causing these petty problems just isn't worth it.
JSL

Hard Work.

Talent can only get you so far, but not everything in life will be handed to you on a silver platter.
As a high school student with little time on her hands, hard and persistent work is the only solution to getting things done. I began diving in high school after I ended my gymnastics career. Flipping in the air was nothing out of the ordinary, but this year, I found myself hungering to be better and get my name out there. With only one more year of high school left, my time left to make an impact was slowly diminishing. I made a decision to not waste the precious time I was given and implemented the years of hard-work training from my gymnastics years, back when flipping was not always so simple. Despite the unbearably early mornings in the pool, I felt myself getting better. I continuously would remind myself not to procrastinate on homework because I knew my weekends would be filled with competitions and private practices. All those mornings spent shivering, all the air that was taken out of my lungs when a dive ended in a smack, all the water swallowed never hindered my drive for success when I could see the leaps and bounds I was accomplishing. During the most competitive part of my season this year I unfortunately had a series of illnesses, yet continued to dive which legnthened my recovery time and just when I thought that I was good to go for state meet I injured my back during warm ups and competed in a lot of pain. I was still able to place 16th at state though. Although the season came to a disappointing end, I was shown that my hard work did not go unnoticed when I was named one of the swimming and diving team captains for my senior year. If hard work has gotten me this far this year, I can only imagine the progress next year.

Escape.

Escaping high schools pressure in a productive way can take on many different forms, mine however, is running. I have had many different paths of escape including tumbling in gymnastics, jumping of trampolines, diving, and now running.
I was a gymnast for 12 years, and thankfully my early years as a gymnast were not very stressful, but then came the middle school years that everyone dreads. Gymnastics became something that was stable, unlike the girls at school who claimed to be my friends, and pounding on the floor was something else I could concentrate on.
You would be surprised at how quickly one can get winded by jumping on a trampoline. Even as a physically fit kid I still had to sit down every couple of minutes. I would work on more gymnastics skills or try to do the fun thing someone showed me at gymnastics camp. I would see how high I could jump and imagined how high I could get if I jumped off my roof onto my trampoline. My trampoline was right outside and (weather permitting) I could use it whenever I liked.
Diving is a technical sport. Thanks to gymnastics flipping in the air was nothing out of the ordinary and I was able to catch on pretty quickly soon after I started freshmen year. Diving was not an escape at first, the early morning practices followed by my hair being soaked as I walked to my first class of the day was not always thrilling. This year, however, things changed. The difficulty level needed to be doing my dives was heightened, as was the risk component. As I said diving is a technical sport and while you are in the air there is little room for outside thoughts. Diving became an escape because it was something I could focus on, and it was also rewarding as I became a higher and higher ranked diver.
Working out every week was nothing out of the ordinary for me. Back in the gymnastics days I would be in the gym for around 20 hours a week. If I wanted to maintain the form I was in I could not stop after I retired, so I started going to a gym. A high-intensity work out only gives you one thing to think about, how much pain you are in, and the only other thing that you are fighting to put in your mind is telling yourself it will be worth it afterwards, and reminding yourself to breathe. Pain is a very good escape plan as long as its productive.
Sometimes high school can be really difficult, and being stuck in the same place with the same people who constantly remind you of where you are messing up and what they do not like about you can be just draining. It is too much, to be quite frank, and the unbelievable amounts of pressure on us are the reasons young people make bad decisions and turn to things that are not good for them. Staying active has always worked for me, but maybe for you its puzzles, rubics cubes, drawing, writing, singing, the list could go on and on. If you want to escape, its simple, just concentrate on something else. And also remember to just start laughing, although they may seem monstrous, the pressures of high school max out at four years.
JSL

Communication.

This is not only a lesson that will help you in high school, but will also aid you in your life adventures.
In your life, good communication skills are the key to good, honest relationships. Good, honest relationships are the key to success. Success is what everyone feels leads to a happy life, so the moral of the story is that good communication skills will most definitely lead you in the right direction.
The tricky thing about communication is the many aspects of it, verbal and physical, and the new addition of technological communication.
Verbal communication is something that is of a dying breed. We have technology to thank for that. In this day and age, there are many people, especially those in high school, that would choose to text rather than talk on the phone. According to statisticbrain.com, the number one fear of people in America based on a study they did was Glossophobia- the fear of public speaking. I know that this is but one aspect of verbal communication, but this falls under the same category. Although it often times seems that working on improving your verbal communication in a high school setting would not be worth your time, high school may actually be the best place due to the many different individuals you will come in contact with, giving you more experience. And with the many sensitive people who flood the halls you will become especially aware of your tone of voice and your diction. Verbal communication is a necessity because it is essential to creating personal relationships.
Physical communication is something seen and not heard. How people act without saying anything is a key concept in understanding someone. Crossing your arms, not making eye contact, edging away are all signs you would not have in an interview, or if you were having a conversation with someone you liked. Verbal and physical communication have to go hand in hand when you are having a conversation because how would you expect people to understand you otherwise?
Technological communication has taken away some of the key components in communication in my opinion. In a text, without an emoji, you cannot hear the person's tone, nor can you read their body language. And even with an emoji or if all caps are used there is still plenty of room for speculation. With the growing usage of phones I believe my generation is able to understand the meanings of text messages more than other generations have, but due to that we now are loosing our skill of actually talking to communicate.
Thankfully I like to talk. Keeping eye contact is not difficult for me and I can pick up on others' tone and stature pretty well. However I fear this is a dying skill that people need to revive. Keep talking, and maybe that will make you just start laughing.
JSL

Being Diligent.

In a world growing more and more dependent on the use of cell phones, one needs to realize that "hitting someone with that no reply" is something that should be left in middle school. I understand that sometimes getting you point across to some one can only be accomplished by ignoring someone, and in some cases it is perfectly acceptable. But as you age, the conversations where points like those have to be made will slowly decrease. You may still have the random creepy person that got your number from a friend of a friend, and the random strangers that "slide into your DMs", but other than those exceptions, replying is the mature thing to do. For instance, when you get a job, and someone asks if you can cover a shift, reply no matter what, even if you do not know or know that you cannot. It is just common curtsy, and you will understand the annoyance of slow-repliers when you must have a shift covered. The people you work with will also think better of you if you are on top of things when it comes to your schedule, so always keep it organized and never hesitate to take a shift when you can, you never know when you will need one covered on short notice.
Back to replying; in high school, there are many circumstances you may run into where you get into disputes with your "friends" and talking to them is the last thing you want to do. Let me give you a bit of advice, if they decide to be the bigger person and text you, text back. And if they decide to give you the silent treatment, be a good person and try to make amends. Fights are honestly not worth your time, and not replying to someone is no way to solve anything. Be the person who is the quickest to respond because it makes everyone's day better.
One last thing to remember, if someone is doing something for you, giving you a ride, inviting you to something, covering a shift for you, giving you homework, make sure to make their messages a top priority. They are going out of their way to do something for you and they deserve the fastest reply your fingers can type. If you take my advice on this, fewer people have the chance to get mad at you and therefore make your life easier.
JSL

Procrastination.

Do not call us lazy. Some of us care enough to get homework done on time, others do not, but procrastination is something we all do. With our ever-advancing society, there are more and more things that we need to memorize in order to get that piece of paper or to impress colleges. Just take history for example, think of how much has happened since you graduated! During our teenage years, we are defining ourselves. This includes but is not limited to our interests and what we find important. What I am trying to say is I apologize parents, but these math equations are not something I find especially important to me. 

There are some that are actually lazy, and you can nag them all you want but they most likely will not change. But for the rest of us, do not try and get us to like something we obviously do not. 

To put everything into perspective, think of why you get things done at work. Hopefully it is because you love what you do. 

We do not love school. Hate to break it to you, but learning is not considered "fun" anymore. That ended in like 5th grade. 

Here is my advice, sympathize with your kids. Understand why they procrastinate and tell them they will stress less if they don't. Encourage them to get things done so they can do the things they enjoy. High school is only four years long but it finds ways to drag on and on. 

Your kid is not lazy, and calling them that will not help. 

JSL

Success.

Jayden Lovell

P.6

Why Am I Obsessed With Success?

    Second means there is room for improvement. Even after you win there is still more room because you were the best of the day, but did you break the record? How will you know that your performance is guaranteed to get you to the next level? 

You must always keep working to better yourself. 

    Obsessions are something that typically do not have an end point. For example, when one is obsessed with a material thing, such as hats, the collect as many as they can and feed the hunger that cannot be satisfied. Success is something that is never obtained by someone obsessed with it, because it is rather an idea or dream someone has pictured for themselves. This means that the person obsessed with success will never obtain it in their own eyes, but are able to slowly devour the small victories they win.

    Everyone wants to be successful right? It makes you feel good to have people pat you on the back, recognize your name because you have done something worthy of people knowing who you are. But the people who are obsessed with success never have their thirst quenched. Maybe it is only a high school thing, or has something to do with the fact that I am a teenager, but I know that some adults just sit on their records they set when they were younger and live off the success of the past. Whilst you are a teenager and are going through this phase of constantly wanting to improve yourself, the time you have to do it is limited. Not only are there only 24 hours in a day, but you only have a small portion of your life where you can push your body and its abilities to their maximum. Often times we forget about this time-frame and work ourselves into sleep deprivation, which lead to illnesses, which should lead us to finally resting, but we do not have time for that when we could be getting better. 

Your best can always be better.

I feel as if there are a lot of people who will fall into that category of “used to’s” who once were obsessed with winning but once they are grown are please with the things they have accomplished. Then are the select few who continue on their obsession even after they have made a name for themselves. Those are the ones who cannot seem to get out of the cycle of always wanting to be better, the others, they just go through the phase. 

Maybe I am just in a phase, but the view from first place looks mighty swell to me. 

JSL

    

Obsession.

Please

to

appease.

Retry

to 

satisfy. 

Assent

until

content.

I cannot help it. I know you can never make everyone happy, but I find myself attempting to do so again and again. I blame it on the atmosphere that high school presents. It would be much easier to not care about everyone's opinion if people did not plaster it on Twitter, subtweeting and gaining all these like from individuals that agree with them. From an adults perspective, the itty-bitty number next to a little star on a screen might seem menial, but to teenagers it is a big deal. The only solution in my mind is to just please everyone. Makes perfect sense right? Then no one would subtweet or speak ill of you and high school would not be so bad. It sounds wonderful, if only it actually happened.

It has been proven to me time and time again that you cannot please everyone, yet I cannot find any other solution to this problem. I could not care, which is what many people say they do, but as much as I try, I am unable to remove that part of my brain. The part of my brain that cares too much about what others think has grown into many other parts of my brain. It has intertwined itself into the part that lets me laugh, reminding me that someone will not be happy when j think something is funny. It has engulfed the part of my brain that allows me to speak my mind on issues, holding my tounge for me. 

However, I do think this obsession with pleasing people has gotten better the more I advance in high school. The more awful experiences happen the more I understand why it does not matter. I hope senior year I will finally be able to understand.

Try not to care. 

JSL

 

    

Meaning.

If you are not actively trying to be the best person you can be, what are you doing? 

The "meaning of life" can be interpreted in many, many ways, but this is mine. 

My good friend and I have different opinions on a lot of things. You name it, we probably have argued about it: politics, religion, sports, everything. Do not get me wrong we are still great friends, and we have many intellectual conversations, which is why I think we are such good friends. But anyways, I asked him what he thought about this subject, or rather placed my opinion on the table and let him set his down next to it. He is living and making decisions that make him happy. Which is one perspective. And I do not believe that he is the only one with that mindset. However, that way of thinking just does not make sense in my mind. We are faced with so many opportunities to make a difference if we pay attention. Plus I feel as if we continue to be the best we can be, that would in turn make us happy as well. He does not see that as being happy but rather setting yourself up for disappointment. Which also makes sense because if you are actively trying to better yourself you might never be satisfied. Our arguments never seem to have any closure, based on the fact that we are both very stubborn people, but I cannot help but thinking that I would always be left wondering if I did not at least try to better myself. I do not think I would be any happier otherwise. But maybe that's just me. 

JSL 

Talent.

"Hard work beats talent when talent does not work."
When one is talented, it is easy to obtain the expectation that things will come easily for them, because they always have. The wins blur together, the straight A's on tests look normal, so when they do not come out on top, or get that first F, one may not know what to do. It can be very frustrating when someone you have beat all season all of a sudden beats you. 

It was obviously a fluke.

It's never their fault.

So they do not make any changes, and still question when it happens again. 

I am not trying to say that all talented people are lazy bums, but the ones that are just grind my gears. The incredibly talented people that do not have to work are some of the most valuable people on a team, do not get me wrong, maybe the little green monster just comes out in me. It's when their talent falters that makes me the most upset, which makes me wonder if talent does not always benefit people. 

Studying hard is no fun, trust me I understand. Unfortunately I was not blessed with the knack of photographic memory. Life is not fair I know, but when I am stuck studying all night long and then hear someone who usually gets A's complain about their score on the same test that they did not loose any sleep over, I get a little salty. Sometimes you have to put in hard work even if you are blessed with being talented. 

Imagine the potential of people that worked hard even if they already are winning everything or getting straight A's. I know that our school would then be number one in everything. That sounds pretty fantastic to me. 

Work hard, a little elbow grease never killed anyone. 

JSL

Currency.

Would you waste someone's money? I am not talking about your parents who give you money and you "forget" to give back the change, I am referring to people that give you money for a specific job, or a task. An intelligent individual would be responsible with that money and do with it what was intended.
Would you waste something when there was a shortage of it? There is a major drought and water is limited. A considerate person would know the value of the water they have and use it sparingly. If someone allows you to drink their water, you would only drink as much as you need.
In both of these situations I am assuming that you are an intelligent and considerate person, which is a lot to ask for I know, but I have a lot of faith in people.

We "spend" time on things, and they all I've an opportunity cost. We are able to choose how we spend our own time, but in some instances we are given the responsibility of determining how we spend other's time. 

Would an intelligent and considerate person then waste other's time? 

If we spend money, and we spend time on things, then we consider them both valuable. 

So then why would we waste time of we don't waste money?

Sometimes there are instances where we do not know that we are wasting other's time, or even our own. It is easy to see when we are wasting money because it is a physical thing we can see. You see your bank account draining or feel the  weightlessness of your wallet. Time is an ongoing thing that we often times forget. Its ticking as you read this. Hopefully you do not find reading this as a waste of time, but when you should be doing something else, maybe it is. It is hard to be conscious of using our own time, so think of how difficult it is when you have to be considerate of others time as well. And because topically we do not always necessarily know what else others could be using their time on, and the importance of what it would be, we need to always be on top of things when we involve others. 

Spend time on important things, do not waste it.

JSL

Grades.

Little letters that seem to determine everything. If you are an average student at my high school, A's seem to be the only acceptable grade, and anything less than perfection will ruin your precious GPA. If you do not get that perfect 4.0 (or higher) you will not get scholarships.
You will not go to a good college.
You will not get a good job.
You will ruin your chance at a happy life; or so it seems, because that is how much grades are stressed. In high school, we are being prepped for examination, building our resume to stand out compared to all others. Due to this, I feel as though many individuals' reasoning for getting involved and doing well in school is purely for college purposes.
Because all this hard work is leading up to so much of our future.
As a student, I believe I am able to make the claim that learning is now only considered how much a student can memorize before a test. And when you are only able to recall four of the six, you fall short of perfection and your percentage drops a few places. In hindsight, going from an 92%  to a 90% does not seem like a big deal, but when you put it one the scale, an A- looks a lot worse than an A. The margin of error is so incredibly small in the grading system, the idea of perfection should be every one's dream goal, but maybe not their realistic one. However, is it decided for us that it is our expectation to be A students, because there is no chance for us to succeed in the real life if we do not succeed now.
We most likely will not all become analytical critics of literature, or the next person to discover the 119th element. I am in no means trying to say that we should not be given the opportunities to be that if we want to be, but I feel as if we should not be judged based on our overall abilities in all subjects, when we should be judged on what we advance on.  

Ticking.

Seven.
Six.
Five.
Four.
Three.
Two.
We are almost
Done.
The countdowns on people's phones show insignificant numbers. The number of opportunities we have to make a difference in our high school is slowly diminishing. Our term limit of incarceration is almost up. Graduation is one year away.
Some may view this is as a terrifying occurrence, hearing the ticking of the clock and envisioning it counting down to when we are thrown unknown territory. From the viewpoint of a junior, some may say I have not experienced the full extent of "senior-itus". However, I know that I have been counting down the days since my awful freshmen year to walk across that stage and get out of that place.
High school is safe. The halls we walk and the faces we see everyday never change. We know what we are expected of and have found every loophole in our 13 year old contract. Now presented with the responsibility of being on top, we now are presented the ability to make a difference in what happens to us every day. Student body presidents are typically seniors, and upperclassmen are usually the ones to question whether something is unjust, but that window of  time is shrinking. In terms of sports, two or three years of hard work has now gotten us to the top, and we are all fighting for that last title. We cannot take losses lightly, because this may be our last time competing. We want to make an impression, but we do not have much time left.
On the other hand, some feel the countdown seems to linger after every tick. With each day comes unbearable difficulties that we are tired of putting up with. These same faces in the hall all have awful memories associated with them and we long for a different view from these halls. Some see no use is changing the system because through our years we have figured out how stubborn it is. We find encouragement when we see the days slip away, and cannot help but smiling when our government teacher says, "you guys have done 11 years you can do the next one standing in your head." That diploma is the ticket to a bright new future for us.
No matter the emotion we feel, the ticking is not slowing, and the end is inevitable.
JSL

Valentine.

As stated in my post PDA, I am not appalled by two people together that make each other happy, and all the posts today of couples celebrating does not bother me. Seeing them all cute, and lovey-dovey, happy, is just fantastic. No really, I am fine, truly. Anyways, while seeing all of this I wonder how they are all able to get gifts for one another and have it still be meaningful when everyone else is getting the same thing? Getting a necklace would be nice, or jewelry of any sort because you will think of the one whom you have received it from every time you wear it. I have also always been a huge fan of flowers, they are a sweet gesture in my opinion. ROSES ARE ALWAYS A GOOD OPTION. I guess every gift is something special, no matter how big or small.
When I was a freshmen, Valentine's Day was made up to be a huge deal. As a yougin, I gaped at the amount of flowers that were being sold, the arrangement of cookies in the foyer, and the number of baskets in the office waiting to be delivered. It was fantastic. As time went on Valentine's Day has begun to be less and less of a celebrated holiday, in my opinion because of the lack of tolerance people have had for couples, but I still reminisce of what it once was.
You may think Valentine's day is a superficial holiday but it does aid to justify why gift giving is an important thing. When you want someone to know how much you care about them, there is a never ending list of things you can do to show them. Some of the thing on that list include telling them, doing something for them, many others, and also, gift giving! Gifts in no way are necessarily elaborate or expensive. As cliche as it sounds, it really is the thought that counts. So, when pondering what gift to give someone, try and not stress about it too much. And keep on giving, it makes the world  a better place.

Being Direct.

I have found that in high school, some of our comrades have decided that the best way to handle certain situations is avoiding the matter at hand. They think that skirting around the edges of an important topic of discussion may avoid offending others and is therefore the right path to choose when commenting on touchy subjects. This often leads to instances where there is no closure.
My advice? Do not beat around the bush.
However, I may be impartial to that side of the argument due to my personality. Whenever someone is very direct with me on a subject, I find it refreshing. That may be the case due to the quantity of times I have had conversations where individuals beat around the bush when there is no need to. This may also be the result of my personal opinion on the overwhelming sensitivity of our high school population. I would rather have someone hurt my feelings with the truth than attempt to preserve them with sugar-coated comments. But is that my personal belief.
I do understand that there are sensitive people and also sensitive topics that should be allowed sugar-coating when necessary. Sometimes direct comments can be viewed as mean, rude, or inconsiderate, even if that was not the intention of the one being direct. Accusations like these are what makes people fear their involvement of direct conversations.
My solution for this discrepancy between when one should be direct and where they should be indirect is difficult to teach due to the fact of the matter being that each situation you are presented with needs to be individually assessed. One must consider a number of variables such as: whom you are talking to, what mood this person is in, whether or not you are able to be direct and considerate at the same time, and how sensitive the topic of discussion is. With all those accounted for, one may be able to handle the situation properly. Before commencing, ALWAYS ASK, "Is this really worth discussion?", because letting certain subjects is more often the best case scenario than most people believe,
Another handicap of why individuals are not able to decide when and when not to be direct is the use of cell phones. You cannot asses properly when you and whom you are speaking to are hiding behind screens nowhere near each other. This prevents one from hearing the tone of the other person and can change the outcome of many conversations, therefore giving many individuals the wrong impression of when and when they cannot be direct.
Best of luck, when in doubt, just try and make them start laughing.
JSL

All By Myself.

One of the best things that I have heard from a teacher was from my choir instructor. He acknowledged that while observing us throughout the year that he could see it was difficult for some people to just get through the day. Everyone has there bad days, they happen, but what is so surprising to me is that when we are in the midst of having those bad days, we feel very alone. Walking around a school with close to 1500 kids in it, how is it possible to feel all by ourselves on those days? A comment like that should not be as surprising as it was to me, but when we are in that mindset ourselves it is hard to believe that anyone would notice us moping around.
One of the reasons for this is that we ourselves shut people out on those days. We plug our headphones in, listen to sad music, and refuse to be consoled. We blame the feeling of isolation on everyone else when, in reality, it is only the fault of ourselves. The only reason I can examine this phenomenon is because I am not particularly sad today, however I am as stressed at normal. The thing we forget about when we climb into our igloo by ourselves is that the people around you are not always ignoring you on purpose. In that igloo, yes we are surrounded by snowflakes, but the reason we may still feel cold is because we fail to realize that each snowflake has their own responsibility and worries, yet we are the ones having a pity party for ourselves.
I have heard this quote, "Sometimes you have to be your own hero."
Do you know how inaccurate this is? We by no means have to be our own hero, we just have to stop being our own villain. We are being the bad guy of our own story if we go through days where we shut people out. The main reason why we would feel alone in a high school setting is because we surround ourselves with the wrong people or we sing our mopey sad songs and retweet sad sayings. Which are both things we can blame ourselves for. So, in conclusion, if you start to isolate yourself, (because it is you're doing) don't. Just start laughing and go join a circle of friends, or just people for that matter, because everyone has problems. We are all in this together so you should not place your problems above everyone else's.
JSL

Bottles.

Delicate things are stored in bottles. Tiny replicas of boats and messages. When you walk through the halls at school to you stop to think of what is in the hidden bottles of your peers?


She is about to explode because her friend told someone a secret.
But she put that in a bottle on the bottom shelf.

One of his grandparents just passed away, he is on the verge of tears.
But he puts them in a bottle and hides it on the back of the shelf that football games cover up.

She is standing there laughing with a group of people, but she just bombed a test and is trying not to freak out about it.
She bottles that all up inside to save for later.

We bottle emotions and store them away because we feel as if that is the best way to handle them. We choose to believe that no one would care and letting them spill would be pointless. Plus, if we collect as many as we can. they make a beautiful light show when the right light shines in. When we meet those shiny people in our life, we are able to let down our walls and show them our emotions, and the bottles light up like the stained glass windows in an old church. At first, the shiny people create a whole new experience within our emotions, but the longer you are with them, the more bottles they take down. When those people are gone, we start our collection again, having no one to share our feelings with. 
I have always been scared of the wine sections of stores, because with that many bottles stacked on the shelves, it doesn't take much to have them all crash down. Without that relief of a shiny person, the constant bottling up of our emotions is only going to lead to a break down. Especially considering all the pressure we are put under as teenagers in high school. Stress and glass bottles do not work well FYI. Thankfully, there maybe a number of solutions with our hoarding problem, unfortunately, they all involve emptying out those dusty bottles. 
Some of these may seem cheesy and lame, but do you know what else is lame? Hiding your emotions inside and tweeting about them late at night.
Look for shiny people to hang around. Find the people you can sympathize with and be yourself around.
Talk to your parents. As old school as this sounds, they are people who you can always count on to want the best for you.
Journal about it. "Dear Diary...", lame I know, but sometimes just unfiltered ranting helps.
Just start laughing. This is the best advice I can give anyone when it comes to being a happier person. 
JSL

Temporary.

This is not necessarily a problem in high school, but I feel as if a lot of people who have this problem started when they were young too. I will never know or ever be able to understand what it feels like to be depressed. I do not believe that personally I will ever have to resort to any action that would temporarily relieve me of my thoughts. Sadly, there are many people these days that do not believe in themselves or have faith in the strength they have.
For some, recreational drinking or smoking is something they just do with their friends in high school to have fun. For others, it's their escape, which is terrifying. Just like any made up movie or story, there is an end. What do you suppose will happen when you reach the last page or see the rolling credits? Temporary relief by no means relieves you. It delays the inevitable. Not only will everything you wanted to disappear come crashing down, but now you have a new problem to deal with.
I have written a blog about consequences in the past, things happen due to the choices we make. If on person allows themselves to stoop to that level to find relief, they now have to endure the consequences of stooping to that level. In my blog about consequences, I mentioned the fact that owning up to the choices you make is the best way to deal with consequences. However, the consequences that occur when you allow yourself to depend on alcohol or drugs for temporary relief, does not just include the people who will be disappointed in you. You might not be religious, but God has given you the strength you need. You must look for that strength to be able to pull yourself out of the dark place you are hiding. Maybe if you just start laughing you will be able to see some of the strength you have been given by Him. You as an individual are the only one that can decide how things influence you. You are the only person that decides whether you have to be sad. Try and keep in mind that being sad can be only temporary.

Gossip.

"Oh it's just something girls are gunna do."

That's like saying,"Oh, that dog bit you? Yea that's just what dogs are going to do."
If we generalize things into categories like that, then I would never want a dog. Or, for that matter, ever want to know a girl, and I am one.Gossiping is something that happens way more than it should in huh school, and nothing is going to change that for a while. However, a little bit of it can change if whoever reads this blog believes that I am telling you the truth. Do not let yourself be a generalization. Be the person that sticks up for people and stops rumors in their tracks. Sometimes you will not get the juiciest gossip because everyone will know that you do not involve yourself in that, but you will be the better person.I do not want to be a hypocrite. I have gossiped, and I in no way am claiming that I excessive the suggestion I stated above. Although that would be the ideal person, to not gossip at all, I know it does happen. While speaking about someone else, make the conscious decision to not say anything that you would have a problem saying to their face. Social media has blinded us to an extent of how real words can hurt people, we tend to forget that through the screen there is in fact another human. However, if we constantly remind ourselves that what you are saying or typing could (and most likely will) get back to that person, why would we not just stay if the safe side and be honest with what you say about that person. Whether they are your friend or not you should not speak ill of someone behind their back if you can not do it to their face.I do not believe you can prevent gossip about you from happening, so far I try to be an open book and not have secrets so no one can make things up about me, that is my theory so far. It is not 100% effective.It is still being tested.I also have tried to just start laughing when I do hear about things being said.That theory is still being tested too.All I can do is give you advice, the choice is yours when it comes with what you are going to do with it.

Interpretation.

Welcome to The Black Parade

By Chemical Romance

Review

As someone who typically would be caught jamming out to Megan Trainor or Taylor Swift in her car, the genera that Welcome to The Black Parade falls into would not be my first pick. I was first exposed to the song at as chow choir competition. The show choir wore black trench coats and the beginning of the song was sung by a soloist who slowly walked down the center stage. The next time I heard it was in my classroom while we were working and the beginning of the song caught my attention and for the rest of the day I was determined to find it. In my opinion, the beginning of the song is the best part. And this may be due to the fact that I don't usually listen to the heavy metal, screaming boy band type of music. 

The first thing that caught my attention was the lone piano notes that start off the song, followed by a simple melody that's pretty catchy and the addition of more and more instruments and chords. Until you end up with this very full, rock medal, instrumental background. 

After actually listening to the whole entire song, I could pull multiple meaning from the lyrics, both of which I feel are very relevant to our world but more specifically to our generation today. The first message is stated in the chorus when it says 

"We'll carry on,

We'll carry on

And though you're dead and gone believe me

Your memory will carry on

We'll carry on

And though you're broken and defeated

Your weary widow marches on"

In my opinion, this section is hinting towards a positive message to get out to people and let them know that what they do does matter. That people will remember them when they die, even if their broken and defeated. Despite the tone of the whole song.

But if you tie that part in with the rest of the song, I think it's describing his childhood where his father expected too much from him, asking 

"Son when you grow up,

would you be the saviour of the broken, 

the beaten and the damned?"

He said "Will you defeat them,

your demons, and all the non-believers, 

the plans that they have made?"

This whole time while his dad is explaining what he wants if his son, he's not listening, instead he was entranced with the marching band.

His father then passes away but the rest of the song describes how his father will always live on in his memories but that won't stop him from doing what he wants. Which is explained in the bridge.

The title comes from the place where he believes people go when they die, or where his father is now, in the black parade. 

Regardless of how the music means to me, there are plenty of other opinions out there. The beauty of opinions is that they can all be right, there is no wrong ones, unless they are in your opinion.

JSL

How to Win an Argument.

Arguments happen in all of our lives. Some may call them discussions, but due to the fact we all have our own opinions, differences in them lead to arguments in our conversations all the time. Now, for the mature people you may be lucky enough to argue with, these conversations will hopefully be thought provoking and useful for future discussions. 

There are many things that make a good arguer a good one. A large vocabulary is always impressive, along with extensive knowledge of what their argument is. Having an argument with one who only gives false information is of no use to you, but people do it quite often. One of the best attributes to a great arguer is the ability to keep calm. The whole point of an argument is a difference in opinion, as I stated earlier, and differences mean conflict. The key to winning an argument is that you must go into it knowing you may not change their opinion, winning may even mean that your opinions change in a subject. Learning from the arguments we have is what winning really is. 

Now, if that is what winning is, I will tell you what losing an argument is. I have told you that mature arguers can listen and keep calm while arguing, and truly think about what information is being presented. Immature ones are simple-minded, and refuse to compromise or even agree to disagree. They are stubborn, and can make even the most mature people stoop to yelling and fighting, which is why "arguments" has such a negative connotation to it. If only there were more mature people in the world, arguments would not be looked on as bad thing, when the truth is that it is something we all need to grow as individuals. If you are ever placed in the situation of arguing with someone who is simply not worth your time because of their immaturity, just start laughing (to yourself, so they will not be offended) and agree to disagree before wasting your breath. Maybe, if I can convince just a few people to take this approach to their arguments, there will be that many more mature people in the world.

JSL

New Year New Me.

This trending tweet that annoys all of us as the new year comes around, if used in the right context, has great intentions if you think about it. Gym memberships and church attendances spike during the first month or so of the year, which is fantastic, but why do so many give up so easily? I do know what it is like to have life get in the way, but if someone is determined to better themselves why would they not make things that better themselves, apart of their life? Make going to the gym part of your routine, I know it is possible. I feel as if when it comes to going to the gym, people get frustrated with no results, and with the new rage of loving your own body, people are less motivated to go. People these days want things now, and are too lazy to have to work for things they want. 

New Year's resolutions motivate individuals into putting in the work that is required to better themselves. The idea of starting over lights a fire under them. Life can get to a person, and new beginnings give people hope of things being better than they were. This gets people to want to change for the better. Mid-February is when people start giving up, some sooner, some push a little longer, but I think it is a generally assumed fact that the majority of people are expected to resort back to their old ways shortly after New Years. Do not let yourself be put into that category of assumed giver-uppers. Make plans to better yourself and stick to them. It is not as difficult as people make it out to be, it just takes something that no one our age likes to hear, effort. Hopefully you can stick to whatever your New Year's resolution and just start laughing at the people who doubt you. 

JSL

Procrastination.

There are many things that you will learn in high school; time management, the Pythagorean theorem, how to text without looking, which thing is the power house of the cell, and many more things. However, one thing in particular is something that all high schoolers get very good at in high school is the fine art of procrastination. Surprisingly enough, some of the most difficult classes you will take are the classes that teach you it best. There are some that tell me of their stories, pulling all nighters, waking up at three that morning, and as an underclassmen, I would just sit and gape at them. Now, as I get older and more familiar with the practice at it, I still cannot believe some of the stories but am no longer shocked by extreme procrastinators. 

Although sometimes your best and most qualified work appears the night before your paper is due, this blog is not telling you that this is the right choice. It may not happen all the time and if you think every paper you write will be better if you wait longer to do it, you will be sadly disappointed. I do not doubt that entering high school will push students to procrastinate, but I aim to preach the fact that life can be less stressful without it. Earlier I stated that I had procrastinated before, I would not say that I am as talented as some are, but I to for some reason like to test my limits when it comes to deadlines. One would think, with an already over booked schedule, an appreciation for planning, and one who holds their grades to a high standard, would not be one to add more stress on themselves by waiting until the last minute. Sometimes, my busy schedule is what pushes me to procrastinate, sleep is often the motivator to not get things done. However, my time management skills due to my schedule have played an important role in maximizing my ability to procrastinate. I feel as if, to some extent, is it a good ability to have. When you are placed in time crunched situations where there is a limited amount of time to complete something, it is good to have the experience of being rushed, which procrastination gives you. As stated earlier, you will procrastinate, my only hope is that after reading this post you will be more morivated to get stuff done for a week or so. 

JSL