This is Just the Beginning...

A lot of kids are going to tell you that this is their last blog post ever. Well stay tuned because that’s not the case for me!

At the beginning of the year, Mr. Parker told our class to write down what we thought a blog was. This is what I put: “I think a blog is a personal website with stories where the reader can express their feelings and the posts are published for anyone to read.” 

Little did I know that expressing my feelings would not only benefit myself.

The other day in English class a girl came up to me and said, “OMG I love reading your blog, Liza.” She completely changed the way I think of posting

You gotta love this place.

At the beginning of the year, I looked at blogging as a way to express MY feelings, I didn’t necessarily care who else it impacted. Actually, I guess you could argue that at that time I had zero followers so it really wasn’t impacting anyone else. However, now that I can proudly say I have eight followers, I realize that my blog made a bigger impact on others than I ever thought possible. That’s what blogging is really about. Uniting people through common experiences or beliefs. 

After first quarter, if someone had asked if I thought I would continue to blog once the year ends I would have probably said “no.” At that point blogging was difficult for me, all my ideas were there, I just didn’t know how to put them on paper. On the other hand, if someone asked me if I was going to continue writing my blog after its not a requirement for a grade, I would say “hopefully!” Blogging is no longer an assignment for me, it’s something I look forward to doing.

So, I just want to give a HUGE thank you to all of the people who have given me a reason to write this blog: My parents, sisters, friends, fellow classmates, my mom’s book club, Mr. Parker, and obviously the most important of all: My two fluffy donkeys. If I didn’t have you guys, I would simply have nothing to write about. So you definitely deserve some credit. 

It's so fluffy I'm gunna die!

But I would also like to give an even HUGER thank you to blogging itself. As much as I complain about writing blogs I know I will eventually learn to become thankful for it. 

Ever since I started writing a blog I look at experiences differently and always wondering: “Is that a good blog topic?” Luckily, our wonderful town of Park City, UT is always buzzing with material to write/gossip/complain about.

Every town is known for something:

Aspen, Colorado is known for great hiking trails.

Florence, Italy is known for having great food.

Los Angeles, California is known for being the home of celebrities. 

Dublin, Ireland is known to be filled with kind people.

Big Sky, Montana is known for having insane skiing.

And Park City, UT? We’re known to have them all!

Live in the Moment

I’m upset. You wanna know why I’m upset? Well as usual, I don’t really care if you want to know, because I am going to tell you anyway! So HA.

Anyway, I am upset because we only have 26 days, 17 hours, 32 minutes, and 44 seconds until school ends. UNTIL FRESHMEN YEAR ENDS. That means that we only have 1,124 days, 17 hours, 32 minutes, and 44 seconds until our high school years end. It may sound like a lot now, but before we know it we are going to be beginning senior year. Which if you really want to know is in 842 days, 22 hours, 34 minutes, and 11 seconds. And then we will wish we could add even more time onto our High School years. So yeah… That is why I am upset. Oh, and it is raining. 

Throwback to when I was living 1/7th of my life!

I remember one day when I was younger, I was telling my sister, Katy, how each year seems to go by faster than the previous one. At the time, I thought it was just my imagination, I mean that couldn’t have possibly been true. However, I guess the impossible is sometimes possible. I learned that day, that as you grow up, each year is actually shorter than previous one. Right now, I am fifteen years old. So this year is 1/15th of my lifetime. When I am in my senior year, I will be 18 years old. That is 1/18th of my life! 

So what does that tell us?

We need to cherish each day we have as we grow up because as we keep getting older, more and more days will seem to disappear. As much as we completely dread waking up in the morning at 6 am to go become educated at the dungeon, we will miss it someday. Yes, that’s right. Someday when you are thirty years old working in a cubicle on the fourth floor of some sky scraper in New York City, you might actually miss the crammed hallways of Treasure Mountain Junior High. I know I will. 

“Today is the oldest you’ve ever been, and the youngest you’ll ever be again.”

9th grade is the year where we begin to regret the decisions we made in the past because we can’t take the classes we want, or we can’t make the team we want. But it is also the year where we become stressed about our future because grades begin to count. As I look back on my last year at Treasure Mountain I realize that I am a victim of both living in the past and living in the future. When I really wish I had lived in the present and just appreciate each moment as it comes. 

P.E. AKA Pathetic Exercise

I am a straight A student. 

Or I guess I should say I WAS a straight A student.

I know what your thinking: It was probably Honors English that broke the streak. Mr. Parker is known for being a teacher who even makes the Einsteins work for a grade. 

I should probably tell you now that I have a 95% in Mr. Parkers class.  

SO, WHAT CLASS COULD I POSSIBLY HAVE AN A- IN?

Two Letters: P and E. 

School ends in thirty days. Our State meet is in a few weeks. I only have a total of six vital vocabs. for this quarter. And the best of all, my sister comes home from college in less than two weeks! 

Playing Badminton in P.E.
(Photo Courtesy of The Cavitt Chronicle)

This all sounds pretty great right? So why is it that I still completely dread every other day of my life. 

Well, to begin with I don’t exactly appreciate being constantly told to spit out the gum that I am not even chewing. Mr. Torrey has the eyes of a hawk. He could spot gum chewing from a mile away. 

Speaking of miles, I run close to thirty of them every week. Mr. Torrey obviously does not realize this because I just received 10/15 on in class participation. THAT’S A D. Supposedly I need to put forth more effort. How am I supposed to break a sweat in P.E.? Not to mention, while playing badminton.

For the record, this is no grandiose and I am not being overdramatic. I have talked to plenty of other students who clearly express the same hate as me for P.E. 

I think this is mainly because we all have after school sports and we don’t need to waste our energy on 90 minutes of whacking a birdy across a three foot tall net. While, I might add, holding a germy and archaic racket that could easily cause me to come down with an incurable illness. 

So much better.
(Photo Courtesy of Mountain Home)

I have written this blog post three times. It is very difficult to bring out my inner kindness on a subject I feel so strongly about. I understand that P.E. is an imperative class in many cities because it requires kids to become active. However, we live in Park City, Utah. So why stay in a stinky gym for 90 minutes when you could embrace all the incredible things Park City has to offer in the great outdoors. 

I would much rather go smell the fresh air on a mountain biking trail than sit in the windowless gym of Treasure Mountain playing Badminton. 

For the record, that is coming from the girl who hates mountain biking with a passion. A strong passion.

P.S. I used three vital vocabulary words in this blog post. #proudmoment

Back to Reality

I am going to make an educated guess. And of course I am no mad scientist but I can almost guarantee that you had a spectacular week. OMG how did I know that your week was so great? Two words. SPRING. BREAK. Also known as "The best week of the entire school year".

After making that conjecture I am able to create yet ANOTHER educated guess. Right now you are one of three people. (Wow! I'm not even in Honors Biology and look at me making all these hypothesis') 

Soakin' up the sunshine during Spring Break!

Person number one is what we call an over achiever, however it is the day before school starts up again and what are they doing? They are outside soaking up the last few rays of the annual spring break sunshine and simply enjoying life. Why? Because they got all their work done before break even started! I will forever look up to those kids who turn in their assignments a day early, but that’s just not me. This brings me to person number two. 

Person number two is what we call a procrastinator. Also known as the person who waits to do all of their work until Sunday. Also known as me. Of course, Sunday is always the most beautiful day of spring break. The birds are chirping, the temperature is a perfect 70 degrees, and there is not a cloud in the sky. Sadly, we procrastinators spend most of our last day of break inside, at the kitchen table, doing our most favorite thing in the entire world, homework.

The Dungeon.
(Photo courtesy of YouInParkCity)

Person number three looks at life in a completely different way. They simply don’t do the work at all. I know what you’re thinking, “OMG how could someone possibly just not do their homework!?!?” In all honesty, I used to look down on these people. Like c’mon, everyone else does their homework, why can’t you? However, I have recently come to realize that these people have a pretty cool perception on life. I mean, You Only Live Once so why not relish every single day? 

As a side note I would like to say that although, this life motto may sound very amusing, it is not for everyone. I mean yeah I sometimes wait until last minute to get a task done, but I could never go on living knowing that I completely exempted something from my to do list. (For clarification go read Blog Post #16.) 

Well, that’s all for now. Hope you guys are enjoying whatever you are doing whether that is soaking up the sun or writing an essay. See you all tomorrow at the dungeon.

I’ve decided that that was a really terrible way to end a blog post. I don’t want to fill you guys with gloominess as you head into school tomorrow. SO, I have decided to leave you on a different note: THERE ARE ONLY 38 MORE DAYS LEFT OF SCHOOL. Now that’s something worth smiling about.

Working Hard to Conquer Hard Work

This quarter Mr. Parker, being the jubilant man he is, assigned us to write eight blog posts. EIGHT WHOLE BLOGS POSTS! I didn't think I could do it, I mean that is at least one post per week and I am a very busy girl. HOWEVER, here I sit and what am I doing? Writing post numero ocho. #proudmoment. 

Ya know, I have to say that sometimes Mr. Parker's class almost makes me cry because of how stressed I am. That was a lie, it DOES make me cry. I have multiple times throughout the year. So the real question is, why would I ever take a class that causes so much fraught? Well, to begin with I would like to say that I learned the word "fraught" while writing a vital vocab. earlier this year. So that can be reason number one I guess. 

Obviously vital vocab. isn’t the only thing we do for that class. So, I better come up with some other reasons. 

The Park City Ski Team Team Room. 

The Park City Ski Team has a locker room at the ski resort that all the athletes have available to store their equipment. Each member of the ski team has their own locker. Some people, including myself, choose to purchase a plaque to put on their locker in which a remembrance, owner's name, or quote may be displayed. Anyway, every single day I walk passed the same lockers, perusing each plaque, and every single day the same one catches my eye. Its plaque reads, "The harder I work, the luckier I get." I have decided this is going to be my life motto because "hard work" can truly get you anywhere in life. And I have without a doubt learned the true definition of "hard work" through the three quarters I have had Mr. Parker as a teacher. 

I have spoken with multiple upcoming freshman who say they are not going to take Honors English because they think they are inept and simply not “smart” enough. I tell every single one of them the same thing: “Mr. Parker’s class is about 1/5 pure intelligence and about 4/5 time management and hard work. It is hardly the matter of how “smart” you are, it is how much time you are willing to put into one class.”

Right now, I have a myriad of things on my to do list. And, I would say over half of them are for English. I have to study for a test, read a book, memorize a speech, write an essay, and finish my blog all by next week. I admit, it is difficult to get all of these tasks done, but it is not impossible. And when I do get them done, it feels that much better. 

I am a straight A student, but I was dubious towards whether this class would ruin the streak. I admit that I almost chickened out last minute, however I did not. And I can now proudly say taking Honors English 9 is one of the best decisions I have ever made. 

I have already signed up to take Creative Writing next year. Partially because I have learned to love to write, but mostly because it is taught by THE Mr. Parker. 

I highly encourage all upcoming students, like any of you are reading this, to take Honors English in your 9th grade year. It is not only a class that prepares you for future English classes in High School or College, but it is a class that will prepare you for life… Where late work is never acceptable!

*As a side note for all you oblivious people, I would like to say that I used seven vital vocabulary words in this blog post. How deft of me… Make that eight.* 

"Very Superstitious, Writings on the Wall"

Superstitious (adj): Having or showing a belief in an excessively credulous faith in and reverence for supernatural beings.

There are an uncountable number of superstitions in the modern day world. Of course there is seeing a black cat on halloween. Or picking up your feet over railroad tracks. And my all time favorite, holding your breath as you pass a cemetery. I mean, we might as well all be granted bad luck because there is no way someone can hold their breath that long.

FACTOID: The average person cannot hold their breath for more than thirty seconds. 

Yeah, I looked it up. 

Beans are life.
(Photo Courtesy of MySnackShop)

Superstition Number 1: 

I sit here eating my green beans, delicately sliced avocado, gourmet chicken, and lightly buttered pasta with a sprinkle of parmesan. This is the exact same thing I eat before every track meet or cross country race. I didn’t even think I was superstitious! 

Superstition Number 2: 

During the fall we had to do a time trial to determine who would be running Varsity at our first cross country meet. The night before I decided to paint my nails this shiny light pink color. If I am being completely honest, at the time I just thought it would look good as my hands swung when I ran. From there on out I always painted my nails that same color, it was lucky!

Superstition Number 3: 

It was my second race of the season, not that it really mattered but I was wearing my hot pink sports bra and matching underwear. Actually I guess it did matter, and it always will. The whole entire race I was just seconds behind the leader. Then at the last second I sprinted to passed her. I’d like to say that right before my kick I looked down at my sports bra and it gave me the encouragement and the energy to run faster. But that didn’t happen. I just wear that sports bra every race simply because I believe when something good happens you must follow the same EXACT routine to make it happen again. #Superstitious.

Superstition Number 4: 

Cheesin' at Herriman because we finished without upchucking! 

This is the last of my superstitions and I have to give all the credit to mother dearest. I was loading the bus to head down to Herriman, the utterly most dreadful course to ever exist on this planet. If that was a hyperbole you would know because I never fail to remind you when I am using my literary devices. It’s no hyperbole, trust me. As I climbed up the stairs on the bus my mom sneaked a little pack of Sport Beans into my bag. She said they would just give me that final boost at Herriman. Even though I thought the beans were stupid I still decided to eat them. It was true the beans did help, actually they are probably the only thing that got me up Herriman’s insane hill. I would like to say that I am going to use them there again next year but I have already planned to be sick that day. I hate that hill with a passion and some magical beans will not ever change it. However, I still take the beans every meet, it’s even become a team joke. “Liza’s got to take her beans!”

Honestly, I don't necessarily believe in the whole superstitious thing but just like everyone else, I am to scared to see what happens if I don’t follow them. Except for those text messages that say if you don’t do something you will have bad luck for the rest of your life. I’m simply too good for those. 

The Vocabulary is Actually Vital, Don’t Forget To Do It

You know those nights where you sit straight up in bed freaking out because you forgot to do something? 

It was 11:40 on a Wednesday night. (Actually, I am not really sure what time it was but just go with it for the dramatic experience). Where was I? Oh yeah, it was 11:40 on a Wednesday night. I had gone to bed without doing any homework thinking that I had none to do. BIG MISTAKE. Life Lesson: There is always homework. Especially if you are in 9th grade Honors English class… Preferably with Mr. Parker. 

Anyways, the hair stood straight up on the back of my neck. My Vital Vocabulary. 

I know what you are thinking… Vital Vocab… Seriously Liza? You freaked out because of Vital Vocab?

I cannot deny it. There was no way I was going to bed that night with the thousands of possibilities crossing my mind: That’s it, I’ve failed the class. I’m never going to school again! When did I become so irresponsible? I’m Appalled at myself. What will colleges think of me? How will I show up everyday to school and face the hatred in Mr. Parker’s eyes? My life is over. 

My heart started beating a million times a minute. My head was throbbing. My shaking hands became clammy.

I bolted upstairs to my parent’s bedroom. They had been peacefully reading but both jumped out of bed at the sound of my scrambling footsteps. By the look on my face they probably thought my dog had a seizure or a real emergency was taking place. 

“MOM, I FORGOT TO DO MY VITAL VOCAB!!!” 

Ya know, usually when a person experiences a sensation like this in the middle of the night, they are comforted by their loving parents… Not laughed at. 

I wasn't kidding...

I guess now that I think back to the night, it was probably a pretty entertaining scene. I was hysterical. 

I have definitely learned more out of not doing my Vital Vocab. than I ever would if I had:

1. Never bound up the stairs if you have a 13 year old dog.
2. Never watch Pretty Little Liars on the night of a White Day. 
3. Never doubt the fact that you have homework… You ALWAYS do.

And, I have learned even more about myself:

1. I should probably keep an agenda.
2. I should probably set an alarm for Monday nights. (Already Accomplished). 
3. I should probably realize that while twenty points may seem like a lot at the time, it is not the difference between me becoming a garbage truck driver or a some wealthy anesthesiologist. 
4. I will always be some over-achieving, painstaking, meticulous dork.
5. I should probably stop refusing to accept number four.