The first day of school was great. I couldn't believe how fast the day went! Of course, it may have to do with the fact that I get out two hours earlier than last year. Also, I had a pretty great day in general. I think I am going to like all of my classes and most of my teachers. Here's how my day went:

This morning - I woke up excited and ready to go. I got dressed, did my thing and Pat and Zack picked me up at 6:10. I got to school and waited in the courtyard. It was nerve wracking sitting there watching everyone walk by and not seeing any of my friends. Luckily, I found Catherine. We talked and compared schedules until the bell rang.

First Hour - Child Development with Ms. K. I don't have really know anyone in that class except for Brittany and we don't sit by each other so we didn't really talk, but I know it's going to be a fun class. Ms. K is funny and seems like a really good teacher.

Second Hour - AP English with Mrs. M. I think I am going to like the actual class, but maybe not the people in it. I do have Katie in this class though and she sits right next too me. :) Ms. M seems like a great teacher too.

Third Hour - Weight Training with Mr. L. I don't really have any friends in this class, but the class seems okay. I need to get some clothes and shoes though. :/ And I hope we don't do The Mile.

Fourth Hour - Study Hall. Lame. I'll be in the library almost everyday.

Fifth Hour - H. Intro to Education with Mrs. P. I think I will like the actual class, but her voice is so monotone. Bleh. I have Josh, Leah, Brittany and Amber in that class. With the girls it feels like elementary school again!

Sixth Hour - Sociology with Ms. P. I love Ms. P. I had her for H. Geography sophomore year. And I have Josh in that class. A different Josh from 5th hour. I think I'm gonna like it.

Seventh Hour - Algebra with Mrs. D. I don't think I'm going to like the class, but she seems okay. Natalie is in this class. She's going to bring me the next Pretty Little Liars book. :)

School seems like it's going to be great this year. Thank freaking jesus.

~alyssa

So...time is going by sooo fast. Only four days left until my first day of my last year of high school. I can't even believe it. I'm so nervous. Mostly because I don't have my schedule yet. I will most likely have to wait until the very first day of school because my counselor never emailed me back.

I'm all set though, for clothes. I went shopping yesterday and got some jeans, hoodies, a top, and a cute dress. I think it's finally starting to hit me that school is starting soon. That summer is ending. Ugh, I just want to get it over with.

~alyssa

So, I went to the lake on Saturday. It was pretty fun. I only got a little red in the face. LOL. Nothing serious. I had a good time even though Brandi wasn't there. She had to work.   Cassie and I had a good time hanging out. We talked a bunch and swam waaaay past the buoys (bouies??). We freaked out a couple of times because of river monsters. LOL. My mom was trying to scare the living crap out of us, and it kind of worked. Also, for most of the time we only had one noodle so we had to share. It was a fun day though. I found out I love Dill Pickle chips which I find absolutely hilarious because I don't even like actual pickles. Anyways, I can't wait to go back.

Also, I've been seeing a ton of movies in the last two weeks. Movies I want to see:                   

1. Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen

2. Hannah Montana: The Movie (yes, I do want to see it)

3. I Love You, Beth Cooper

4. Harry Potter

5. The Ugly Truth

6. Ice Age

7. The Final Destination

Some aren't out yet...but I still can't wait. Movies are awesome.

til next time,

alyssa

So today is my little brother's fourteenth birthday. All I have to say is: Where the hell did the time go? I remember when I was fourteen and he was a measly ol' ten. I seriously can not believe that life has moved on so fast. Of course, I don't want to dwell on it too long and end up sounding like a whiny Peter Pan, but I have legitimate concerns! I can vividly remember being a child. I remember the way I thought. For example, I used to have a "everything will work itself out attitude". In other words, I was rather naive. Now, when I think about the future (such as senior year, getting a car, moving out, college) I know that that attitude is ridiculous. I still have hope that everything will work out, but I know not to rely on that alone. If you want something to work out in life, you can not just sit back and hope for the best. You need to take the proper actions to help achieve that goal. While still having hope. It's a very frustrating revelation.

I came across it last night while watching (what I believe is the second episode) of MTV's 16 and Pregnant. The show was about a girl from Council Bluffs, Iowa (I know! Exciting! They even showed shots of Omaha!) named Farrah who just found out she was pregnant and showed how she dealt with everyday life before and after having the baby. Watching her reacts to situations really opened my eyes up. She was discussing with her mother about the prospects of buying a new car (her old one was totaled in an accident). Her mother kept telling her it would be extremely difficult for her to be able to afford a new car because of the high insurance rate, the new baby she has to take care of, and the fact that she took off some time at work after she gave birth and is short on money... Farrah's reaction was eye opening for me. Her only response to her mother's logic was "Well, it will work itself out." Excuse me? No, it won't! Don't get me wrong, I have nothing against this girl and wish her the very best with her motherhood, but she is on something if she's going to continue to think like that! Here she was, sixteen, still in high school, with a child and her strategy is letting everything work out on its own. I hate to be the one to say it, but she needs to grow up...and fast! She can no longer think like that! She can't loose hope that things will work out, but she can not rely completely on fate that she gets an affordable car, finds a new job, and is a good mother. She needs to take the proper actions to help that happen.

First, get a new attitude. Teenagers are famous for living in the moment and not thinking of the future. If Farrah continues to do this, her baby will be helpless - and so will she. Again, I have no doubts in Farrah's ability to mother her child. I have never met her in my life, but I do know that if she doesn't realize that the way she is thinking is hurting her then she will be a lost cause. Upon realizing this, I now know that hope is a powerful thing - but it's not the only thing.

Second, do what you need to do to make your goals happen. So Farrah wants a car that she can afford. Do your best to find a job that will help you make those payments and if you can't do that, save up your money for awhile before you buy a car.

Third, realize there is a difference between being hopeful and being naive. A hopeful person will work harder to earn more money, save that money, look around for cars, and hope she finds the right one. A naive person will wait for the perfect car to come to her. She won't go looking very much for a car, but instead hopes the opportunity comes knocking. Which will most likely never happen!

So, all I can say is that recognizing that transition from naive teenager to hopeful adult has definitely been eye opening. I have reorganized my life. The Great Job won't come to me, but instead, I have to go find it. So, I'm off to find what I'm looking for. Maybe it will be something I expected and maybe it will just be a surprise.

What's something you've hoped will work itself out? Do you know realize you need to do more than hope?

I hope this changed the way you think like it did mine! Best of luck to Farrah and her child, and to you!

Okay, so these last couple of days have been stress free. Thank goodness. I got my last paycheck today. Blah. Need another job ASAP. Cassie came over again Wednesday night. We watched Candyman. It was sooo scary for some reason! There's this part where the main character, Helen, is in her bathroom with the medicine cabinet open and Cassie and I were waiting for her to close it. We figured when she did the Candyman would be behind her. But, he wasn't. She never got to close it because his hook-hand came through the medicine cabinet and scared the living CRAP out of us! It was just soooo unexpected, which was what made us so scared we screamed at the top of our lungs. I mean, screamed like we were being TORTURED. And I hopped of the chair and ran to Cassie on the couch and we were clutching eachother and rocking back and forth. But that's not all. Austin was downstairs playing video games. He told us later that when he heard us scream he thought someone was in the house upstairs. He said he was convinced that we were being murdered because he heard Cassie yell "I'm sorry!" So, he was scared out of his mind and thought we were being murdered, so he turned of his tv ("In case the killers could hear it!") and ran upstairs and out the back door to the neighbors yard where he stood behind a tree for ten minutes afraid for his life and looking for anything to defend himself. About ten minutes after our terrifying screams, Austin comes barging in the front door, swinging, going "ALYSSA!! CASSIE!!" and then he spots us clutching the other on the couch. "What are you doing?" I had asked him. Then he begins to tell us his side of the story about thinking we were being murdered, and high-tailing it out of there. I couldn't help but laugh. Especially at the image of my brother in his boxer shorts behind a tree.

At least he came back for us though.