The Ways We Say Goodbye

Not going to lie, although this class accounted for some sleep deprivation, I am definitely going to miss it. I have learned incredible things about myself and my abilities through the coursework in AP Language and Composition. I have learned that personal initiative is key in learning anything. I have learned that grades really are not that important and teachers do not expect you to be perfect. I have learned to love myself a lot more than I ever have, and I have learned that I do have a talent, writing. I used to think I was just another "average" person who will lead an "average" life. And this is just not true. I have full capability to do great things and I know I will. I am taking a break from studying for finals of great magnitudes that I will have to take tomorrow, and this reflection on an 18 week course is more eye opening and important than anything that happened in American History. This class has introduced me into the complex world of the English language and has inspired me to explore it further to develop my uncovered talent and revitalized love for writing. I used to write manuscripts, poems, songs, essays, everything. Then Freshman year happened. I dismissed my old love and fell into a 2 year web of self pity and borderline depression. Not anymore. I can express how I feel in words and write out anything I want instead of letting feelings eat me up inside. I am so grateful for AP comp and for all the lessons it has taught me, not really even about the course, but about who I am. It has helped me reclaim who I want to be, the person who was lost for quite awhile but is now found and ready, pen in hand, to express every detail and fight off the bad feelings with words and stories.

Morningssss

My mornings can be sorted into three main components, the eating part, the driving away part, and the actual getting ready part. Both are equally important, and both deserve the same allocation of time. For the getting ready part, I typically drag myself out of bed at the sound of my alarm, put on some music and begin the routine. Brushing my teeth, washing my face, putting on clothes and applying make up all fall under this beginning part of the morning. The eating component is a bit more complicated. It consists of ice water at first to get my metabolism going and re-hydrate me after a night of sleep. I make my coffee and chug the first cup, while pouring raisin bran cereal, putting my bread in the toaster and getting the peanut butter, and getting out my pan to make an egg. After all of this food is consumed, I typically grab an apple to munch on while in the car. This leads me into the leaving portion of my morning. I usually have to struggle to find my car keys and get my brother in the car. Once that is accomplished I open the garage door, start my car, and slowly back out, avoiding hitting my dads car that sits behind mine. I cruise to Mariah’s house, blasting our CD for pump up. Once I get her, we kick it to school and arrive just on time, 7:20.

Every Morning. No Big.

Getting myself, Valerie, up and ready to go in the morning is quite the task. First, Lady Gaga goes off on my alarm at precisely 5:43, prompting me to jump out of bed. I turn it off and usually fall back asleep until 6:15. I get up and waddle to the bathroom to brush my teeth and wash my face, then I race downstairs to get my morning glass of ice water - this jumpstarts the metabolism, and then grind my coffee beans and put on hot water. While the water is working its way up to a boil, I go get my clothes on, put on some make up and make a valiant attempt to style my hair, but in the morning it is often just too difficult. The next step is making my way back downstairs for the eating part of my morning. I love big breakfasts so I typically have my coffee, a bowl of raisin bran, fruit, and an egg or peanut butter toast if I have time. Finally, I locate my car keys, open the garage door, roundup my brother and drive out of my house and over to Mariah’s, blasting our car CD the whole way for pump – up. And finally, I arrive at school around 7:20 and scoot to psychology so I am not late and don’t get thrown in the hall way for my “tardiness terrorism” according to Mr. Johnson.

Modes of Discourse!

Modes of Discourse – Justice

A slam of the judges’ gavel and an adjournment of the courtroom allowed the stirring crowd to exit the magnanimous arena. The bouncer-sized bailiff ushered the now-convicted man to be incarcerated at the formidable sing-sing prison. The feelings among the anxious and apprehensive family sitting on the mahogany prosecution bench have now been alleviated. Tears glisten as they stream down in the form of relief, finally, Justice. The feeling of security and safety from a man that had preyed on them for two agonizing years overwhelmed the air.

Many people don’t understand the function of our judicial system, and have absolutely no clue what justice is. As the chief justice of the Supreme Court of the State of Minnesota, I can rightfully tell you that justice is bringing forth the truth. It is punishing the guilty and granting freedom to the innocent. It is the feeling of relief when a victim or the victim’s family knows that the criminal is serving their time to repay their debt to society

Justice is a difficult thing for anyone who has not had wrong done to them to understand. If you don’t understand the concept of justice, it will be hard to attain, and full of confusion, anger and hurt. Justice involves seeking and finding the truth as well as reaching closure with the problems that have created the need to seek justice in the first place.

There was nothing I wanted more than to hear one word fly out of the juror’s mouth. Guilty. This could finally bring some closure and justice to my family, for the man on trial was an atrocious monster who brought more adversity to my family than I could ever even comprehend. He does not deserve the very paper that I am currently describing him.

– Justice and honesty go hand in hand, but they are far from the same thing. Honesty is something that everyone has, but some choose to practice it, others choose to ignore it. To bring about justice, one must arouse honesty, but honesty can be expressed with justice being disregarded. Justice encompasses finding the truth through honesty, but it also has a system of consequences. The consequences are apparent with honesty

– Justice is a broad term that many do not understand. For those who have an idea of what justice is, when they hear the word itself, they may think of gavels, judges’ robes, TV dramas and prison. Justice, the actual idea, is so much more than that. Justice is something that is accomplished through desire for the truth as well as working to uncover it. Righteousness must be the goal, and no obstacle is big enough to stand in the way of attaining it.

How does a judge arrive at Justice in the judicial system of the United States? It is a complex process of gathering evidence, taking testimony, examining rights, laws, precedents and the Constitution. Although tedious, it is essential to uphold the values of our country and to maintain the mantra “innocent until proven guilty”

The need for justice is sparked by a wrongdoing or ill committed to an innocent person who deserves compensation for their suffering. A crime must first be committed, which leads to the justice system stepping in and going through the legal process to incarcerate or somehow punish the wicked.

Justice is an issue of morality, and it must have roots in what is deemed rational, good, fair and applicable to the method of running or structuring an effective and equal society.
Fight for justice no matter what. What happens when a family member, someone you feel unconditional love and loyalty to, commits a crime or an act of injustice? You can put aside family values in order to attain justice, and in order to be a just person you must. It is hard to turn on those we love and hurt them, but if it is in the name of justice, it is without a doubt the right thing to do, because without justice, any wrong act that goes unpunished is legitimate.

I love my un-innocent, imperfect life <3

I'm definitely not the model student or child. If I fail a test, it's unlikely I will think much of it for more than 5 minutes... if that... A grade less than an A does not scare me whatsoever. My parents have barely any clue what year I am in in school, let alone the concept of skyward online grading. When I said I was taking the ACT, my dad asked if it was a theater audition, (acting?! wtf!) not a nationally administered standardized test. My parents and I have a trust relationship when it comes to school, they know I'm trying my best and doing what I need to do, they never know what projects or tests are going on to give me reminders to study or meet deadlines. Thus, I have academic freedom and independence. There is also no pressure to go to a particular college. My mom wants me to apply wherever I want to go, whether it be Harvard or Normandale. I am definitely not perfect, and I will never bother to try to perfect myself. My room is covered in magazine clippings, there is probably diet coke cans stacked up from finals from last term, likely a mound of clothes the size of everest in the middle of the floor, my lacrosse stick strewn across one corner and my guitar in the other. My family is not full of success stories. I will be exceeding the expectations if I graduate from high school on time and without any major chemical dependencies. My family would love me even if I dropped out and took a liking to cocaine next weekend. Living in the moment is something I do best, and it doesn't always turn out perfect, but it's good enough for me. I'm experienced in certain adult ventures, but how does that make me a bad person? There were never those forbidden fruits in my house. I rarely call my parents to update them about my whereabouts, they know I'll be smart and figure out the evening myself. They were never worried about me working in a restaurant, an industry known for its dysfunctional people, and getting exposure to the much less desirable aspects of life. I competed in debate for two years, and got to third place, respectively, at state tournaments both years, did I force my parents to watch long debates so I could feel supported? hell no, I did it for myself and by myself. Oops I just swore in a blog post, how trashy of me. Like I said, IMPERFECTION. I've attended concerts where you were less likely to find someone who wasn't stoned at more risky venues than the Xcel center. My parents have no idea who a majority of my friends are, even if I introduce them, it's likely they'll forget in 10 minutes, so what is the point? My mom knows I have way more guy friends than girl friends, but she knows that it's simply because I get along with boys much better than girls, because they bring less drama to the table. I know I'm imperfect, but I am a good person. I don't accuse people of things I am not certain that they did. I don't say things about people behind their backs if I don't have the balls to say the exact same thing to their face. I definitely do not trust most people, but I can roll with life and pretend that I do anyway. I value every moment of my life, and if it requires breaking the rules, drinking too much caffeine and spending impulsively, than so be it. Gotta live like we're dying.

The Minimal Existence of a Nova Girl

Another day in paradise, or at least Plymouth, Minnesota. Apparently it is the number one place to live according to money magazine, and if they were evaluating based on amount of wealth then they must have accidentally been re-routed to Wayzata and then lied in their reviews. The sun is shining, or at least I think it is, I can’t really see out the darkened windows of the restaurant. I have just unlocked the front doors and flipped on the neon OPEN sign, and now I get to sit and anticipate the first customers.

Much to my expectation, they arrive. A minivan rolls up and to my horror, a definite soccer mom steps out. She is not alone. Lurking in the back seat are three ankle biters, all with runny noses and whiny dispositions. I watch from the inside; seeing this mom struggle to free the brats from their car seats is more action packed and violent than watching UFC on Comcast. They proceed into the restaurant, the kids break from their mothers restraints and run about as if the booth seats and soda fountain were a jungle gym. They spread their bacteria everywhere and cling to the counter, and stick their hands in my tip jar, which is fortunately empty at this point so I do not have to worry about wrestling hard earned dollars from pint-sized hands. The mother ignores their misbehavior and explores the menu, asking questions along the way.

“Does your Garden Pizza have vegetables on it?” Uhm. Yes. They finally order and once their food comes up, take it and leave. Now I get to examine the damage that has been done to my restaurant.

Looks like I can add “mopping parmesan cheese off the floor,” and “reassembling the soda machine” to my resume.

CHRISTMAS SHOPPING

OKAY so i finished half of the homework assignment and before progressing on to my next essay, which I have no idea what i want to do, instead i'm going to take a break and compose a christmas shopping list since MAWIAH and i are rendezvousing off to the big MALL OF AMERICA after 2:20.

OKAY so for my cousin Anna I got her a silver pendant of the buddhist "om" symbol because she really wanted a tattoo of it, im hoping that the necklace will defer her from inking her body. I still need a chain for it

Mariah... hmm she is right next to me so i wont say it

Laura medcalf - i want to frame a picture of us so that requires getting a picture developed and purchasing a frame

Brittni - done with her gifts

Anna wolverton - still need to get her something... AHHH SHES MY WIFE

Jenna - still want to get her a piece of jewelry to accompany the goat

Stephen- need a gas card along with his DVD

Mom and Dad - giftcard to the Oceanaire

OKAAAYYYY stress. Now back to the assignment