and this is what I call life...

and this is what I call life...

:: 2004 19 May :: 11.31 pm

I had to work 4 to close tonight. I got done at about 9:45, so it wasn't bad. I was the only cook (besides eric, the manager) and I think I handled the kitchen well...besides, tonight was slow. Yesterday I got to job shadow at Reid tool. That was cool because I got to shadow every section of the marketing department from catalog to advertising to web, and I learned a lot. I got their a little late, so I missed going to Double JJ with some of the advertisers for promotional reasons. Instead, Mr. Judy (the marketing director - what I want to be) told me about the company and what he does. Then I got "handed off" to the catalog department. Ried sells over 45,000 industrial supplies, so a lot of work goes into making that. I got to hang out with the desiners and two of them took me to a "press check." It's kinda like yearbook when we get proofs, except here they had to travel to the printer, and they checked mostly for color. It was weird because the one girl had something wrong with her eye(s) so when she spoke, I wasn't sure if she was talking to me because her eyes weren't directly looking at me. Anyways, after we got back from that I got to hang out with the advertising person, Melissa. I thought that was really cool. I never really realized that there was actually a side of advertising where you didn't have to be artistic. You just have to have ideas. She explained her career to me, we took a ride to the airport to check up on a display, and overall I had a nice time talking with her. Then I got passed to Mike, the e-commerce/web guy. He explained his job to me. Personally, I think it's kinda boring, but it's just not something I want to do. All of my experience made me realize, however, that if I'm going to be a marketing director I'm going to have to know a little bit about what everyone under me is doing. I'd have to say the best part, though, was sitting in on the group meeting. Ben and Melissa went to a conference where they had their catalog judged, and basically they were presenting the results of that. The whole meeting was how they could improve it, which I thought was cool because everyone from web to designers had input. Well, I'm gonna go watch Nutty Professor now. Tomorrow my dad and sister are going to a Dashboard concert. I hope my mom goes with them, but tonight she said she won't "leave me alone." It's not like I need to be babysat.

Do you want to play with fire?

:: 2004 17 May :: 9.54 pm

I had a long day today. This morning I went in and paid off the balance for my tuition and turned in my sign-out sheet. At 9:00am I had to report to the Fraunthal Center for the Performing Arts (FCPA) for my first job shadow. It was a looong day, but it was still fun. I met with Mary Oleniczak, executive director of the theater. There is so much she has to do from deciding what shows to book to payroll to public relations to applying for grants and much more, but theater management looks like an awesome job. The first half of the day she just spoke about her career. She graduated from MSU with a business degree concetrated in marketing. At noon she took me to Racquet's for lunch. When we came back, channel 77 came to videotape all the "nooks and crannies" of the theater. That "Tom" guy was kinda loud-mouthed and annoying, but it was awesome seeing stuff about the theater that no one ever gets to see...like the top of the "occulus" or the trap room or the organ pipes or the projection booth. I even heard about "PJ" the theater's ghost. Later in the day, I got to observe Mary talking with her assistant, planning which day would work best for their first annual block party. There's so much work that goes into planning all their events. I was also there when Mary called Jane, a booking agent of sorts who was trying to finalize the deal to bring Tapdogs to the Fraunthal. She put her on speakerphone, which was cool because Jane got me involved in the conversation as well. As the day ended I got to meet Michelle, the house manager in charge of the volunteers. She said they have my number and might call me about volunteering this summer. That'd be pretty cool, but I told them I'd like to Usher. If I could usher at the tribute to John Lennon, that'd be awesome! Well I gotta get directions for tomorrow's job shadow. Later.

2 burns | Do you want to play with fire?

:: 2004 16 May :: 9.31 pm

I've been so tired the past two days. Today I didn't want to get up, but I had to go in to work at 11:00. I got to work with Will in the Kitchen. Yesterday he was doing drive-thru, and I was told he "hates cooks." Working with him proved that he's actually a good guy with a sense of humor. I also worked with this girl from Muskegon, but I was never told her name. My conception of her changed too. I saw her briefly on wednesday when she came in to pick up check. She seemed like a bitch, but she's not. Yesterday I went to Dr. Reily's with Katie and Josie. We watched the picture DVD show that he made for us. I thought it was really good. Dr. Reily is an awesome photographer...and it's his hobby! Later, Josie and I prank called Kenesha and George, pretending to be the Library. "Kenesha Strong-Rule, you have a book overdue. It's called 1000 ways to bang a guy..and a girl." Anyways, I'm tired and I gotta job shadow tomorrow, so I'm gonna hit the sack.

Do you want to play with fire?

:: 2004 14 May :: 11.48 pm

I got it done. Emily, Amanda, and I went to Needle Fire Tattoos, where emily and i got our eyebrows done. Left side. I think it looks pretty good. The guy wasn't very nice, but he did a decent job. We took Amanda to Area 51 to get her nub peirced because they didn't do that at Needle Fire. The guy there was much better. He explained EVERYTHING, whereas the guy we went to only said stuff if we asked. Afterwards I had to pick up my sister at school. I saw Debbie so I showed her. Then Lacie and Christina wanted to see it. A lot of people saw it up at school. I swear there is some generation gap/mom-thing about piercings. First of all, when i came home, my mom talked to me for a full minute before she recognized I had it. Then she looked at me and said "WHAT did you DO?" It's funny because Emily's mom said the EXACT same thing. Emily asked her mom if she still loved her and she replied "I love you, but I don't love that ring!" My mom made it very clear that she didn't like it either. She told me to "take that thing out." I think I started having the most doubts about it after I showed it to Mrs. McConnel. I actually respect her opinion, but when she saw it she said "What did you do to my face?" Oh, well. I like it, and that's what matters, right? It has to be a generation gap because everything single person I've seen my age likes it...or at least they say they do. I was told it's "sexy" and "badass." Just wait until I put the barbell in. Unfortuneately, I'm supposed to wait 4-6 weeks. We'll see. I just hope it doesn't get infected...or ripped out. My dad keeps on going around pretending like he's going to rip it out. That pisses me off so much. If he keeps it up, eventually he'll slip up and "accidently" rip it out. I'd go spastic. Anyways, about the job front. After my first day, I seriously wanted to quit. I went as far as calling sears to see if they were still hiring in electronics. They weren't, but I went in for my second day anyways. It seemed much better. I still don't like the job that much, but I think it's something I just have to get used to. I don't like working with food, but it's money. Tracy is the one girl whose name I couldn't remember. I swear she looks a lot like Christina Applegate. Her and the manager flirt a lot too. Yesterday I met Tim, another cook. He's a nice, funny guy. "You know what I"m sayin" is his catch phrase. Tomorrow I work. I won't have to close, which is good. Since it's a saturday I"m guessing it will be VERY busy. There will probably be 4 cooks in the kitchen. Hopefully I can just stuff the buns all day. Well, I'm out. I'm gonna try sleeping with this eyebrow ring.

3 burns | Do you want to play with fire?

:: 2004 12 May :: 11.20 pm

"schools out...forever"
I am finally "done" with school. Done is in quotations because even though I don't have to technically show up to school anymore (except for yearbook), I still have some school obligations to fulfill. Today was the looongest day ever, mainly because we had absolutely nothing to do in any of our classes. The senior lunch was nice. Afterwards, Wiewhora and some school administration kinda made me angry. Wiewhora, well right when I was going to ask her a question she walked away. Then the administration "couldn't accept" my sign-out sheet because Gayle VanDYKE didn't sign for the business office (we still owe on tuition). YET, the form says if the person won't sign, to list why in writing. WHY do they have to write WHY if you can't turn it in? That's dumb. Gayle VanDYKE wrote "why" but they still refused to take it at the office. Anyways, I started my job at G&L today. It really sucks. It's only my first day and I already want to quit. I don't mind working hard (which I have to do), but when it's not doing something you love (or at least like), I'm not sure it's worth it. I wouldn't mind busing tables or washing dishes. That'd actually be kinda fun. But cooking food really stinks! I will NEVER eat a greek chili dog. Those things look so gross. I hate working with the food because everything in the kitchen is all greasy. I go home with greasy, burnt hands. By the end of this summer, I'm going to have lost all feeling in my fingertips. I have newfound respect for people with jobs, especially jill and andre. It's tough work. At least the people I worked with tonight were alright. Doug, the fellow cook, graduated from Shores and is going to WMU this fall...I think. Jackie, the drive-thru girl, is a senior at puffer. I can't remember the waitress' name right now (except that it started with a "T"...I think). My first impression was that she had an attitude (she flipped the manager off - only in jest) but she's actually kinda nice. Eric's the manager. I guess you have to get to know him, but for now, he seems kinda like a prick. Oh yeah...him and the waitress have real thick michigan accents. I don't know how i noticed that, but I did. Okay, for some reason, my hearing is not fully functioning. Maybe the kitchen is too loud. You know...if I "accidently" cut my finger off, I could not have to work anymore and get paid workers comp. I'm going to miss my finger...

Do you want to play with fire?

:: 2004 11 May :: 9.36 pm

Tomorrow "SCHOOL'S OUT...FOREVER!!!" Those shirts we got are awesome. All the seniors are going to wear them tomorrow (well, almost all of them). I've decided to get my eyebrow done. I still have to talk to my future co-workers about the peircing policy, but I'm pretty sure i can have it. I looked at some pictures tonight and I think it looks cool. I just gotta decide which side. I was originally thinking right, but after seeing pictures I think left looks good. Maybe I'll just get both done!

1 burn | Do you want to play with fire?

:: 2004 10 May :: 8.20 pm

So much has been happening lately, and I haven't updated in a while. First of all, my family has been pissing me off completely. I constantly find myself flipping the finger behind my dad's back because of his annoying, pig-like behavior. My mom is so far disillusioned that it makes no sense to reason with her, but I still try to anyways and get even more frustrated that she won't change her thinking. My aunt, whom my mom is in conflict with, is supposedly going around gossiping about my mom, all on assumptions (some of which are false). I'd have to say my mom annoys me the most, though. Someone in the family committed suicide. It was my mom's cousin's daughter. She hung herself. She was only 17. What does my mom do? Call up her cousin, leaving a message asking if she goes to church with her ex-husband!! Then she proceeds to record on the machine "I go to church EVERY sunday, and I recieve communion AND reconillionation AND I go to the novenas." Who cares, mom! Are you trying to prove to someone how much of a "chirstian" you are? Or are you just bragging? It doesn't help that she tries to sugarcoat things. Maybe it's that she doesn't know what's really going on, but she talks to her aunt and to her dad saying stuff like "yeah, we're doing good. Elizabeth is in a dance recital and justin's got a job, and yeah, I pay my credit card off every month, and we're just doing fine." No, mom, we're not doing fine in this shitty hell-whole! I think I posted earlier that I got a job. I don't start that until Wednesday, but already my aunt and uncle are like "you should've taken the job at sears." Sears didn't even offer me a job. I would work at both places, except that it's my first job and I don't know how much I can handle. I'm guessing I can't do 80 hours a week and still stay sane. Okay, now to prom...No offense to the junior student council or anyone involved, but prom kinda sucked this year. Not that it was any better last year. I had more fun at fremont's prom dancing with amanda; at least she didn't walk away from when while we were "dancing." At least I'm glad about who got prom king & queen: Brian and Katie. No one deserved it more than them. In any case, I think the evening proved to me that me and my date are strictly friends and never anything more. Now about girl #2, well I'm not sure what to do there. Sometimes she aggraivates me too, just because we've spent so much time together and things just get old. I don't feel like we're all that compatible anyways, and yet she likes me. Is there anything wrong with just being friends? You know, I feel bad for one of my friends. She's not acting like herself, and it's because of relationship issues. I wish I could comfort her, but I dont know what to say. She's really upset right now. Finally, Emily and I are all set to get our eyebrows pierced on friday. I'm not so sure that I want my eyebrow pierced. I'd rather get my ear done (It's more conservative in my opinion) but I suppose I'll get my eyebrow done anyways. Well, I gotta go take out my cookie bars that I'm making for my lunch table tomorrow. Last day at lunch.

5 burns | Do you want to play with fire?

:: 2004 6 May :: 8.43 pm

Hmm...not sure about the AP English test. That could really go either way. I hope that I at least got a 3. It's possible that I got a 4, but only if the ap readers actually buy into my b.s. The 55 multiple choice questions weren't too terribly bad, but there were a few that I left blank. Better blank than wrong: wrong answers count against you. The three essay questions kind of sucked. The poetry essay was probably the worst to write even though poem selection was good: Emily Dickinson and Robert Frost. Then the prose essay dealt with some short story by James Henry. I'm just wondering if that's the same author known as O. Henry. That essay was alright, but I didn't explicitly state what the tone was. Finally, the promt for the free-response essay wasn't too bad. I had to talk about some "central question" in some work of literature. I wrote about The Great Gatsby and how the central question was wether or not man should live with a single dream - Gatsby died for it, but I concluded that if someone is that far disillusioned, then having a single dream is actually better for them. I want to find out my score! I'll just have to wait a month and a half. In good news, I had an interview at G&L today. The manager arranged for me to come in for a second interview, and he said unless I botch that, I pretty much got a job there and can start next week. Not where I prefer to work, but it's a job. I don't know if I should give sears a call or not. I'd rather work in retail than food service (I'd be a cook at G&L), but then again I don't want to comprimise my morals by working at sears. I shouldn't complain though. I'm not exactly in a position to discriminate against where I want to work.

1 burn | Do you want to play with fire?

:: 2004 5 May :: 9.40 pm

After today's AP Calculus exam, I was pumped. I think I did pretty well on it. Out of all the multiple choice questions there were maybe 4 that I didn't answer, and I think I got most of the rest right. The free-response sections were a little more difficult but not too difficult. The last question was about slope fields, which we didn't study this year - we spent 10 seconds discussing them yesterday! Overall, I think the no calculator sections were easier than the calculator sections. Everyone else thought it was hard. I guess I'll have to wait until to July to find out what I got. I think it's possible I got a 4.

Today wasn't even like a really school day. After the exam, I had to go to my senior seminar. After that I had to go to a senior assembly, where they gave us the goodbye speech - you know, what requirements we have to fulfill and how we shouldn't do stupid stuff. After that we went to the cafeteria (or cafe as the school calls it) for mock elections. Then I had to go to the counceling office to fill out that bubble stuff on the ap exam (my name and address pretty much). So when all of that was done, all that was left was half of 6th hour (I'm an aid, so it's a free period) and 7th hour (which is calculus, so we spent the hour talking and doing non-math things).

Right now I have to go study for Ap english, but before I go, let me tell you how much of a dimwit Wiewiora is. During the exam we got a break halfway through. At that point we hadn't written our names or anything on our answer sheets. Wiewiora comes around collecting them!!! Fortuneately, sarah pointed that out to me and said something before she got past dan, chad, and pat. To think of the disaster that would have erupted if she had collected them all makes my life flash before my eyes!

One last comment, or quote of the day, rather: "This house isn't big enough for two bitches" - my mom.

Do you want to play with fire?

:: 2004 5 May :: 9.40 pm

Do you want to play with fire?

:: 2004 4 May :: 7.00 pm

Things seem to be falling into line. I got my grade for my sanocki project: 100%! I've gotten responses from two of my three senior seminar contacts. I got an interview at G&L on thursday (and THEY called ME!) Plus, the time for the much dreaded AP exams has finally come. Maybe my life is really like a tornado, and right now I'm at the eye of the storm. I plan on doing some major studying tonight for calc, but I'm not too stressed out about the exam. If worse comes to worse (by the way, I've been overusing that phrase lately), I won't get the math credit and will have to take another math class next year, the same as pretty much every other freshmen. Mrs. Netcott reassured us by saying that no one at catholic has ever gotten a 1 before (worst score possible)...but I still wouldn't want to get a 2! I need a 4 for credit, but a score of 3 (passing) will suit me fine. Well, off to study...

Do you want to play with fire?

:: 2004 3 May :: 7.10 pm

Thankfully, I presented my sanocki project today and it wasn't as stressful as I made it out to be. Well...I don't have my grade yet, but it wasn't that bad. To start my presentation I told the president that we are bombarded by chinese imports and then I had becky read my tie where it said "made in china," followed by kristin reading the NYC snowglobe where it said "made in hong kong." I preceeded to take off my shoe and had scott read the inside where it said "made in china." Was that great or what? When I practiced my presentation last night it was 9 and half, but at school I shortened it to 6:50. Now that it's over with, I just have to sit back and watch other people present. I went with alexa, bill, and dan, but a lot of people thought mine was the best because: alexa read too fast (she had to), bill's was terrible (at least that's what people say, but it really surprised them), and on dan's they weren't sure what country he was doing (but his link to the internet was really cool). In other news, All time brooks quote ocurred today: "[Jesus' disciple] pops a monsterous boner." POPS A MONSTEROUS BONER?!?! Can you believe a teacher said that? The thing is, she didn't mean it like that (obviously) but her choice of diction wasn't the best for a high school setting. The whole room stopped and asked themselves "did I just hear what I thought I did," and then they laughed. She just kept on going on with what she was saying, so either she didn't want to comment on her mishap or the fact that the class randomly burst out in laughter didn't phase her.

1 burn | Do you want to play with fire?

:: 2004 2 May :: 11.15 pm

I was just practicing my sanocki presentation. I got it down from 9 and a half minutes to 7:45, but I have to talk really fast and hope it doesn't take me long to click. I could cut my opening, but it's too cool to not have it. Anyways, today I spent almost two hours working on calc problems and then I went up to school for a calc review. I think I have a chance at getting a 3 on the exam, but probably not a four. I'll be so relieved after this week.

Do you want to play with fire?

:: 2004 2 May :: 12.23 am

Just got back from Fremont's prom. It was held at some small hall in twin lake, but it was fun. Amanda and I danced quite a lot. I took her out to eat at Fricano's, which she liked, but I felt bad because she got me a bootineer, and I didn't get her a coursage. I gotta remember to call in katie's, though. I thought fremont's theme was good: Hollywood nights. When we came in they put these glow bracelets on us, and when we left they gave us these hollywood picture frames. They had a red carpet at the door and had movie memorabilia inside. In unrelated news, Jordan called me tonight and invited me to hang out at his house with some other people. That was kind of odd since I haven't been over to the kid's house since 8th grade and hardly talk to him in school. Still, I appreciated it, but couldn't go because of the prom.

Do you want to play with fire?

:: 2004 1 May :: 12.57 pm

Well I saw The King & I last night. Now that I've been broadening my theater horizon, I can say that it was good but not great. The acting, singing, and dancing was awesome (except for Sir Edward - how he spoke was kind of annoying). I think it's the fact that I don't really like the plot or setting to begin with that hindered me from being marveled. Plus, it seemed like a purely entertaining play. I guess you could say that the whole point was how love and education can change people, but that didn't seem very signicant to me. Maybe my problem is that I'm comparing it to Rent in my head, and Rent was sweet. Now that I think about it, our play seemed purely entertaining as well. I should go start my incredibly long day now...

Do you want to play with fire?