Usher and the Harry Potter Gang

hate the song

love this video

and this is just funny

cause where you are is where you'll be - always wanting everything

I think I’m going to start some sort of something that allows kids in my town to realize there’s a world outside of Fayetteville and Tennessee and the United States. Kids here really don’t make big plans. We go to schools our parents went to, if we’re lucky enough to have college graduate parents. We major in subjects that will provide a lot of money or an easy job through family/friend connections when we graduate. We stay in-state because we’re told there’s no reason to go to your dream school when there’s something almost as good and half the price here, if we care enough to do the extra research to find a dream school. Throw in the Lottery Scholarships, and college is practically free. Stay in Tennessee. It’s sad. And the kids who do dare to dream just a little are clung to by everyone and critiqued. Suddenly your dreams have to be solidified and become reality. Don’t be another letdown for this antique town. Impress everyone like WE expect for YOU to do. Even family members get wrapped up in it sometimes. That’s the worst. You’re the only niece that your uncle wants to talk to. He’s the biggest success of the family. You could learn a few things, so you talk and listen. He’s asking questions. You’re stoked to tell all your plans to someone who can actually give worldly advice. His only response is “Now you want to be sure this is something that will be profitable for you. What exactly will you do with your degree?” Effin a! Shut your face! You’re less help than my freakin cat and you have about 40 years and the ability to speak English on him. That’s very sad on your part. Now go set up some new office branch in Ireland or wherever you spent the last few years. I’ve changed my plans once again and I dare say you’ll be even less impressed with me now. Enjoy your “almost successful” niece.

So yeah. That’s what I want to do. Zieja and I were talking tonight, and he is one of the most motivational people I know. Granted Worldwidemoment, my new school plans, and this new project are the only things I’ve ever been truly excited and passionate for, so I guess that makes Benj, Me, and Zieja the top three and only motivators in my life, at least in the most direct sense. But he got me excited about it and then fell asleep. The kid is just an upcoming senior in high school, and he already has an internship with Senator Levin, volunteers at the Detroit Institute of Art, is a main member of literally the best FIRST Robotics team in the world, works on Obama’s campaign, and volunteers somewhere else I can’t even remember. He’s telling me things about the world and people that I’m just beginning to see and understand. Conversations with him are always exhausting and long and enriching. I’ve gotten past his age. He knows more than 90% of my town before he even has his license. And he and I understand that’s it’s not even the knowledge that’s the most important. You have to do something with it. We’re going to, and we plan to drag along as many people as we can stand.

I think my mom is amazed that I have thoughts now. I haven’t even told her about this seeing as it was just suggested to me, but telling her my school plans brought about a lot more than smiles and nods. Obviously I’m doing something at least slightly unexpected. While talking I kinda realized why I didn’t like Clemson as much as I had assumed I would. I was hitting on it a little when I said that the people were very preppy, and my friends reminded me of ones I had in high school. But when Momma and I started discussing my going to school at Lipscomb and consequently living in downtown Nashville, she unknowingly answered my question perfectly. “I think you would like living there because there are endless possibilities. There’s such diversity in the people and everything around you.” Duh. Why didn’t I think of that?! Clemson attracted the rich kids who already had their futures mapped out for them by their parents long before they were born. No one cared about doing anything but getting out and making money. No one allowed his or her mind to wander. Everyone was the same and out to make friends just like them. (Of course the all-inclusive pronouns exclude a small number of people.) I hear Lipscomb attracts the same kind of student, but 2,500 students is nothing in a world of Nashvillians. I need to be there in the Fall. Have to be actually.

 

Okay, so as for these new school plans I have. I’ve decided to take on German, American Sign Language, and possibly some Spanish as side studies. Not a major or a minor. I will no longer major in any sort of international business. I want to own my own businesses straight out of college and no longer wish to wait until retirement to do it. Actually I may minor in a language if I decide there isn’t anything else I wish to really pursue, but I think I’ll find something. I love languages but when it comes to all the studying to become fluent, I don’t enjoy it. As long as I can communicate in some elementary way, I’m satisfied; thus, my new goal does not require me to be fluent. I will use my languages when I travel. I plan for my trips to be leisurely but hopefully helpful for others every time I leave home. So I want to own a bakery, a coffee shop, an old timey soda shop bar thing, a truck stop, and a music venue. Now some of the things could be combined. Coffee shop and bakery. Bakery and soda shop place. Coffee shop and music venue, though that’s already been done at Rocketown. The bakery will have options for all tastes and kinds of people. The coffee shop will be based as closely as possible to the Elk River Coffee Company because I’ve yet to find a place I like better. The soda bar won’t involve cooking anything but rather serving nachos and sweet goodies and ice cream and popcorn and fruit with cottage cheese and of course Coke. I’ll have the little bitty old timey glasses of Coke for five cent fills and refills. Maybe it can look like the candy shop in Charlie and the Chocolate Factory. The truck stop is for my daddy. Its location will be the biggest kicker. He’s always saying he has to go from this city to that one and there’s really no good place to stop in between. The music venue would probably be the funnest/most fun and trickiest venture. There are small bands I love love love that should be treated as traveling kings and queens. Artists would look forward to seeing me and my town and its fans. I’m not sure what town that would be, yet, but I know there are plenty that need to get into the music scene. Whatever. That would be a pretty sweet life. One business will start me off. Hopefully I can build up to the rest without selling out and keeping and making friends along the way.

Now back to helping kids see the world. Internships would be good. I never thought about getting one in high school because it’s something you do in college. Zieja opened my eyes to that. I’ll see how feasible that’ll be. I know some of the school board people and the county exec/mayor and whatnot, so I really think this is doable. I had no idea “doable” was a word. I’ve always thrown in a hyphen. Cool. And maybe it could spread to other counties. Unless a school is in or within a few miles of a big city - Murfreesboro, Nashville, Knoxville, Chattanooga, Huntsville – the kids are probably in the same position I was. Maybe it’ll cut down on pregnancies and stuff, too. Fat chance but we’ll see. I wonder what a good name would be and how I could spread the word. I guess the school board would do a lot if they got behind it, and I could go speak at schools. That’s really the only way to d it, with school board approval and help. Maybe a website. I think it’s important to not only get them job experience in bigger cities but to make them see countries can actually have one unified culture and make them believe they can see and experience it for themselves. They kinda know it’s out there because they’ve been told, but they need pictures and the hope that they can go on some sort of organized trip that’s offered every summer. Those opportunities are already out there, and kids here just aren’t taking advantage of it.

That’s enough for tonight.

I thank God for good people. I’ll be influential soon enough.

=)

do do do doooo

So I'm not going back to Clemson next year. I want to go to Lipscomb in Nashville. I got my certificate of acceptance yesterday. Sweet business. Hopefully Daddy and I can visit Uncle Kevin and Aunt Susan this weekend, and they can put in a good word with their connections as far as money from the school goes. Daddy doesn't want to pay what it'll cost because the school is in-state. It's also a private Christian school and four hours closer to home. We'll see what happens.

I think I'm going to go to Indiana next month. There's an off-season robotics competition in Indianapolis, and I want to see a few people. It can be my one fun thing this summer other than concerts and whatnot. My one fun out-of-state thing. Mental note: we should hit up Six Flags. We being whoever. And I actually just remembered Daddy and I are going to Texas in August. So I guess I get two fun out-of-state things, or at least one guaranteed.

I had A TON of stuff to write last night, but my internet was sketching in and out. It'll probably never be written.

Lots has been going on with Brandon. I'm not sure it's worth writing about, but I'll probably do it soon enough.

I get new tires next week. FINALLY! They kinda roar now because I didn't get them rotated as often as I should have. Poor baby car.

more boy stories...snap

Four kisses....eh. Last night I remembered another one in December. Again a different guy. I remember when I thought girls who kissed non-boyfriends were fairly slut-like. It wasn't that long ago! Anyway, this was a guy I knew had always liked me. We didn't meet until high school because he was a county school kid while I went to City. We had a lot of classes together because the high school has one option for honors or AP, and he and I took the hardest course load we could muster. I'll admit I was possibly interested in him in sophomore biology. He sat one seat up and over from me. Perfect view right? And his name was Brendan so the rest of this will be easier to type. I thought he was cute and definitely really smart, but he was shy so I never really started "liking" him. Junior year I don't think I thought much about him until second semester. (I just realized that I think of him as coming along basically senior year. He's been there even though we didn't talk, and he saw the stupid people I dated. Heh...I guess I should almost be flattered he still likes me. Actually I only dated one guy at the high school before I came upon Brandon. So he just saw that guy. And that guy was the worst one to see. Not because he was unpopular or nerdy or the star basketball player or anything okay like that. He graduated a year ahead of me still runs around town. Town rat. Eww. He had a twin brother, and honestly I would've taken either one. The three of us had Spanish together, and apparently I eventually weaseled my way in. Whatever. I don't even remember how long it lasted. Like a wimpy three months maybe, and I broke up with him. He was a rebel of sorts, and I got that through that "I want a bad boy" phase really fast...luckily.) Somehow this just turned into two stories. Anyway. Brendan. Second semester of junior year robotics was in full swing. I had been on the team my sophomore year. Brendan decided to join. I was a little excited at first. Maybe I'd get to hear him speak about something other than cytoplasm or capillary action. Within the first week, I saw not much had changed. He and I worked on different things. We could've made excuses to see each other and sat together at dinner, but why? It's not like he was actually going to talk. At this point Brandon had also come along. Just before Christmas while we were on break. We weren't "official" at this point (again, assuming we ever were), but I was definitely focused solely on him. So the season rolls by. We do really well, the best of my three years on the team. I make an awesome new friend at nationals who I still see at least once a year and maybe twice this year if I go to IRI in July. He's on my marriage possibilities list, though he's two years younger. He's smarter than I am in every subject except physics. Who really needs that anyway? Well a lot of people but not him and me. But he and I wouldn't make it through the engagement, though I'd like to be engaged to him so we could spend time together. We could learn a lot from each other. He's from Detroit, very fashionable, a "big spender" as he says, and just not a lover of the South. He always asks if everyone's been sitting around scratching their belly all day. He knows that isn't typical, but he really doesn't have anything to take the place of that idea because he knows so little about southern life. He says he will live in Manhattan and have kids if his career allows. That definitely isn't the life for me, but like I said, there's a lot each of us could teach the other. Thus part of the basis of his appeal. He's also just really a cutie and dresses super well. Awesome smile and super beyond crazy motivated. When I told him I was transferring schools next year, he immediately called two schools in Michigan to ask them about admissions and such. Michigan schools aren't even a consideration. Haha I love him. Zieja. That's what he goes by mainly. Pronounced Zee-Ja, but actually pronounced Zhay-uh. The first part is kinda like the first part of Jacques. I don't really know how to spell phonetically. =D Freakin a...back to boring Brendan. So we had physics together first semester senior year. No big deal. Mollie was my main squeeze in there. I just felt I should mention it because Dr. J was my favorite teacher. Then comes robotics season and AP English with Uncle Jack/Jack A. Jean/Jackie Boy. Our class was notorious for our teacher nicknames which we insisted on using. He called us scholars, so we came up with this joke. "If Jack A. Jean's students were on a boat, would it be called a 'scholarship'?" We decided it would be, so his new name became Captain Jack. Anyfreakinway! How do I do this?! So off topic all the time. So Brendan's sister is a year behind us and on robotics. She tells me Brendan joined the team the year before because I was on it. Great. Just great. He was probably the best looking guy on the team, though there was always one of the super geeky guys I liked. So Brendan and I bonded a bit. We had calc at Motlow first block, something together second block, and AP together during 4th. Add to that a typical thrity hour robotics week, and we had no choice. It really bugs me that I can't remember second block. Hmmm...ah! Economics with Coach K! Great class. He didn't bother me as much in there because there was lots of cool people. My annoyance then came from the kid behind me, Zach, who was coincidentally another one of the five kisses. He was in May. The week after prom. He was alright, though. He could actually talk to me. He sent me stuff on Valentine's Day one year. Junior or senior. It was supposedly a friend thing, but making the thank you phone call was torture. Again. Whatever. So Brendan and I were pretty okay. Our AP discussions always got heated. We had lots of top ten students and smart smart smart people: 2, 3, 7, 8 and kids who are at Vanderbilt majoring in Philosophy and at Lipscomb majoring in Physics and Bible. Paul was/is atheist. Sucks for him but whatever. Brendan has been in church all his life but probably knows as much about the Bible as I do. They would argue. I'd be on Brendan's side, but he just wasn't a good representative. And I think he was the only person who never noticed. He felt manly. Word got out that he was going to West Point. I had no idea he was even considering it. That blew my mind, but thank goodness he was accepted because everyone is fairly sure that's the day his life began. He now had something to talk about. Too bad Kenny B took some of the spotlight when he graduated Valedictorian and went to Annapolis. I'm a bitter individual, or maybe just partial. I've always preferred Kenny B. But then Brendan found out he had TB. Crazy right?! Apparently he got it at Basic the summer before. Thankfully, it was latent and he was able to go on with life normally. I was really worried about him, but as soon as we found out he would be alright, I really didn't have much pity for him. I'm not sure how good or bad or indifferent that makes me. So we graduated. Of course Brendan and I had to sit on the front row right beside each other. This is a long story. He and I hung out sometime in all this. Maybe it was over the summer. We went bowling. Awkward. I wasn't about to go to a movie with him. We took my car for whatever reason, and when it was time for him to get out, he didn't want to. He was waiting for something, and I just kept yelling "Oh listen to this song!" and texting. He finally left. We leave for our respective states and come back for Christmas break. The robotics kick-off is January 4th-ish. We're both still in town. I plan to go to the high school to watch it with  my old team, so I'll be ready to help my team in SC as soon as I get back. I've told Brendan this, and he has somewhere he has to be. We hung out at the coffee shop and amazingly had pretty good conversation for a few hours. Granted most of it was me voicing my worries and dislikes and hope for school. So when we're going to leave he somehow ends up with his hands on my hips while we're standing by my car. I'm like, "What the hey...the kid's made it through his first semester of plebe year, he can carry on a decent conversation now, you don't have to see him until summer...just kiss him and satiate his lips for a while." So I do. We do. It's not super long. It's just whatever. He leaves. I feel pretty proud of my move. Maybe mom would give me the look but she'll never know. And of freakin course he shows up at robotics the next day. Effin a. Give me a break. I almost didn't go when I found out he would be there. I was leaving before him, and he walked me to my car and stood and held my door open in the freakin rain while I sat there dry inside. I guess he was waiting on another kiss. Heck no! Especially not in front of all my former team members...or just people in general. Haha. That's horrible. I've tried to like him. He's obviously doing something with himself, and any other guy at West Point would have my full attention. Heh...the end I think. That is the "Brendan, Town Rat whose name I don't even like, Zieja, and Zach" story, respectively and some only partially. Wow. I shall go back and divide this into paragraphs now.

I'll also say I'm hopefully seeing Bwandon today. =) Frontier Days, tour of the Jack Daniel's Distillery for the millionth time because it's 20 minutes from my house, and then the drive-in. We'll see and he and I can sit through a movie now. Good day if it all works out.

I don't feel like making paragraphs. Two is enough. =D