I was so excited to receive my paperwork in the mail! I found out I will be working the polls at Patriot Elementary School on Election day.
Since I am not old enough to vote, here's the closest to it, right?

School has been incredibly overwhelming recently. Grades come out Friday, and I am on the edge of my seat to see my foundation for semester grades. I have fallen in love with my AP English&History classes. It's so incredible the amount of literature and facts we have already addressed here.

Homecoming is stressing me out, major. North High is one of the only school's that goes OVERBOARD on floats. A 26' flat bed big rig? REALLY? Well, I have discovered it is impossible to find a business willing to loan us one for a week. So I am wickedly stressing, because without the truck, there is no float, right?

I just wanted to check in, vent a tad, and now I'm back to studying for History DBQ's tomorrow.

 

Today during 6th period I received a surprise.
My old history teacher, Dana Ross, walked in waving something in her hands, walks up, and says "I think these are yours". And sure enough, with my name on them, was two tickets to go to opening night at Talladega Frights, courtesy of Northwest Voice!

Of course I was already aware of this due to a past congrats from Dana through email.

My next step was to find someone to go with me. I don't have a cute little boyfriend I can take to hold my hand, so I thought, next best thing, the best friend. Then I realized none of my friends drive and due to the lovely thing called LAW I cannot drive anyone. So, I went to another good friend who could drive and meet me there and off we went, Jamba Juice in hand, through this, well, maze?
 

Needless to say, TWO THUMBS UP.


It was fantastic. I love that the cast respect you and do not touch or grab you, I liked his use of illusion, I did not however, like the spinning tunnel to be in the middle as it was because I know that once I was on that and got sick, I was ready to leave and get slightly irritated.


ANYWAYS,

I wanted to thank you, Northwest Voice, for allowing me this amazing op! I know I will be having all my friends go!!

[I took a picture with one of the dead girls, but my AMAZING phone lost the picture.... DARN!

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Many MIGHT be wondering where I have been (at least, I hope you care!)
No, I have NOT fallen off the face of planet Earth, nor have I forgotten aboutcha!

I have been stuck in a tornado frenzy of heck, better known as HIGH SCHOOL. 2 AP classes, Honors chem, and ASB/clubs.... BUSY.
 

I've been stuck writing those STUPID essays about STUPID books that don't even make sense because they were written by puritans back before America was America and I am also stuck in a law book of

1. NO personal pronouns (I, Me, He, She, ect)
2. NO "to be" verbs (to, be, is, am, ect)
3. A intro paragraph shall contain only one sentence.
4. NO contractions (don't be lazy)
5. NO over-use of punctuation (commas, semi-colon, blahblahblah)

Guys, that one REALLY kills me as I am very fond of my "," key. haha.



Not only am I stuck in essay writing..... heck.... I am also playing tennis after school and driving to Santa Maria on Sunday's for softball practice (Oh the joys of wanting a softball scholarship).

Between all this I have little to no time online, my FAVORITE place to be.


I should be writing soon. I have found much inspiration to blog lately.
I just must find time to transfer from journal to here!



Oh, and, with all the school cutting athletic budgets this year, I ask, if you are capable, you support the local athletes and their teams struggle for needs. I know our tennis team is on edge and so will my softball team. So, when kids have those little car wash tickets, chip in a few bucks! :]


I love Bakersfield!

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As I am coming close to my 16th birthday [august 23rd!!], I am also coming very close to another milestone in my life; my drivers license.

Now, I know the typical adult response, "EVERYONE STAY OFF THE S IDEWALKS" and "Looks like I will not be driving after THAT date".
Haha, very funny parents.

As a "responsible" teenager I wanted to respond to a recent question I saw posted in the Bakersfield Californian that caught my attention. They asked of the laws regarding blinkers, and as a new driver, I now know the frustration when people do not use the blinker or do not preform the other responsible acts of driving.
But mainly what I wanted to tap on is this question; If the majority of drivers in Bakersfield are "too lazy" or "forget" to use their blinkers and/or follow all the other laws in connection with driving, then why should they tease a teenage driver?
I don't know if they realize it or not, but we pick up our bad habits from our parents and others we observe on the streets.
It's almost like "when you point fingers at someone, you have three more pointing at yourself".
I remember at Shafter Driving School, where I attended, the instructor said to us "Make sure you space out your appointments so that we can catch and correct all your habits you learned from your parents". And, isn't THAT the truth. I know that from my own mom, I picked up the 'let's slam on the brakes 20 feet from the stop sign instead of easing on to them 200 feet away like I am taught'.
I just feel like if parents and non parents practice what they preach and follow the laws as they want the "stubborn teenage drivers" to follow them aswell, we'd have much safer streets. I applaud that person for posing that question.


Also, I want to thank my own parents, as well as all those parents out there who dug their fingernails into the armrest, grabbed the 'holy cow' handle tighter than ever, and pushed their feet into the imaginary brake as hard as they could, but however DIDN'T scream at the top of their lungs or grab the wheel or scare the bajibbis outta us. Sometimes, it's just like kindergarten, you gotta let us do our own thing and just be ready when we fall... or in this case, when we are 2 and a half inches away from the yellow pole at the gas station.... thank you for the english language lesson, mom.

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I felt the need to post my 8th grade graduation speech. It is something I am very proud of. It was the first time I ever wrote something and said, "Not bad for a 13 year-old".  Enjoy.

Good Evening,
And welcome to our 2006, 8^th grade graduation.

Well, We did it! We made it through 9 long years of school just to get here, on this field before all the people we love, representing our successes throughout these years.

Have you ever thought about tomorrow, I don’t mean tomorrow as in the day after today, I mean… Our future. High school, College, who we will be, who will be in our lives and who wont.

Everyone is in our lives for a reason. Whether its to help you through a hard time, to be there to talk to or aome are there for a simple reason unknown.

Think about the last conversation you had with someone. Are you satisfied? Have you ever thought about what it would be like without that one person tomorrow?

Ever since we were little we were told people live and people die, Its just what happens, and it was usually some old aunt or uncle that you never even knew. But until the loss of a dear teacher, a brother, a best friend, or even just someone you saw in the quad did you realize how dear and short life really can be.

I don’t need to add in names, you can make it personal. But what i do want to add is, I am not satisfied.

I remember the last time I saw and talked to Mrs. Knapp. She was busy and told me,” I owe you a hug, Kara, Next year, I promise!’

It sounds silly to say but had I known what was going to happen that summer to come, I would of hugged her, anyone would of. I know that Travis made a huge impact on many of you as well. The death of someone special can really make you appreciate life that much more.

What I am trying to say is, don’t leave here tonight still mad at someone, or without saying goodbye. You never know if they’ll be here tomorrow.

Life throws many curves, and like what Mr. Duerr once told me, “Life never gives you what you cant handle.
Going into High School is life giving us a second chance to do things right, to get over everything in the past. It’s a chance to start off fresh with a new you.

The choices you make today and tomorrow determine the outcome of the days that turn into weeks, and months and years and eventually…. Your life.

Life doesn’t have a restart button, You cant go back and start over, but you can change the outcome of tomorrow, Say your sorry, Say you messed up. You may not be able to fix what was, but you can help what will become of tomorrow.

When starting High School, take a chance, over achieve, make new friends, Love and appriciate life, but most of all… don’t lose you. Don’t make mistakes you cant fix, Don’t have regrets you cant handle, and don’t wish your life away.

And always remember,
There was only one yesterday,
There is only one today,
There will be only one tomorrow,
And there is only one you.

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So, As I might of previously mentioned, I am going to be Junior Class President next year at North, and part of my job is to come up with Prom themes to present to the Junior Prom Committee in March-ish.

I know this is really early but it has been on my mind lately, and I wanted your ideas.

Now, I have plenty of my own, don't get me wrong. But I just wanted to see if anyone had anything cool to suggest.
I am looking for something original and not WAY over done.

My best idea for now is James Bond. Red,black, and white with roses and movies lights and such



What do you guys think?

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As I was just finishing that post about 'writers block', I turned to look at my good television where I was watching "17 News @ 11" (must be said in the deep announcers voice) where I currant story caught my eye. Therefore, I have done further research.


Ever since I can remember, the 4th of July has been a big deal. The week leading up to it is exciting. We buy fireworks, boxes and boxes of them, get our ingredients to make homemade ice cream, decide what is for dinner, and then get our matches bought and ready. Although the location of these events for my family has always changed between grandmother's and different house locations, it always was the same.
I remember when I was probably 5, my older brother (who was probably only 8 or 9) thought it would be cool to light the fireworks. At my old house, we had two big tall trees in the front yard. He takes one of those fireworks that spin and light up and he sticks it  on a already existing nail on the tree. As I sat at my grandpa's feet, we were busy focused straight ahead instead of what was behind. Jack lights up the firework and it spins off the tree and hits my grandpa. He took off running. I couldn't decide whether he was laughing in pain or crying.

Many other stories I remember from the 4th, but not all were funny.
Every year we go over to my grandma's the Saturday night before the 4th, have a day with the cousins full of swimming and ice cream and movies and we await the stroke of 10 when the fireworks at the Bakersfield Speedway explode into the smoggy sky. One year, We all sat on our blankets watching the fireworks explode. You could hear all of the gathered "Ohh's" and "Ahh's" from not only the neighborhood, but also the stands of the raceway. Well, after the 'grand finale', I remember looking to the side of the house directly in front of my grammie's. I saw an orange glow. I looked at my mom and said "Mommy, I don't think that is suppose to glow". They assured me it was just reflection from the smoke. But my 7 year old instincts new better. I ran into the house, grabbed my grammie's cat and jumped in the car and began screaming how I wanted to leave because the house was going to burn down. Finally, we could hear the neighbors screaming that the foothills [Cheapskate hill for my fellow know-ers] directly in front of the Speedway was on fire. My family scattered in a 100 directions. The roof was being watered down, pictures and documents were being gathered, animals thrown in the back seat and as we drove away, we saw it, the entire 13ish acre field was on fire. We later found out that one of the "professional" fireworks was a dud in the sky and fell, were normally they wouldn't light, it sure enough caught fire.



Why I say this comes to the words released by Arnold [let me try this] Schwarzenagger stating "Don't buy the fireworks. Don't go out and play with fireworks because its just too dry and too dangerous to do these things" simply confuses me (News10 of Sacramento). Understanding both the pros and cons of fire. Understanding that possibly 1/16 of California is burning, understanding the risks, is it still worth taking away a 5 year olds memory? I am not one sided on this only because I feel both ways. I, myself, am afraid of fire in itself. It's hard for me to light a candle much less a firework. I just wonder if some things, like this, are a risk worth taking. It really seems a risk. I mean, it could go two ways, Bakersfield could burn down, or a family of 4 kids can have an amazing time writing their names in the air with sparklers. A part of me wants to say "4th of July has nothing to do with fireworks. The fourth of July is marking the day that our founding fathers signed the declaration of Independence, LET'S HUNT EGGS NOW!" So I want to be prude and say "ban fireworks", but then again, I wouldn't have wanted my memories of my ideal fourth taken from me.

Where I led up to is this, what do you feel about the fourth? Fireworks, or No? What is your greatest 4th memory? 
 

(I also want to note that I understand fireworks are not illegal this year, Mr Terminator just recommended we stay away from the stands)

Oh and, I don't like the air quality for about a month after the 4th. I wonder if coach will allow us to do an indoor practice. Maybe, popcorn and a movie? Sandlot! Now THAT is team bonding!

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Since I didn't really talk about it at all in my 'About Me' and Ms Dana asked me about it, I will go ahead and just post a blog with a little more about me.


I grew up in Oildale. Went to Highland Ele, Standard MS, and now North High. When I was in the 6th grade we moved out here in the North West where my parents attempted to move me to Norris. Didn't work out. I was miserable and hated it so, as a little princess I am (or sometimes wish I am) my parents moved me back to SMS and proceeded to drive me back-and-forth every day (and trust me, I know Snow/Norris Rd. like the back of my hand !!).

Anyways, growing up I have always been able to speak. And, I have always loved speaking to adults, my teachers, friends' parents, anyone who would listen and just cared about what I had to say. I felt kids my age were immature, so I went after an audience that would understand and care. I remember my first grade teacher, Ms. Erwin, Gosh, that woman made SUCH and impact on my life. I give her most of the credit for who I am. She listened when nobody else did. She taught me that not by words can something be portrayed by also by actions. And through her actions she let me know that there will be someone out there to listen, I just have to find them.  She also taught me to write cursive. I was so stubborn that my poor 3rd grade teacher (who was a first year) could not get through my "I can't do it". So, Erwin taught me something else I use still today... "It is not that you can't, it is that you wont". Wow.

I never had a teacher like her. I had some killer ones along the way that really changed who I was and how I thought. Mrs Wonderly, my 5th grade, is still in my life today as my "godmother" and mentor. Steve Duerr, 7th & 8th grade science teacher, is the one who showed me the light of Jesus Christ and a major reason I became a Christian.

Then there is the story of my freshman English teacher, Mrs Sherley. Yes, when you hear her name you think of a fat-old wrinkily woman with a wart on her cheek and chain on her glasses, but no, she's MUCH worse than that :D. Totally kidding, she is a small, skinny, beautiful woman, but has a tough-as-nails personality. I remember we would have two page essays to do in one night, I would be up till 3:00 just finishing them. The reason they were so dread full is because of the horrible "Jane Shaffer" way of doing it. Ugh, she should be met in a dark ally for creating such a thing. Anyways, she taught us really how to put our thoughts down on paper correctly. However, I never use any of the formats as she taught us because I don't believe writing should have a format. I believe that writing is something that comes from your heart and however it is construed on paper, well, that's how it should be.
One thing she did tell me is I am "too wordy" and "use too many commas", well, Mrs Sherley, this, is, for, you...

(Oh, and by the way, Sherley is moving to Frontier as an English teacher, I assume Freshman. Parents, I recomend you get your sons and daughters in her class. They will hate it, they will kick and scream and cry just as I and all my friends did, but, she's amazing. I recieved a 460 on the English part of the standardized testing, she is probably the best in Bakersfield)

I also wrote an 8th grade graduation speech.
That year, a classmate of ours died after being struck by a car skateboarding. It opened so many emotional doors that a speech like mine was necessary. I had parents in tears, students in shock, it was great to just impact people in that way.

I also plan on writing a high school speech.
It's in the works. I still have two years. :D

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I wonder sometimes if young athletes are expected of too much these days. I don't know whether that sentence even makes sense but, what I mean is, as an athlete who would LOVE to receive a scholarship to Sac State to play ball, I feel like I am not doing enough to stand out to the college coaches.
Here's my summer schedule; Lessons for catching and hitting in the mornings, the edge (ran by Terrio. FANTASTIC, if i might add) for an hour 3 days a week, then travel team practice from 6-dark daily, then sometimes some sort of team bonding after practice. I have a tournament every other weekend, scrimmages some afternoons, and barely any time for summer "break". In the fall, I will play fall ball, on-top of MORE lessons, more practices, extracurricular activities such as school clubs and church volunteer, i will be Junior Class president next year so I will have ASB stuff, AP and Honors classes, and I am also playing Tennis because it "looks better when you have more than one sport". And I know I am not even doing as much as many of my teammates are.
I just feel that sometimes I am over-achieving, trying TOO hard to get into these amazing schools I dream of attending, and I fear sometimes that it all wont even matter, I will of 'wasted my time', and I wont (Hm. question. Why don't we say "will'nt" instead of wont? like, will-not, will'nt. hm) even get looked at for softball.
The pressure these days is on us kids badly. Our parents want it for us, our families are supporting us, our coaches are helping us, and all we want to do is just get it done. I feel the pressure from other players, seeing all they are doing and achieving, which makes me just want to one-up 'em like any good competitor does. I feel pushed by everyone to do more and more and sometimes worry if I will be paying for it in the future whether it be physically or mentally...
 

Well, I am off to work-out now, then practice tonight. And I am missing a church get-together, too. Dang.

My dream life for the next two years;
Get faster, hit more home-runs during games, have my name in The Bakersfield Californian with my stats, get recruited by at least two schools, and have fun doing it all... Oh, and making First-team All-League wouldn't hurt any :D