That's a Wrap!

   So today was my last day of school, and personally, I am so glad to finally be putting this year behind me. There were a lot of great things that happened this year (one of those being this blog), but all in all it was pretty crappy. Junior year is a really tough year. Will senior year be easier? I doubt it, but it will be a bit more relaxed, at least.
   I think all of the firsts this year was the problem. On top of some fairly difficult classes, I had no lunch most of the year, and then pair that with still getting used to balancing work and school,  add in the stress of having expenses (private lessons, insurance, gas) and buying my first car, it has been a tough year. Next year I will definitely be a little more used to all of this, and hopefully, a little bit better at balancing everything.
   If I could give some advice to people coming towards this age, I'd say be very careful about overloading yourself. I wasn't, and I spent most of the year just bairly keeping my head above water-financially, academically, and mentally. Keep in mind that if you want to get a job, it will interfere with your schoolwork, and if you're not prepared for this it will affect your grades. Also bear in mind that people are going to start hounding you about college and you have to be ready for it. Even if you don't know what you want to do when you graduate, you're going to need some sort of answer. Maybe you don't have a career in mind, but you know you're going to attend college? I'd say take the time to look at a few colleges, community colleges especially as they're just chock full of students trying to figure out where they want to go from here. Basically, it's cheap and it will buy you time.
   Have you ever sat at your keyboard, looking at that little blinking line, and it just taunts you? I'm not sure why, but I've got a thousand thoughtsa whirling through my head right now and I just can't seem to focus enough to write.
   I need a vacation.

Tacos,
Gladdstone

Socially Awkward

   Guess I missed my Monday post this week, all well. I was kinda busy, you guys understand, right? Life's gotta come first. As soon as I start making money from this, it can become first priority. Until then, we'll have to cope.

   I thought today I'd talk about one of my slightly more severe quirks, and I thought of this because I know of a lot of people that have the same issue. People familiar with me will know that I have fairly severe social anxiety. Sometimes, it makes me look like a bit of an ass, because someone I'm acquainted with will say hi to me when we pass on the street, or in the store, and I'll try to say something, but nothing comes out. It's a little hard to describe, but basically my mind starts to go a mile a minute as I try to figure out how a normal person would respond, and that results in either a really delayed response, or no response. Either way, I end up super embarrassed and walking in the opposite direction very fast.
   Recently-at least since I started working as a cashier-it has gotten slightly better because I'm interacting with a lot more people daily. What's odd, is I don't have a fear of public speaking (ie, to a group or crowd) but the idea of one-on-one conversation terrifies me. Does anyone else have this? I think what it is, is that when I'm presenting something to a crowd, I've got something prepared, or at the very least, I know what I need to mention., and I can work from there. In conversation, I tend to get jumbled and say things completely out of nowhere. And then while the other person responds, I'll be so wrapped up in figuring out what the next thing I'll say is, I completely miss their response. As you might imagine, the situation tends to dissolve from there.

Behold: the portal to hell

   I bring this up because earlier, I finally renounced public restrooms for good. This all came about because, as I do every 9th period, I mustered up the courage to use the school restrooms (actually one in particular, I use it exclusively), and after the bathroom was finally empty, I went to put toilet paper over the seat, only to find it damp.
   That's right. And yes, it was all of the toilet paper. After dry heaving a bit, I washed my hands three times, and then went home to take a shower and wash my hands again. Having had this experience, now coupled with a thousand other horror stories, I have chosen I will only use private bathrooms going forward, using public restrooms only in the most dire situations. As for how well this goes, I'm out of the house often.
   Wish me luck.

Tacos,
Gladdstone