Hello there! If any creative writing fellows still read this. Since the last update (of graduation)... I got a car, a college schedule, and a job (as cashier at Dave's, the grocery store, in East Greenwich)... I'm officially going to be a Journalism major at URI and I have a schedule filled with things like Political Science and Social Philosophy to prove it and am really really excited about it... And yeah. Well... keep blogging, comrades. Even if you have nothing to say...

grraaaaaduation!

My high school graduation:

- I got my rose pinned on and two minutes later was running outside to a car and I broke my flower. Walked back in saying, "I CAN'T BELIEVE I BROKE MY GRADUATION FLOWER". And had to get a new one.

- My graduation cap FELL OFF in the middle of the ceremony... and I said, "oh, shit,"... in front of the bishop who was sitting right near me.

- I forgot to turn my tassel to the other side of the cap when everyone else did and when they were all done was still struggling to move it past the pointy part of the cap.

- All of my out-of-school best friends - sisters - since the age of five... Kadie, Holly, Nikki, and Justine... took the night off of work even if it meant calling coworkers at midnight to get them to cover, even though one had a final exam the next day, to come to my graduation and they sat with my parents and after the principal said, "This is a formal celebration, please no cheering, only applause," they whooped and yelled when I went up to get my diploma and I grinned madly. They were the first ones to break the rule and cheer. ^_^

- My best friends sat in the auditorium laughing their heads off at the stiff formal officials on stage and blew kisses at me when I was sitting up there bored and I signaled back with thumbs-up signs and grins.

- So disappointed I missed Kyle's whirring-light-thing in the tassel-turning part. The misfortunes of the front row. :P

- Stood out in the grass for a long time after it was over with friends, laughing and being crazy, introducing the school friends to the out-of-school entourage, taking pictures, and being even more crazy. Took a picture with one of the entourage who is also in the class of 2006 but graduated from a different school... with the gown hiked up and an evil expression... to make fun of our eighth-grade graduation photo where we looked like little princesses.

- Went out for ice cream afterward at Newport Creamery in North Kingstown with my parents and the best friends, and Lisa, and Dave! Throwing sugar packets at each other, laughing madly, yelling, telling stories, reminiscing about crazy things we did in the past, informing Lisa and Dave about things like the sequels to the Mummy movies the best friends and I made and... lobsters...

- Going back home... drowsy... Dropping off friends... One friend is signing the lease on her apartment tomorrow with her boyfriend... Another taking a final exam... One already graduated... One probably going to work... One going to school probably. And the friends from my class, we're having a party of course.

- Getting home. Presents and cards all on the table. Diploma on top of the cap, tassel MIA, probably back in the van. There are balloons and flowers and gifts for me and to give to others.

That was an absolutely CRAZY graduation - flower broken, swearing in front of the bishop, losing cap, tassel problems, friends, laughing, being completely irreverent, ice cream sundae, yelling, screaming, summer air and caps and gowns and the last time in the auditorium, no - last time in the school. I'm not a Prout student any more. Yes, that was crazy, absolutely insane and WONDERFUL and HILARIOUS and I LOVED EVERY MINUTE.

summing up? not quite

So this is kind of incredibly after the fact... but, I figured I would do it anyway.

Just wondering. Is anyone going to keep writing in their creative-writing-blogs?

This semester I think my whole writing-thing changed completely. I started with some cryptic poems and then got tired of writing them... And moved on to some overly self reflective posts that must have been very annoying to read if anyone actually read them... Wrote a few REALLY bitchy entries about language and elitism and introversion and other stuff that I'm embarassed about now... Then came to the end of the year and realized basically, why does it matter?, I'm just going to live and who cares if I even write about it at all but if I do then it will only be honest.

You know I'm looking forward to studying journalism in college (because I am going to do that - instead of English... I'm SO burnt out on English -_-) because journalists' writing has to be to the point and has to say what needs to be said in a simple way... with no annoying hovering and dodging around the subject. Straightforward. I'm looking forward to having to be bold and outgoing to find out something for a story. Really I'm done with these things: fear, complaining, and hiding. Which is what I used to use writing for. There you go.

rather than retreating

So I didn't cry on retreat... but I had fun! In spite of sentimental group activities it was not as bad as I had thought. I didn't burst out crying or anything but I did like the last part. I didn't really feel like I had to say anything because well, you guys all know what I think of you ^_^. (aka I love you all incredibly.) I must also admit that I can't be emotional and sobbing at a retreat because there is always a little mischevious voice in my head that just cannot resist laughing about something. ^^; To me, it's not really the retreat confessions and group conversations that were important. The more important things are the conversations we've had all through this year, serious and not, and the very weird jokes we all have, and the more silent little promises to stay friends, and just the understanding between friends that doesn't need to be gone over in words again and again. Though the spoken ones are great too - one thing I loved was the letter writing thing... So thanks for that. And it's still going on you guys, so let's enjoy every minute of it. Even exams. We can just pretend they aren't exams... maybe. There are parties to come, and running into the sea (right CPS), and everything. So let us go crazy. It will be great.