Assignment #25- Ellis Padgett- Mediocre Musician

Sometimes I feel as if I am as bland as white rice. Maybe it's a little true- I have a good family, friends, and social life. They all make up little parts of me. 

But if I had to choose an aspect of myself that I feel is important, I would say it is music. I am by no means a professional- far from it, actually. I think I'm mediocre. But even if it isn't my greatest talent, music still plays an important part of who I am. Sometimes, music is personal, and helps you have a conversation with your inner self. I like that part, and have focused it into many different projects. But music is also a method of sharing. My sister hates me because when she plays the cello, I come stand over her shoulder and want to play with her. I'm always asking her to play duets. On occasion I am sneaky and print off the cello part, sliding it under her door and running. We have yet to play a duet. 

I share music with my quartet. In fact, music is the reason I am friends with those people. One time we recorded a section of the piece we were working on, and man... it was so bad. But you could hear us all collapse laughing at the end. At least we're self aware. I remember seeing the movie Little Women this year with Sarah and Mary, and a movement of our quartet piece was used in the movie! My heart literally skipped a beat and I almost cried. It is an amazing song. 

When I was given the opportunity to help younger students with the violin, I jumped at the chance. More than anything, I wanted to make music fun for them. I think I just came off as crazy. I offered to give free violin lessons via Zoom to an elementary school-er in the middle of this mess... we'll see how it goes. Music won't always be perfect, but it's about picking up your instrument again and giving it another go- even if it means stepping away for a little bit.

I like listening to music in movies, too. One movie score struck me hard recently: How to Train Your Dragon: The Hidden World. Now THAT is a good movie. You probably think I'm crazy, but it's the truth. And the music in it is brilliant, how it works with the movie so smoothly. The score for Frozen II was really good too. Music in cinema is truly an amazing art.

There are a lot of parts to my identity that I feel are important- animals, writing- but I chose music for this blog post because I do feel like it is a constant in my life. Or maybe it's because I just got done practicing.

Assignment 24- Junior Year- Sneha Amrit

Since school is cancelled for the rest of the year, Junior year is basically over. Successes: not too many, but one I’m proud of is getting accepted to GSP I worked really hard on the application and I’m really happy I got accepted. Failures: plentiful, but the one I was most bummed about is failing my juvenile moves in the field test for skating, there were quite a few things that bummed me out about this. For starters this is not a hard test so it was disheartening to fail something that’s easy for others. Secondly I worked really hard for it, and I still failed. Now I recognize when I don’t work hard and can accept not succeeding then, but it’s upsetting to work hard and fail something. Thirdly I was supposed to retest in March and it was unfortunately but understandably cancelled o COVID-19, this was a bummer because it was cancelled like a week before the date so I was ready, but alas hopefully I’ll test  later. Lessons Learned: I think this year was the year where I learned how much more important other things are than test score and grades, and one I learned this I’ve been so much happier. Mistakes Made: MANY of these as well, biggest one is leaving the house late because driving up and down the hill and not finding a spot hurts the heart. At this point I’m just hoping that we get a summer, hopefully I’ll be able to sit at the pool and get a summer job. Senior year I’m hoping to just enjoy it and take advantage of experiences and opportunities, quarantine has made me a lot more grateful for everyday things. I plan to do this by living in the moment.

Assignment 23 - Sneha Amrit- playlist

I really miss skating, recently I’ve  found myself listening to my skating playlist on my state mandated walks to remind me of skating. It’s a 2 hour playlist to get through a session so I’ll just highlight some of my favorites.

• Sunflower, Vol. 6 Harry Styles- ugh such a happy song. It has a pretty good tempo and literally everything about it makes me want to smile.
• Waterloo Hugh Skinner, Lily James-  Mama Mia 2 has the same songs as Mama Mia 1, but this version of Waterloo just makes me feel like I’m living on a mountain in Greece and it’s truly magical.
• Material Girl Madonna - I’m basically a broken record at this point, but my car is old as shit, so before I got a cassette aux cord I listened to cassette tapes. Like A Virgin was one of the many cassettes in my parents cassette collection, and I decided to bring it in Lorenzo (my car) when I first listened to this album it was in the summer and I had just watched Season 3 of Stranger Things and listening this made me feel like I was in Stranger Things. Whenever I hear this it makes me think of summer and I love it.
• You Rock My World Michael Jackson- I’m kind of conflicted if it’s okay to listen to Michael Jackson because he was an awful person, however since he’s dead I’ve decided that it’s fine because he is not getting a financial benefit. This song gives me similar vibes to Material Girl, and has a really nice beat. 
• Stockholm Syndrome One Direction- Ahhhhh 1D is coming back together! This song was kind of a cultural reset, it came out in four after Zayn left and it just makes me really nostalgic so I love it.
• The Man Taylor Swift- I’m not going to lie, but I didn’t like this song at first, however after I watched Miss Americana I found a greater appreciation for this song. 
• Sunday Candy Donnie Trumpet and The Social Experiment- This song gives me church choir vibes and it makes me feel happy, this song also has a nice beat and tempo.

Assignment 23- The perfect summer day- Sam Chavez

Oh the perfect summer day. Hopefully we get to have some of these this summer without wearing masks and gloves. But let's make make a playlist for a REAL summer day.

Theres no reason to wake up early during the summer right? So we'll wake up around noon. And start off with the song 8TEEN by Khalid. This all time hit is slow enough to listen to when you're still groggy, but provides a large enough energy kick to encourage you to get ready for the day.

Now, while you're riding to the beach in a topless Jeep, you're going to need a song that can remove all worries from anyone listening. Well I've got just the song. Paradise by Bazzi will always give you a hair raising feeling of youth that you can never forget. This song gives you the excitement for the rest of the day and leads you to feel that you're in "paradise."

When you get to the beach though, you need something to listen to while you tan. Look no further than La La Land by Bryce Vine. This song puts you in a "la la land" when you listen. Its upbeat yet slow melody create a care free sense and makes you want to sit on the beach forever.

It's dinner time now, so it's time to go to a beach side sea food restaurant to watch the sun go down. While you soak the day away in the sunset and basket of crab legs, you're going to want to listen to It's Five O'clock Somewhere by Alan Jackson and Jimmy Buffet. This iconic duet is a memory making tune that anyone could lay the day away listening to.

Oh it's getting dark now, which means summer night songs. Summertime Magic by Childish Gambino is a safe go-to. It isn't late yet, so it's too early to listen to anything that's going to put you asleep, what you do want a laid back beat and "vibe." This song explains the feeling it creates in the title. It really does make a normal summer night feel like magic.

To end off the night, listen to the best summer night hot tub tune of all time. Summer Bummer by Lana Del Ray and A$AP Rocky. Unlike the name of the song, it does NOT make you feel bummed.
This slow song with a good beat is a good song to reminisce on the day to and sit back and not worry to.

Assignment 25: Uniquely You – Mulligan (College)

This is a Makeup Blog Post.  If you have a score that is less than a 30/30, this will replace that grade

When I tell my wife I’ve met someone new (a friend – don’t go there) she always asks, “what’s their story?”  She is keenly interested in the who, the capital WHO, a person is - in that she wants to know their story.  You have a story.  You have a unique background, identity, interest, or talent that is so meaningful you believe you are incomplete without telling it

Inspired by Keanu Gomez
Minimum of 150 words.  Due on May 3 @ 11:59 pm

May 10 is the last day to make up blogs 23-25

Assignment #24- Ellis Padgett- My Year

Junior year offered me a lot of firsts. For the first time, I drove to school. I parked on the hill (poorly) day after day. It was the first time I got the lead in a Henry Clay theater production. When I was Alice in Alice in Wonderland, it was the first time I had to sing on stage for a play (A capella, at that). It was also the first and only time I will get little kids to revere me like a Disney princess. They all wanted hugs, and I got invited to a birthday party! 

It was my first year in chamber orchestra. The first day of class, I purposefully sat in the last chair because that's where I thought I would be placed. Yet I was placed in the first violins, sitting next to amazing violinists that I would never compare myself to. I also joined a mentoring program where I could help middle school violinists, where I met kids with a lot of potential. That reminded me of my middle school years, and how far I've come. 

Yet for all of the firsts, there were many continuities. I can say I worked hard every single day. I once again had amazing teachers that made my time in school worthwhile. I still say hi to Mr. Wise and Mrs. O'Bryan in the hallway, just like last year. And I participated in the orchestra lock-in once more (which once again made me question why I chose to sleep over at school). 

But the biggest continuity of all was my friends. It is hard to spend day after day with people, and we all have our dark moments. Yet I looked over to my couch over winter break, and there my friends were at our annual sleepover. I walk into classrooms, and they are who I sit with. Now that I am unable to see them, they are who I call when I can't stand my family anymore. Junior year brought a lot of firsts for me, but my friends were my biggest continuity. 

This year was really hard. I lost something very, very important to me, and it absolutely ate me alive. But everyday when I walked into school, I found more reasons to smile. 

Junior year has taught me a lot about who I am as a person. Senior year, I hope to figure out what direction I want my life to take. This summer, though, I really want to enjoy my life as it is- family, friends, and the little things I love- because life will never be like this again.  

Blog Post 22: Learning Through My Mom - Annie Bohannon

For most of my childhood my mom stayed at home with me and my siblings. But when I was 11 my mom decided to start her own small business. This meant lots of hard work for her and my family. I remember that I would spend hours at her store everyday after school. I helped her do small things for her store and I watched her work incredibly hard to where she is today. She's put in hours of work and sweat into something she believes in. I was lucky enough to grow up watching someone put everything on the line for something they believe in. I saw how much hard work she put in to achieve her dreams. I think this experience taught me how to work for your dreams. It also showed me how it's not easy because I saw the trials that this journey put my mom through. Knowing this and having the skills to work hard even when it gets tough will help me get through college and help me succeed later in life.

Blog Post 21: Perseverance- Annie Bohannon

From the time I learned to talk until middle school I had a speech impediment. It was difficult because I would consistently go to speech and work on fixing it but it would never get any better. Twice a week I would get taken out of class and would go to speech where I would spend the entire time working on practicing pronouncing letters right. Although I did get my fair share of teasing from this that was never what bothered me. It bothered me that no matter how much I worked at it nothing would ever change. It was incredibly frustrating to never get any better. In speech you get paired up with kids who also have similar problems so you always get taken out of class at the same time. I would watch as kids I had worked with for months graduated from speech while I stayed time and time again. But after 6 years of work I finally got better and graduated from speech. 

Blog Post 20: The Perfect Lunch -Annie Bohannon

All of this time at home has made me realize how little I actually know how to cook. So today I will be telling you how to make one of my new creations for an at home lunch- a cheese quesadilla. Now I know it sounds simple but after many attempts and a lot of fails I have finally perfected it. First you start out with a plain tortilla. Then you get a pan and put a slice of butter on medium heat. Wait for the butter to melt and then place the tortilla on the pan. Next take any kind of shredded cheese (it is also good to mix types) and place a handful on one side of the tortilla. Then fold the tortilla to form a half circle. Wait for the cheese to melt and the tortilla to become golden brown. You can eat it plain or dip it in salsa or sour cream. Also if you are lazy you can just put a tortilla with cheese in the microwave but this way you lose a lot of the crispy texture. 

Assignment 21 - Max Carlson - The Climb

As nerdy as it might sound, I think I have reached my unfortunate current peak in the League of Legends Ranked world. Every game seems like a tossup and i cant seem to win more than I lose or Vice Versa. I am stuck, and have been for the past month or two. The Problem i would like to identify and hopefully solve is what can i do to improve. What can i do to improve my play enough to start climbing again? This problem i'd like to solve is probably terribly small compared to those of my peers, and it won't ever compare to issues with mental health or anything like that. However, the climb resuming would improve my moods and make this quarantine a little less insufferable to deal with. It may not be anything compared to the problems of my classmates or the problems of people dealing with the virus, but its enough for me.

Blog post 22- Big family- Chuck Logsdon

When reading the David Brooks essay about the rise of the nuclear family and the fall of multi generational homes and I realized that a lot of what shaped me is living is a big extended family that I see often. Now my actual home just consists of usually just my immediate family and often an aunt or uncle but I have a large group if cousins that, when all in town, spend the majority of our time together. Actually while writing this I am on my cousins farm with 3 other cousins, back after only about a week removed from another week long stint on the farm. Growing up in this large group has definitely shaped who I am today and has helped me to be better at socializing with different people. I have gained knowledge from people hailing from different cultures and life experiences from an Asian-American Lesbian from New York city to a cousins who grew up on a farm in stamping ground Kentucky and ended up living in Greece.

Blog post 21- Gifted and talented- Chuck Logsdon

Telling a kid that they are gifted from the third grade is a good way to inflate their ego. That's sort of what happened to me ever since I joined the "gifted and talented" program in third grade. Now I never thought I was the smartest kid ever- joining the program actually showed me how many smarter kids there were than me- but I always felt ahead if the curve. I also never really had to put much effort into school throughout elementary and middle school. This all changed freshman year of high school. I found myself completely unprepared, I rarely did my homework at home and I had genuinely never studied for a test. This was a huge setback for me I had to figure out good schooling habits while watching my GPA fall. I eventually put it together and pull out a solid report card by my standards but I definitely credit the shock in change of difficulty to my current management of school work.

Blog post 20- good eggs- chuck logsdon

Cooking scrambled eggs seems easy enough and granted, it is. You just stir them well and put them in a pan and that's about it. But far too often I get over cooked rubbery eggs so I decided to research a better method. That's when I learned the double boiler method. You basically take a pot of water and bring it to a low boil, then put a metal pot/pan over the boiling water and cook the eggs in there. Cook them in butter and stir very gently while cooking. It takes considerably longer but it is definitely worth it the eggs come out much softer and fluffier. Make sure to slightly under cook them they will cook themselves in their own heat on your plate. This doesn't work for making a quick breakfast before school but I have been using this method for around two years now whenever I have the time and in my opinion it is definitely worth it.

Assignment 20 - Max Carlson - Following Instructions

When i spent a couple minutes combing my mind for what specialties i have, I could think of only one thing - Making Fast Dinners at home. So today I'm going to teach you how to make "Knorr's Pasta Sides Cheddar Broccoli Fusilli Pasta with Broccoli in a Cheesy Cheddar Flavored Sauce." If you're preparing this gourmet dish on a stovetop, you want to combine 1 1/2 cups water with 1/2 cup of milk and 1 Tbsp of butter in a medium saucepan. Set it on medium heat until the butter is melted and its boiling. Rip open the package and dump the dry pasta and the cheese flavor dust into the boiling mixture, and then reduce your heat and cook for 10 minutes. Make sure you keep stirring it so it doesn't stick together. When the 10 Minutes have passed, let it sit for a minute or two and then serve. Yum!

assignment #22 - taylor galavotti - this doesn't make a whole lot of sense

this probably isn't unique to me, but i get obsessed pretty easily. let's use one direction as an example again. i know this is the third time but i'm not stopping anytime soon. it all started with harry styles. i listened to fine line then self-titled then the spotify gods played one direction. i fell in love immediately and began the deep dive as i usually do whenever i find something new to fall in love with. i actually wrote a blog post about "how to stan something" which details my process exactly.

i've been a geek/nerd/dork/(insert other term here) for as long as i can remember, always hungry for new content whether that be the newest Magic Tree House book or season 5 of Sherlock (fingers crossed). i watch all the cast interviews after i've seen the movie. i research fan theories to gain a deeper understanding. anything for more time in that world outside my own. i feel a sense of comfort and content in experiencing something bigger than me.

segue: i want to live in new york city and go to nyu. it's been my dream since 7th grade when they sent one of those pamphlets to my house after the ACT we all took. yes, i know everyone gets one if you get above a 20 on the ACT, but i needed validation. i was in 7th grade. everything sucked and i wore black eyeliner in my waterline. i had bigger problems. but it makes sense if you think about it. new york city that is. not black eyeliner in the waterline. it looks good on 2.5 people. fantasy worlds or boybands, they all have a following associated with them; the phenomenon is bigger than the individual members. but there's a comfort in that. not everything you do matters and that's okay. relieving, actually, to me. of course i want some things in my life to matter but if you live in a city of 8.6 million people, no one is going to care that your socks don't match or that you still listen to fall out boy. it doesn't matter and that's okay.

assignment #22 - taylor galavotti - not quite right

when i was quite small, about 5 months, my mom was convinced something was wrong with me. my eyes would dart back and forth and my limbs would shake uncontrollably but only some of the time and never when she brought me to a doctor. so they brushed her off, saying "it was a seizure," or "try this medication, but i don't think this will happen again." no i don't have epilepsy, so this whole situation proved incredibly confusing. after visiting just about every pediatrician in the greater Lexington area, she finally stumbled upon dr. baumann at UK Children's Hospital. he knew what was wrong with me. "opsoclonus myoclonus syndrome (OMS)," he said, "that's what she has. in most cases, it's caused by a neuroblastoma (fancy word for brain tumor), but hers was caused by a virus of some kind. it's been eating her brain."

yes, eating my brain. my immune system got confused fighting that virus and started attacking my brain, specifically my frontal lobe (where emotions, judgement, planning, and lots of other important things are stored). so i was left, 5 months old, without a proper operating system and the worst eyesight EVER. think of your cell phone minus the SIM card. you can't do much. so i was put in therapy. not just normal, talk to karen about your depression and anxiety therapy, but speech therapy, occupational therapy, and talk to karen therapy. so from the time that my immune system was rebooted to now, i've been learning everything that you guys already know how to do. how to use my tongue, how to sit up, what it looks like when people are sad.

see your brain (most likely) sees that someone looks sad and you immediately recognize that because you know what "sadness" as an emotion looks like on a human face. see, i had to learn that when someone has liquid coming out of their eyeballs and their face is squished, it means that they're sad. it used to take me a bit of time to come to that conclusion. and i had to to do that for any and all emotions. don't worry, i'm quicker now. but that wasn't the end of my woes. oh no. not even close.

because of OMS, i have ended up with what i like to call wal-mart brand ADHD and anxiety. the symptoms are the same but caused by something different so the pharmaceuticals on the market don't work for me. believe me, if you can think of it, i've tried it. so i make do with caffeine instead of adderall and scented candles instead of xanax. it's a fun time. those side effects make concentrating on schoolwork hard and going to sleep at night even harder.

i can't really put a finger on what i've learned from this. i guess how to be a human being. or at least act like one.

Assignment #22- Caroline Blitch- Back to My Roots

The day after my parents graduated from Auburn University they began packing for Kentucky. They had both grown up in the deep south of Alabama and do not speak very highly of the culture there. Because of this, I have never had close relationships with any of my relatives. I remember being jealous of my peers in elementary school on Grandparents Day when all my friends were able to invite their grandparents to lunch or when a friend would brag about how they get spoiled whenever they go to their grandma’s house for the weekend. My family takes an annual trip to Alabama as a curtesy and an excuse to go to the beach more than anything else. For many people, family represents their roots and is a large part of who they are. Missing this part of my identity has prompted me to look into going south for college. The University of Alabama has one of the best medical schools in the nation and I hope to discover that my extended family is more than the stories I’ve heard.

Assignment 21-Caroline Blitch- Last Resort is Yoga

I have suffered from migraine headaches for as long as I can remember. I have seen countless neurologists over the past twelve years but have yet to find the magical solution. Drink more water. Eat lots of vegetables and diary. Make sure you keep a regular sleep schedule. Don’t stress out too much. Exercise daily. Don’t eat processed foods. Try the mitochondria diet. Cut out all caffeine. Now that is where I had to draw the line. No way was I giving up coffee or sweet tea. Frustration and self- pity quickly began to consume me after trying so many meds that never seemed to make any difference. This year my migraines have escalated. They are more frequent, last longer, and are more disruptive to my life. I have missed a lot of school because of migraines which only adds to the stress, propelling the endless cycle. I finally realized that there was no quick fix. No magic pill. Thats when I decided to take responsibility for my own health. Little by little I have been changing my diet to be as unprocessed as possible. The hardest loss for me was Nacho Cheese Doritos. I have cut out all fast food (except for Dunkin iced coffees of course). I have even resorted to taking my mom’s yoga classes, something I’ve refused to do for so long despite her constant nagging. The next steps I need to take are establishing a constant sleep schedule and cutting out caffeine. I have already seen an improvement (knock on wood!) but I still have a ways to go and quarantine is definitely not helping my sleep schedule.

Assignment #22- Ezra Mulalic-

The unusual life of Ezra. Coming from a complete Bosnian family, I have grown up with many traditions that probably many of you don't have. The food at our house is quite unique as well. The number one thing always present at any one of our meals is some kind of bread, carbs are literally everything to us. Many people probably get by with barely any type of bread, but it is practically a necessity to us. There might never be a shortage to carbs for us in the next couple of months. Family is always a very important part to us. It seems that we always have some sort of cousin or relative over at our house. There always seems to be this new relative I might, or one of my grandparents stop by our house for their daily greetings. We are always around or supported by family, and while a majority of my family isn't in the same country there is always an effort made to talk with them as often as we can. So if there is any college in mind, there better be carbs and an easy way to keep in touch with my family.

Assignment 22: Emma Lauritzen- the other side

Ive written about this before, but this prompt made me want to write about it again.
Anyone who knew me in middle school or early high school knows part of this story, but not all of it. To them, I am the girl that disappeared for two months in 8th grade and then five months in 9th grade. I dont like telling people about these times, because theyve already made their own assumptions, the craziest being that I was pregnant, dead, or legally insane. None of those are true and those rumors really hurt, but heres the truth:
I was hospitalized for the first time for an attempted suicide in 8th grade. I stayed at the ridge for about 9 days, which was one of the worst experiences of my life because I went through some trauma there that I wont get into. Fast forward a year and I tried again, except this time I went and stayed at a place called Linder for over a month. During these times I wasnt allowed to talk to anyone and I didnt have any friends and I struggled desperately with self harm. This was also the time I was diagnosed with an eating disorder and I had to go through treatment for that. By the end of my stay and countless hours of tests and studies I was also diagnosed with type 2 bipolar disorder. I try to stay clinical when I say all of this because I know as a reader none of this is nice to read, but this is my unusual circumstance of living. Its not a fun one, but its mine.
For some reason people think this is my deep dark secret, but its not. Ive always been open about this because I hope it will help people to better understand me and why I am the way that I am. Living with bipolar disorder as a teenager is especially hard because sometimes I dont know if im going through a manic stage, or if im simply being an eager 17 year old enjoying life as its heights. When im going through my depressive stages I can barely wake up, and when im faced with smiling teachers and classmates I just feel nothing and want to sink into the earth. I alsonow live with the constant struggle of convincing mean people that I am what I am and that Im not crazy. Trying to balance recovery, treatment, medicine, and appointments with therapists, psychologists, and psychiatrists all while staying on top of classes feels impossible sometimes. Every month is a new mixture of breakdowns, highs, and coping.
I am not my mental illness, thats not why Im writing this, but to fully understand me, you must understand my circumstances. Its a lot easier to sympathize with the girl randomly crying in class, or having panic attack in the hallway when you understand why its happening. A lot of my classmates just assume im really emotional and moody when the reality is that its out of my control.
Ive learned so much from this though, Ive learned to never judge someone before truly getting to know them. Ive learned how to multi task to the extremes and use my emotions to my own and others betterment. Ive learned emotional regulation and how to help others when theyre struggling. Going through all of this has made me a stronger person and the person I am today. Because of all of this I know exactly what is best for me. Its the reason I love American University because of its size, location, proximity to hospitals and treatment services.
I hope this wasnt painful to read because trust me it was more painful to live, but this is my life and I wouldnt change anything because I am the person I am today because I had to overcome all of this.

assignment 21: emma lauritzen Am I cursed?

A lot of people have bad luck, and I am one of those people. If things can go wrong, THEY WILL, when it comes to me. My parents call it the emma curse. This was really difficult for me to understand growing up and honeslty still is. The following is a list of just some of the incidents:

• roller coasters breaking down as soon as im on them 
• kilns exploding with my art in it 
• flooding of only my room 
• ovens at restaurants breaking with my food in it 
• ALWAYS being served last at restaurants 
• being the only one to get food poisoning from something everyone ate 
• hotels catching on fire during my speech events 
• lights and audio going out as soon as im supposed to present 
• getting 4!!! defective i phones in a row 
• getting stuck at the top of a Ferris wheel 
• falling into the lake three different times during camp kayaking 
• getting stuck in sinking mud four different times 
• going into anaphylaxis from vaccines 
• being allergic to random things 
• being diagnosed with THREE different rare medical conditions that made me the subject of medical research 
• sharks being present during my first surf lesson
• and the list goes on 

It all kinda sucks. Ive had to grow accustomed to weird things happening, which means bringing extra glasses because one pair might fall off the roller coaster (I have really bad luck with roller coasters), always having benedril on me, having my doctors on speed dial, and never taking super big risks. If Ive learned anything from all of this, its that I need to be prepared always. Theres no way to make this curse go away, so ive also learned to live with it. 

Its not always awful because now when I go out to dinner, I can make bets with people that I will be the last served, and I always win. I also get to meet really cool doctors whenever something crazy goes wrong. I will also always have cool stories to tell people, which makes any "story time" easy. 

While this might not be the best thing, I can also help others with this. If they have a product, ill find its error so that others dont have to. 

So, I might be cursed but its ok.

assignment #20: emma lauritzen- how to make a lemon drop mocktail

Ive taken up some new hobbies in isolation-one of them being making alcohol free drinks or "mocktails." I make a new one everyday. So far ive made daiquiris, mojitos, pina coladas, etc, but my favorite has been the lemon drop.
First you will need to gather your ingredients and make a simple syrup. To make a simple syrup you will need a shallow pot on medium heat. Then fill this pot with one cup of water, then slowly mix in one cup of sugar. Stir this mixture until the sugar has dissolved and allow to boil on low heat for a couple minutes. Then, place this mixture in a container and allow to chill in the fridge.

Gather the following ingredients:

• your chilled simple syrup 
• lemon juice 
• ice 
• a shaker 
• an oz pourer 
• sugar 
• club soda/ seltzer water 
• two glasses

1. pour sugar onto a small plate, enough to have an even layer 
2. wet the rim of the glass by dipping it into a shallow plate of water 
3. place the glass slightly in the sugar and twist it so that the entire rim is coated in sugar 
4. in a shaker, add ice 
5. pour in 1.5 oz of lemon juice 
6. pour in 1 oz of simple syrup 
7. pour in 3ish oz of seltzer water 
8. cover your shaker and shake it for the duration of half the intro of the song Hotel California (20 seconds)
9. pour the mixture into your glasses over about three ice cubes and enjoy 

attached is a tik tok I made showing you how to do this 

https://vm.tiktok.com/t4tHSF/ 

Assignment #22 -William Webb

I’ve  been involved in football longer than you can remember. I’ve busted my butt to become as good as I am. Known for my work ethic, consistency and ability to come through in the clutch, I’ve  been the one my team has always been able to depend on in crunch time. I live to practice and perform. I have a passion to compete. 

Then the unthinkable happens. It seems to have slowly snuck up on me. It’s not like there was any major injury or anything. I didn’t really feel anything pull, pop or break. Perhaps it might have been a lot easier and more straightforward to deal with if i had experienced that. No, this was quite a bit more insidious. After a freshman football game I noticed some pain and tenderness in both of my ankles. “No problem,” I thought. I’ve dealt with this stuff before. I try to ignore it and push through the pain. When practice ends my ankles are throbbing. That night, I can barely walk. Although I decided to push through the pain it bit me in the ass. 

Assignment #21 -William Webb

This year as a whole has become very challenging. Sports or school. But this coronavirus epidemic has allowed myself to generate and find new opportunities, as well as find the value in the long hours we dread everyday. While new school days are met with complaints, it is our civic duty as human beings, to be educated. School serves a number of purposes from building confidence to teaching children the importance of teamwork and working with others. School helps guide youngsters through the establishment of a daily routine, which is of utmost importance as we direct them toward the workplace, and as we become productive members of society. Humans are social animals and we need people around us to survive. School, yes even online school, can be an excellent way to build a network of friends and a like-minded community. Friendships aren’t the only important relationships that can be built through school. A school environment offers students the opportunity to learn to work with others, which is a very important “real world” skill.

Assignment #21 - Luke Plummer - Anxiety

I’ve got anxiety. I am literally anxious all the time. I get anxious writing this. I overthink that you read this and think, ugh, this kid is just one of the normal ones. Grasping for things to make him special. Not at all. I am anxious a majority of the time. There are only 2 places I can think of that can quell my anxiety for limited amounts of time. When I am on the lacrosse field or I am in bed asleep. Notice that I have to be asleep. Anxiety has kept me awake for countless nights. I lay in bed thinking about grades that I don’t think are good enough and have to force myself to get up and do homework or study until I feel satisfied. I can’t not do something unless I'm good at it.

This anxiety has had some good impacts on me. I like people to like me, it makes me anxious when they do not like me. So I spend extra time to help people, or learn what makes them happy. I genuinely care about what people think and truly hope to be able to make them happy.

Assignment #20 -William Webb

My how to list will consist of what I’ve learned from my mother as vaccumer.  The procedures I take to make a clean look on any carpet or floor.

1. Make Use of the Vacuum Attachments. Use the crevice attachment (if you have one), and vacuum the edges in each room before you vacuum the entire carpet.

2. Try an Odor Neutralizer. If your carpet needs a little freshening, use an odor neutralizer.  Here's a recipe for my favorite homemade version or you can put a few drops of essential oil on a cotton ball and put it in your vacuum bag. This will freshen the air while your vacuum is running!

3. Vacuum Horizontally. For each area you want to vacuum, start by vacuuming horizontally.

4. Vacuum Vertically. Yes, you are going over the carpet twice, but this technique ensures that the carpet is lifted and any embedded dirt is removed.

5. Have an Exit Strategy. Start at the furthest corner away from the door and vacuum back and forth until you're out of the room.  This will give you those beloved vacuum lines that say, “I just vacuumed” look.

Assignment #21 - Luke Plummer - The Current

One of the largest obstacles that I've ever faced in my life was junior year.  As ironic as it sounds, junior year has been one of the most challenging years in my life. It is one of the first times in my entire life where I have had to set goals for myself. 

This school year was one of the first times where I have felt like I have actually been challenged and had set and pushed myself to meet goals. In classes I find myself being forced to take better notes and pay way more attention than I normally have to. These habits that I seem to be having to force myself into are actually very good for me. I'm getting better at time management and learning to solve problems alone when I am doing homework.

As this year comes to a close I have noticed that I now follow a stricter regime than I have ever in my entire life. I find myself studying more than I have ever in my entire life and paying more attention in all my classes. I just feel more prepared for school than I ever have.

Assignemnt #20 - D1 Prospect - Luke Plummer

My how to list it going to be on how to become a better lacrosse player. While as one could assume there are many different things that go into getting better at lacrosse but I'm going to be making a how to on perhaps the most important, and probably the easiest thing to do.

Wall Balling-

1. Grab your lacrosse stick and as many balls as you want. You can do it with only one but it is nice to have multiple incase you have to chase the ball down.
2. Find a large wall. The wall needs to be at least 6-8 feet tall, but hopefully you can find a taller one. It is just harder for beginners on a smaller wall.
3. Take your ball and throw it against the wall.
4. Once you get good at that you can switch hands, throw behind the backs, and throw one handed against the wall.
5.  Throw against the wall for 30 min to an hour, do this every day.

Assignment 24: The Future

You're done! - well almost Your Junior year (nearly) OVER. Tell us about it. Successes? Failures? Lessons Learned? Risks taken? Mistakes made? What will you do in the Summer? What do you want for your Senior year? How do you plan to reach your goals? Minimum of 150 words - due on Sunday, April 19 at 11:59 pm May 10 is the last day to make up blogs 23-25