per aspera ad astra

Since I’ve gotten back from the convention, I’ve been trying to work on my last two classes that are required for graduation. However, my mind’s just been on so many things that I can’t seem to concentrate on the damn stuff for more than an hour in any eight.

That’s really bad.

I’m hoping that it’ll pass by this weekend. I’m trying to make myself do it, but ugh.

I’m gonna end up having to submit my credits to the state, I bet…and getting my diploma directly from them, not the school. Greeeat. But that isn’t even really my fault… a certain pair of people procrastinated in getting me signed up for these damn courses, giving me, oh, three weeks to get them done to get it from the school.

Oh well. Either way, at this point, I don’t care. As long as I’m done by October, I don’t care who I get it through. It isn’t as if I have the same aspirations as I did; I’m not shooting for MIT or anything. I don’t have the patience or resolve. x]

One of the pluses of taking the tech class I’m taking is if you score higher than an 86, the state pays for you to take the certification exam. I’ve maintained, through the year, a 97. Needless to say, I kinda expected it, but uh..

Earlier this evening, I received an email from my IT teacher stating that it was confirmed that the state would be awarding me what they called a scholarship to pay for me to take my CompTIA A+ certification test within the next calendar year.

That’s pretty exciting; it saves me from putting out a few hundred bucks! I know I will pass it and be able to get, at the least, some lame entry tech job somewhere. Pays better than minimum wage, at least, and I can work on improving in that time.

Two days ago, I started having minor dizzy spells and seemingly arbitrary abdominal pain coupled with breast tenderness. I didn’t think much of it but a stomach bug or random cyclical occuring-ness [ew, i know, but still].

I had actually excused myself from lunch on Wednesday to go to the nurse’s office [at school, of course] with a friend helping me, making sure I got there okay. I was told by the [worthless] nurse that I needed a pass from a teacher regardless of the fact that I was in lunch. [She's worthless because she only ever gives ice for anything, takes about five 'lunch breaks' a day and is rarely in the clinic, and often has a sub. nurse in because she randomly doesn't show.]

So, when fourth period began, I approached my teacher [my everlasting FAVORITE: English! Mrs Jones! <3] requesting a pass to the nurse. I was visibly under the weather and a little pallid, and she was still reluctant to grant me a note. I didn’t make it to the nurse, though, feeling increasingly dizzy and as if I was going to vomit, I detoured to the nearest restroom so that I may deal with things in my own fashion. Now, I didn’t vomit, but I stayed there until I was sure the feeling had absolutely passed–because sometimes it seems it has, but then it sneaks back up on you.

Yesterday, she informed me that I had been written up for skipping class since I didn’t make it to the nurse, and that I would get a day or two of In School Suspension. Alright, first of all, if I wanted to avoid her class, then I simply would’ve done so. I surely wouldn’t have gone through all that trouble with the sole intent of skipping her class…for many reasons, one such being that it would be too easy to get caught for doing so that way. Furthermore, how intelligent is it to punish a student for being absent from a class he/she belongs in by keeping them from their classes?

Are you kidding me? When administration formally serves me my notice for punishment, they won’t uphold that decision once I explain it to them.

And if they decide to be assholes and *do* uphold it, then I do what I always do: refuse to serve. Nothing ever actually comes from it…and should it, I’ll raise hell. As usual.

After we were done working today in my IT class–we had a simple test, everyone finished pretty quickly, our topic of conversation scaled many realms and eventually dusted religion.

Well, more specifically, our own choices [and this was a pleasantly non-preachy conversation and flowed very nicely], and that of our families/their opinions of our own, and then lighthearted joking around [like: "People should be Presbyterian because we're COOL." Me: "What if that was actual reasoning to get people to convert...and what if it worked?] stuff like that.

I was explaining how my dad was raised strict Roman Catholic [but is no longer, and never really was, himself] and how his being left-handed tended to be problematic for him–what with psycho nuns beating the shit out of him for being possessed or something, and then further beating him for not being able to write with his right hand–growing up that way. Garrett [the kid with the Presby comment earlier], a freshman, comments that he would’ve been raised Roman Catholic but for the objections of his mother who he said found Catholicism, traditional Roman in particular, to be [and so he quoted], “ornate, self-absorbed, and overt in the inflation of the ego of the Vatican.” He continues with his own words, “I don’t really se–” and meant to finish, “-e how it is that big of a problem…” but was interrupted by one of the two seniors in the CISCO CCNA program.

“The fuck did you say?”
“I was saying it wasn’t a big deal.”
“No, BEFORE that.”
“Oh, I was quoting my mom. She’s pretty igno–”
“Watch your fucking mouth. That or beware of who you’re around.”
“Oh, so I take it you’re Catholic, then? Sorry, didn’t mean to offend.”
“Shut the fuck up. And you better be sorry. Fuckin’ Presby faggot…gonna get your ass kicked.”

And I’m just sitting there, in the middle of this–literally–growing continuously annoyed at the demeanor of this kid, James.

He’s a little rich boy–deemed pretty by some–, his daddy has some money. Daddy has a yacht, a six bedroom house with a pool, country club membership, smokes fancy expensive cigars, bought wittle Jamesy a little convertible Lexus–which he proceeded to wreck within three months of having–and then a Dodge Viper which he claims to race. He has no redeeming qualities whatsoever and plans on leeching of off his parents’ economic cushion as long as he can, because school and work are just too far beneath him. Therefore, he constantly skips and makes grotesquely poor marks when he’s there and then, of course, complains about not being Valedictorian. And he most certainly is not a devout Catholic; he most assuredly does not attend Mass and only styles himself as Catholic because he was indoctrinated into it to his Confirmation around age twelve..pft.
Anyway, all the privilege he’s been given by Daddy makes him seem to think he’s entitled to talk to anyone any way he pleases.

After missing some of the haphazardly spit threats while contemplating what a worthless piece of shit this kid is, I spoke up.

Me: “Both of you. Shut up.”
Garrett: “But I–”
James: “Stay the fuck out of it.”
Me: “Garrett, you hush because it’s for your own good. James, you shut your mouth because that’s no way to talk to or in the presence of a lady. Kid didn’t mean any harm, so keep your pugnacious tripe to yourself…”
James: “Well, for one, you aren’t a lady, you’re some nosy, know-it-all bitch. Fuck your 97 average; who cares? Little goddamn prick needs to learn some respect.”
Me: “Nosy? You’re yelling across my face. It’s you’re fault I’m involved…and I don’t bost my grades. Anyway, God is watching you, James…”
James: “The fuck?”
Me: “As you sit here needlessly bashing someone over something they don’t agree with, swearing and taking your precious Lord’s name in vain, your God’s watching you. So before you continue your empty threats–because I don’t know about everyone else in this room, but I have $20 on the fact that you’re just a hot-headed moron who’s trying to compensate for measurements–think about THAT. Now please shut up and return to not understanding subnetting and thereby failing your CISCO course. And if you don’t understand what I just said, ask Zach.”

Hrm. Maybe I’m too righteous.
I get caught up in the moment and tend to make speeches on the spot. x3

It was just…obscene. Garrett’s a completely harmless, mild-mannered kid, pretty silly at times, definitely not out to insult people.  It really annoys me when people like James–who have this false sense of entitlement due to their parents’ money and the fact that they’re an upperclassmen–fuck with the kids that don’t do anything. ESPECIALLY over religion. :/

The Governor of Virginia declared that this week just passed would be State Classics week in which we are to observe the influence of Greco-Roman culture on today’s society.

As a Latin student [and recent winner of Summa Cum Laude With greatest praise on the National Latin Exam] I expected that there would be revelry planned thanks to our teacher.

I, of course, was right, because he’s a huge Latin nerd, etc. We had a Certamen [think academic quiz team...just with questions about Latin/Roman Culture/etc.], a banquet with appropriate cuisine, they [as I didn't attend the showings because of work, etc] watched Troy [rubbish imo] and 300 [inaccurate but still entertaining]. Yesterday, we read Shel Silverstein’s “The Giving Tree,” but…a version whose text was in Latin. It would have been a good exercise in translation except for the fact that most everyone is familiar with the story and can recite it. Cute nonetheless.

Also, as a part of yesterday’s festivities, he suggested that we dress in togas/stolas/tunics [for the ever-elusive extra credit]. I’m game, so before I went out and bought anything I needed to buy [mom said, "No, Jenn, just use a bedsheet." Well, that would be fine if my sheets were not white-and-blue with moons and stars on them] I consulted the internet to see what all this would entail.
Most sites gave me Animal House togas. Boo, no, I don’t want a lame one. This is not college, this is not a toga party, I am not Belushi, etc.
So I came across a few nicer ones. They said, explicitly, “NO BEDSHEETS. They pretty much suck.” Well, okay. I went out to a craft store and bought 4.5 yards [Hey, that's about the same in meters!] of deep blue costume-grade satin. Fun stuff. I go home to practice tying/pinning it and realize that I have the dexterity of a python–or at least, when pinning myself. I even browsed YouTube and checked out the video tutorials there. I managed to get the idea down, but wrapping and tying it on yourself is just a few steps away from hell.
So I had to have a friend help me tie mine in the morning, and in exchange, I tied hers. They look a lot better with help. However, they aren’t classy perfect ones, they are closer to Animal House’s signature version…although they did look a LOT less sloppy.

At the end of the day…[shitty cell-phone quality piccy]:

I just realized that sounds kinda like pwnage. Totally unrelated, though.

We had to write and present persuasive speeches in my English class. I originally intended to do mine on stem cell research but was shot down when some other twit came along and claimed the topic before I had the chance.

So I did the legalities and safety issues of cell phones + driving. xD…

That was fun!
I start out with, “Alright, guys…how many of you have cell phones? Raise your hands. Okay…and of that number, how many of you have your license? And how many of you regularly play with your phone while you’re driving?” A few sheepish grins at this point, but hands stay raised.
“…well, then um, just thought I’d let you know, you guys suck.”

It was basically this tirade about how hazardous it can be. Some fired back with, “Oh, well, I have Bluetooth, and…” Fail! It isn’t really any safer. Not only that, a law here in Virginia that was passed in February of 2007 dictates that underage drivers were not to make use of any cellular device. However, this law, like Virginia seatbelt laws, is secondary…which means that you cannot be pulled over and cited for it; that you have to be pulled over for some other infraction.
As a result of this condition, and the fact that the penalty is pretty much a tap on the wrist, teens haven’t been discouraged from driving like that. Not a bit. But I don’t agree with biased laws…that damn law should apply to everyone. For example, the typical businessman in his forties or fifties who just got a brand new BlackBerry or HTC Touch would probably try to figure out how to write and send emails while stuck in traffic. That’s significantly more distracting than a teenager who can text under conditions of having their eyes clothes and hands tied behind their back [No, I cannot do that...nor would I wish to]. I’m not defending either side, though…everyone needs to be subject to the same thing regarding driving/phoning laws.

There was one study that said that drivers of SUVs [who are using their phones] are more likely to crash than any other cell-using driver of any other type of vehicle. That study particularly amused me…with reference to my accident back in September. I brought this up and even offered to allow some to [gently] prod my fucked up ribs where they had broken. Five of my classmates and my teacher took me up on it and were like, “OMG!!11?!” when they felt the bone.

It saddens me, though, to know that those students [AND my teacher], the majority of whom drive SUVs [bought by mommy and daddy, no less], won’t drive any better, even after seeing the aftermath of such crashes as presented in my presentation and poking my ribs. :[

Irresponsibility pisses me off.

Or Standards of Learning, here in Virginia, are the typical standardized tests called for under No Child Left Behind. We had the testing prior to that abomination, but it was more of a trial-and-error before.

Tomorrow and Wednesday, juniors have their grammar and writing prompt tests at my school. My teacher, of course, decides not to tell us this until *today* when she says, “Oh, btw, your testing rooms are…”

Murr, so I have to be up two hours earlier than normal to get there on time. Growly-growly…what a ridiculous waste of time!

Writing prompts are obnoxious, anyway…and I really can’t understand why they appended a prompt to the SATs. Half of it is mechanics–what you can really grade upon–and the other is content…which opinion-based. I’m sorry, my grade should not be subject to the opinions of whoever. :/ Grawr.

edit:
The time they waste is incredible. First, we aren’t even allowed into our testing rooms until 8:00AM. [School starts at 7:45.] After all the slow, scripted instructions and form-filling-out-ness and sample questions, we begin at 8:30. The fifty-two question test took me no more than fifteen minutes, because I was out of the school by 8:47 on my way downtown for some coffee and a morning danish.

These tests are meant to test the bare-minimum. In fact, these tests don’t actually measure knowledge, but one’s ability to take a test. Instead of tests made to meet the standards, the standards are lowered to meet the test, and over the years, the level of difficulty of the curriculum has plummeted drastically. No one is forced to learn…students just memorize bare-minimums–or don’t, as the case may be. I can’t possibly comprehend how someone can fail these tests, but…y’know–and forget them soon after. There’s no drive to learn because they’ve never been made to. :/

Jones says, “Oh, of course they’re easy for you all. You’re Advanced students. They have to test everyone on the same level, though, so they can have accurate scores of where we stand as a school, and…”

Why does everything have to be statistic’d? Why do we all have to be based on some set of figures? Why can’t the educators do their goddamn job and teach us, even [gasp] rising above the bare minimums that we’re required to know? Damn.

I foresee this being a multi-post topic, so…yeah. If not, oh well.

Recently, in my favorite course ever [English], we were assigned another super-duper writing bit. This time? Persuasive essay/speech/what have you. I still haven’t officially mine, and I probably won’t until I actually have to present. ;x

On the first day of presentations, some kid goes up and says, in short, “I don’t like cigarette smoke so smoking in public places should be banned,” and gave some questionable statistics regarding mortality rates thanks to cigarettes/second-hand smoke. He didn’t really provide an argument as to why it ought to be banned aside from those two things. We were permitted to comment or question the presenter, either to learn more or to prompt them to improve their presentation. So I did.
I’m not a smoker, and I personally find cigs icky. I do not, however, think that smoking should be banned in public areas [including places outside]. I mean, here in Virginia, it is up to the establishment as to whether or not they will provide a smoking section for their customers. Many, now, do not, which pisses off or even alienates some customers. The student added, “Oh and 5.2 billion annually is spent on tobacco advertisements. Something that KILLS people. That should go to, like, free the whales or…save them or…something.”
What? Shut up, imbecile. :x Instead of that, however I did make this point: “Advertising things that can kill people? Many medications can be fatal in some patients. Cars can be deadly. Cell phones are pretty bad too [that'll probably be what my speech is about, actually] … you realize how many crashes they cause? [& I know for a fact that this student makes calls while driving. Not only is that über-dangerous is it very very illegal in VA for minors to use cells while driving]. Cigarette companies shouldn’t be barred from advertising anymore than they are. Think about how much revenue, through taxes, the governments rakes in off the sale of cigarettes. If, for example, cigarettes were totally banned and no longer for sale, the economy would suffer even more than it does.”
Kid just stood there with a blank look on his face. I was disgusted. :/

Jones then accused me of attacking the kid, when I wasn’t. I wasn’t putting his idea down or calling him a moron–although I wanted to, to be honest–just trying to prompt the kid to step his speech up. She [Jones] goes, “These are persuasive, not debate-prompting.”
“I’m not debating. I’m just not persuaded…at all. You said we can urge the presenter to try to persuade us as to why their view is the, ‘right,’ way to look at things, right?”
Grr.

So the oh-so-intelligent-and-concerned Guidance Counselors [read: washed-up, wannabe shrinks who couldn't pass their exams] dished out the course selection booklets

I don’t understand how people can make simple questions complicated, but in the end, I’m now ever-so-pleased to find that, as for graduation credits [an Advanced Studies diploma, of course, with delicious seals], I’m good with the exception of senior literature and government…classes which I can easily take online.

Hooray! That means I will be free of sub-standard education no later than August.

Also, I am infuriated to know that Cosmetology is a three-credit course, each–there are two, Cos. I and Cos. II–and the tech classes are only one. My school will be switching to block scheduling next year, and will therefore make it possible to take Cos. I in the first semester and Cos. II in the second, getting SIX credits for one block of time.
I mean, not putting down the industry or anything, but uh…learning how to style someone’s hair is not more important than, more requisite of knowledge than the technical stuff. Guess what? Most girls are pretty capable of washing and dying their hair. I know there’s more than that, but still. I can cut hair and give a pretty damn good manicure without that shit. Most people who take high school cosmetology do not go on to become fantastic leaders in the field, so uh…Que fuck
I could take all four CISCO courses in a year in two blocks in two semesters, and how many credits would I get? Not twelve, only four.

I’ve never been one to boast my teamwork skills. Quite frankly, they suck.

I don’t enjoy group projects because I don’t like having to rely on people I’m not certain I can, and I don’t want to be a point of reliance just in case I can’t come through. Also, I must admit, I’m a bit of a control-freak. It isn’t a good thing, no…but when you’re surrounded by sub-intelligent entities, can you help it?

Unfortunately, school is a haven of these bullshit ideas. People tout group projects because, “there’s less work for, ‘me.’” Right, there isn’t, because it is foisted off on people like me. So folks like myself end up doing all the damn work without getting any more credit…but they also get credit for my work and ideas.
Bullshit.

I’m an AP US History student. The class is a joke, and it’s more work than I care to do. As a part of our study of the Gilded Age & 2nd Industrial Revolution, she’s giving us this silly project where we have to design a fictional town and institute reforms and shit to make it suck less than it does.
May I add that this project, the way it is orchestrated, is not actually teaching anything…it’s just wasting time.

Anyway, we’ve had class time ~an hour, daily, since Monday, to work on this. I have the misfortune to be lumped into a group with an apathetic douche and two catty chicks who know all of jack shit. They’ve wanted to meet outside of school, but I don’t have the ability…or the need. So they’re bitching at me about that when I’ve done the bulk of the work in class. My ideas that I put out there, that even our instructor has validated, are shot down by them.

Today, I couldn’t stay after. I have to babysit. I asked them what their plan was for today, because if it was vital, I could twist some arms and make it. All they planned to do, however, was all of gossip and dance a redundant waltz about our presentation which we have discussed about eight thousand times.
My cell phone sits before me, exploding with calls from them because I wasn’t going to waste my time and do their share for them. I’ve input more than my share, and I still have work to do on it independently.
Hah; they’re going to try to make me feel guilty for it, too. Good luck. ;]

Mm…I hate my generation. What lazy little bastards they are!