Stressful Week Turned into a Great Weekend

Last week was a very stressful week for me. I had three exams and a quiz. I spent my entire week studying and did nothing fun. On Tuesday I studied for about eight hours for my biology exam and I thought I did fairly well on it. When I got my grade, I was very angry to find out I got a D on it. This ticked me off so much and almost considered dropping the class. After my quiz at the Math Emporium on Friday I was so ready for the weekend and I knew it was going to be a good one.

When I got back to my dorm after going to the Math Emporium, I decided I wanted to go shopping. I took a shower and got ready so I could go to the mall. My friend, Mike, went with me because he has a truck and I didn’t bring my car with me. When we arrived at the mall we went to Dick’s first. I did not even care about money so I bought a North Face jacket that cost 165 dollars. Next, I went to Lady Foot Locker because I wanted to get some Chucks. I tried on one pair and I loved them. When I looked for the price, it turns out they were two for 80 dollars so I bought another pair. I signed up for some VIP thing and got 30 percent off, so my shoes ended up being pretty cheap. After this Mike and I ate dinner and then headed back to campus. I was ready to have some fun so I texted my friend, Brittany, and told her I wanted to hang out.

So Friday night I went to Radford with Brittany and another one of my friends, Erin. Brittany had a friend, Ellie, from back home that had an apartment there so we stayed there that night. When we got to Ellie’s apartment there were about ten people there. Everyone was hanging out and having a good time. Brittany and I went back to Ellie’s room and noticed that she had a Nintendo. We were so excited because when Brittany and I were younger we played the Nintendo all the time. Of course we turned it on and played it. Everyone started to watch and they were amazed at all the secrets we knew to the game. We only played for a few minutes because we were going to a different party. The night was awesome and I couldn’t wait for Saturday to begin.

Saturday morning Brittany, Erin, and I woke up and went back to campus to get ready for the football game. It just happened to be Brittany’s birthday so we were all really excited for the day. Unfortunately Erin got really sick and couldn’t go to the game with us, but it’s probably a good thing because she would have felt way worse in the rain. Brittany and I left her apartment at about 2:45 thinking we would have plenty of time to get there before the game started. The traffic was awful so we didn’t get to see the beginning of the game. It just so happened that our seats were at the very top so we had to walk up so many steps. It was very fun because this is the first football game I’ve been to. We were going to leave after half time, but we got so into the game that we decided to stay the whole time. It was rainy and cold throughout the whole game, but it was so fun. After the first quarter, this girl sitting by us started throwing up because she was drunk so her whole group left. They left a poncho on the bleachers so I put it on in hopes of not getting anymore wet. That didn’t really block the rain though because it was pouring and by the end of the game Brittany and I were both soaked from head to toe. So as everyone already knows we kicked Miami’s butt and the game was awesome.

After the game, Brittany and I went back to her apartment where we got ready for her birthday party. So many people showed up to the party and it was really fun. I was outside talking to people when my sister showed up. I was so excited because I hadn’t seen her in awhile and I had forgotten she was visiting one of her friends. She stayed for awhile and we caught up on things, but then she had to leave so we said our goodbyes. Around 2:30 or 3 in the morning people had pretty much left and there were only a few people left. The pool for Brittany’s apartment complex is right next to hers so I decided I wanted to go swimming. I knew it would be cold, but I didn’t care. So I put my bathing suit on and jumped right in. It was so cold and I didn’t stay in long. There is a hot tub right next to the pool so I got in it and it felt so good. I finally went to bed around four in the morning and I slept until 1:00 today. I was sad that I had to come back to my dorm and do homework because I really didn’t want to. My weekend was so great and hopefully next weekend will be just as great.

Pro-life or Pro-choice?

There has always been much debate over whether abortion is right or not. Some people believe women can choose to do what they want and others think that it’s wrong no matter what. Everyone has their reasons for why abortion is right or wrong and some people think its okay to have one under certain circumstances.

Those people that support pro-life think that abortion is wrong. Many believe that it is murder to the unborn child, since life begins at conception. Some people think it is wrong because there are ways to prevent the pregnancy from happening. There are contraceptives such as birth control and condoms that can keep a woman from getting pregnant. In the case of a rape, there are other alternatives that will ensure that the woman will not get pregnant. Many women who get abortions are young women who believe that they can’t deal with the situation. These women or girls are afraid to face the consequences so they consequence their unborn child for their actions. This is where a lot of pro-life people don’t think it’s fair. They don’t think its right for an innocent unborn child to deal with someone else’s consequences. Another reason some people think abortion is wrong is because there is an alternative and that is to have an adoption. There are some women who aren’t able to have children and they will adopt so they can have a child. Giving a child up for adoption at least gives them an opportunity to live their life. Some women that get abortions try to make it seem like it’s another form of contraception. It cannot be considered a form of contraception after conception. Many of the young women that decide to have abortions do not fully know what they are doing and it can cause them to be regretful about it later in their lives. Most people that are opposed to abortion are only looking out for the best interest of everyone. They don’t women to have regrets about their decisions and they don’t want their unborn child to lose its life because of their mother’s bad decision. They are also looking out for themselves because they don’t want to pay tax dollars towards abortion if they don’t even believe that it is right. Many Americans are against abortion in the U. S., but there are some people who believe that women should be able to do what they want with their bodies.

People who are pro-choice believe that abortion is okay and that it is not murder if a woman decides to get one. During the first trimester of a pregnancy, the fetus depends on the mother, and therefore some people think that it is not murder since the child cannot exist independently. Most women that do get abortions get them during the first trimester so they think that it is okay to get rid of the fetus. Pro-life and pro-choice people believe that human life begins at conception. The difference is that pro-choice people think that since there are other eggs that are disposed of every month, then it is okay to dispose of the one that got implanted. Unlike pro-life people, pro-choice people think that adoption is not an alternative because most women decide not to give up their child after it is born. Pro-choice people think that young women who decide to have the child will end up in greater stress and regret. These people believe that it is okay for women to get abortions in case their contraceptive didn’t work since abortion is safe alternative. Since women have control over their bodies, pro-choice people don’t think the government can interfere with a woman’s decision.

Personally, I am a pro-life supporter. I think that abortion is wrong no matter what. I believe that it is murder to the unborn child. Most people that are pro-life are judgmental towards those women that have gotten abortions, but I am not. I know a girl who once had an abortion and I was really close friends with her. She said that while she was sitting waiting to get the procedure, she had second thoughts about it, but then it was too late. She has two daughters now and she said she still regrets getting the abortion to this day. The father of her daughters was the father of the child in the abortion. It’s too late for her to take anything back, but she has told me that she would never get the procedure done again. I believe that if a woman thinks that she is not ready to have a child she needs to protect herself any way possible to prevent it from happening. If she does get pregnant, then she needs to face the consequences of her actions because it is not fair to throw away someone else’s life. Abortion is a tough subject and it will always carry much debate. People have their opinions, but it’s good to know how each side feels about the subject.

So Far Away, but So Close

Yesterday in class we talk about six word memoirs. Our writing assignment today was to write as many of them as we could think of. One that I wrote that has a lot of meaning to me is, “So far away, but so close.” I wrote this one about my father. My father died when I was 10-years-old. He was very dear to me and I miss him more than anything in the world.

The memoir I wrote has a double meaning. I feel like he’s very far away because I haven’t seen him in eight years, but I also know that he’s close in my heart. When he first died, it felt very unreal. I was more upset than anything because when I was a child I didn’t have many friends at all and I spent most of my time with him. I was young when it happened and that is a very tough thing for a child to deal with. After he died, my sister and I had to move in with my aunt, uncle, and two cousins. For awhile after it happened, things just kept getting worse. I didn’t want to talk to people about it because it always made me cry. I guess I was kind of depressed and my aunt realized it. She wouldn’t let me deal with it by myself anymore. My aunt and uncle helped me get through it. They would sit me down and let me talk about him. It really helped, but I still isolated myself from people. The children at my new school would try to become friends with me, but I felt like the only thing I wanted was to have my dad back in my life. My aunt and uncle knew it was hard for me and so they decided that counseling might be a good idea. My sister and I would go to a counselor once every week. At first, I didn’t think it was going to help me at all, but she really understood and helped me. She would tell me that it was okay to be sad, but that I couldn’t forget about all the other good things in my life. When it happened I never believed things would get better, but my counselor made me realize that I couldn’t dwell on his death forever. So after that I started making friends and things got better for me.

My father always wanted the best for me and there were times when he couldn’t give me everything I wanted. When I was about nine, I grew an interest for softball. Although I had never played, I thought it looked very fun. Around this same time was when my dad was diagnosed with an unknown cancer. I told him about my interest for softball, but I knew I wouldn’t be able to play because we didn’t have much money and my father wasn’t able to sign me up. In a way, I think it hurt him because he wasn’t capable of giving me what I wanted. I knew he was sick though so I didn’t care that I couldn’t play. All I ever wanted was for him to get better. One day he told my sister and me that he didn’t have much time left and that when he passed we would be staying with our aunt and uncle. He told me that I was going to get to play softball when I moved with them because he wanted me to have that opportunity. My father passed away about a week later while my whole family was on vacation. At the time I could’ve cared less about softball because my father was more important than anything. He had told my aunt and uncle that I wanted to play softball, so the following year they signed me up. I was horrible at first, but after the eight years that I played, I became a very good ball player.

I thank my father for the many things he gave me. He’s the reason I was given the opportunity to play softball. If I hadn’t of told him, I most likely wouldn’t have told my aunt and uncle. Softball gave me the best friends that I’ve ever had and it gave me talent that I can be proud of. I wouldn’t have been able to do anything without the strength my father gave me. The only reason I moved on from his death was because I knew he didn’t want me to be upset all the time. When someone that close to you dies, it’s so hard to move on from it, but I did it with the strength my dad gave me. My life is great now, and I owe it all to him. He is the one that pushed me to succeed and to achieve great accomplishments. Everything I did after he died was to make him proud. I’ve never really tried to satisfy other people, but I have always done my best to make my dad happy. He has given me so much. Because of him I’m here at Virginia Tech. In school, I made straight A’s because I wanted to make him proud of me. Also, when he died my sister and I both received a college fund. That will help me out a lot while I’m here. The biggest thing my father has given me is his love. I never cared about having friends when I was younger because I always loved being with my dad. He would take my sister and me to go to fun things all the time. There was never a dull moment with him. It’s been eight years and although it’s been rough at times, I believe he gave me more than I could’ve ever asked for. He is always going to be close in my heart and I will think about him every day for the rest of my life. He’s so far away, but so close.

Power of a Friendship

The thought of leaving for college started to scare me a lot this past summer. During my senior year of high school, I made a best friend that has had a huge impact on my life. Her name is Alex Jones. I saw her every day of the summer except when I came to Virginia Tech for orientation. We were inseparable and I never thought I would be able to leave her.

I would say we started becoming really close friends around October. We played on the same softball team so we were already friends before we became close. I don’t really know what made us start hanging out all the time, but whenever we did we always had fun, no matter what we were doing. During the school year, I would spend the night at her house every weekend and on breaks I would stay almost every day.

One of the reasons why we became so close is because we were both so cool about everything. Most girls in our high school wanted to be a part of all the drama, but we always thought it was dumb. Sometimes girls would even try to start drama with us and we would just laugh at them like they were stupid. We figured that it was best not to have worries and to just have fun.
Another reason we became close is because we really understood each other. We could always tell when the other was upset about something. We both had problems sometimes and we always helped each other with those problems. I was always the one that had relationship problems so Alex would always have to help me with that. Last summer, Alex’s parents split up and that was the hardest thing for her. I would always talk to her about it because I knew she would feel better if she talked about it. We both had our share of problems, but we never let that get in the way of having fun with each other.

Alex and I were actually very different from one another. When we started hanging out a lot, she would want to go do things she considered fun. Before I met her, I never really knew what “mudding” meant. Alex owned a jeep, and one night she took me “mudding”. She was driving and skidding all around in it, until we got stuck. Once we got stuck that meant someone had to come pull us out. We waited for about 30 minutes, until her friend got there to get us out. I didn’t really think it was fun at first, but then I started to love “mudding”. I had never been a person that liked to get dirty, but once Alex and I became best friends, we did crazy stuff all the time. One day, Alex and I went to hang out with some other friends and they all decided they wanted to jump off of the bridge into freezing cold water. My first thought was, “They are out of their minds!” I was terrified of heights and had never been much of a dare devil. Alex practically begged me to jump with her and I told her I might if someone else jumped first. So then of course all the guys there leaped off the bridge into the water. They all thought it was so fun, but I was so scared to do it. I was standing on the ledge holding Alex’s hand, and that’s when I knew she was my best friend. No one could ever persuade me to do something like that unless they really meant something to me. So she counted to three and we jumped. It was one of the most fun things I have ever done.

This past summer, Alex introduced me to something else I had never done before. That was “mudding” on a four-wheeler. This gets very messy. Like I said before, I used to hate getting dirty, but I don’t think there is much that can get dirtier than this. The first time I went on a four-wheeler, I was wearing good clothes and let’s just say after that night they weren’t good anymore. We would ride into huge mud pits and there was mud flying everywhere. When we returned to the house that night, I had mud caked in my hair and it was all over my body. My first experience wasn’t the greatest because it ruined my clothes, but of course I went many times again after that and it did turn into one of my favorite hobbies. I was glad that Alex introduced me to all these new things because it taught me that I didn’t always have to worry about what I looked like and it made my life so much more fun.

Alex was always up to trying new things and because of her I am too now. Looking back now, I would say that I was a really boring person before I met her. She brought out the fun side of me and it made things so much better. I used to dwell over a lot of things, but ever since I’ve met Alex, I have been so happy. Even when I had breakups or other problems, I got over them real quick because she was right there beside me telling me that things would okay and life would go on.

Alex and I have a unique friendship because we rarely ever got in arguments or fights. If we ever did, it was something little and we got over it in about five minutes. I know that even if we do ever get in a big fight, that we will get through it because our friendship is that strong. Nothing will ever come between us. It’s been about three weeks now that I have been here at Virginia Tech. Although I love it here, I miss Alex like crazy and I cannot wait to go home and visit her.