2013- A Year in Review--The Good, The Bad, and the Downright Ugly

January- "Size does matter. I think of essays and you think of wieners" Mrs. Shoemaker cracks a joke in light of what just happened at Sandy Hook. The movie Lifted becomes my favorite. The song American Beautiful is released.

February- on the 27th, Get Mitch Albom to Come to Sayre was created.

March- on the 1st, my sister Brittany Johnson turned 17. On the 3rd, my dad would have been 34. Our family had our last get-together at Bonanza. On the 4th, Mitch Albom noticed our Facebook page. On the 15th, Alan Vanderpool, local DJ, died in a car accident. 

April- On the 15th, the Boston Marathon was bombed. On the 29th, we went to see Romeo and Juliet with Mrs. Shoemaker. 

May- On the 3rd, our freshman English class had a video chat with Mitch Albom. On the 9th, myself, Izaic Wright, and Sydney Post were on the radio to discuss what Mitch had to tell us. On the 7th, the video for Highway Don't Care came out. On the 15th, I celebrated my 15th birthday. On the 28th, we put flowers on my dad's grave for memorial day, my grandpa had a second heart attack, and I won a signed t-shirt from The Henningsens...That was a crazy day for sure!

June- School ended and my depression started. My best year of high school had come to an end. I had another father's day without my dad, and my grandma had surgery this month.

July- On the 12th, my sister won Athen's Idol Karaoke...The next day, Cory Monteith died.

August- On the 8th, I am really hit hard with depression. On the 12th, I "came out" to my mom and my sisters, which feels amazing now. On August 16th, my grandma was admitted to the hospital for a major heart attack, where she went in and out of ICU for a month. On the 27th, I started my first day of school, sophomore year. The 31st made 7 years since my dad died. 

September- On the 3rd, Shelby Vaughn lost her father, and I won a signed Mitch Albom book. On the 4th, my grandma was released from the hospital. On the 13th, I regret poor choices I made in the past. On the 16th, Season 9 of Bones was released. On the 17th, I started identifying myself as atheist. On the 18th, I got my first boyfriend. On the 29th, I watched The Laramie Project for the first time. 

October- On the 4th, my grandpa had heart surgery. On the 5th through the 10th, I was overwhelmed with fear, anxiety, and major depression. On the 11th, I "came out" to my friends on National Coming Out Day. On the 18th, Mrs. Jenkins and I had a heartfelt conversation that would change how I feel about her for sure. 

November- On the 4th, I finished my Dr. Suess story about Gay Marriage rights, one of my favorite pieces I have ever written. On the 9th, I met Youtube stars Nichole337, Matthew Lush, and Matt Daly on Younow. On the 10th, I met my friend Paul Retsu Nguyen on Younow. On the 15th, the song Follow Your Arrow was released. On the 21st, I was able to talk a girl out of suicide which really made me feel good. I also met my best internet friend and my Twinsee, Brandon Thatcher. Him and Paul have really been there when I need them, and I couldn't thank them enough. I also watched a movie called Prayers for Bobby which really changed my views on Conservative Christians. On the 23rd, I watched The Perks of Being a Wallflower, a movie that really touched my heart. On the 25th I experienced my first break-up...bummer! On the 26th, I discovered the TV show Glee. 

December- On the 2nd, Jamie Lynn Spears released her first country single How Could I Want More. On the 3rd, I found out about my friends tumor. On the 13th my friend had a tissue biopsy, and on the 16th, he was diagnosed with a rare bone cancer called Ewing Sarcoma. On the 18th, the Duck Dynasty controversy began. On the 25th, I had one of the best Christmases I have ever had, even though it was my 8th without my dad. 

January 1st and the new year began. January 3rd, and Cory went to his first of many chemotherapy treatments. Along with Cory's cancer, I can guarantee there are going to be lots of other hardships and struggles of 2014. Although now, I am prepared to take them head on. With the help of the people mentioned above, I can make it through anything!

Help Cory Beat Cancer

I am going to start of this blog post with yet another apology...I am sorry that I did not post anything for Christmas or to help bring in the new year. To be honest, I was trying to avoid making people feel the same stale and bitter depression that I have been experiencing for the past few months. But with the new year, I have decided to take on a new attitude. This next year is going to push me to my limits, but I decided to take things head on. I need to make the most of what I have been given, and appreciate everything under the circumstances, because reasons to smile are hard to come by anymore. For those of you who follow my blogging, you will know that 2013 has not been my year. The struggles, hardships, and stressors seemed to weigh me down to where I felt like I couldn't take it anymore. To make matters worse, On December 16th, my best friend was diagnosed with Ewing Sarcoma, a rare form of bone cancer. Yesterday, he received his first of many chemotherapy treatments. He is receiving his treatments at one of the best facilities in our area, the only one qualified to treat him. But transportation to and from his appointments is 180 miles, which can get very costly. Medical bills are going to be piling up for his family as it is, and being able to make it to his treatments shouldn't be an issue. In order to help out, a fundraiser has been started to raise money for his travel expenses. So I decided to reach out to some of my readers for help. It only takes one person to make a difference, and he could really use the help right now. Cancer is a big enough stress as it is, and I don't want finances to be another struggle for his family. So anyone who is able to help, please click here to make a donation. Thank you to everyone who reads my blog, and thank you to anyone who is planning on making a donation. Your support really means a lot!

Outrage 5- *uck Dynasty, The Controversy

As of yesterday, there has been a huge stir of Duck Dynasty fans duking it out with A&E after the suspension of Phil Robertson for his anti-gay remarks. I am outraged in how the Duck Dynasty fans are reacting to this, and I fully support A&E's decision to suspend Phil from the show. Making remarks comparing homosexuality to bestiality is one of the most ridiculously offensive things I have ever seen. And Phil has a reputation for making homophobic remarks, as seen in the video below:

I feel that A&E made the right call here. In my opinion, "As far as I know, nobody has ever been denied their freedom of speech in this country. Until the government starts shoving socks down peoples throats, they are free to say whatever they wish. That being said, everything you ever say will have consequences. For example, If I told my best friend she was fat, I might lose her as my friend. I had every right to say that, but as a punishment, it compromised our friendship. If a man on a TV show wants to voice his opinions, he has every right to do so. But if the TV network is offended by what he said, they have every right to fire him. Nowhere in the first amendment does it say that you can't be punished for what you say. You can't go around calling African-Americans the "N" word all day long and get away with it. And I feel that lashes out like these against gay people are equally as offensive. And while he has every right to his opinion, it is not right to discriminate against a group of people who have no control over who they fall in love with." I applaud A&E for making a bad money decision in order to uphold the rights of the LGBT community. I think it is great that such an influential television network is sticking up for the "little guys". 

If you agree with me, take a moment to go "like" this Facebook page to show your support to A&E 

https://www.facebook.com/IsupportAE

Field Trip To Woodstock

In English class, we have been studying how author’s purpose, social commentary, and themes directly relate to the Woodstock era music of the 1960′s. To further enhance our knowledge of events that occurred in the 60′s, our class took a field trip to Bethel Woods Center for the Arts in Bethel, NY; the original site of the famous three day concert held in 1969.

One theme of the 1960′s was a movement that involved Civil Rights for African-Americans, along with equal rights for women that could only be achieved with perseverance. Another theme was that war could not be avoided without protesting the government. However, the major theme that can be concluded  is that peace and love could only be reached by giving everyone the same freedoms, and treating everyone equally. I feel that this message is very powerful because of how much truth it still holds today. With human rights struggles that occur in today’s society, along with American’s questioning their freedoms, you have to wonder how long it will be before we have a peace in The United States.

Through the amount of study we have done in class on Woodstock, and the field trip, I was able to learn some new information on author’s purpose and social commentary. For example, I learned that is not unusual for 1960′s songwriters to be very blunt on how they express social issues in their work. Songs such as “Vietnam Song” by Country Joe and the Fish, “Uncle Sam Blues” by Jefferson Airplane, and “Fortunate Son” by Creedence Clearwater Revival are all very clear with their messages. These songs are all anti-war and very clearly show that opinion.

Personally, I feel that this whole Woodstock experience has inspired me a lot more than I ever expected. The reason I feel this way is that the youth today is very similar to the hippies in the 1960′s. The hippies were a generation than “rebelled” against the older generation because of conflicting opinions. Today I feel that the younger generation is more open minded then the older generation, causing different opinions. I also feel that in general, America’s youth feel misunderstood by the older generations. The fact that we are unafraid to express ourselves is very inspiring, and this idea originated with the hippies. For this, I feel that this lesson was very beneficial for me as a person. Aside from the field trip being phenomenal. I would definitely recommend the trip again, it is an experience that I probably will never forget!

Outrage 4- Mistreated and Misunderstood

Recently I have been really upset about how people can judge you, and treat you a certain way about something that they have zero understanding on whatsoever. People assume things about you, when they don't know the whole story of why you do the things that you do. I feel like I go out of my way to help others, and sometimes that means putting a smile on my face no matter how bad I may feel at the time. I make fun of myself if it means making someone else's day better. Yet I feel that I am constantly judged when people don't know anything about me. I would be lying to you if I said that 2013 was a good year. Truth be told it is hell, and I can't wait for it to be over. But aside from that, I find myself having a hard time staying happy when little things that people say continue to hurt, and they don't realize it. For example, I had a teacher today tell me in a nutshell that my constant lack of effort is causing me to get a low grade. I only missed one homework assignment. I have always done my work and always gave my best effort. If the teacher knew that I was at the hospital until midnight, and awake until 4 am doing homework, than maybe she wouldn't have been so mean about it. Honestly little things like this are what hurt me the most. I take pride in my schoolwork, and I take comments to heart. Hearing this in an already bad situation doesn't make things any better. And my friends are ever worse with this. I feel like I am constantly smiling and joking with my friends just to make them feel better. If they know half of the stuff that was going on with me, they would seriously wonder how I manage to hide it. I sometimes ask myself how I am able to "fake being happy". I feel like I am a time bomb of emotions waiting to go off. I am tired of being mistreated for things I can't control. I just have to stop hiding my emotions. I can't keep staying happy when on the inside I feel miserable. Something has to give, or I am just going to stop trying...

My Dr. Suess Story is Finished! -- Fishing in the Land of Shoom

In a faraway place called the Land of Shoom
There were three types of people, two that were happy, one that caused gloom.
These people were called the ShoomLauxes, ShoomBophe, and ShoomPro
And by the end of this tale, The ShoomBophe will be eating crow.

It all started one day when the Shoom people were fishing down at the pond
When the ShoomPro leader approached from far far beyond.
When he got closer, not so far out of reach
The ShoomPro leader stood up, and gave a magnificent speech:

"Before I begin, everyone get in a pair
The announcement I have is to make you aware
That I come baring great news, something that must be expressed
The Land of Shoom is having our first ever fishing contest!"
"Hurry up, come on, there is no time to waste!"
The Shoom people paired up, and did so with haste.

This news made the Shoom people as happy as clowns
Until two ShoomLauxes showed up and brought the happiness down.
The ShoomLauxes asked, "Are we allowed to enter in your fishing event?"
The ShoomBophe leader started yelling, his heart must be made of cement.
"Absolutely not! Your kind is not allowed to fish at our fishing contest!"
"Why not?" Asked the ShoomPro leader. "What makes you protest?"

"The ShoomLauxes are Weird, with a capital 'W'
A bunch of monkeys that escaped from the zoo."
The wind howled its objection
But the ShoomBophe leader thought nothing of this rejection.
"I can give you a million reasons why the ShoomLauxes are bad
And thousands of reasons that they make me mad."

The ShoomPro leader said, "Please you must give them a chance
You cannot judge a group of people just by first glance."
This interuption took the ShoomBophe leader by surprise
But he kept his mouth shut, a choice rather wise.

The ShoomPro leader continued, "Don't judge them solely by their pink triangle tattoos
Because on the inside, they are no different than me or you.
The ShoomLauxes have feelings too, and your words do hurt
You need to change your views, it is time you convert.

The ShoomBophe leader said, "We cannot change, we are set in our ways
we have hated the ShoomLauxes for all of our days.
 But since you are a better leader than me
I will allow the ShoomLauxes to enter, however I don't agree."

The ShoomPro leader said, " Now, without farther delay
I will explain the rules, and you can take it away.
You have exactly one hour, and not a minute more
to see who can catch the most fish in this Great Fishing War!
You and your partner may wonder how this contest is significant
This isn't just for fun, it's serious business...
You could win The Top Fishers' Certificate!"
"Now, are there anymore questions I can reasonably allow?"
"No, well get ready, your time starts...NOW!

The Shoom people casted out their lines and began to fish.
And they looked to the sky and began to wish.
"Please let me be the one who catches the most
I am a pro, although I don't usually boast."
The wishing went on, and the fishing went on until time ran out
The contest had a clear winner, there was no doubt
The ShoomLauxes caught more than 2,000 rainbow trout

The ShoomPro were shocked, the ShoomBophe were angry
But the ShoomLauxes were humble, very humble quite frankly
The Top Fishers' Certificate was the ShoomLauxes reward
This was a big step in moving forward
For the rights of all people to be given equally
A step away from this cruel world's indecency.

Outrage 3- Teachers Being Disrespected

I know that today is not Tuesday, but nevertheless I need to get something off of my chest that has been infuriating me for quite some time. Teachers in my school district are being disrespected for absolutely no reason whatsoever. And oddly enough, it is the ADMINISTRATION at my school who is the biggest culprit. For all the administrators who tell their students to, "Respect your teachers" I would like to tell you to PRACTICE WHAT YOU PREACH. My school is a small group of only about 500 students, and overall I feel like we are a great group of people. And many of our teachers are absolutely phenomenal. They show us respect as students, they provide us with a comfortable working atmosphere, and they really do teach us A LOT! So why does the administration thinks that it is acceptable to call-out the teachers on how they need to improve. News flash, our teachers are passionate about what they do, and they give us their all. You wouldn't believe how often I hear my teachers say how much they love their jobs, and their students. But when the "higher-ups" treat their employees like scum, it is not acceptable. I do not want to see my teachers crying because of how they are being treated. It absolutely disgusts me! I aim to make it very clear to all of my teachers how much I truly appreciate them. And I can only hope that things get better.