Of Friendship

Friendship is...
Friendship is a pint of ice cream, Fun, sweet and enjoyable.
Friendship is a bonfire, more you put in, the larger it gets.
Friendship is a blanket, a place for comfort and safety.
Friendship is a car ride, it takes awhile, but it is worth it.
Friendship is a photograph; you never know how it will turn out.
Friendship is a football game, Exciting all the time.
Friendship is a night under the stars; it’s beautiful in every way.

I believe in best friends. Best friends are always there for you no matter what. They are always there when you need them and they are always willing to listen. A friend is a person whom someone knows, likes, and trusts; a person who supports you and sympathizes with you. Friendship is so broad, but recently I have learned the true meaning of the word.

When you need a shoulder to cry on, who do you go to? Moving away can be a hard situation. One of my best friends is about to move. Whenever she feels sad, or depressed, I try to always be there for her. Can you imagine, leaving your house, school, friends and sports teams you’re on? That is why friends are always good to have. They support you when you need it.
When you want to tell someone about the “best time of your life”, who do you go to? Going to prom or getting a good grade in a difficult class, you always want to celebrate it. And who is better to celebrate it with, than a friend? Friends will celebrate with you, be excited for you, and congratulate you. Friends build you up.
And when you want someone to talk to about the hard times in life, who do you go to? Fighting with your brothers and sisters or fighting with your parents isn’t fun. Don’t you ever get so mad you want to scream? Or just tell someone so you can let it out? That is a good time to have friends. They care about you; they listen to you; and they will make you feel better.
My best friends are always, always there when I need them. They never gets tired of listening to me ramble and they never stops caring about me. When I need to talk, I know I can turn to my friends. When I just want to hang out, I know I can hang out with my friends. A good friendship is full of trust and respect, and everyone needs a best friend. Yes, conflicts occurred and we all say we hate each other. But really, Friends will always be there for you and for each other. Arguments will happen, tears will be cried, but in the end friends will be friends forever

Of Expectations

1. In my family, it's expected that you will go to college or further your education.
In my family it is pretty much required for you to go to college. My father went to college along with his parents. My mom didn’t go to college because she had bad grades in high school. She later decided to go to college and further an education in the medical field. My dad pushes me all the time to get good grades and to take hard classes. High school may be tough, but college is going to be tougher. Every one in my family is headed down the road that leads to going to one college or another. I am sure that the expectations in my family will not be changing any time soon.
2. Everyone in my family is expected to contribute to chores, cooking, cleaning, and maintaining the house.
I agree with this statement also. Every one in my family has a different responsibility. Nathan, my younger brother, is expected to have the garbage out every Friday morning at 7:00. My chore is the put away the clean dishes whenever necessary. My sisters have less work to do around the house because they have jobs that they are at all the time. Every one in the house tries to split up the work so my mom doesn’t have to do all of it. We all have a responsibility to fulfill. So yes, I would say that everyone is expected to contribute to chores in my house.
3. Sometimes, it's hard for everyone in my family to get along.
Heck yes I agree. Every family has problems. Some problems are bigger than others, and some are stupid to be fighting over. Now that my sisters are eighteen, I amseventeen and my brother is 14, we have all matured and began to get along better and found it more easily solve our differences. When we were younger, we fought about the littlest things. Most of the arguments were over what channel to watch next or who got to sit by my mom at dinner. Now that we are older, we can solve our problems by ourselves, without my parents getting involved.
4. There are goals I have that my parents and/or siblings just don't "get."
Every one has dreams or goals. Some are different and some are wild. I some times have a problems telling my parents and siblings my goals or dreams. Every one is afraid of being rejected or not being understood. I had a goal or dream to make the sophomore, starting volleyball team. That didn’t happen. My summer was horrible. My dreams were crushed July 22, five days before my sixteenth birthday. When I burnt my leg, all I could think about was not being able to play volleyball. I put in so much work over the summer and dedicated half the whole summer to volleyball. When your dreams are crushed or not fulfilled, it is nice to be able to go to somebody who understands. In my case, I turned to my mom. My mom knows how much I love volleyball and it is nice to know some one cares. So next time you think that no one “gets” it, they do, one way or another.

Tug-A-Leah-War

Living one life with two different types of friends is typical, but verry difficult. I have found that I love all my friends, some more than others and then found that I love them in different ways too.The word love can refer to a variety of different feelings, states, and attitudes, ranging from generic pleasure to intense interpersonal attraction. This diversity of meanings, combined with the complexity of the feelings involved, makes love unusually difficult to consistently define, even compared to other emotional states.

So what do you do when you love all your friends, but are being pulled each way to choose? On one side I have my long, true best friends. They have been there for as long as I can remember. Through the past year they have put up with alot from me...and still are. I know they care about me, and always will. Sometimes I feel like they are the only ones who understand me or that they are the only ones that will listen to me. Other times, it feels like they either judge me or the situation.

On my other side I have my first love, my first real boyfriend. He represents not only himself, but my other friends who I have bonded with throughout the three years I have been in highschool.They care, they love me ; just not with the same love as my best friends have loved me with for many years. My friends are there for me to vent and there to listen and help. I believe that they really do love me too.

So when I have people pulling on me, telling me to "Do this" and "Do that", it is hard for me to listen. I want to make my own decisions. I don't want to hurt anyone, but I also dont want to be judged. I care dearly for all my friends. Some people dont understand my friendships. I get hurt alot, yes, but should that stop me from caring for the person who hurt me?

I'm sure alot of people have experienced this "pulling" from friends, this is just my first experience. I'm trying my hardest not to hurt anyone, but I am just doing what I think is right, and doing what I want to do.

The Inspiration

I ran through the empty hallways of a clean, vacant church. As I turned the corner I entered into the sanctuary. There I saw my grandpa, the pastor of the church I had been playing in, standing at the podium, preaching away. He looked so serious, so believable and so comfortable.
My grandpa had been a pastor from before I can remember. He started his own church on his own money, believing my grandma and he could survive on the little money they had. My grandpa is a strong believer and also my inspiration.
My grandpa inspires me to be more like him. He is always trustworthy, honest and truthful. I strive a little more every day to be more like him. When situations are ruff I know I can turn to him, and when I need comfort or a “father figure”, I know he is always there.
Every time I am around him, I can’t help but smile. He is so encouraging and uplifting. I love how he knows I am having a bad day, and when I do, he turns it around for me by cheering me up and taking me shopping. I love my grandpa so much. He is everything I want to be. So whenever some one asks me who I admire most, it doesn’t even take me a second to think. My face lights up and I will grin a little and reply, “My grandpa”.

Flashback to the Past!

The summer of my freshman year at Kennedy High School, I met many new people. One of the people I met is now one of my good friends. Laura had gone to Harding Middle School, where almost half of the other freshman at Kennedy went. Laura knew many people and soon introduced me to all of them. She led me to meet many of my friends and my first “love”.
Dallas had seen me that summer, hanging around Laura and the weight room for volleyball, and he had hoped to meet me. He was a foster child because when he was young his parents died. For the past 5 years or so, Dallas had been living with a foster family.

As a freshman, I was only 15 years old. And according to my parents, I was not old enough to date. So of course, soon Dallas asked me out. I had to tell him the “rules of my house” and explain to him why I couldn’t date him. But we still hung out and liked each other more every day.
We had our ups and we had our downs through freshman year. Things started getting better until the beginning of the 3rd trimester of that year. Dallas’ foster family decided to kick him out. Dallas called me the day it happened and tried to explain to me what was going to happen.
The next day at school, he came up to me, telling me it was his last day at Kennedy. I couldn’t stand the thought of not seeing him again. I cried all day, and was late to almost all my classes because he was talking to me.
I remember that day too well. I didn’t eat anything all day, and I especially didn’t rush to class. After every class, Dallas was waiting for me outside the door, just waiting to walk me to my next class.
The end of the day arrived and my friend, who was my ride, wanted to leave. She walked slowly in front of us, leaving me and Dallas behind. We stood in-between the doors to the school and outside, getting ready to say goodbye. Of course I cried while he hugged me one last time. It was one of the worse days of my life. And if I could go back and change that day I would. I would have done anything to stop him from leaving.

A Memory Memoir

“Why me!” I yelled, asking in fear. I was on my way to the top of the Wild Thing, which happened to be the tallest, longest and steepest dropping roller coaster in Valley Fair. “Come on, show some spirit, this is our 8th grade trip, it’ll be fun!” my sister who is also my best friend insisted. “Yeah,” I said sarcastically, “Fun!”
Thinking more and more about my 8th grade trip and how fun it had been so far, kept my mind off of other things, other things like the roller coaster I was on! I had never been on a roller coaster this big before. It was lime green and tall. This had to be one of my first roller coasters. The name of this tall roller coaster was nothing else but the Wild Thing. Yes, indeed you had to be a wild thing to ride this. And right now it looked like I was going to be the wild one.
Still chugging up the hill, my close friends, who were also one the 8th grade trip with me, were sitting behind Stephanie and me. Stephanie and my friends knew I was afraid of heights and not to mention roller coasters but that didn’t stop them from dragging me onto this ride. Besides I didn’t want to look like a baby in front of my classmates. But the one thing that did start to scare me was all the scary things my friends said to me on the way to the top. They said many things like, “Hey, Leah have you looked down recently?” and of course I looked down. This freaked me out.
When this first cart finally reached the top of the hill, I started to see carts disappear one by one. People were screaming their heads off. “3…2…1,” my friends who were sitting behind me screamed. We were off, down the biggest drop of the ride. I couldn’t breath. Not because I was sick or anything, but because the drop took my breath away.
Surviving the first drop, I was on my way through the rest of the roller coaster. There were hills and corkscrews and loops through the whole thing. This was in fact the longest, best roller coaster ever.
Going up and down small and large hills made my stomach turn. But going into the tunnel was the best part. Water sprayed our faces unexpectedly and a camera flashed. Many pictures were taken; there was a picture of every cart. There were pictures of screaming people, people wiping their face from the unexpected water, little kids crying and of course Stephanie and I striking a pose!
This roller coaster was, yes, very scary, but was most defanetly the best ride ever. I will never forget my 8th grade trip or the Wild Thing.

The Spottless Family

As my sister wrote in her recent blog, 1115, she talks about how our family and others always try to give of the apperence of being "normal". If any family is abnormal, it is mine.

For some reason, it is so important to my parents to make sure everyone in the world knows we are okay. People see us as the large, white, Christian family; who attends chuch multiple times a week, participates in countless church activities and lead groups at our church. Some know some of our history, including the messy devorce my parents went through, causing my mom to leave the church; taking Steve ( my step-dad, and previously married to another member of our church) with her. Some believe God help us through it and brought Amy ( my step-mom) "into our lives". By adding Amy and Steve to my family; the number of siblings I had increased too. From 2 to 6 siblings, my life changed.

I decided a while ago that I was tired of living a life according to other people. Of course I make mistakes and some of them I really don't want people to find out about. But now I think people know I am not a perfect, Christian teenage girl; NO ONE IS! Everyone says teenagers make mistakes, or " You're a kid, of course you will mistakes!" The choices are not mistakes! I'll live the way I want to live and make the choices I want to. Some may be stupid or the wrong choice, but that is how you learn. Many say that my parents or audults have gone through the situations that teens are faced with today. So what! Let me learn for myself how heartbreak feels or the dissappointment of the consequeses of my actions.

Drama Queen or King...

Drama Queens

So Saturday, I had to wake up early! I woke up, took my daily shower, did my daily routine-as always. My family had to get up early to drive to Cedar Falls Saturday morning. My older sister, attending UNI, had to move out of her dorm room by 12 0'clock. We left our house in Anamosa about 9 to get there around 10:30.
Why so early? Well let me tell you. Apparently my father, who is no longer married to my mom was being a drama queen! He had felt it was time that my sister could "understand" that she needed to not only scedual him into her scedual, but make sure he DIDNT see my mother! After 17 years of my life and 19 of hers- he has never had a problem co-operating with my mom if it involves us kids.
Regardless, we went up to UNI to help my sister move. As we drew close to her new dorm room...my mother pointed out that something smelled like bleach. So up in the room, my sister, frantically, dumped all her clothes out onto the floor and searched them for bleach spots. She was a nervous wreck. After seeing her clothes have bleach on them- she went crazy. "EVERYTHING" was going wrong for her.

Cheaper By The Dozen...And Then Some

Some people don't have kids, they have litters....and
we celebrate them for some reason.
-LEAH-

"LITTLE ROCK, ARK. — Mother's Day draws a crowd in the home of an Arkansas woman — she is pregnant with her 18th child.This weekend, Duggar will join her husband and their 17 children to celebrate Mother's Day with brunch at a hotel in downtown Little Rock. Their youngest child, Jennifer, is 9 months old. Their oldest, Josh, is 20.The Duggar children include 10 boys and seven girls. Within the group are two sets of twins."We've had three in January, three in December. Those two months are a busy time for us," Michelle Duggar said, laughing.The fast-growing family lives in Tontitown in northwest Arkansas in a 7,000-square-foot home. All the children — whose names start with the letter J — are home-schooled.Michelle Duggar, who has been pregnant for 11 years of her life, said she and her husband will continue to have children as long as God wills it.

The other Duggar children, in between Joshua and Jennifer, are Jana, 18; John-David, 18; Jill, 16; Jessa, 15; Jinger, 14; Joseph, 13; Josiah, 11; Joy-Anna, 10; Jeremiah, 9; Jedidiah, 9; Jason, 7; James, 6; Justin, 5; Jackson, 3; and Johannah, 2."


We all heard this story or read it in the papers this weekend. 18 children!?! We hear the nation is overpopulated and now I can see why. What if EVERY couple in America did this? What if every family believed they should have as many kids as long as "God will's it"? I am sure that taking care of 18 children is very stressfull and time consuming, meaning that the Duggar's must really have a passion for children! I know that I would never have enough patients for 18 kids, let alone 1. Congradulation Duggars for the "accomplishment" or whatever, props to you! I could never raise 18 children and still want more!

'Juno' about Juno?

Won Oscar. Another 38 wins & 25 nominations. What movie is it?
-LEAH-

Sixteen year-old Juno MacGuff is the type of girl that doesn't really care what others may think of her. She learns that she's pregnant from a one-time sexual encounter with her best friend, Paulie Bleeker. Juno and Paulie like each other, but don't consider themselves to be exclusive boyfriend/girlfriend let alone be ready to be a family complete with child. Although she would rather not be pregnant, Juno is fairly pragmatic about her situation.Paulie really leaves all the decisions about the baby to Juno. She first chooses abortion, and when a weird encounter occurs with a protester she changes her mind. Juno decides on having the child, not getting attached and giving it to an adoptive family.

Many people have had an issue with this movie. They believe it is promoting the idea of teen pregnancy or abortion. Well, if you have a problem with the movie...DONT SEE IT! I personally think it is a good movie. Juno uses so much humor and sarcasm; it makes the movie!

Back to Normal?

""Oh my God!" Paula wailed. "I thought you - thought you sang twice!"
Double vision is a troubling thing. Double hearing is a cry for exorcism"

-LEAH-

It'S time to equip the TV with a Breathalyzer; or an IQ test. I don't know what Paula Abdul is or isn't drinking, smoking or snorting, or with what or whom she is or isn't spending her lonely days and nights. But with Paula either stuck on the heavily traveled road to rehab - or in need of a refresher course in English as a second language.

We have all heard the rumors (or facts) about Paula. No she is not getting kicked off the show. No she does not have schizophrenia. But yes, she has a problem. She never admits if she is on drugs or drinks, yet it is proven that she does through her actions. So when Paula goes crazy, what is everyone else thinking?

Ratings seem do drop drasticle. The ratings are great, just not "Idol" great. The night after Paula went psychic, 22.8 million viewers watched Seacrest endorse Paula and Brooke go home. That's the singing competition's smallest regular Wednesday show audience in two years, and down 21 percent from the nearly 29 million who watched on the same night last year. Among 18-to-34-year-old viewers, the show clocked the smallest in-TV-season performance for a Wednesday in more than five years.

Who wants to watch Idol, when there is a drunk, high or hung-over judge sitting at the judges table? Not me!

Baskets of Joy

DING-DONG. ITS MAY DAY! Check your door and check your steps,

you may have a small basket of joy.

-LEAH-

May Day occurs on May 1 and refers to any of several public holidays. In many countries, May Day is synonymous with International Workers' Day or Labour Day, which celebrates the social and economic achievements of the Labour Movement As a day of celebration, however, the holiday has ancient origins and can relate to many customs that have survived into modern times. May Day marks the end of the uncomfortable winterhalf of the year in the Northern Hemisphere, and it has traditionally been an occasion for popular and often raucous celebrations, regardless of the locally prevalent political or religious establishmen.

Today May Day is celebrated by the typical backet on the front porch and the annoying door bell ringing. When you arrive at the door, finding no one standing there, you do find a small present! Sometimes these baskets consist of food, money or candy.

May Day, being today, is the only reason I woke up this morning! I personally do not participate in this holiday because I am not creative enough to make a "May Day Basket". But I work at a day-care where all the kids have been counting down to today. Today at work will be a treat itselve. We will proboly be working on making baskets and even make basket for the kids. I love seeing them excited over little things, it reminds me to look for joy in everything.

Do You See What I See?

Apparently, carrots are not as good for you as you have been told.

-LEAH-

A Connecticut woman is suing her husband, claiming he caused her to lose an eye when he threw a carrot at her during an argument.The lawsuit filed by Pamela Vecsey claims that when she and her husband, 48-year-old Roderick Vecsey were arguing on July 14, 2006, in their home, her husband threw a carrot from about 20 feet away.The woman's lawyer says Pamela Vecsey was hit in the left eye by the carrot which ruptured the eyeball. The eye was removed and she now has a glass eye.Roderick Vecsey was arrested and charged with second-degree assault and disorderly conduct. The charges against him were later dropped.
The couple still live together.

Aren't carrots suppose to be good for the eyes. Carrots contain beta-carotene, a carotenoid pigment found in bright orange fruits and vegetables that is also a precursor for vitamin A. Vitamin A plays a major role in eyesight by preventing night blindness and helping with the maintenance of a healthy, clear cornea. So instead of throwing carrots AT people's eyes, maybe you should try thowing them INTO thier mouths!

How Am I Suppose To Breath With No Air?

Pretty much the funniest attempt to get away with a crime, EVER!

-LEAH-

"MADRID, Spain — A burglar who broke into a funeral home tried to fool police by playing dead, but two things gave him away. First, he breathed. Plus, he wore grungy clothes rather than the Sunday best of those settling in for eternal rest.
Police officers arrived with the owner, and eventually found the suspect lying on a table in a glassed-in chamber used for viewings of deceased people during wakes, a local police official said from Burjassot.
"The custom here is for dead people to be dressed in suits, in nice clothes that look presentable. This guy was in everyday clothes that were wrinkled and dirty," the police official said.
"He was trying to fake being dead, but he was breathing," the officer said."

If you are going to do the crime...do the time! Running into a funeral home is not just disrespectful but stupid. Don't get me wrong, laying in a glass case and acting dead is a good idea to get away with a crime, but who in thier right mind would believe it?!?

Hidden Heroes

Hero or fate? I like to think that everyone is a hero

in some way, if by fate or not.
-LEAH-

"ALBANY, N.Y. — When a baby fell from a second-story window Monday, Lisa Harrell should not have been there to catch her. Normally, the longtime letter carrier doesn't get to 306 Second St. until about 2 p.m. But on Monday, Harrell had a package to be delivered to the address before noon.
So at 11 a.m., Harrell walked to the home's door and saw a 1-year-old girl in the second-story window above her head. She rang the doorbells to both the upstairs and downstairs apartments, not knowing which tenant the package was for.
A moment later, the 42-year-old said, she felt something strike her shoulder and instinctively put out her arms.
"I noticed the upstairs window open halfway," she said. "The baby fell right into my arms. Everything happened so quick."
The baby was screaming as she fell, Harrell said, and afterward. But paramedics from the Albany Fire Department examined her and found no visible injuries."

Fate? If this story is true, I can't help but wonder why things like this don't happen every day. "Impossible things are happening every day" according to CINDERELLA. With millions; BILLIONS, of people in this world, there must be more "undercover heroes" than we hear of.
Fame is not everything. Look at your own life, I'm sure that in some way you have too "saved" someones life.

Question This...

AHHH! More thoughts and questions. I wonder if this is poetry?

-LEAH-

Have you ever wanted to do something, but haven't because you are afraid of what other people might think? Have you ever wanted to say everything you were thinking, but can't because you are afraid? Why can't life be easier, simple and not frustrating? Why can't everyone care about what you think? Hasn't everyone had heartbreak? Hasn't everyone gone through what I have? Does past really affect your present? Does present affect your future? Have you ever wanted something so badly, you feel like you will do anything for it? Have you ever had your dreams shattered? Why are dreams only made for sleeping? Why aren't fairy tales for real life? Hasn't everyone loved with all thier heart? Hasn't everyone's heart been broken? Does my opinion effect anyone? Does it matter what I think? Have you every wanted to give some one your heart? Have you ever been afraid to love because you don't want to get hurt again?

I Have.

Slow Down!

After winter and into spring there are many potholes on all our roads. Are they trying to fix them?!?

-LEAH-

Have you ever driven by a huge pothole in the road? Have you ever been driving fast down a street and pounded on your breaks because ahead you saw those annoying potholes? Well this is a new meathod/ idea being used to get people to slow down on the roads and drive safer. Good idea?

I have noticed, when in the car with cetain people, the speed limit never limits them to a speed. Traffic either! It's fun driving fast and maybe bending the rules a bit, but whenever your car may be in great, observable danger; maybe someone may think twice about going 10 over the speed limit.

These fake holes are used to scare cars from going too fast down a road. When going over them once, you will know that they are fake. So when you go over them the second time won't you be speeding again; knowing that the holes are fake? Well, you never know if they are fake or not. My advice: Don't try to speed over a pothole of large size!

El Mundo De Espanol

Spanish may come in handy some day, so should I stick with it? So many Spanish customs intrest me, but my Spanish III teacher doesn't!

-LEAH-

So Spanish class has to be one of the most boring classes during my day, right up there with Pre-Calculus. I don't know why the class is so boring to me, we don't do anything! My teacher doesn't teach and my class doesn't talk; maybe that is why I don't enjoy going to class.

The weird thing is, is that Spanish is exciting to me. I love reading easy Spanish books; such as the Dr. Suess Spanish books I have at home. I love listening to Spanish music. Mostly the love songs are appealing to me because they sound so pretty. I also like watching Spanish movies. A couple that I have seen and liked is "Mi Familia" and "Selena".

Knowing a foreign language is important to me because than you can also learn about other cultures. At times I want so badly to drop Spanish III because it is SO boring and it feels like I have learned nothing this year. But whenever you look and think about it, how much Spanish did I know before taking the courses in high-school? Maybe a couple words like, "Hola" and "Adios".

One Semester Spanish Love Song
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ngRq82c8Baw

I Could Fall In Love With You

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LTgxHJMdvoI

Rambo

A story of Rambo.

-LEAH-

Rambo. My friend, my family, my companion. By day, Rambo is cute, calm and quiet. He spends his days lazily wandering around the house taking part in various activities such as: sleeping, eating, pooping and of course breathing. These activities are quite the workout for little Rambo. By night however, Rambo is the stereotypical party animal...LITERALLY. At night Rambo is crazy. He transforms from his lazy self absorbed persona to a demon embodied creature of the night. His activities change too. They extend from clawing, climbing, jumping, whining annoyingly, and even biting people in their sleep. Although Rambo is obnoxious and a vicioius beast at night he is still a very nice aquaintance to have. Rambo enjoys long walks on the beach, a good sunset, pina coladas and getting caught in the rain. Don't get to excited ladies, Rambo's heart belongs to his one and only. He is currently in a long term relationship with his first love, Tasha. Rambo is a good friend and great entertainment, after all; he is my cat.

Take A Look Inside My Mind...

Here is a chance to get inside my mind. So many questions and so little time!

-LEAH-

Don't you ever wish everything went the way you wanted them to go? Do you ever wish things were back to the way they were, the way they use to be?

Don't you ever wish you could hear what people are thinking, listen to what everyone is saying or do what everyone else gets to do? Is it our own fault that we cannot relate to those in need?

Is it just me who wants things to go my way; whose dreams get broken because they only exist in fairy tales? Am I the only one who wants peace; everything to work out with everyone?

Why is it that I over-react to all the little things that go wrong? Who else can't see beyond the present? Does anyone out there want the things I want?

Can't anyone understand me; comprehend my past, present and future? Who is out there that look past my fake emotions and see the real me? Is anyone out there that can?

Are you the one who puts thier whole heart in your relationships, then when it ends, gets broken? Who am I to hold back myself from loving and caring the way that others care and love?

Doesn't everyone in the end get hurt? Whom among us hasn't loved and lost that love? Is there anyone who has that perfect life and doesn't have to experience the pain of the loss in thier own life?


Why can't people understand one another? Who can't give up a small amount of time and energy for someone you love? Is selfishness the new moral to live by?

Won't every little girl's dreams soon be broken by that one guy who doesn't care? Will someone be there to hold me up when I fall? Will someone hear me if I cry?

Don't you every wish everything went the way you wanted them to go? Do you ever wish things were back to the way they were, the way they use to be?

Spring Break? More like Sucky Break!

Well, we are all back from spring break. The official week of partying is over. No one looks forward to those last 9 weeks of school, expesially after a "taste" of vacation.
-LEAH-

Personally, my spring break sucked. I worked all day Monday and all day Tuesday, leaving me little time with my friends or even to do what I wanted to. Wednesday, I was off in my mini-van, on my way to the awesome state of Indiana. I love Indiana; I do, but not when I WANT to be in Iowa! ( Suprising, I know). While I was sitting in Indiana for 5 days, my friends had an awesome time here. I'm glad they did, I just wish I was here having a good time with them.

Spring break seems to always be more dissappointing than exciting. At the beginning of break, everyone is excited to be out of school, but when half the break has flown by; I begin to dread going back to school. Sleeping in, hanging out with friends, eating all day long; these are all thing I love to do when Im not at school.

Summer, come soon! I can't stand to be in school for much longer. I have had a taste of summer and now I am craving it more than ever.

Power of Make-Up

I personally am dependent on make-up. Is that wrong?

Here is some information and thoughts I put together today.

-LEAH-

Cosmetics have been around for centuries. Their use is widespread, especially among women in western countries. A branch of cosmetics is called "make-up", which refersto colored products intended to alter the user’s appearance. During the 20th century, the popularity of cosmetics increased. In the United States, cosmetics are used by girls at an increasingly young age. Many companies have come to relize this expanding market and are introducing more flavored lipsticks and glosses, cosmetics packaged in glittery, sparkly packaging and marketing and advertising using young models.

So why do so many women wear make-up? Is it because of glamore or attention? Do people wear it because they like it? Personally, I like to wear make up because it makes me feel more confident in myself; in my apperence. Others may enjoy wearing make up just because it has become a habit or something they "just do".

Who are they trying to impress? Some are trying to impress men and attract sexual attention by wearing short shorts and other such things, but not all. Some simply feel good about themselves and take pride in thier appearance, the same way you get a nice clean feeling after a shower, a little make-up and a nice outfit has an affect on our confidence.

Wally World

On Walmart's home page you see these 4 points of interest: community, opportunity,sustainability and health & wellness. Analyzing these 4 main drives of Walmart has been interesting...leading me to find Walmart's goals.

-LEAH-

Community- "At Wal-Mart, we believe in a philosophy of operating globally and giving back locally. We know we can make the greatest impact on our communities by supporting causes that are important to our customers right in their own neighborhoods." Do you think that Walmart gives back for the "good" of people, or do they do it for the "fame" of giving? When companies who are being competed with by other popular and successful companies, I would think that the company would be more interested in GETTING the interest of the community.

Opportunity- "Through the jobs we provide, and the money we help people save, we generate economic opportunity in communities where we operate. We make every effort to ensure that we site our stores in a manner that meets the environmental needs of our communities." Does any company really care if the community has the opportunity to work? By saying they give out opportunities they are just saying that they need employees to make their business work.

Sustainability- "We view environmental sustainability as one of the most important opportunities for both the future of our business, and the future of our world.
Our opportunity is to become a better company by looking at every facet of our business—from the products we offer to the energy we use—through the lens of sustainability." I hate this. I hate when companies will say anything to make them sound like they care about more things than themselves. Walmart just wants to be bigger. They want to have NO competition and BE the one store people WANT to go to.

Health and Wellness- "At Wal-Mart, we have the opportan having a doctor prescribe one to yo
Thus, I have just become sickened with the way companies have began to use this tactic in drawing people to thier store.

Changes In My Research

So I decided to change my research idea. The pop culture and pop stars research would mostly be all opinionated and not true, hard facts. So my new research topic is OCD. ( obsessive-compulsive disorder) Now with this new topic I can find the history, symptoms, cases and treatments of this disorder.

I personally have no history with this disorder, not does anyone else in my family or extended family...but this topic interest me. I would love to learn about how people's minds work when they have this disorder and how it effects thier daily life. There is so much to learn about things that...i dont know about.

Worthy of My Time?

Today we had a sit down home-room for about 20 minuets. There we received our transcripts, a record of all the classes we have taken throughout high school. It occurred to me how much I have changed since Freshman year.

-LEAH-

Have you ever looked back on a time and be surprised to see how much you have changed? Reflecting on past years, I found that I have matured more; not only physically but emotionally. I walk down the halls today and see freshman making out in the halls, like there is no tomorrow. They walk and stop in the halls because they HAVE to, at that minute, hear the latest gossip. Sure I may be generalizing and stereotyping, but you remeber how it use to be. And now, as a junior, we walk through the halls, slowly, not rushing to our class or our friends to hear the latest gossip. We are surprised when we hear a fellow junior has a full 1st through 6th hour and can't even imagin how they can stand to be at school for that long.

It seems like alot of things have changed. Everything was a big deal when I was a freshman. Someone told me they hated me and that became all I could think about. Drama between friends was my life. Boys and who they liked was all that was on my mind. Now, looking back on all of that, I relize that I wasted a whole year of my life worrying about stupid things and doing pointless things I regret today.

I hope that now, reflecting on past years, I will always remember to think about what I am doing and how I am spending my time and decide if it is really worth my time.

Be Yourself

What Are Eating Disorders?
Generally, eating disorders involve self-critical, negative thoughts and feelings about body weight and eating habits. A person with anorexia starves himself/ herself to be thin and experiences weight loss. Bulimia is the binge eating and purging. A child with bulimia may experience weight fluctuations, but rarely experiences the low weight loss as anorexia does.

Warning Signs of Eating Disorders
It can be a challenge for parents to tell the difference between a child's normal self-image concerns, and warning signs that a child may be developing an eating disorder.
In anorexia, these signs include:

significant weight loss
continual dieting feelings of fatness
fear of weight gain
lack of menstrual periods
compulsive exercise
depression with social withdrawal
The warning signs of bulimia include:

uncntrollable eating
vomiting
frequent use of the bathroom after meals
reddened finger(s) swollen cheeks or glands
depression or mood swings
dental problems
heartburn and/or bloating

Eating disorders has been a problem among teens for a long time. The media effects the mindset of people, both male and female, leading them to believe the HAVE to look like everyone else to be accepted. I once heard that beauty is in the eye of the beholder. And that is what I believe. You can look beautiful being a size 0 or a size 14 ! You don't have to conform to the croud to be accepted, just be yourself!

P-P-P-POP CULTURE

Research papers are coming up again! My last big research paper was about chocolate. This time, I have a better, more interesting, topic in mind.
-LEAH-

So I believe that I have finally decided on what my next research paper is going to be about. It is going to be something that is interesting to me, something that I know I won’t get sick of reading about and something that my audience won’t get bored with. I decided to write about pop-culture stars. I would like to look at their life “before Hollywood” and compare it to their lives now. I think it will be interesting to see how Hollywood has changed their lives.

There are many questions I have planned to answer in my research including: Why “pop-stars” have such a big influence on their generations, Where will they go from “fame”, What is their response to tabloids, What goes wrong, What they do for fame and fortune and if fame follows them or is they follow fame. As you can see I have many questions to answer and a lot of research to do.

If you have any advice, feel free to leave a comment!

And Again...

So today I was super sick of school. My Junior year is almost over and I still find myself dragging myself out of bed, everyday, and wishing it was Friday!

-LEAH-

Have you ever felt stuck in life? Like you don't know what else to do besides what you are doing now? Things seem to never turn out the way I want and are definitely not going as planned. Is this just the way we grow up?

Recently, I have felt like I can't do anything right. My grades have fallen from term one, I can't seem to please everyone or even myself. My parents are always finding something to yell at me about and stress builds up every day from the dance/drama group I co-lead at my church.

Why are the teenage years so hard?!?

Day after day, we all come to school. We sit in a desk for 7 hours and get lectured. People crowd the halls; talking and making-out, feeling like you have to break through a brick wall just to get through to your next class. We all dread the last class, the last 20 minuets we are required to be sitting in our seats and listening to the teacher speak to blank faces. Soon we all see the person next to you or maybe even yourself, beginning to slouch down in the desk chair, maybe nodding thier head a little and then find that sleeping is Heaven compared to school.

Why do we NEED to go to school? Wouldn't a teenager's time, easily be spent somewhere else?


Don't get me wrong, education is important. I think that it is important to have a good education to suceed in life, but that is just my opinion. But school has become a drag, a norm in life that many dread.

How can school become better; easier to "do" ? I think this has been a question that many have tried to answer for many years.

The Place of Shame

Experiences are priceless and make great stories. Here is one that just happened to me last night.

-LEAH-

Have you ever walked into a place, a place you have never been before, and felt like everyone was watching your every move; as if they couldn't believer that YOU were there? I have. I had an experience like that just the other day, actually, when I walked into a place we are just going to call "The place of shame".
I parked my car in an almost full parking lot, not knowing if i was even in the right place. I took a deep breath, tried to control my shaking hands and couldn't believe I was nervous. I began walking up to the glass doors, which had the "Open Hours" printed on them. I arrived there 5 minuets before they closed.
I proceeded through the doors to find 3 women sitting straight ahead of me, at the reception desk. The looks came. They looked at me like I was to be in shame; like they were disgusted to see me THERE. I tried to ignore the looks all I could and continued forward to approach them. I did what I went there to do, just ask them a couple questions. I ended up staying there for 30 minuets filling out papers and paying $45!
How is it, whenever you go somewhere to do something, it ALWAYS results in accomplishing that task and more? I turned my papers and my money in and left that "Place of shame" as fast as I could. I drove to Burger King and tried to drain all my shame in a fast-food cheesburger.

Cakes, Pies and Muffins

Obviously while blogging in was craving something. Every dessert seemed to appeal to me after writing this blog, too. CAUTION: THIS BLOG MAY CAUSE MAS CRAVINGS OF DESSERTS!

-LEAH-

One box of cake mix: $3.75

One gallon of milk: $2.32

One carton of eggs: $1.78

One can on frosting: $.99

One cake: Priceless

I have one thing to say about cake; CAKE IS THE HEALER OF THE HEART. Why is it whenever you have a bad day or go through a bad break-up, sweets are always there for comfort. For me, food seems to be the only thing that sticks around and is always there to comfort me.
Cake is not the only dessert that provides, not only comfort, but a solution for cravings and hunger. Pies of every flavor satisfy me! The crust of pies are not too crunchy or have a chalky-like texture, but are just right. But I would defenently have to say the the whipped cream on top of every pie IS the best part of the dessert.
What food provides a better start to your day than a muffin? Chocolate, banana, blueberry and struddle; any muffin is a great start to a Monday or any day of the week.(http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1tcR19y7GPM)

What Job...

These are just some occupations that jumped in my head that i was thinking about today. They are not the tipical jobs and may not be ones you are interested in but they are all important to our society.

-LEAH

To be a chef

It would seem that having the occupation of a chef would be a dream come true. You get to be around food all day long, cook and eat! Daily chef's create "masterpieces" and serve them to their hungry customers, hoping that all their hard work pays off. Being a chef seems like it would be an adventurous job. Some chefs even get to have their own cooking show. What job would be better than this one?

To be a teacher

Every day you are faced with students complaining, whining and coming up with excuses for not being on time or having their work done. Some teachers seem to have power while others have no control at all. Teachers say they are underpaid and the reason they do the job that they do is for the students; the students who don't have any respect. What job is worse than being a teacher?

To be an astonaunt

Talk about adventure; astronaunts define the word. They are smart. They are faced daily with problems that may endanger their lives and work with technology that many people don't even know how to work. They take risks. Going into space is no walk in the park. The astronaunts have to be ready for anything to happen. What job is more adventurous than this?

If I Lived Like I Was Dying...

These are just a few of the things I would love to accomplish before I die. Read my list and maybe even make a list of your own. Have Fun!

-LEAH

1. Attend the Olympics
2. Fall in love
3. Be a mentor
4. Run a marathon
5. Sleep under the stars
6. Sing infront of a large crowd
7. Let someone else have the chance you never had
8. Write a book
9. Tour a vineyard
10. Scream from the top of a mountain
11. Walk the Great Wall of China
12. Name a star
13. Swim in the Seven Seas
14. Burry a time capsule
15. Go on a cruise
16. Go to a drive-thru-movie
17. Sing karaoke in a bar
18. Swim under a waterfall
19. Sneak out for a night
20. Start a buissness
21. Go to the Superbowl