How to Procrastinate!

Procrastination is fun and easy, and with this simple guide, you too can become a master at waiting until the last possible minute to complete things that you don't like to do! The first step to procrastination is to review your assignments and assess how much time you have before the due-date. If it is more than a few days, you are in the best shape possible, so kick back and relax; your project will get finished another time. When procrastinating, you need to find several things to occupy your time. A few examples include social networking sites (you need to always be in the know when it comes to friends and people you barely know!), cleaning (how can you possibly accomplish anything when there is a huge mess distracting you from your work?), and watching TV (those characters on Gossip Girl don't seem to be wasting time on homework, do they?). Now that you've found that you're too busy to complete your homework, you'll be able to appease your mind for a while. As long as you don't keep reminding yourself of the due-date, you'll be fine!

As you regularly hear your classmates talk about their progress on the assignment, you may be feeling a little nervous. From the sound of it, this may be a pretty tough project. However, have you stopped to consider how tired you are at this very moment? Aren't you feeling a little ill? Sleep deprivation is a serious problem that shouldn't be ignored. How can you expect to produce quality work when you are feeling so tired? At this point, you need to catch up on your rest. Within the next couple days, you will hear your teacher reminding you to put the finishing touches on your work. Several students will boast that they have finally finished and spent so much effort perfecting their assignment. You, however, can probably still manage to complete the project, start to finish, and recieve the same grade as the girl that has been working since the assignment was passed out.

It is the night before your assignment is due, all of your papers remain tucked neatly away in your folder. Refer back to the activities you came up with earlier in the process that take precedence and simply cannot be ignored. You have until after dinner to start working, as it's difficult to work on an empty stomach. At nearly 8 o'clock at night, you're just starting to really read the assignment sheet. It may seem like a lot, but you can do it! As you're working, keep a tab up of all of your favorite websites, as well as your phone near at hand. You never know when you will need a break. At around 11 o'clock you realize you are swamped with work and are in over your head. Now is the perfect time to have a complete and total breakdown. Allow yourself about twenty minutes for crying and desperate panicking. You will now realize that the assignment will take the entire night. If the class is later in the day, plan on working through your earlier classes in case you don't finish. As you are working, you will realize the effects that procrastination are taking on your frail mind. Vow now to never, ever procrastinate another day in your life again. You will always use this experience as motivation to complete your work on time... up until next week when you have another big assignment due!

The Non-Water Bottle

When something embarrassing happens to one of my family members, the story somehow makes its way around to every relative, even family friends depending on just how funny the one telling the story thinks it is. There is one particular story that stands out to me, mainly because I am the victim of the punchline and had to sit there and listen as my parents told it to just about anyone or thing that would listen.

I was living in Florida at the time, it was during the summer which is characteristically hot and humid. I had to have been somewhere between seven and ten years old, still a naive child that can't be put to blame for innocent mistakes. It was a particularly hot day and I was looking for a refreshing drink. Normally, I would head straight for the juice or soda. However, I wanted a nice, clean drink of water. Luckily enough, there was a water bottle waiting for me in the freezer, nice and cold. I had trouble with the lid, so I ran upstairs to ask my mom for help. I returned to the kitchen in order to enjoy my ice cold water and took a very large gulp. Much to my surprise, the water did not taste like water at all; it was bitter and revolting and I spit it out right away. Horrified, I ran right back upstairs and cried out to my mom "This isn't water!" She took the bottle and smelled it and instantly burst out laughing.
"That isn't water, it's vodka!" she replied through giggles. I was confused and disappointed. How was I supposed to know that alcohol doesn't freeze and if it were water, it would be a bottle of ice? I was so looking forward to that refreshing, ice cold water but was put off my that little incident and ended up washing it down with a nice, bubbly and sweet soda.

Once my dad heard, he had the same reaction as my mom, if not enjoying my humiliation more. He found it necessary to tell every single relative that we visited that summer, every neighbor we had, and all of his friends at work. It started out embarrassing, but by the end of the summer, the story had long lost its appeal to me and I was more annoyed than anything when he told it. I have well learned my lesson and am now very wary of any drink that I find in my fridge!

Sister

Having a sister fifteen months older than me is like having a built in best friend living with me 24/7. Through every house that I've moved to, having to leave all of my friends behind to start over, Nicole has always been there. Since birth, we've played together, preferring each other over other friends. Several times in public places, people would stop my mom to ask if we were twins. Nicole and I often feel that we share the close connection associated with twins.

Growing apart is inevitable, yet I wish it could be stopped. Nicole and I still spend time together after school and are even involved on the same sport team. However, we each have made our own friends and have our own school work and other activities to distract us. The relationship we share is the closest that I am to anyone. We do have our differences that set us apart, yet still share the inseparable "twin connection." Although we aren't actually twins, we often end up wearing the exact same outfit!

This year, Nicole will be graduating high school and moving away to college. I haven't allowed myself much time to think about how my life will change without her in the house, always there to tell about my day, ask for advice, or just run around being crazy. Her presence has an immeasurable affect on me and I don't look forward to knowing its absence. I'm so proud of her and her accomplishments and I wish her the best of luck in starting the next chapter of her life in college. I know that we will remain best friends and always keep in contact, no matter how far apart we may be.

Classes

For most of my school career, I have been placed in "advanced" or "gifted" classes. As a child, I always believed my teachers and parents when they told me that I was intelligent beyond my peers. Being a part of the small handful of students placed in a higher lever of class made me feel special, above average. I wish I could say that this feeling has followed me to the present, however, it has slowly been replaced with the knowledge that I am one of many raised to believe that they are different.

Middle school brought with it a sense of growing up. Having more than one teacher a day and more responsibilities made me nervous at first, but I eventually fell into step. Once I was settled to middle school life, I realized the large number of students considered "smart" and "above-average." Being around and learning with this group of intelligent peers does have its advantages; class discussions are much more effective. However, it dawned on me that I actually was no different from the rest. My abilities were actually equal to, if not lower, than my classmates and peers.

Now, nearing the end of my high school career, academics are highly competitive. Colleges are looking for not only high grades, but course rigor. Within these large classes of honors students, it is tough to stand out and prove your abilities are above the rest. As next year quickly approaches, I worry over my classes. Are they hard enough? Are they too hard? Will I make good grades? Will I even pass? Will I have time for a social life? What is going to set me apart? I worry over these and more. I will be taking five advanced placement courses and can only hope that I am able to make my senior year of high school memorable with friends and activities, rather than spending all of my time stressing over classes.