Goodbye Forever

For the very few who actually read my blog, this will be my last post.

I started this blog way back at the beginning of my freshman year. That was in September which feels likes eons ago.

I can remember the time my teacher told us we had to write a blog.At first I groaned then shrugged then buckled down and did it. I came up with a title and liked my blog at first. I realized that many other blogs had the same title. At that point it was okay because I liked my title and so I stuck with it. My plan was to stick with the topic food, fun, fitness and philanthropy. I wrote my introduction post in the beginning then was going to stay with the theme. That idea went right out the window once I realized we had to write a blog post a week. One post a week! To me that was crazy and I wanted no part of all that extra work. Then it became a habit that turned out to not be that big of a deal.

Throughout the year it just became something I needed to get done so I could get a good grade. I mostly wrote about what was going on in my life. To me, my blog turned out to be a public kind of diary.

I talked about my likes, dislikes, experiences and stories I wanted to tell. I learned how to write a story and keep it interesting. My first few posts were dry and lacked exciting information.

One thing I am proud of has to be my hooks. At the beginning of the year I didn’t really have a title that pulled the reader in. Now I feel that my titles and hooks are intriguing and well written.

I think the thing I learned most from my blog has to be who I am. Looking back at the year I saw  how I was feeling at different points in my life. My winter was tough and I wasn't the happiest. My posts reflected that felling. They were not that exciting and were clearly negative. As spring came around I became happier and my posts became happier too. I talked about funny stories or exciting times in my life.

My blogging journey has taught me that writing stories reflects how I am feeling inside. Writing has never been by a favorite subject of mine. Although I complained about writing these posts, I didn't really mind it in the end. Blogging made me realize that writing is not that bad and I can be good at it if I keep working hard. My word choice, spelling and grammar has improved immensely and I credit that to English class. Unlike most other assignments in English I was allowed to write about whatever I wanted to. I wasn't worried about format so I became a better writer without realizing it.

In the end I improved my writing and understanding of what kind of information people want to read.  I learned more about myself as a person and most of all how I changed from a negative person to a positive person.

View from my deck. So long suckers.

Happy Life,
~Corrine

Summer (JK)

What time is it? Summer time!

Well actually not quite. Here at Treasure Mountain tests are still being graded, homework is still being given, and stress levels are still going up. Everything will still be full speed ahead until June 3rd. June 3rd is the day stress disappears, the day I leave junior high forever, and the day summer vacation begins. On June 3rd I will finally be able say “it’s summer time!”. However, until the last day of school I have to live in hell and only dream of paradise.

As I mentioned before, I still have to learn but that hasn’t been going well for me lately. My brain has this idea that it’s already time for vacation. I can’t focus, think, or do anything school related. Even writing this blog post is giving me a migraine. I have to blame my lack of attention on the weather. The sunny, cloudless, 72˚ weather. It makes me feel like summers here. I can’t help but wish I was hanging out with my friends and playing lacrosse even though lacrosse is almost over.

Lacrosse season is coming to an end as well as school. Our last game is on Friday and frankly I am kinda bummed. I probably enjoy lacrosse the most out of all the other sports I play. I look forward to practice and wake up energized and excited on game days. My coaches are wonderful and I really like the girls on my team. I am one of the captains for JV and to me that is a huge honor. We have been playing since the beginning of January so I guess it has been a long season but it doesn't feel like it. We practice five days a week unless we have a game. I have played pretty well in games this year and have improved a lot. I definitely think lacrosse is my favorite sport. I just got a job coaching kindergartners how to play and I love it. I am also trying out for the Utah national team on Saturday. The junior varsity team for the girls is is playing the boys junior varsity team this weekend. I am kinda nervous for it but I think it will be fun too. The boys and girls trade sticks and we play girls rules. All and all I think lacrosse was really fun and I don’t want it to end.

That is me. AHHHHH

Now that lacrosse is ending I don’t really have an excuse for not going to basketball clinics. Spring training has started and I am not too into it right now. It is with the boys and they are so much better than us. Sometimes I feel like I can’t play around them but that is okay because it will only make me a better player.

I am looking forward to having a chill May. I won't have as much homework and no more sports. I plan on hanging out with friends and having more fun. Summer please come as fast as you can.

Happy Summer (Almost),
~Corrine

Fabulous Flannels

Spring, a season that is supposed to last one-fourth of the year but in Park City, that is not the case. Here, we have snow for about six months and summer for five months. That leaves two weeks for Spring and two weeks for Autumn.

That may sound a little drastic but that's how I see it.

One day, near the end of April the sun decides to shine. The snow gives up on being frozen and starts to melt. The melting lasts for one week and by the end, the snow is gone around town and everyone starts thinking summer is coming.

The resorts announce their closing date and everyone gets their last few days on the slope. You pack away your winter coat and trade it for a shell. The mittens turn into liners and boot heaters get turned off. The shady runs are fast and frozen and the sunny ones are complete and udder slush.

That first day at school once the sun has shinned all the shorts have come out. The leggings will never leave but flowy shorts and dresses start to make their debut.

All the sudden the weather changes. The clouds role in and the tiny flutter of snow starts falling from the sky. The girls in shorts freeze and the school gets cold once again. Somehow we end up with a few feet of snow and somehow I decide to go skiing once again. The winter coat gets put back on and bam its winter again.

My dad and I went to Snowbird on Wednesday. That Wednesdays happened to be on April 27th which is in the middle of our spring. We waited for the mountain to open because of avalanche danger then had one of the best powder days of all time. We skied about six runs then had to quit because I had a lacrosse game after.

I got a little sidetracked sorry, anyway, back to why spring sucks.

So after the snow days are over it starts to rain. Are you even joking me! The first few days are phenomenal. The rain puts everyone in a chill state of mind. Practice gets canceled and you can drink lemon tea and watch Netflix. My favorite.

Two super cool rainbows from my window

But then the sun comes out again. The sky becomes blue and it is warm once again. The mud is everywhere and the car wash has a consistent line. Every time you get out of the car the mud scrapes on the back of your jeans.

Now you are asking why does this have anything to do with flannels.

Well, while all this crazy weather happens. We wear flannels. We can wear them buttoned up or down, tied around our waist, as jackets or sweaters.

I don't understand why spring does this to us or why it is bipolar. The good thing is that where I live it only lasts for about two weeks. But during these two weeks I have found that wearing flannels with every outfit possible is one of the best things ever.

Happy Flannel Wearing,
~Corrine

Swimming with leeches

Get it off! Get it off!

Yes, I swam with those blood sucking creatures.*

Over one summer weekend my friend invited me to go camping in Lake Powell with her family. We loaded the car and headed out. We drove a lengthy five hours to the lake. We pulled in around three in the afternoon. The sun was beaming down and the water felt warm and refreshing. We loaded the house boat and cruised away.

Lake Powell at its finest (Courtesy of: House Boat Rental Lake Powell Utah)

Once we found a spot we unloaded, set up tents and went to bed. The next day my friend and I decided to go set our hammocks up somewhere. We got our hammocks, drinks, music and a speaker and went for a hike. We wandered up the red rocks for a long time looking for a good spot. At first we walked next to the lake so we jumped in here and there. We saw a cluster of big trees ahead so we walked toward them. Once we got there we discovered a whole line of trees along a crack in the rock. We decided it was a nice place to hammock so we set them up and swung the day away. Once the sun set we headed back to camp but we left our hammocks there.

The next morning we hiked back up to our special place. It was a blazing hot day and the sun was high in the sky. Once we reached our hammocks we looked up the crack in the rocks and found many small ponds with water in them. They were like rock hot tubs all in a line from the run off. We were super excited because we were incredibly hot. We dipped our feet in the water and decided it was the perfect temperature.

We grabbed our music and speaker and brought it over. We jumped in.

The water felt so refreshing. Until…

I felt a strange back slimy thing under my foot. At first I thought it was just a rock with algae on it so I didn't say anything.

A few more minutes passed.

All the sudden, my friend started shrieking.

I didn't understand at first until she lifted her foot and I saw a leech stuck to her heel.

I started screaming at the top of my lungs. We both got out as fast as we could and pulled them off with twigs nearby.

We slowly started to recover and checked the rest of our body to make sure they weren’t on us. Thank god, we could find any others.

If you don’t know what a leech looks like you don’t want to. Basically they are small slimy blood sucking creatures. They enjoy living in moist environments and like to attach themselves to other creatures and suck their blood.

In the end we were okay so we took our hammocks down and went back to the camp.

*GOT YOU! I made this entire story up because I have a bad case of writers block. Mr. Parker told me to write about the weirdest place I have ever been swimming and the worst I could come up with was an ocean. Sorry you just wasted your life sucker. (Get it)

Happy Make Believe,
~Corrine

Flight, Flight (or Freak)

Here is the thing, I recently found out I freak in an emergency.

My sister is special needs as you most likely already know. She has a syndrome called Aicardi Syndrome. She has many things that need to be taken care of on the daily. For example her feeding tube. She has to get her liquids through her stomach because she doesn't like to drink water.

Anyway, she is one of the coolest sisters around.

My sister Bridget on a different day than the emergency.

 One night my parents went out with some visitors. I stayed home and watch my sister which I do all the time. I went through the usually routine and put her to bed. Then sat down to watch a show. Then, she started moaning. So I went in and told her to go back to bed and tucked her back in.

She wouldn’t shut up.

I went back in and Bridge was sitting up again. At this point I was annoyed so I brought in my phone and headphones and laid down with her. After a little while I thought she fell asleep so I left.

Then about ten minutes later she was crying again but a little harder. I went in again. This time she was kicking and flailing. Bridge kicked her feeding tube and she was going to knock it over and that would be bad. So I grabbed her foot and the tube was stuck in her toes.
I pulled the covers back.

Her feeding tube that is supposed to be inside her was on the bed.

I gulped. Then yelled. Then went into overdrive.

I called my parents and of course they didn't answer so it was all me.

The thing is the stomach closes within twenty to thirty minutes which is not a lot of time. I knew I had to work fast or else I would be calling the ambulance and my sister and I would be going to the hospital to have emergency surgery.

Bummer.

She was screaming and grabbing at her stomach which was not helpful. I had to make sure her hand didn't touch the hole into her for many reasons.

a. It’s a hole in her stomach.
b. It’s bleeding everywhere.
c. Do I need another reason?

I grabbed her and ran down the stairs. I put her on the couch. I yanked the string out of my hoodie and tied her hands behind her back. She was really mad at me but what was I supposed to do?

I took the tube to the kitchen and usually we have a back up tube that's ready to go but we just came back form Hawaii so it was not unpacked yet. I figured this would have to do.

The hole had gotten a little smaller so it was very hard to jam into her.

I pushed really hard and wiggled.

I GOT IT IN!

My sister was in a lot of pain but I did it and that is all that mattered. I untied her hands, put her back in bed and laid down with her. I taped her stomach over with about twenty pieces so it had no chance of coming out again. I fell asleep with her waiting till my parents got home.

Some people say that people either have fight or flight reactions. I have also heard of freezing. Have you ever heard of freaking? Well now I know.

I freak.

Happy Freaking,
~Corrine

Pet Peeves

We all have them.

1. Road sign corners- This is my number one issue. Sitting in the front of the car  brought to attention the issue with all of the road signs, especially the green ones. They are square signs with sharp corners but they white lines that outline them are rounded. I bet you had not noticed this before but they need to cut the corners. I am crazy but still. CUT THE CORNERS!

   

   Look at those corners! Courtesy of (The Austin Chronicle)

2. The NBC logo- Yes, I know it is supposed to be a peacock but why did they have to put a nick in the purple triangle? All the other ones are uniform so why can’t the purple one blend in. Ugh
3. People touching my feet when they are dry- Don’t get me wrong I love a good pedicure but when my feet are dry and someone touches them with their own feet it is the worst thing ever.
4. When someone doesn't flush- Our school seems to have issues with this. Just flush the toilet! Is it really that hard ladies?
5. How Negin says qué hacemos hoy with the same amount of pauses every time- Ever since the beginning of time Negin has said what are we doing today in the same way and it has gotten old. 
6. Just thinking about nails on a chalk board- This one doesn’t need an explanation.
7. The feeling of my glass water cups-  Our washing machine doesn't work completely right so it leaves this horrible feeling on the cups that makes me cringe.
8. Gluten free freaks who have no medical reason to do it-  Come on pasta is amazing. How could you go without it. You only live once.
9. People who slurp their cereal- Just eat like a normal human please.
10. When people don’t tell you their middle name-  Some people go to extreme measure to keep their middle name a secret. Does it really matter?
11. When the person you need to stalk is on private- Ugh I don’t really want to request.
12. When people talk about the movie you are watching while its playing- Please just close your mouth and watch.
13. Shakespeare- He should die, ohhh wait he is dead. Forget him!
14. When spell check does work right- I am a horrible speller so I rely on spell check for life. When it doesn't get the right word you want it is really annoying because then you actually have to learn how to spell it. 
15. When people talk with a lot of spit in their mouth- There is always that one person that has spit in the corners of their mouths all the time. Please swallow then continue to speak.
16. When you can’t get the hair out of your mouth- Sometimes a small piece of hair gets in your mouth and it takes a little while to get. I tend to open my mouth and stick my hands in. It doesn't look good but that hair needs to leave.
17. How kids who don't shower actually have an odor and they don't do anything about it- Enough said.
    I think I have a case of low key OCD.
    
    Happy Annoyance,
    ~Corrine
    
    
    
    
    

Hawaii

Basically re-living a dream.

No stress what even is that? Sometimes you need a vacation. That is all there is too it.

(I want to apologize for making you jealous in advance.)

Over presidents week we had a week off from school so my family and I went to Hawaii. We left Friday night and flew into Kauai. 

The view from my airplane window.

 We drove in to our hotel and got leis and drinks. I was in Paradise.

The sky was blue with a few with puffy clouds floating around. I visited the pool and looked out onto the cliffs down to the Pacific Ocean. The air was perfect temperature and the breeze was crisp and calming.

The very next day we made sandwiches and headed to a beach that was right next to Lumahai River. It was hidden off the road and not many people were there. I floated down the river into the ocean, boogie boarded and slept. It was one of my favorite beaches of the whole trip. After the sun set we packed up and got Acai Bowls with fresh fruit then went back to the house.

My parents and I are all certified scuba divers. With my aunt with us we could actually go and do something as a family. We called Sea Sport divers and went diving all day. We left off the south coast and did two dives. The first one I was super nervous but once I was under water it was fine. I saw turtles, fish and the coolest part was listening to the whale singing. If you stopped swimming and listened you could hear the low hum of the Humpback whales. I tried to tell my dad by touching my ear then attempting to sign whale but he didn’t understand. After the first dive we came up and my mom and I spotted two whales. We drove up to them and watched them dive under. Then we went to cooled lava caves and saw a dozen of turtles. We swam all through the dried tubes and caves it was so interesting. After the day was over I was really tired but we got ice cream to end on a good note.

On the next day we went to Hanalei bay which is famous for all kinds of surfing. I took a surfing lesson the first day and then the following day I rented a surfboard and surfed on my own. It was so fun. My favorite part had to be watching the professionals out on the huge waves though. 

Just climbing on some rocks at the beach.

We ate dinner at a restaurant or got take out almost every night. I had four ice creams, one shaved ice and one acai bowl. All of my food was delicious. My favorite restaurant was this tiny place in the middle of nowhere. It was a Mexican shack with the best fresh fish tacos I will ever eat.

I was in such a chill state. I cannot image being that stress free again. I was not salty on the inside I was salty on the outside. So, sorry for making you jealous. I truly needed to go back to when I was in low key heaven.

Happy Heaven,
~Corrine