College

College. The very thought of College inflicts a huge range of emotions in me: excitement, fear, frustration and nervousness. Excitement makes sense, I mean I am starting a whole new life where I will be learning things that will all directly help me achieve my goal of becoming a large animal veterinarian. I know college will probably be the best time of my life, but I also know it will be one of the most stressful. I will especially be a wreck when it comes to applying for veterinary school.

Now fear is a harder emotion to explain. I am terrified of living on my own without my parents there, I know that they will help me but I will be the one paying for the bills and rent. Not only that, but I am starting at a new school with completely new concepts, and it is huge compared to my small high school.

When I start to think of how much school I am going to have go through in order to become a veterinarian it frustrates me. I am practically going back into the 5th grade without the schoolwork getting easier. I will have to go through eight more years of school, so I really hope college will be a blast so those eight years will fly by.

Lastly I am nervous at the thought of leaving the home I have built at my high school for the past four years. Now I am going to have to go to a new place on my own and hope I don’t get lost, which is wishful thinking. College will become a great experience, it’s just the beginning of it I am worried about.

Surprise

So far the play that we have been reading in English (The Importance of being Earnest by Oscar Wilde) is actually pretty good. I can say that I was surprised that I actually laughed out loud when I read part one. I wasn't expecting that sort of writing to contain any humor, especially the kind that would make a modern person like me laugh. I would think that the way it was written would deter me from catching onto any humor, sure I might recognize when characters thought something was funny, but I wasn't expecting anything that would make the reader or I guess the observer (considering it’s a play) laugh. When I first started reading it I felt like it was too simple, that I must not be catching all the hidden meanings, but I guess I am still caught in the same mind set that I was when I read Shakespeare’s plays. Being able to understand practically immediately almost everything I read definitely makes this play more enjoyable to read. I am hoping that the rest of the play will become even more comical. This book is like a breath of fresh air considering all the drama we have previously read, and I hope it stays that way. If it does I know I will continue to enjoy this play.

Fluffy Sheep

I am absolutely, positively enjoying my Senior Capstone. This is the closest I have ever been to actually experience how my future job will be like, and lets just say that I am one hundred percent positive that I have made the right career choice (pretty impressive knowing that I was in first grade when I decided that I wanted to be a large animal veterinarian). I am getting to intern with Dr. Dale Holcomb (a professor at UNR) where I am helping out with the pregnant ewes over at UNR farms. I have only infested about five hours so far since I just started last week, but I know I am going to love every minute of it. This is the most hands on I have ever been before. Coming into the internship I thought I was just going to observe. Well I was completely wrong, they got me filthy and smelling like sheep due to how much I wasn't observing. The first day I was able to perform an ultrasound on four sheep. Yeah, I got covered in sheep filth, but it was probably one of the coolest days of my life. The next day I learned how to flip a sheep on its back all by myself, which is a lot harder than you would think considering they look like big balls of fluff. Each sheep weighs around 200-240 pounds, and for a person of my stature being only five feet tall and only weighing 105 pounds you can start to see how this can be quite difficult. Even though it was one of the hardest workouts I ever had, it was definitely one of the most entertaining ones. I can’t wait for what’s next.

Spotlight

To me speaking or even performing in public is exhilarating. Having my hands shaking, my heart pounding and my throat dry is one of the biggest adrenaline rushes for me. Those nerves people always say are the worst? Well to me those nerves are one of the best feelings ever. I love the rush it gives me, sure I am kind of freaked out inside (otherwise I wouldn't be getting these butterflies in my stomach) but after I perform I feel rejuvenated. I love the after effect too. The moment after the glory where I begin to calm down and think “wow, I just did that”, the moment where I am impressed with myself, because the person that is calming down would freak out if I had to do it again...well at least later that same day. This is when I am most proud of myself, knowing that I just sacrificed myself to the public's watchful eyes and ears. That I just risked embarrassment of the century to get someone else's attention just for a few minutes. I crave being in the spotlight, and public speaking is one of the best ways to get this desire satisfied. That is why I have this urge to speak at my graduation, I want to feel the rush and be able to say that I did it; that I was one of the four kids out of ninety one that was able to speak at graduation. I want all the spectators to look at me with awe on their faces. I want to impress; but in order to do this I have to write a spectacular speech. One that will stand out of all the ninety one other ones, one that will captivate my audience and one that will be original. I think I might be over my head a little, but one can hope.