Abort the calendar!

It's been a very long time since I've blogged. Last I was in Phoenix in the middle of summer, now I've had my last day of high school (ever!) and am just days away from my graduation. I'll give you my excuses, then I'll catch you up a bit.

Excuses:

• Summer got crazy. Especially when Ida arrived and I had her to talk to, and more to do, I had little time for blogging. Or I just needed that "blogging" time to sleep or have down time.
• Senior year was crazy. More on that later.
• I didn't want to go crazy. Mission accomplished, I think.

The School Year in Review....

Here I take out my trusty little planner and go month by month to show you what I've done...Let's go!

August:

• Got back from our July trip!
• Marching season starts with Band Camp 2
• I skip the last day of band camp for a 3-day Baha'i Youth Conference in Atlanta
• School starts on the 19th (senior year!)

September:

• Football season starts (Yay GHS)
• I go to a Techno Contra dance at UF (Thanks to Warren Wilson College for introducing Contra)
• I take the ACT. haha. Got a 31, though, so that was good.
• With my lovely friend Courtney, we spend a weekend in Tampa. We visited Caladesi Island and had an AWESOME time at the Fall Out Boy, Panic! At the Disco, and Twenty One Pilots concert.

October:

• Took the SAT. Meh. The design of that test is terrible. 
• On October 9th, 2013, I got my braces off!! Retainer > braces any day
• GHS Homecoming. I shall never play "People" again
• Competition Season starts! With Showcase! Gotta love Santa Fe HS.
• Take the Grand Championship at West Port Competition, where it rained our entire show. Incredible experience. I also thought my shoes would never dry out.
• Districts. First show without my mom. Where's my hairdresser?

November:

• Turn in my college applications for Agnes Scott College, Warren Wilson College, New College of Florida, FAU's Harriet L Wilkes College, and UNC- Asheville. They all eventually accepted me.
• My darling cousins Chase and Hunter came for almost a week. The first night, we spent 5 hours talking. 
• Senior Night! Our last football game for GHS. With C + H there, I had a large family to walk across the field with me. It was great.
• Took C + H to Gator Growl. Quite good. The Fray was there, which was neat. Freezing, but enjoyable night.
•  Yearbook bonfire party! C + H also got to go to this, which was great fun.
• STATE. My last State for Marching Band. I didn't cry, but I did have great run. We got 2nd by less than a point (out of 100), but at that point, I didn't really care anymore. I had a good time.
• Spent overnight visits at both Agnes Scott & Warren Wilson. They are both superb colleges, and I encourage others to check them out.
• Spent Thanksgiving with family in North Carolina

December:

• Went to Big Ticket Fest in Jacksonville with Courtney. So much fun! Utterly loved seeing The 1975 and Twenty One Pilots, everything else was a bonus. Tried my first Monster, got free sunglasses, and managed to get all the way to the front of the crowd next to the stage by the end of the night.
• So many secret elf groups! Probably one of the best parts of the Holiday season.
• Winter break. Hooray! Found a free xmas tree, spent time with family, all good stuff.
• I go contra dancing with Courtney and Jacob (another friend). Also learn to waltz!

January:

• "oral surgery" to get out a tooth fragment from my previous wisdom tooth extraction. It ended up being really simple. Only disappointment is that under laughing gas, I'm not funny. I just get tired and can't remember words. I guess all my funny is made up of wit.
• Indoor Drumline season starts. I'm in the Visual Ensemble.
• I go to a Bachata bootcamp and learn some latin dancing. I love it. Especially the dips.
• Hoggtowne Medieval Faire. Almost a Gainesville tradition to go each year.

February:

• Competitions start for Indoor Drumline. 
• Spent a weekend in Orlando with Naomi and Courtney, learning a bit about Naomi's life at UCF, and then going to a P!ATD concert with Courtney. We were in front of bassist Dallon Weekes. I blew bubbles during a slow song. We ran around Downtown Disney. Good times.
• Story Corp is in Gainesville! My mom and sister secretly do an interview, and then my dad and I also do one.
• After as indoor comp, we drive up to Atlanta for their Scholars Weekend. I meet some amazing girls, we visit the Coca Cola Factory and Farm Burger, and I have a few interviews.

March:

• After planning since August, the GHS Dance Marathon finally happens. It is a wonderful night resulting in over $6,500 of fundraising for CMN.
• I work parking for Gatornationals. Lots of vehicles. Alex experiences it with me.
• I get a massage from FSM. That was awesome. More people should take advantage of it.
• We go to UF's Holi celebration. I had orange powder in my ear for several days after.
• Visit New College in Sarasota. This college is also really great.
• Indoor State occurs! We get 5th, but the selfies we took with other lines were the best.

April:

• Grad Bash. Finally got to experience Harry Potter world, and that new coaster Rock It is awesome. Pretty cool to ride everything at night.
• UF Dance Marathon. They raised over $1.5 mil! Incredible.
• State for Symphonic Band in Daytona.
• Prom! Pics at the Thomas Center, dinner at The Warehouse, the dance..epitome of hs.
• 2nd visit to New College. I get to see more of Sarasota this time.

May:

• AICE/AP testing begins.
• I turn 18! Yay!
• Band Daytona Trip.
• Band Awards. I was unexpectedly nominated for some awards. Woo hoo!
• Last Day of High School- ever!
• Senior Breakfast.

June:

We are in June right now! So far, I have..

• Gone Contra dancing with my good friend Collin.
• Spent 2 hours in Traffic Court- as a witness! That was educational....

The Plans:

• I have Just Desserts AND Senior Awards AND Graduation still
• My sister turns 10
• My cousin is getting married (Sadly, I have to miss it for graduation)
• Last 2 AICE tests
• I cut my hair!!! 10 inches for Locks of Love yeaaahhh!
• We leave for Europe.

Wait, what? You read that right. 8 weeks in Europe, here we come! We'll be spending time in Denmark, Germany, Switzerland, England, and Scotland. My dad has blogged for years and we will both do our best to blog this summer. We'll see what happens. But if you want to know more about the trip, my dad has written a great outline and explanation for the trip here. I'm going to do my best to blog once a week at least, and maybe do quick blog write-ups of what we did daily. But I know myself, so if I write daily, it'll be the bare minimum so I can actually do it (and then potentially expand on it later). But, you should follow both of these blogs and you'll hear all about our trip! It's gonna be great.

See ya!