Senior Memoir! Aundrea L.

For this past few weeks we have been working on our senior projects.  The one thing that I had the most fun writing was my "Where Im from Poem."  I loved writing this becasue it gave me a chance to reflect on my life and what things have shaped me into who I am today.  What I used most in the poem is scene from the beach.


I am from sandy toes
From bathing suits and tan lines
I am from the crashing of waves
that burry my worries in the soothing sand

I am from sunshine
that shines giving me hope of tomorrow
and tears debating the truth of hidden pain

I am from beach breezes
and rainy days from a
broken family...

I am from courage
to give me strength to try
and strength to overcome
the barring walls of the curl

I am from dreams
From faith and passion

I am from Trena and Edward

I am from sunsets
From the rising sun
I am from what I’ve made myself to be
And the strength to get back up

Goodbye.

So my final blog of the year isn't exactly going to be directly English related, but I still feel like it's an important piece of my life worth blogging about.
The year's final issue of the newspaper came out on Thursday. It seriously feels like a piece of me has ended.  And it all honesty, a piece of me truly has. I've been on the school newspaper for three years, and involved in high school journalism for four. I opened my freshman letter to myself to other day and no lie half of the letter discussed how badly I wanted to be an editor on the school newspaper by my senior year. Fourteen year old Geena can be proud that I'm finishing of my senior year as The Grizzly Gazette's editor in chief.
Alright, you're probably thinking, big whoop, no one actually reads the school newspaper.
I know. I assure you, I know.
You can tell me that no one reads the school newspaper and that it's a waste of time all you want, but I'm just going to roll my eyes at you and tell you to shut up, because honestly it's been such an important part of my life for my entire high school career. It's helped me out so much throughout the year in both my English classes and my history classes. It's probably boosted my social skills up a little bit as well.
I'd like to think that my time spent on the school newspaper has helped newspaper to become that much more important to the student body of Los Osos High School. I love newspaper so much, and I'm not sure what to do with myself now that it's all over. No articles to assign. No papers to edit. No pages to design. No documents to download. What's an editor in chief to do?
Move on, I guess.
Like so many of us are moving on from high school and entering either college or the work force, I have just got to let newspaper go and move onto the word of college and university journalism. There are bigger and better things waiting for me out there, and I'm excited to discover them.
Goodbye Gazette. Good luck to you all.
- Geena

Senior Memoir Books

As the school year comes to a close and we are nearing graduation, we've been assigned a senior memoir book for English, consisting of a variety of things that we can choose to include in our books. As I assemble my book and complete the various writing tasks, such as a letter to my favorite staff member and a letter to a location on campus as well as a letter to my future child, I find that I'm almost sad (yeah, can you believe it?) that senior year is almost over. It hasn't been an easy year in the least--I'm not sure where this lie comes from that senior year is a breeze and smooth sailing the whole year through. Senior year was quite possibly the most difficult year that I've experience thus far in terms of balancing academics, extracurriculars, college apps (thank GOD those are over) and a (somewhat) social life. However, the senior memoir books are allowing me to realize that despite the fact that this year has been difficult, it has not been completed in vain. Senior year was so much fun--and I'm actually going to miss a lot about this school. I'm excited to complete my senior memoir book--it's going to be the finishing touch on a work in progress.
- Geena

The End.

The school year is no longer coming to an end.  In so many regards it is simply over.  Soon we will be bombarded with ridiculous and worthless statements of nostalgia, and people will expect us to act excited to hear the same three speeches at graduation (no offense intended to the speakers but face it, they are all the same).  In so many of these blog posts I have found a sense of preaching that overcomes so many of the bloggers, myself included.  With this last post, I hope that no preaching will come across, and if it does, well drat, go read my last post and you'll find out just how I feel about that.  High school is over, and while others are thinking about how they'll spend their summers, and how they will miss all their friends, I can't help but think about what's in the fridge.  As others worry about their futures, I wonder if I bought the right guitar two years ago when my old one broke.  The reality that is becoming more and more evident to me as I make plans to leave this all behind that I won't see most of my current peers ever again, and I have a great deal of difficulty finding the emotions to care.  It seems as though my previous post entitled "Apathy" has been exactly right about how my disposition towards high school has developed.  At any rate, I wish nothing but the best for all of my fellow graduating seniors.  Even though I seem to have a very caustic attitude towards, well everything, I believe that this class is destined for greatness, and I hope to at least hear about people from this graduating class at some later point in my life.

Scott C.

My Farewell to Senior Year

         I know everyone and their mom is gonna write their last blog about this, but I just couldn't resist...

         It's here.  Finally here!  I've been counting down the days to when I can finally leave high school and call myself a college student.  But, now that it's here, I'm kind of sad.  Maybe not sad, but nostalgic, trying desperately to cling to the last of my adolescence.  It's a mixture of joy, sadness, anxiety, and fear.  What does this mean?  I'm going to be leaving a scheduled and routine life where I go to school for 6 hours a day, go home and do homework, maybe hang out with a friend, then sleep and do it all over again the next day.  While I look forward to living on my own and setting my own schedule, I think part of me might miss this.  I was in 4th period the other day reading an article in the Grizzly Gazette that Geena wrote; it was her farewell letter to newspaper.  I cried.  In the middle of the class I T.A. for.  The sudden realization hit me hard... my whole life is changing! 
          Still, that is not the overwhelming feeling I have.  I'm mostly excited to spend a summer with the people I love, then go to college and establish my independence (or at least that's that I'd like to call it, considering i couldn't exactly pay for college without my parents).  I'm attending the college of my dreams, and my best friend is gonna be there with me.  I honestly couldn't ask for more.  I just realized i've been somewhat ranting - this blog was supposed to be me making my own little version of Geena's farewell article in the paper, acknowledging those that I will soon be leaving behind... so here goes.

-First and foremost, I have to say thank you to my wonderful parents, who pushed me to be the very best that i can possibly be.  They never stopped encouraging me, always believing that I had the capabilities to excel at whatever I tried.  They are also helping to make my aspirations a reality - they're paying for college!  Though I often take their unconditional love for granted, as I sit here and think about it I am so truly thankful for them.  And, though I'm not completely leaving them behind, their presence in my life will no doubt lessen.  So, thanks mom and dad.  You're the best.
-I also want to say thank you to the teachers that sculpted and enriched my learning experience.  Without them, I wouldn't be at the place I am now.  Not only did they give me the knowledge of their specific subject, but each one taught me a little about myself as both a student and a person. 
-I suppose I want to say goodbye to the campus in general.  I spent a good part of the last four years of my life there, after all.  It was a place that nurtured me as I progressed through high school, making new friends and experiencing a myriad of new things. 
-Last, and most certainly not least, my beautiful, amazing, supportive friends.  You guys are my everything and there is absolutely no way I could have made it through the last four years without you!  Thank you for letting me complain to you, laugh with you, eat all the food in your house, etc, etc.  Words can't express my love and graitiude for each and every one of you.  I know high school isn't the end, but our paths will inevitably cross a whole lot less. 

So, there it is.  High school is over, and soon a new chapter of my life will start.  While I look back on my years at Los Osos with nostalgia and a twinge of sadness, I look forward to the life ahead of me with unbridled excitement.  This is only the beginning!


--- Dayna

One last time

This is finally the end and I am personally ready to finally graduate, but i don't want to sit here and talk about  graduation and college, there are too many posts like that already. I just want to thank Mrs. Elliott for showing us this great blog website and also for a great year, she taught us many things and I respect her ways of teaching. She is one of the chillest teachers at school and i hope she will always be like that. Team Tuesdays was nice, spending some time with your team, rather than the same table every day. I liked the class in general, I wish i can get a teacher like her in college. Senior year was amazing, high school was fun and educational, and now we move on...
Danny D

Rachel's Perspective

Annotating novels has never been my favorite thing, but I told myself this time i would really try.  I decided to focus on the character of Rachel Price, the eldest of the 4 daughters.  At first I chose her because, if I'm being completely honest, she seemed like the easiest to read/understand.  However, Rachel's perspective offers quite a bit of insight into how many white people viewed Blacks at the time.  Even though she was in Africa, she expected the civilians to be more "civilized".  She criticized their appearances and behavior, apalled that the women wore nothing on the top half of their bodies, letting their breasts be seen to everyone.  Rachel is extremely superficial and arrogant, and to be honest she rubbed me the wrong way at first.  Not that this is any real justification, she has been seen her whole life as a beautiful young woman, and people really only focused on her outward beauty.  So, naturally,  that is what her thoughts gravitate towards.  Also, Rachel's relationship with/view of her father is one of contempt.  She despises her father and basically everything about him.  Because all of the girls connect their father with God, their view of their father greatly affects (even possibly synonymous with) their view of God and religion.  Rachel doesn't like her father, hence she doesn't exactly like God all that much.  Thoughts?

-Dayna M.