Life (Or something like it)

November 30, 2008

2008-11-29T11:16:00.006-05:00

Happy Sunday!

Ugh, have you ever not wanted to be at work? I had that BAD today. I had to get up at 5:30 on a Sunday. I work at a grocery store stocking shelves, unloading trucks, and other various odd-jobs. Days like today it pays to have a few tricks up your sleeves when you're at work and time just wont go by. Here are a few of my favorites:

1. Take a lot of bathroom breaks.
Sure, it isn't the best place to spend your day but it sure beats dealing with unruly customers. My advice is drink two or three cups of coffee and let nature take it's course...

2. Take a walk around the store.
If anyone asks, you are looking for something for a customer. This will kill a few minutes and also open up the possibility that you may find something else to occupy more of your time.

3. Engage in a personal conversation with a customer.
Use extreme caution while exercising this maneuver! This can be a great time-waster but be careful; Some customers will not let you leave once you've engaged them. Then you will be trapped in that awkward fake smile and head nodding mode.

4. Avoid punching in for your break until after you've purchased your food or drink.
This is one of my favorites! It works extremely well when you "have" to search and search for the right snack to complement the mountain dew you plan to purchase. This one is guaranteed to shave off a few extra minutes.

I know you all probably think I am a lazy kid that hates rolling up my sleeves and getting to work. Although most of that is true, I do put in a good share of work and try to abstain from these techniques until the brunt of my job for the day is done. But remember: With great power comes great responsibility. If you plan on using any of these tricks, make sure you put in some actual work at your job to balance it out. If you don't than you could lose it. I will end this topic with some words of wisdom: Ignore your job and it will go away.

Moving on, I plan on deferring a year before I go to college. I know that if I leave directly after school then I am just setting myself up to fail. I have lived in the same town almost my whole life and don't think that I could just get up and leave once my education here has ended. I still intend on going to college. I am really excited for it but I know that I will need that extra year to say goodbye to my friends, family, and my life as I knew it.

Also I am planning on changing my name. I am not going to change all of it though, I just plan on changing my last name. Don't worry, I will still respond to "Sully!" I want to take on the last name of my grandpa and great-grandpa for a couple reasons. One of the reasons is to do it in honor of them. They both played a huge part in raising me. My father left when I was twelve and so suddenly I was alone with my mom. I found comfort in my grandpa and slowly became to idolize him. He was a hard-working man, working all the way up until his untimely death. He owned an auto body shop as well as a small farm that he lived on. He wasn't rich or famous but he was happy with the land he owned and the work he did. I respect him a lot and I miss him greatly. He passed away from a heart-attack at the young age of 63.

The second reason I want to change my name is because I am not actually related to anyone that has the same last name as me. My father was adopted and so when he was adopted he took on a new name. I want to have a surname that connects me with my relatives and my ancestors. So I mean no disrespect by changing it, it's just I want a name that is in my blood and heart.

I plan on changing my name when I turn 18. If I were to try it now then it would take months and months of paperwork and planning because I am not an adult yet. However, when I turn 18 then all I have to do is fill out a form and pay $50 and presto! I have a new identity!

Well that is all that mattered to me this Sunday, November 30th. I hope you enjoyed it as much as I enjoyed writing it. Thank you for taking the time to read it!

Best Regards,
~Sully
P.S If you want to read another blog about media as told by my quirky teacher, go to www.doubledribbled.blogspot.com. I am sure you will enjoy it.

November 27, 2008

2008-11-27T22:23:00.004-05:00

Happy Thanksgiving!

I hope you had lots of Thanksgiving goodies! I had something very interesting for my Thanksgiving dinner: I had turducken. What kind of bird is turducken, you ask? The question isn't what kind of bird, it's what kinds. Imagine a turkey stuffed with a layer of stuffing, then stuffed with a duck and more stuffing, and then a chicken and even MORE stuffing. That is the abomination that is known as turducken.

Don't get me wrong, it was delicious. I just wonder who thought of the idea. The very thought is baffling to me. The genius it takes to construct this man-made wonder is insurmountable. The turkey and chicken were so moist because of the fatty duck meat. It was exquisite.

Other than the food, this Thanksgiving was pretty much the same as every year. I stuffed myself on the appetizers, nibbled through the main course, and then slept on the couch through the Cowboys game. It's strange to think next year I don't know where I will be during this holiday. True, regardless of if I am away at college or not I will probably come back home for the holidays but still it is a scary thought.

I think I will defer for a year before I go to college. I think that I need a year to asses my aspirations as well as say goodbye to the place I have lived in all my life. The rest of the school year is not enough time for me to let go. However, I think that I need to be getting to bed now. All that turducken is sitting like lead in my stomach (No wonder! It's THREE birds!).

My next post will include my plans for after school, as well as information on me changing my name when I turn 18!

Best Regards,
~Sully

November 24, 2008

2008-11-24T21:16:00.003-05:00

Good evening, Interwebs! I hope you are doing well. Other than being a touch sore, I am doing alright. If you are wondering why I am sore, its because I was working out earlier. I try to work out 3-4 times a week to stay in shape. Exercise has become a big part of my life since Sophomore year.

It started when I started to notice that a lot of people had begun to tease me slightly about looking "chubby." True, my pant size was steadily growing and alot of my clothes seemed to be coming from the "husky" section of the store. Then an opportunity presented itself in the form of high school soccer.

I used to play soccer when I was in elementary school. Like most physical activities, I didn't stick with it very long. I chose video games and TV over baseball and soccer. I know now the error of my ways. In sophomore year I was 5'7 and 175 pounds. One of my friends began pressuring me to try soccer as a way to make more friends and get active in the school. A few weeks later, I am listening to a doctor at my physical tell me I am overweight and need to stop drinking whole milk (Never!).

Soccer turned out to be one of the hardest experiances of my life. Despite the physical demands, I also began getting picked on for my poor skills. The teasing never bothered me as much as the shin-splints and pulled muscles. Although there were days I couldn't move without wincing, I knew I had to stick with it. At the time me and my mother had fallen on hard times. When I told her I wanted to do soccer she was very supportive. That very weekend she brought me to Olympia Sports to get equiptment. Before we checked out she asked me if I was serious about this and that I wouldn't back out. I knew she couldn't afford to waste her money on something I would give up on so I promised myself I wouldn't quit. I kept my promised and continued with the sport for two years.

I found that I actually enjoyed pushing the limits of my physical body. There was relief to be found in it and it gave me a goal: Get in shape before the end of high school. I began working out at the rec center in my town four times a week. Progress was slow and at first I didn't notice a difference. Yet over time I began to see small changes. My pants and shirts became looser and I started getting asked if I was losing weight. It felt good to know that I was reaping the benefits of all my hard work.

Now, almost three years since I started taking care of my body, I am 5'9 and 160 pounds. I am not only happy with the way I look; I am happy the way I feel. At the end of the day that is all that matters to me. I plan on trying baseball for the first time in several years and I will start training at the rec again once the holidays have ended. I am glad that I struggled to push through all the difficulties I faced. I can look back at myself and feel proud.

Thats all I have for you tonight, Children. I would like to end this post with one piece of wisdom; If you ignore your health, it will go away. Take care of yourself.

Best Regards,
~Sully
P.S Another time-waster! www.Bored.com! This site is a gem and the best part: It is not blocked at my school ^_^.

November 23, 2008

2008-11-23T19:30:00.003-05:00

Good evening friends and Mr. Boyington! I hope you all are well.

...

Do you ever get the feeling that you may have given your girlfriend mono? Well I most certainly have that funny feeling...

As you probably already know from my previous post, my friend "Santiago" has mono. I myself am seemingly unaffected by the virus. That doesn't mean I can't carry it though. Last night I took my girlfriend out to a birthday dinner and she started to complain of a sore throat. As the night progressed she became more and more sick. Soon she had a headache, earache, and no appetite! (Much to my chagrin. Why hello 60 dollar check....)

Later that night she threw up twice.

I cannot help but think it is somehow my fault. Maybe it's just a strange case of serendipity that both my friend and my girlfriend came down with a similar illness and they don't have any contact at all. It seems as if I am the bridge between them for the illness.

In other news, I performed in my 15th or so production at Windsor High School in only 3 and a quarter years. The show was Shakespeare's "Much Ado About Nothing." This is the second time I have done this show and this time I got to try an entirely different role. The first time I performed the show was sophomore year and I played the role of Don John. Don John is a piece of work. He is a spiteful villain driven by jealousy and self loathing. This time I played the role of Benedick, the hopeless romantic. Benedick is a lot more like me being that he is driven by his heart and even though he can be a bit of a jerk some times, it's all in good fun.

If you were to ask me which one I preferred playing, I would have to say I can't decide. They are so different that it is like trying to pick between going ice fishing or swimming. (*Ahem* SWIMMING) Don John is fun because he has such raw energy and passion for everything. He is so unlike me that it is almost a release to step out of myself for a moment to play someone with that much intensity. Benedick is the best friend you had when you were growing up. He knows his priorities and is not afraid to tell things how they are. Plus he is one of the funniest characters that Shakespeare ever created.

Anyways, the show was successful with only a few minor blunders.

That is all that mattered to me this Sunday. I hope you are doing well. As always, feel free to ask me anything or even if you just have a comment. Thanks for reading!

Best Regards,
Sully

November 18, 2008

2008-11-18T18:23:00.006-05:00

It's been a busy day today, even though I am SUPPOSED to stay home and rest. I have been out for the last two days sick with the stomach flu (and a killer splinter in my left foot) and yet today still managed to be a handful.

Well the good news is that I am not worrying about college! Unfourtunatly, my best friend is in the hospital with an advanced case of Mono. The doctors said it is the "most severe case of Mono they have ever seen." This is not something you want your doctor to tell you. My friend, whom we will call "Santiago", happens to be in the exact same hospital room as my Great-Grandfather was in during his last days on Earth. This made my visit with Santiago under even worse circumstances. Santiago has been my friend since I was in 2nd grade. It was sad to see him in pain but I had to visit him. Unfourtunatly for me, my mother thought differently.

I called my mother to initially ask if I could go visit him. She told me that I shouldn't go because I have been sick and I don't want to give him my sickness or catch his. (However I hope that I wouldn't get it from him as it is "The Kissing Disease") I asked her what would happen if I went anyways and she told me there would be dire consequenses. So, after little to no deliberation, I decided to visit him. But before you question my respect for my elders, hear me out a little.

It's not that I don't respect my elders, it is a matter of friendship. Should I not visit him because I am well, or risk further illness to make sure I visit an ill friend? I am almost an adult and I know this isn't going to be the last time I have to make a choice like this. It is a difficult question but any friend worth their weight in gold would make the desicion to see their friend. What would I have done if things took a turn for the worse? Could I live with myself knowing I was too selfish or scared to show him that I hope he gets well? Sure, Mono isn't exactly deadly but it isn't far-fetched to think that something horrible like that could happen. Perfectly healthy people can sometimes drop dead for no apparent reason. I am not able to take a chance like that. My friends mean too much to me.

So as I type this blog, I am currently awaiting the arrival of my mother. I am not sure how she will take it but I have a feeling if it were one of her friends she would make the time to show her support. What about you? What would you do? Would you listen to your mother or father and stay home, hoping for the best? Would you ignore their advice and see your ailing friend? I have already made my choice and am awaiting the dire consequenses that are surely going to follow.

Thats all that mattered to me today, Tuesday the 18th of November. Thank you so for reading and feel free to leave and questions or comments.

Best Regards,
~Sully

P.S I also had lunch with my beautiful girlfriend. 3 days till your B-day, baby!
P.P.S Another good site is www.icanhascheezeburger.com. You can make funny pics like that one I used in my blog today!

November 12, 2008

2008-11-12T13:39:00.007-05:00

The clacking of computer keys mingling with the sounds of half a dozen Ipods blaring can mean but one thing: Media Class.

For those that do not know me, my name is Cody but please call me Sully. I am currently a senior in high school and am looking forward (slightly) to college. As a school project, I was told to start a personal blog and to use it to chronicle my thoughts, stories, problems, etc...
There is only one thing on my mind at this moment and its a scary thought: College. Sure, I want to go. But I can confidently say it is the single most unsettling moment in my short life. I am the first of my family that wants to go to college. I suppose my biggest fear at the moment is change. When you move away to college, everything changes. Friends, home, work, school and even location are all going to be changed. That thought is what keeps me up at night.

Don't get me wrong, I want to go. I cannot help but feel a sense of pride knowing that I will be the first in my family to take on higher education. I'm thinking of majoring in Psychology with Drama as a minor. Ever since I was younger I knew that I had a gift for talking to people, especially when they were stressed or suffering from a problem. And if I can get paid well for doing what I love to do than the choice to go to college should be easy, eh?

I have no doubt that in my future I will be enrolled in some sort of 4 year school, but at this moment in time I think I am going to defer going to school for a year. With an extra year to sort out my thoughts and say goodbye to friends and family, (Not to mention some time to save some money!) I should feel a lot better about leaving.

I suppose that change is inevitable. Like a looming cloud on the horizon, I will soon be moving out of the comfort of my parents home and out on my own. That part doesn't scare me too much because I know that I will be getting an apartment in town where I can be walking distance to my friends and family. Still, it is strange to know that this is the last year of my life where I can rely on someone else to support me. Eerie... Only yesterday it seems I came into High School wide-eyed and nervous. Now, I am getting ready to say goodbye. It's so ironic to me because I remember that when I was a freshman, all I wanted to do was get out. I wanted to graduate and be out on my own and now, I am scared to death of leaving.

Well, thats all that is on my mind at this moment. Leave a comment if you get the chance and I will make sure to reply. Thank you for taking the time to read this.
Until next time friends,
~Sully

P.S. A good time-wasting website is www.addictinggames.com. Unfortunately, I can't access it from school.