Precariously Finding a Balance Between Work and Play

"Let's live it up; I got my money, let's spend it up." These lyrics, made popular by the Black Eyed Peas, capture the teenage years in just seconds. There are so many fun things going on; movies, paintball, dates, football games, parties, dances, road trips, sleepovers, and late night trips to Waffle House and of course I, as a high school student, want to take part in all of these and more. In fact, I am, and the festivities have already begun, as shown by the picture on the left. This is one of the many late night Waffle House trips to come.

For the next two months, I don't have a single weekend free because I've filled every second with some form of entertainment. Why? I'm spending my last few months as a child as carefree as possible, or at least I'd like to think I am. But am I, really? Not quite. All of these activities cost money, and a lot of it. Plus, I have responsibilities such as the basketball team I'm going to start coaching next month, my volunteer hours at Cardinal Hill, college visits and applications, and let's not forget the nagging parents who I must find a way to please.

The first issue that must be handled is the economic one. Most teenagers have a job, but that isn't the case for me. It isn't that I'm too lazy or I can't find one. I'm not allowed to have a job. That's right, my parents- particularly my dad- won't let me work. Sure, I'm allowed the sporadic babysitting job, but other than that I have to rely on my allowance for the activities mentioned above. Yes, I'll admit, my parents are generous when it comes to an allowance, but $20 a week won't cut it when I have a phone bill every month, movie tickets are at least $8 and the snacks cost even more, and everything else is fairly pricey too. Unfortunately, my parents aren't raising the ban on working, nor are they raising my allowance. It looks like I'm stuck with no money for at least the next 3.5 months. After that, I'll be 18 and hopefully able to find a job and start making my own money.

The second issue isn't quite as easy to solve. I can't just stop giving effort as far as my responsibilities go. I've worked too hard and come to far to just quit caring. Education is important, coaching is important, pleasing my parents is important, but so are the activities I have planned. Most of my commitments have a fairly flexible schedule, and there are a few activities I could drop, but I'd have to be willing to do that- and at this point, I'm not. As of right now, I can't do anything. I'll just have to continue on with my philosophy that "whatever happens, happens" and I'll have to continue to "go with the flow." All I can do is hope for the best, and wait until I get into the swing of things.

I've talked to my friends, and I know I'm not the only one struggling with finding a balance between work and play. In fact, it seems to be an issue across the board. It's been an issue that teenagers have dealt with for years. There isn't anything that can be done, so I'll keep "living it up" and "spending it up" while my parents gripe about it, and then I'll gain focus on my responsibilities. The cycle shall continue.

Extracurricular Extravaganza

Beta Club, Key Club, Student Council, Senior Executive Board, Spirit Club, Fishing Club, Invisible Children, PLD Letter Society, Prom Steering Club, clubs, clubs, and more clubs. There are an abundance of clubs and it's been drilled into our heads, since the summer before freshmen year, that we must join as many clubs as possible in order for our applications to appeal to colleges. However, is this really what colleges are looking for? Are they truly interested in your ability to fill your schedule with so many activities that you hardly have time to eat, sleep, or breathe? Doubt it.

While admissions officers want to see student involvement, they aren't looking for the quantity as much as they are the quality. In fact, according to Naomi Rockler-Gladen's article, "Extracurriculars and College Apps: Smart High School Activities for College Applications," colleges are looking for 4 main things when considering extracurricular activities. They're looking for:

• Commitment: Schools would much rather see that you are consistently attending a select few clubs rather than joining dozens of clubs for only a few months at a time.
• Leadership: If you can rise to any role of importance in a club, whether it be 2nd secretary or president, you're much more likely to catch the eyes of an admissions officer than if you were to have no role at all in several different organizations.
• Connections: While you may want to be in all of the fun clubs, like Ultimate Frisbee Club or Sandwich Club, colleges are much more interested in seeing organizations that relate to your goals in life or clubs that seem prestigious, such as Key Club or Future Educators of America.
• Work Ethics: While involvement in extracurriculars is important, your GPA is still important. Don't fill your schedule with so many activities that your grades begin to slip, or else you won't even be considered at some colleges.

Enjoy the clubs and organizations that are available to you, just don't stretch yourself out too much and remember, quality is prevalent over quantity as far as extracurriculars go.

source:http://college-preparation.suite101.com/article.cfm/extracurriculars_college_apps

Classifications.

Classifications. It's something we all deal with, whether it be by race, gender, interests, or even grades. In fact, I think grade classifications may be one of the more prevalent categories in high school.

As freshmen, we enter the building with both a sense of excitement and terror. We're finally on the brink of adulthood, yet we're at the bottom of the totem pole yet again. As sophomores, we have a superior feeling over the freshmen, and we tend to think we're the best thing since boy bands. That's right, we think we're cooler than the boy bands who swept the nation in the late 90s, when in fact we are not. And then comes junior year. We finally begin to mature, although this maturation isn't very obvious. It can be said that we begin to "find ourselves" but I personally think we were never lost to begin with. Junior year is filled with grumbling about the intense work load and the oh-ing and ah-ing over prom. Finally, we reach senior year. We're finally at the top, we rule over everyone else-yet we don't care. Our goal isn't to make the underclassmen feel like the scum of the earth (despite popular belief) but rather, it's to enjoy what time we have left of our youthful, carefree high school days.

I think Hayley G. Hoover sums up this idea of high school classifications in one of the most entertaining ways I've witnessed. Enjoy!

ACT Appreciation

For many people, the ACT is simply another dreaded standardized test, meant to cause a lack of self-esteem, an inevitable brain exhaustion, and an increase in the amount of stress already placed on high school students. This was my perspective on the test- I even referred to it as ACT Agony- until I took it for the third time on Saturday morning.

When my alarm clock went off at 6:30 on Saturday morning, I literally felt like cursing it and possibly even tossing it out the window. I'm a firm believer in sleeping in on weekends, and I was none to happy to rise at such an early hour, especially since I had been out late the previous night. If someone were to ask me my opinion of the ACT at that point in time, I would have told them to forget about raising my score, to forget about the test, to forget about college in general. However, a few short days later I have an appreciation for the 8:00 starting time. If the test had been any later, I would not have been able to concentrate at all-the weather was too perfect for that. While I may have developed this appreciation, I doubt my fellow test-goers would agree.

Not only do I despise early risings, but I also have a hatred for learning useless information. You know, the mathematical, scientific, or historical concepts that make you think "...and why am I ever going to need this? How will this ever benefit me in any way, shape, or form?" These thoughts typically hit me when I'm sitting in pre-calculus, or last year while I suffered through chemistry. It's no wonder, then, that the math and science portions of my ACT score suffered the most. However, Saturday morning I was shocked to find that both my pre-calculus and chemistry skills had come into play. They were finally doing something worthwhile- they were helping me get into college. Because the ACT test creators had included these once useless skills, I have now developed an appreciation for the once hated writers.

The ACT may have once be seen as agony, but now- at least in my eyes- the ACT is something worthy of appreciation, and perhaps even praise.