relay for life!

This year Pascack Valley is hosting Relay for Life on our track, which is very special and exciting. I volunteered to be the captain for the team of juniors that are going to be participating and I am so proud to support such an august cause with my friends. Many people do not realize how much work goes into making sure an event this large runs smoothly and successfully. When I arrived at the first meeting where all of the captains met who was responsible for creating the event, I was stunned at the many events that were going to be taking place on that day of Relay for Life, as well as the amount of people that were going to be participating. The women in charge were very adamant about making sure that no one was ostracized, and there was no limit on the amount of teams that could be created.

As they began to talk about the different aspects of the event, and what we should be telling our teammates, I remained obsequious, and wrote down every thing that was being said. I was overcome with emotion because the determination and strength of these women were expressed to everyone at the meeting, and helped us believe that one day, cancer could be defeated forever. They then began to explain to explain the concept behind "Luminaria bags". I was a neophyte to this topic, and was eager to learn about their significance. What I learned about them was that hold candles, and can be decorated with pictures in order to pay tribute to someone that is currently battling cancer, has survived cancer, or has passed away due to cancer. I thought it was a beautiful way to pay respects to people that have unfortunately encountered this life-threatening disease.

Lastly, the meeting concluded with a tutorial on how to construct team flags. The materials that were given out to make the flags with was a pillow case, which would be attached to a dowel. The women stated that the flags could be as panache as the team desired, and should be creative. Many members of my team are very artistic and have a predilection for decorating and embellishing different kinds of things. Once the meeting had come to a close, I was ready to get my team members pumped about this fantastic event, and I had really become an erudite team captain!

things that help me to relax (:

Now that we are approaching the end of the year, all of the final projects are due and my stress level keeps on increasing. I feel as though I am bereft of time to myself, and I am always moving and doing something. Sometimes I wish I had a remote to pause my life since school gets so hectic. It honestly takes a Herculean student to survive four years of high school at Pascack Valley. So, I have a few methods that help me to stay relaxed, and have a clear mind.

1. Always drink herbal teas.

I am in love with tea, and it is probably the most soothing drink that you can choose to consume. My mom is the reason as to why I am addicted to drinking tea, even though my younger sister is quite blasé with the powers of herbal tea. I have developed my own concoction and whip it up whenever I feel overwhelmed. First, I brew some traditional Lipton tea, and make sure that it reaches a deep hazelnut brown. Then, I take about four spoonfuls of sugar and make sure it dissolves in my mug of tea. One half of a juicy, ripe lemon is then squeezed into my delicious mixture, making it ready for the final ingredient: honey. I always go to my cabinet to grab that golden teddy bear bottle in order to squeeze out about three tablespoons of honey. Finally, my beverage is complete. My cats seem to find the sweet aroma of my tea to be quite noisome, and often run out of the kitchen whenever I make it. But, for me, it serves as pure therapy.

2. Go on facebook.

Yes, I know it sounds weird, but if you take thirty minutes out of your day to browse facebook, you will rid yourself of all school-related stress. Looking up links to post on your friends' walls, posting pictures, and utilizing facebook chat has the ability to distract a person for hours. Even though this works as stress-relief, I always need to make sure that I set an ending time for how long I surf Facebook. This is because a side effect that I have found from spending too much is that I have lost a lot of energy since Facebook can sometimes be a soporific pastime.

3. Watch favorite shows on hulu.com

Whenever I have had a long day at school, I find it very rewarding to lay in my bed and watch some episodes of my favorite sitcoms on the website hulu.com. I usually fall asleep while tuning in, but it is relaxing and makes me laugh right before I say goodbye to my day. Even though some of the shows I choose to watch are full of bunkum, they always put me in such a good mood. The sitcoms on my laptop screen transfix my eyes, and soon the lights and sounds lull me into a deep sleep.

Cruising to Cozumel, Mexico!

I have finally returned home from my incredible cruise, and I am extremely sad to be back in the cold weather. But, I will always have the memories of this vacation in my heart to help me make it through the upcoming snow and sleet. One of my favorite days on the cruise was Wednesday, when we arrived in Cozumel, Mexico. I had never been to Mexico before and was very excited to see this beautiful tropical island. We had signed up for a Jeep excursion, and the minute we got there, we had to take a boat to get to Playa del Carmen, where our tour was planned to begin. The night before my family became a little seasick, and surprisingly I was the only one that did not get sick. So, it was up to me to go to the infirmary, where the nurse prescribed pills for my mom, dad, and sister to take. As we boarded the boat in Mexico, my family had the pills from the night before to safely survive the voyage across the ocean.

Once we got to Playa del Carmen, we met our tour guides and the other families that were also going on the Jeep Tour. After the tour guides explained the itinerary for the day, we got to choose the Jeep that we would be driving in. My family and I choose a silver Jeep and had the top down as we drove to our first destination. The wind was warm, and the sun was shining brightly on our faces as we meandered through many different roads. But, as we were driving one of the drivers in front of us faced a moratorium from driving because he was unable to drive a stick-shift. As we approached the first place of our tour, we parked our Jeep and were eager to eat and engage ourselves in the surroundings.

A private beach was where we wound up arriving after a carefree drive. We had an authentic Mexican lunch that consisted of guacamole, chicken marinated in a tomato sauce, watermelon, and rice. After we had finished eating, we were able to tan on the white sands of the beach and swim in the crystal waters of the ocean. The waves were very calm and I was completely relaxed in the pristine environment that we had encountered. After a little over an hour, we got back in our Jeep and headed for the jungle.

Once we arrived to the small jungle, we were instructed by our tour guides to wear hardhats since they were wary about the low entrance of the cave we were about to enter. The stalactites were very close to our heads as we all began to enter, so we had to be cautious. Once we were in the cave, there was a whole body of mineral water that surrounded the cave's walkway. The tour guides encouraged us to swim in these waters, but I was a little apprehensive about taking the plunge, so I decided to go on the walking tour instead. On the tour my family and I learned all about how the formations within the cave were created and the sea creatures that inhabited the waters. In a small pool of water, the tour guide threw a rock and soon we saw little albino shrimp come out from the depths of the pool. After the walking tour, we headed back to our Jeeps and returned to the dock where the boat would take us back to the cruise. I was sad when the tour guides said that the excursion was about to be terminated because I really fell in love with Mexico. It is such a fantastic place that is full of history and nature that everyone should have the chance to see someday!

Cruising to Key West!

I have just gotten back from a day in Key West on my first cruise ever! My family and I have chosen to take a cruise vacation this February break and it has been such a great experience so far. We first arrived on our cruise yesterday, and spent the whole day exploring the enormous ship and meeting so many new people. Today, we spent time in our first destination, which was Key West, also known as the Conch Republic. We took a shuttle bus to Mallory Square, which is where all the shops are. The weather was sunny and bright, which was so refreshing after living in below freezing conditions for the past three months in New Jersey. Before we left the shuttle buses to explore the small city, the driver accosted a message over the loudspeaker, "If you are not back by 1:30, the buses will leave and you will not be seeing the cruise ship for the rest of your vacation." Even though he was not that nice, my family and I disregarded his attitude and were ready to shop like crazy!

The first gift shop that we came across was a big store that sold all sorts of ornaments, magnets, and other nick-knacks. What made this gift shop unique was the behemoth made of sea sponges that stood outside of the shop! Everyone was eager to take pictures with this "sponge monster" because it was so big and unlike anything they had ever seen! As we continued to walk about Mallory Square, there was a small little store that sold that best key lime pie that I had ever tasted! Everything they sold had a trace of key lime in it, including lotions, iced tea mixes, and frozen, chocolate dipped slices of key lime pie. The shop was very welcoming due to its bright and vibrant decor, and was one of my favorite places that we discovered. Next, my dad was craving something to eat, so we came across a little shack that sold an odd comestible, which were conch fritters. Conch is probably the most horrific tasting fish that I have ever tried, but of course my dad found them to be absolutely delicious! They were deep-fried, and the dipping sauce that they were accompanied by was a spicy Dijon mustard. This delicacy is popular among people living in Key West, and proved to win the taste buds of my dad as well!

My mom and I then began to search for a jewelry store, and soon came across a lady that was selling homemade jewelry along the sidewalk. She was selling ancient keys on different chains, which caught my eye right away. I wound up picking out one that was on a satin gray chain, and realized that she was making keys because we were in Key West! I thought that was a very cute concept and had her tie it around my neck so that I could wear it. Another store that sold very unique items was called Crazy Shirts. At this store, the shirts were dyed with all natural sources including lavender, hibiscus, wine, money, beer, coffee, and chiles. My mom bought my dad a key lime-dyed shirt as memorabilia of this amazing place we were exploring. As it began to get hotter, I was in desperate need of a drink to satiate my thirst, and of course there was Starbucks right around the corner! I ordered a iced tea lemonade, which definitely hit the spot! On the way back to the shuttle bus we saw many roosters running around, and one of the people informed us that drivers would be indicted and fined if they were to run over these animals. Key West was a very special place that was concerned with the well-being of their wildlife and environment which I found very interesting. Overall it was an enjoyable day in a place that I had never seen before!

SNOW DAY!

Today is a snow day!! I am a very credulous and gullible person, so when people tell me there is going to be a snow day I usually believe them without a doubt but this time they were right! When Mr. Demaio came on the loudspeaker yesterday and said that they were going to close the school for a snow day I was ECSTATIC! Pascack Valley High School almost never closes their school due to inclement weather, but today has been a true miracle. At first it was a great start, I got up at around 11:00 in the morning and had a chance to have an actual breakfast that was homemade. I was ready to watch a couple seasons of The Office, until my dad sat down at breakfast and altered my plans. He began cajoling me by saying that he was very proud of me for getting good grades this marking period, and saying that I was such a good daughter. Well I knew that my dad was trying to persuade me to do something strenuous and horrific, and I knew just the activity he needed help with----shoveling snow. I tried to make a quick escape to my room, but then my mom intercepted my avoidance my packing on the guilt because she told me, "Would you mind just spending a little of your time to help your father outside? I love you." Well we all know what I now had been forced into doing, so I had to go get my lovely snow gear on.

I had to put on about three pairs of pants, two sweatshirts, and five pairs of socks so that I would be warm enough to traverse the twelve inches of snow outside. I was ready to be done getting all the snow off the cars as quickly as possible, but it began taking longer than I had anticipated. My arms were starting to hurt from shoveling the snow, and my sister was becoming laconic which was a sign that she was ready to go inside, since she is always a chatterbox. Then, the snowblower was unable to get rid of all the snow because the snow was practically turning into ice since it was so cold. My dad was determined to clear the entire driveway, but I could not take it anymore. My fingers were turning blue, (even though I had gloves on) and my attitude was becoming aloof because my patience was running thin. My dad was finally fed up with the cold himself, and we all decided to go inside to warm up. The rest of the day turned out to be very relaxing though, and I even made red velvet cupcakes with my sister!

Working Girl.

I have recently started working for my cousin's personal trainer to earn some extra cash because I want to eradicate the option of asking my parents for money all the time. I have always been very ambitious about working, but I have always found it very difficult to balance having a job and managing schoolwork simultaneously. I was working at Blimpie (Subway's biggest competitor) for about a year almost every Saturday, but the remuneration that I was receiving was not substantial enough for all the work that I was doing there. So, I decided to move on and not work for a few months so that I could acclimate myself to the new workload that junior year was about to offer. Then, since I decided not to participate in the fall drama and spring musical this year, I needed to participate in some kind of activity after school that would stimulate myself.

Over winter break, I had gone to my cousin Nicole's apartment, and went with her to her personal trainer, Elena. Elena was a vivacious person who was full of energy and thrilled to meet me. She was certified in holistic medicines and had an array of all-natural pills that were bound to heal any ailment. I was in awe at all the information she knew about staying healthy and I got to ask many questions about how different herbs possessed different characteristics in order to heal and rejuvenate people. She was flattered by my interest, and told me to leave her a dossier of my personal information in case she needed someone to work for her in the future. After a couple of weeks, Elena called me and asked me if I wanted to do secretarial work for her during the week. I knew this would be a perfect job for me because I am very organized and she was extremely flexible about the amount of hours I would put in every week.

I was ebullient for my first day of work since I love working with computers and managing files. When I had come in, she instructed my on how to organize her calendar by using Microsoft Outlook, and other things I was to organize for her. Also, she said I had complete freedom to brainstorm ways that she could promote her business by designing flyers, brochures, and even making a Facebook fan page. I was eager to put my knowledge of technology to use and absolutely love my new job!

2010...this is going to be a big year.

This is my first blog post of the year 2010. I have a feeling that this year is going to be a big year overall. Other years have provoked unbearable ennui, but this year I am excited for the many big things that are ahead. For example, Winter Ball is on Friday, which is the first formal dance that the class of 2011 is able to attend. Majority of the student body is ecstatic for the Ball, especially the girls who like to get dressed up, like me. On Facebook, one of the girls in the junior class even created a group that all the girls could use to post the dresses that they were going to wear so that no one would wind up having the same dress. So, within about three weeks, whenever I went on Facebook, pictures of all sorts of dresses would be burgeoning by the minute! Also, many of the upperclassmen that I have talked to have communicated an imprimatur that the Winter Ball is guaranteed to be enjoyable.

Also, this year is going to be an intense year because I have to take the SAT's and apply to the colleges of my choice. My anxiety will never allay due to the fact that I have to put in so much preparation for the standardized tests that I have to take and the application forms that I will be filling out. But, I need to try to keep my cool and keep on trying to stay positive because I have to enjoy my life, and not only worry about school. I do not want to go to a college that is too far from my home because I know that I am going to be very homesick that first couple of months since I am very close to my family.

Lastly, I am ecstatic to turn 18 this November! I think that this will be the most salient part of this entire year. I am going to be ecstatic since I will finally earn my right to vote! That may sound a little nerdy, but I will finally feel like an adult once I am given the power to exercise this right. Also, I will finally be able to order stuff from television, because the advertisements always have a disclaimer that says, "You must be eighteen or older to call", well I will finally be 18! Overall, I have a feeling that this is going to be a phenomenal year, and I am ready to make the best of it!