Christmas is almost here!

Christmas break ... something everyone looks forward to. The only problem with break is that the week before break seems to drag on forever. I know this week has felt like an eternity. Two times this week I thought both days were Friday when I woke up and of course I was wrong. It was only Wednesday and Thursday. Now we can finally saw today is the last day before break and we are gone for a whole two weeks, but then somehow those two weeks seem like only a few days. Once you know it vacation is over and you're already going back to school. I can never believe how fast it flies by. One day you're sitting on your couch watching some t.v. and sipping your coffee or cocoa and next your're in history or math. For all of you out there who don't think they're going to be able to survive through today I am here to tell you it is possible. I have been doing it for the past three years and this is my last one. Even though the day may seem like an endless black hole I try and find a way to survive. I think about the next day and how I get to sleep in and sleep in for the next two weeks. Just a few perks to look forward to. I want to wish everyone a Merry Christmas and to be safe over vacation. I'll catch up with everyone after break and I just may have a few interesting stories to tell.

Annoying Customers

 Most jobs entail annoying customers. Sadly there is not a handbook that comes with the job to tell you how to deal with them, but I can give you a few tips that might come in handy. Some of the annoying customers I meet are the ones who pull out there coupons after they finished paying and you have to go back, return the entire transaction and then ring it all up again. Then you have the people who ask you to go all the way upstairs to get an item that isn't in the front. Sometimes it takes me a few minutes to find what they are looking for and then when I finally get it and give it to them they change their minds and say never mind. Also you have the old ladies who seem nice, but really are out to get you. If I end up not having what they want they get mad at me and say well you really should have it. If we don't have it there isn't anything I can do about it. All I can do is say I'm sorry and keep nodding my head to whatever they are saying. Occasionally you might get those really creepy customers who may try to be nice but sometimes are just plain old creepy. One day when my friend and I were working this guy came up to check out and we both helped him. After we gave him all of his stuff he said thanks Celine and Christina hope to see you guys soon. We both jut gave each other this look and were like okay that was weird. There a bunch more customers that I could go on and on about, but the most important thing to keep in mind is that the customer is always right. Even if the customer may be completely wrong you still have to appease them as much as you can because that is what you are there to do. I just put up with it and once they're gone I go on a rant about them to another co worker. It is hard to do, but something to learn in life.

Black Friday

Black Friday is sometimes called a holiday, but in my opinion it is a day in hell. Before last Friday I had only been out on Black Friday last year and then I went early in the morning to avoid all of the crowds and crazy people that were soon to come out later in the day. The only problem with my plan of going out earlier in the day wouldn't work this year because this Black Friday I had to work. At first I didn't think it would be too bad in the afternoon because I went shopping around 4 that morning. There weren't too many people and I was fine with that. I didn't want to experience all the terrible stories I've heard about. It was my mistake thinking the afternoon would be the exact same at when I went in the morning. Just to be safe I left for work an hour early just in case there would be trouble to find a parking spot. Lets say I definitely needed that extra time. When entering into the mall I saw a long line of cars waiting to get into the parking lots. I was a little frustrated knowing I needed to get to work and of course it was jammed. There was even a police officer directing traffic, allowing people to cross the street and telling cars to go. Finally, I was making my way over to the Target parking lot of where I always park for work and when entering in I couldn't believe what I saw. People were going crazy, there were cars everywhere and cars following people out of the parking lot. I thought that I might have a better chance trying to park on the upper level of Target. When I got up there some people were leaving the store and walking to their cars. There was this little old lady walking to her car so I decided that I would follow her to her car and take her spot. As soon as I started following her people were giving me nasty looks as they drove by. Then this other old lady pulls into the same place as I am and looks at me. She sees that I already have my blinker on to get the spot and she looks at me and then points to the spot. I tell her it is mine and she nods her head and says that is fine. As soon as the lady backs out I can't pull in because I am in front of her the old lady who said I could have the spot went right into it. I couldn't believe she took the spot that I said was mine. I brushed that off my shoulders and kept looking. Then I saw this couple come out and tried to get a spot again. I put my blinker on and waited. As I was waiting there was this woman staring at me. My window was a little cracked and she said that she already had the spot. I told her she didn't and that I followed them out. She did not look happy and then she came out of her car and I was stuck I couldn't get out because cars were blocking me. She started swearing and screaming at me saying that it was her spot and I couldn't take it. All I could do was roll up my window and slink down into my chair. The woman finally went back into her car and I couldn't be more grateful. I went into work and told my manager about what happened and how I never wanted to work on Black Friday again. To all of you out there who think shopping on Black Friday is fun, it isn't. It is a day of people being violent and scary. Just make sure next year if you do go to be safe and watch out for all those crazy people.

Blast from the Past

So today I am going to be writing about something a little bit different. I know I usually blog about all of the unfortunate events that go on in my life, but I thought it would be nice to just talk about music from the 80's and 90's. I know most kids my age do not really know most of the bands from the 80's or if they do their knowledge is pretty limited. In my opinion I think that music was far better when my parents were teenagers. My parents tell me all the time how today's music is awful and how every other word is a swear and all the songs are terrible. On some level I do agree with the songs not being the best we have ever heard, but the music from the 80's I wish we could bring it all back. I joke around all the time saying how I should have been born in the 70's so I could have been around for the time Led Zeppelin, Pink Floyd, Nirvana, Bon Jovi, Guns N' Roses, Journey, Motley Crue, Led Zeppelin, and a bunch of other bands that are too much to list. All of these bands are only a few bands of the long list I have of my love for the 80's music. When listening to all of these bands I always think to myself it is nice to actually be able to listen to a song and a try and figure out the story behind it. For Led Zeppelin each album is like a stroy and the songs are the pieces to the story that the person has to try and figure out for themselves. One of my all time favorite songs by Led Zeppelin is Gallows Pole. This song is amazing in so many ways, It tells the story of a brother who is about to be hung by he tells the hangman to hold on just a minute because he sees his brother coming. The person about to die asks his brother is he has any money and his brother tells him no. The victim has another chance when his friend comes by, but then again is out of luck. Finally, he tells the hangman he sees his sister coming and when the sister comes she agrees to take her brothers place and die instead, Here the song shows the strong bond between the sibling and how she is willing to die for her brother because she loves him so much.

Now I suggest you guys go home and ask your parents what their favorite band was or who their favorite singer was. I can bet they have some amazing suggestions for you and you should go listen to a few of the songs from that time period. Once you hear how amazing it was back then you're going to want more and see the difference of today's music and the music back then. You might actually find a band you really like. It is music that can put you at ease when you need it and can instantly put you into a good mood. Another suggestion I have for you to get into this type of music is to watch the movie Rock of Ages. They have all different artists songs featured in the movie and I loved it. I thought it was great and was able to sing along to every song ( not in a weird way). Thanks again for listening to my little tidbit opinion of the day and I hoped you enjoyed the change of theme this week. 

Budgeting your money

Warning: If you are allergic to the word budget or anything related to saving money, I suggest you do not read this weeks post.

Budget:
N. A plan of operations based on such an estimate.
Adj. Reasonably or cheaply priced

Okay so I know most kids don't like to think about budgeting their money. Budgeting is usually what adults think about or kids in college, but high school is still a time to enjoy your money and not to stress too much. Well for me I can't go one day without hearing the word budget come out of my mom's mouth. Every day my mom will make sure to tell me how much money I need to put aside this week for anything in the future. I am not saying I have a problem with saving my money but after my mom is done "helping" me put aside money, I am left with nothing. Some people take budgeting to an extreme and one of those people are my mother. Even my dad tells her he will go insane if she tries to talk about the budget with him. For teens it is a little more difficult for them to put aside money because they usually tend to want to spend it on clothes or something else they saw in a store and want to buy. I do admit I am someone who will want to spend my money on everything, but thanks to my mom I have learned to save a little and spend a little. At first I was upset at my mom for not letting me spend the money I earned, but hopefully someday I will look back and see that she was right. Also I don't go a day without hear telling me, "See Celine I was right and what do you have to say to me now? Thank you mom?". These are only a few of my moms famous lines. So for anybody out there if you do have a side job look into creating a budget plan for yourself It will seem like a lot of work at first but as you continue it will get easier and you'll be doing yourself a favor in the future. Save up for a car or that new computer you wanted. Trust me I am not telling you this to become one of those crazy people who don't spend any of their money and secretly take home salt and pepper packets home from the restaurants, but to just be aware of what you are spending. Become friends with your budget and don't let it overrule your life.

My Driving Adventures

Many parents tell their kids that driving is a privilege and they need to earn it. That was what my parents told me and the only way I was going to be able to get my dads old car was to drive my sister to school in the morning and bring her home. I thought these rules were fine and I have now been driving for a year. Well last Wednesday my friend and I were driving around and while we were talking I was backing up into a parking space all of a sudden we heard this big boom that shook my car. I braked immediately and realized I hit the guard rail behind me. Immediately I ran out to see if there was any damage done and I was mostly looking for any dents and I saw nothing I was so happy and could not believe there was not any damage done. After my friend stopped laughing at me we went into the store to get some things and then had to stop somewhere else. When we got to the second store I got out of the car and I wanted to look to see if there was any more damage and looking at it a second time I noticed the tail light was broken. I could not believe I just broke my tail light and I didn't even have a good reason for why it happened. My friend told me that it wasn't that noticeable and we could fix it up next weekend with no problem. So after the accident happened I just went back home and parked on the side of the road hoping my parents wouldn't notice anything. All I could think about was how stupid I was, but we are teenagers so we all make mistakes. The next day I had work and told one of co-workers and when I told her she just kept cracking jokes about me not hitting her car after work. Even though it wasn't a life changing accident I am now looking three to five times when backing out. I still have yet to tell my parents about the whole accident and when they hear about what happened I hope they might be understanding. To everyone out there I know you all think that you are great drivers, but always make sure to be careful not only of your driving but also of the people around you. The roads can be dangerous. I guess you could say the roads are like a battle ground and people always need to have their guard up.

Beware of Annabelle

Today I thought I would do a movie review and write about the struggles of why I never want to see a scary movie again. This past Friday I went to go see the movie Annabelle for a second time. Annabelle was previously shown in the movie, The Conjuring, of where she was shown in a glass container that sounds to never open under any circumstances. Annabelle told the story of how she ended up going to live in the glass container. I guess you can say seeing it once just wasn't enough, but it really wasn't my choice. I love scary movies but whenever you're watching them in a movie theater I always feel that something is going to come up from under me and drag me just like the movies show. This time the movie was about a doll who was possessed and when I got home I made sure there were no dolls in my house. I have this one doll in my closet and I've had it since I was a little girl but now it's sitting in my attic. When I saw the movie Annabelle for the first time I was mostly covering my face with my hands looking through the cracks of my fingers to see what was happening. I also made sure my feet never touched the ground. Throughout the entire movie I was on edge and couldn't relax. Right when you thought the scary part was over something would pop up and I would jump out of my seat. Seriously who would buy a doll that even looked like that. It's hideous and not to mention really dirty. At the end of the movie it gave the background of where the doll was know and how Ed and Lorraine Warren had it kept in a glass box in their house. After seeing the movie I went home and stayed in my room for most of the night scared of anything possibly attacking me. I might have been a little over dramatic but that stuff freaks me out. About a week later my other friend told me that she wanted me to see Annabelle with her and I couldn't say no so we went to see it and the second time was a little better but still scary. There were parts where I knew what was going to happen but sometimes I would be off on the timing. When I got home that night I decided to do some research on the doll and it said that she was now locked up and a priest would come by and bless the glass case with Annabelle in it twice a month. The reason they blessed the doll is because there was some sort of entity latching itself onto the doll and didn't want to leave. Something that stood out to me were some of the stories of where Annabelle was behind the death and injuries of others.
 The people who were keeping Annabelle under their supervision, Ed and Lorraine Warren, had many other items kept in their household that were demonic. They kept all of these items in a room that was locked off from the rest of their house. When people found out about this they wanted to see the doll for themselves. Naturally the Warren's allowed people to come and visit their home and see the room full of demonic items. People took pictures with the items, but the one thing people were told not to mess with was Annabelle. The Warren's made it clear that the doll was pure evil even though it may not have looked like it. After all she was only a Raggedy Ann doll. Who would have ever thought something so innocent looking could turn out to be pure evil. One day a couple came by to see the Warren's home. It was a boyfriend and his girlfriend and when they got there the boyfriend started knocking on the case Annabelle was in a said things of how it wasn't evil and that if she could scratch people why she just didn't scratch him. The couple was asked to leave and on their way home they were laughing about what happened and then all of a sudden the boyfriends lost control of his motorcycle and had a head on collision with a tree. The boyfriend died instantly and the girlfriend was in the hospital for a year.  Another incident was when a priest came by to bless the doll and when he got their he took Annabelle out of her case and threw her into the rocking chair saying she was just a doll and was powerless. Lorraine asked the priest to call her when she got home to back sure he was safe. When the priest called Lorraine he told her about the fatal accident he was almost in. He had a brush with death. Now you can see why dolls freak me out. Though for those people that like scary movies, I know you'll love Annabelle. 

Some Quick Tips About How To Survive School

Being a senior comes with it pros and cons. Some of the pros are I know what you can expect for the rest of your years in high school because I have already gone through it. I know most people think they know how the rest of their high school years are going to pan out, but that is not always the case. Sometimes life throws curve balls at you that you did not expect. I always tell my sister that she needs to focus and be able to balance school and sports. She should strive to meet her highest potential and so should everyone else. High school is a time to shine and show people how brilliant you are to to excel in life because after high school comes college and then the real world. I know my freshmen year I didn't focus too much on what I was going to do in the future, but now that I look back on it I wish I spent a little more time reflecting on where I want to go in life. Most people think it's crazy when they hear a freshmen or sophomore in high school is already thinking about college but I think it is great. They are getting ahead on their future. Over my past few years here at NDA I have been able to think of some tips I thought I would share.

1. Don't procrastinate! I know most people already know this and I do too, but the truth is sometimes it's hard not too. Say we're assigned a project a few weeks in advance. Chances are only a few people are going to get right on top of that. I know when I was in the my first couple years here I would put things off, forget about them and then with only a week left I would panic and rush the project. 
2. Stay positive. Being in high school is hard enough. Try and stay positive. Brush off anything negative that is thrown at you and try to build off of that negativity. Use it as a motivator to do better. 
3. Sleep a lot!! For me this is a big issue. I usually don't go to bed till later and when it comes time for the weekends it hits me. I am beat tired by Friday but I can't stay home and lay around because I'll have work. Getting at least seven hours sleep is good because most teenagers get about six or seven when they should be getting close to nine hours of sleep. 
4. Get together with friends to study and do homework together. The key to this when you get together with your friends make you're going to study and not get distracted by other things.  
5. Make sure to have fun and not worry too much. Yes there are times where you need to be serious about school but make sure to make some time for yourself. 

Being the New Kid

Thispast weekend I started my new job over at the Hallmark store in the Pheasant Lane Mall. Your first day of work can be pretty nerve wracking especially when you don't know anyone going in. For me I was a little bit nervous going in, but not too nervous because I had done this a couple times before. You go in say hi to everyone and just try to learn the ropes. One important tip when beginning your job is try to remember the names of everyone. It shows that you are trying and people will be appreciative. Another important tip is to leave with enough time. This is something I need to try and work on. Usually I am always on time or a little bit early, but that morning I had to go out and buy my uniform for work and got home later than I hoped. As soon as I got home I had to start getting ready right away if I wanted to leave with enough time. When it was getting close to when I had to go I started rushing and that something no one wants to do, especially on their first day of a new job. The drive wasn't too bad, but when I got to the mall parking lot it was crazy. There were no spots open so I had to drive around a few times until there was finally an opening. The thing was that the spot I was going for another person wanted to same spot but I got to it first. Let me tell you they did not look the least bit happy with me. Then I looked at the clock and I had about seven minutes until I had to be inside the mall walking into Hallmark. My nerves were shot but I made it and no one seemed to notice. I got to meet everyone and they all seemed nice and welcoming towards me. As the night continued I got to know everyone a little better. I really had nothing to be nervous about. One of my co-workers was telling me all about previous people who worked there that she didn't really get along with and how she was glad all the new girls were nice. Now all I have to do it continue to work hard, try not to upset anyone, and keep my cool. When being the new kid you have to learn to let things slide off of you and not worry too much. If one of your coworkers just smiles and says hi that should be okay. Sometimes people tend to think, do they not like me or something of the sort, but you just need to realize they need time to get to know you and warm up towards you. Just think that you're not always going to be the new kid and someone is going to be hired and then they'll be the ones known as the new kid on the job. 

The Real World

Looking for a job can be a hassle especially when you're in high school. For me my mom is always on my case about where I have applied, if I called the place back and to keep on trying. The thing is I am trying it's just not that easy. So far I have had two interviews. One with the Hallmark store over at the Pheasant Lane mall and another interview at the Paper Store. Both of these stores are quaint and I would love to work there. Just having to wait for them to get back to you is the hardest part because you want to know if you got it right away.

The only reason my mom is so hard on me finding a job is because I quit two jobs I had earlier and I was slacking on finding another. Last summer I worked at the Dunkin Donuts near my house for about five months. I looked at it as a summer job and when the school year came around along with sports I wasn't able to handle it all. I asked my manager about reducing my hours and not have me work during the week nights, but she didn't listen to me and kept scheduling me late shifts. I decided I had enough of the job and just decided to put in my two weeks and focus on school and soccer. After soccer season was over I knew that I needed to find another job to keep me busy and to help support myself. I was looking around to see who was hiring and my friend was working over at McDonald's. She told me I should apply there. I thought it would be fun to work with her and I already knew the fast food business. When I applied my friend put in a good word for me. The manager called me about a month after and asked me to come in for an interview. I was nervous during the interview, but at the end she said I got the job and then she showed me around the place. I was so happy. Finally I was employed again, but my first day I thought what did I get myself into. I sucked up the first week and kept thinking I can do this, but all I wanted to do was leave. It was not my type of job and I just wanted to get away from food and focus on something else. So after a few more weeks I quit. I know this sets a bad reputation for me, but I am not going to continue working someplace I don't like. I want to enjoy my job and have a nice quiet environment.

Now that everyone knows about my failures in the job department I want people to learn from my mistakes and not work somewhere you think you wouldn't enjoy. Go work somewhere and do something you, Get a job you know you can come back and work for after college. That is what I'm looking for right now. A stable environment and I will be doing something I love.  There are times I regret quitting my jobs, but I knew that it was the right decision and my parents told me not to continue if I truly didn't enjoy it. Now that I am so close to being employed again I am going to look at my job in positive attitude and be optimistic because that is what the real world is all about. Try to look at things positively and everything just might work out for you.

Mondays

Welcome to to my Blog! Here I will be writing about my week and the struggles I face in and out of school. I know most of you can relate. We always have those days where we think why today. I hope all of you enjoy my posts and I want to thank you for visiting my page.

Today I will be talking about the struggles we might face on a Monday. I know most of us
dread Mondays and I will be talking about why I do not like them so much. So this past week I encountered a few obstacles that, in my opinion, could qualify as a daily struggle. Earlier this week I was getting ready for school Monday morning and usually I get my uniform set up the night before, but I forgot. After I woke up Monday morning and went to go look for a uniform I realized that all of them were dirty or I just couldn't seem to find any. As I was freaking out about what to do because I didn't want to end up wearing a dirty shirt, which my sister suggested, I had to hurry and speed wash one of them. About twenty minutes before we had to go I stuck my shirt in the dryer and the time I went to go get it the shirt was still wet. That isn't even the worst part. It was freezing outside so my shirt hardened a little because it was wet. So now I was wearing a partially frozen shirt, yelling for my sister to hurry up and still had to stop at Dunkin Donuts. Now I need my coffee in the morning and when I went to make some I realized my mom I had used the rest of them and there was none for me. I liked to leave around seven in the morning because it gives me time to do homework in the morning, but today wasn't working in my favor. We left the house around 7:20 and there was a line out in the road for the drive-thru at Dunkins. Could today get any worst. This is one reason why I hate Mondays because they always throw me a curve ball. Finally we got to school around 7:40 and I was rushing to get upstairs so I could get ready for the school day. When I thought my day couldn't get worse after the morning I had I was wrong. When I got out of school my mom texted me saying that she needed me to come home to pick up Isabel's volleyball shoes because she forgot them. Of course I was the one who always did the running around and it drove me crazy. Right after school I sped home to get Isabel her shoes and then had to come back all the way to NDA. When I was driving back from the school there was this squirrel who came out of no where and I had to slam on my breaks causing the car behind me to almost hit the back of my car. Of course I didn't want to hit the squirrel and couldn't blame it for coming out in the road, but honestly it had top run out in front of my car. At last I was home and could relax, but that wasn't reality. I had to get ready for math tutoring and after my day I didn't want to go anywhere. I was beat and just wanted to sleep. I was able to relax for about an hour and I was out of the house again. The tutoring session went over well and I was always happy when I could clear up whatever troubles I was having in pre-calculus. As I was walking over to my car to get home I turned on my phone to get my GPS ready and my phone read 2% of battery left, I couldn't believe this was actually happening, Before I left my house my phone was at 40% and all of a sudden it was at two. I didn't even use my phone. I quickly turned on my car and tried to get as far as I could with my GPS to get home. It probably took me two minutes into my twenty-five drive. After my phone died I had to follow cars around and try to figure out where I was going. This was the time I wish I listened to my mom when she said maps are useful in life. My twenty-five minute drive turned into a forty minute drive. I was aimlessly driving around hoping for some sign of a way home. Eventually I found my way to the highway and as I was merging onto the highway a deer comes out of the trees and runs across. As it was running across it looked straight into my headlight. I was glad that I wasn't going to fast and was able to slow down. When I got home I was beat and all I did was ate some of my dinner and went to bed hoping that tomorrow would be a little bit better.