a change of plans

my thoughts and prayers are with the students, faculty and staff of Randallstown High School and well as the parents, family and friends of Steve Parrish. He was a graduating senior and scheduled to walk across the stage on Sunday. Unfortunately, his life was taken from him on yesterday May 29, 2008. I can not imagine what his family and friends are going thru. To the graduating seniors of Randallstown High, especially my lil cousin Sedria, keep yall heads up. Walk across that stage proud on Sunday. I pray that he is in a much better place and that you all hold onto his memory knowing that he was supposed to be celebrating the beginning of a new chapter with you all. Dria, babes, he might have been supposed to sit on your right side on graduation day but hopefully he’s on God’s right side right now.

Congratulations to all 2008 grads!! including Shany, TJ and my bestie JazzieGurl

ii cant really say what ii am going to do or what ii am not going to do because ii dont want to be a hypocrite…but, ii am changing a lot of things in my life as of right now. im just trying to better me fa’real because ii dont want a scare like that one ii had yesterday ever again. a new month is coming and im not pledging to change over night or to completely step into this ‘holier than tho’ attitude but ii do want to be better and do better. so therefore, ii solicit your prayers yet again. and, if you will please pray that ii am able to go back to school in the fall. ii have one REALLY BIG hurdle to jump over before ii can register but ii really really want to go. and pray for my sister, Jesus knows that cheesecake every other day would be nothing short of a blessing lmao.

uurrgghh…the pressure

ok…i’m Tanae’. plain and simple. ii do what ii want, when ii want and if ii dont want to do something then ii wont do it. so why in the world are there people that continue to force me to do shit that ii dont want to do…YES II AM TALKING ABOUT SCHOOL. okay, okay…this is the point where you sigh and hang your head. ii know what the plan was, ii created it. ii know what the goal was, ii made it up. ii know what everyone was expecting….but oh.well. this is whats happening. first of all…gas is exactly three dollars and fifty seven cents as of 7:45 this morning. therefore driving to work everyday would force me to put gas in my tank at least three times a week. now lets average this out and weigh the options. as far as im concerned, a half tank in Bobby is like E so ii never let it get past that middle mark. if im exactly on a half tank it takes twenty to get me filled up. right now, i fill up ONCE A WEEK and that gets me every where ii need to go after work hours. ii also pay for a weekly bus pass which runs me 16.50…we can round that to twenty if you would like. so thats forty dollars of transportation in one week if i take the bus to work everyday. now, with the whole gas thing in mind, if ii fill up three times a week thats already sixty dollars in one week…plus parking. everyone knows that parking is not cheap in the city. so now, take that sixty and add a good ten to twenty dollars to it depending on where ii park at and that is 70 to 80 bucks out of my pocket every week…JUST TO DRIVE TO WORK!! i’ll take MTA. now, what does this have to do with school at all?? the original plan was to go to Sojourner Douglass College, of course that plan was put into motion before ii got my car and the plan was to drive. well, at that time ii wasn’t thinking of the financial aspect of it. anyways, if ii were to go to SDC which is two seconds from my job ii would have to drive to work everyday. so, ii started thinking a lil more reasonably. if ii go back to CCBC ii would only have to drive right up the street from my house to go to class…so after ii get off the bus ii can walk to my house, eat then get in my car and drive three minutes up the street. ok, so whats the problem. really there is none. ii want to go to CCBC and thats where ill go in the fall and everyone is okay with that except for the well-educated older cousin. sorry honey, im doing things my way. ii actually owe CCBC a couple [[hundred]] dollars but that should be in the clear by the time registration gets here. that just means that ii have to start saving up some money so that ii can have enough money to cover books if ii dont get the financial aid that ii am desperately praying for. ii just dont like feeling pressured to do something that ii dont want to do. ii want to go to CCBC and ii am well aware of the fact that it is not a four year college but its a start and if im going back then ii might as well start somewhere that im comfortable. it may not be what you prefer but im going the way ii want to go because thats the road im going to stay on. if ii try to do everyone elses way ii wont finish like ii should so everyone who dont like it can fall back…oh.boo.you this is MY life.

ii miss him…

it’s almost easter and usually ii am excited about this time of the year. ii mean, ii am excited and over joyed because easter is my fav holiday just because of the sacrifice that was made on my behalf but, ii usually have more than one thing to celebrate. easter is one of those times when all the college kids come home for at least a week. the L will be home wednesday, KayBear is missing easter but she is coming next week and ii am excited to see both of them. but, my honey is not coming around. he decided to go out for spring break so him and his friends are somewhere having a great time and ii am secretly upset about it. ii was looking forward to seeing him and spending time with him but my plans have gone down the drain. right now, ii miss him soo much. ii dunno, the semester will be over in a lil bit so perhaps thats something worth looking forward to but who knows. im just gonna try to enjoy this glorious PASSION WEEK and stay focused on the real meaning behind this time of celebration. tomorrow will take care of itself and maybe ill see him soon enough…until then, im missing my honey oh so much.

Our Kids, Our Future By Barack Obama

I’ve visited many schools and spoken to many teachers and students throughout my two decades of public service, but one I’ll always remember is my visit to Dodge Elementary School in Chicago just a few years ago.

I was talking with a young teacher there, and I asked her what she saw as the biggest challenge facing her students. She gave me an answer that I had never heard before. She spoke about what she called “These Kids Syndrome” – the tendency to explain away the shortcomings and failures of our education system by saying that “these kids can’t learn” or “these kids don’t want to learn” or “these kids are just too far behind.” And after awhile, “these kids” become somebody else’s problem.

And this teacher looked at me and said, “When I hear that term it drives me nuts. They’re not ‘these kids.’ They’re our kids. All of them.”

She’s absolutely right. The small child in Manchester or Nashua whose parents can’t find or afford a quality pre-school that we know would make him more likely to stay in school, and read better, and succeed later in life – he is our child.

The little girl in rural South Carolina or the South Side of Chicago whose school is literally falling down around her, and can’t afford new textbooks, and can’t attract new teachers because it can’t afford to pay them a decent salary – she is our child.

The teenager in suburban Boston who needs more skills and better schooling to compete for the same jobs as the teenager in Bangalore or Beijing – he is our child.

These children are our children. Their future is our future. And it’s time we understood that their education is our responsibility. All of us.

This is a defining moment for our generation. Revolutions in communications and technology have created a global economy of high-tech, high-wage jobs that can be located anywhere there’s an internet connection – an economy where the most valuable skill you can sell is your knowledge.

Education is now the currency of the Information Age. It’s no longer just a pathway to opportunity and success – it’s a pre-requisite. There simply aren’t as many jobs today that can support a family where only a high school degree is required. And if you don’t have that degree, there are even fewer jobs available that can keep you out of poverty.

In this kind of economy, countries who out-educate us today will out-compete us tomorrow. Already, China is graduating eight times as many engineers as we are. By twelfth grade, our children score lower on math and science tests than most other kids in the world. And we now have one of the highest high school dropout rates of any industrialized nation in the world.

Well I do not accept this future for America. I do not accept an America where we do nothing about six million students who are reading below their grade level – an America where sixty percent of African-American fourth graders aren’t even reading at the basic level.

I do not accept an America where only twenty percent of our students are prepared to take college-level classes in English, math, and science – where barely one in ten low-income students will ever graduate from college.

I do not accept an America where we do nothing about the fact that half of all teenagers are unable to understand basic fractions – where nearly nine in ten African-American and Latino eighth graders are not proficient in math. I do not accept an America where elementary school kids are only getting an average of twenty-five minutes of science each day when we know that over 80% of the fastest-growing jobs require a knowledge base in math and science.

This kind of America is morally unacceptable for our children. It’s economically untenable for our future. And it’s not who we are as a country.

We are not a ‘these kids’ nation. We are the nation that has always understood that our future is inextricably linked to the education of our children – all of them. We are the country that has always believed in Thomas Jefferson’s declaration that “…talent and virtue, needed in a free society, should be educated regardless of wealth or birth.”

It’s this belief that led America to set up the first free public schools in small New England towns. It’s a promise we kept as we moved from a nation of farms to factories and created a system of public high schools so that everyone had the chance to succeed in a new economy. It’s a promise we expanded after World War II, when America gave my grandfather and over two million returning heroes the chance to go to college on the GI Bill.

And when America has fallen short of this promise – when we forced Linda Brown to walk miles to a dilapidated Topeka school because of the color of her skin; it was ordinary Americans who marched and bled; who took to the streets and fought in the courts until the arrival of nine little children at a Little Rock school made real the decision that in America, separate can never be equal.

That’s who we are. That’s why I can stand here today. Because somebody stood up when it was hard; stood up when it was risky. Because even though my mother didn’t have a lot of money, scholarships gave me the chance to go to some of the best schools in the country. And I am running for President of the United States because I want to give every American child the same chances that I had.

In this election – at this defining moment – we can decide that this century will be another American century by making an historic commitment to education. We can make a commitment that’s more than just the rhetoric of a campaign – one that’s more than another empty promise made by a politician looking for your vote.

I often say that the problem with No Child Left Behind is that George Bush left the money behind. And it wasn’t just him, either. It’s pretty popular to bash No Child Left Behind out on the campaign trail, but when it was being debated in Congress four years ago, my colleague Dick Durbin offered everyone a chance to vote so that the law couldn’t be enforced unless it was fully funded. Senator Edwards and Senator Clinton passed on that chance, and I believe that was a serious mistake.

Because I think we’d all agree that the goals of this law were the right ones. Making a promise to educate every child with an excellent teacher is right. Closing the achievement gap that exists in too many cities and rural areas is right. Making sure that necessary resources and qualified teachers are distributed equitably among every city and small town is right. More accountability is right. Higher standards are right.

But I’ll tell you what’s wrong with No Child Left Behind. Forcing our teachers, our principals, and our schools to accomplish all of this without the resources they need is wrong. Promising high-quality teachers in every classroom and then leaving the support and the pay for those teachers behind is wrong. Labeling a school and its students as failures one day and then throwing your hands up and walking away from them the next is wrong.

And by the way – don’t tell us that the only way to teach a child is to spend most of the year preparing him to fill in a few bubbles on a standardized test. Don’t tell us that these tests have to come at the expense of music, or art, or phys. ed., or science. These tests shouldn’t come at the expense of a well-rounded education – they should help complete that well-rounded education. The teachers I’ve met didn’t devote their lives to testing, they devoted them to teaching, and teaching our children is what they should be allowed to do.

The fact is, No Child Left Behind has done more to stigmatize and demoralize our students and teachers in struggling schools than it has to marshal the talent and the determination and the resources to turn them around. That’s what’s wrong with No Child Left Behind, and that’s what we must change in a fundamental way.

I want to lead a new era of mutual responsibility in education – one where we all come together for the sake of our children’s success; an era where each of us does our part to make that success a reality – parents and teachers; leaders in Washington and citizens all across America.

I won’t pretend that this will be easy. We must fix the failures of No Child Left Behind. We must provide the funding we were promised, and give our states the resources they need, and finally meet our commitment to special education. But that alone is not an education policy. It’s just a starting point.

A truly historic commitment to education – a real commitment – will require new resources and new reforms. It will require a willingness to break free from the same debates that Washington has been engaged in for decades – Democrat versus Republican; vouchers versus the status quo; more money versus more accountability. And most of all, it will take a President who is honest about the challenges we face – who doesn’t just tell everyone what they want to hear, but what they need to hear.

I am running to be that President. And that’s why I’m proposing a comprehensive plan to give every American child the chance to receive the best education America has to offer – from the moment they’re born to the day they graduate college. As President, I will put the full resources of the federal government behind this plan. But to make it a reality, I will also ask more of teachers and principals; parents and students; schools and communities.

A few weeks ago, I introduced my plan to make college affordable by creating a $4,000 per year refundable tax credit that will cover two-thirds of the tuition at the average public college or university. And yesterday, I unveiled my proposal to strengthen our community colleges by offering new degrees for emerging fields and rewarding schools that graduate more students.

Today, I want to talk about what we can do to prepare every student to succeed in college – preparation that begins at birth and continues with world-class schools, outstanding teachers, and transformative principals.

The first part of my plan focuses on providing quality, affordable early childhood education to every American child.

We know what a difference early childhood programs make in the lives of our kids. Study after study proves that children in these programs – especially low-income children – are more likely to score higher in reading and math, more likely to graduate high school and attend college, more likely to hold a job and more likely to earn more on that job. And for every $1 we invest in these programs, we get $10 back in reduced welfare rolls, fewer health care costs, and less crime.

In recent years, states have been able to enroll nearly one million four year olds in pre-Kindergarten programs. That’s a great success, but I believe we can do better. We need to enroll more children and we need to start at an even earlier age. Because the fact is, studies show that from the time of conception to the first day of kindergarten, children’s development progresses faster than at any other stage of life. By the age of three, 85% of the brain’s core structure is already formed. Eighty-five percent.

So here’s what we did in Illinois. As a state Senator, I helped create the Illinois Early Learning Council, which launched a program called Preschool for All. This has made us one of the first states to commit to a high quality early learning program that starts helping children from the day they’re born. It provides early care and education for new families as well as at-risk infants and toddlers, and offer at-risk three-year olds and all four-year-olds the chance to enroll in pre-Kindergarten programs.

There is no reason we can’t and shouldn’t replicate this all across America. As President, I will launch a Children’s First Agenda that provides care, learning and support to families with children ages zero to five. We’ll create Early Learning Grants to help states create a system of high-quality early care and education for all young children and their families. We’ll increase Head Start funding and quadruple Early Start to include a quarter of a million at-risk children. I will create a Presidential Early Learning Council to coordinate this effort across all levels of government and ensure that we’re providing these children and families with the highest quality programs. And we’ll help more working parents find a safe, affordable place to leave their children during the day by improving the educational quality of our child care programs and increasing the child care tax credit. That’s how we’ll give our kids the best possible start in life, and that’s the commitment America will make when I am President.

The second part of my education plan is to recruit, support, and reward teachers and principals to ensure that every school in America is filled with outstanding educators.

We know that from the moment our children step into a classroom, the single most important factor in determining their achievement is not the color of their skin or where they come from; it’s not who their parents are or how much money they have.

It’s who their teacher is. It’s the man or woman who stays past the last bell and spends their own money on books and supplies. It’s people like my sister who go beyond the call of duty because she believes that’s what makes the extra difference. And it does.

Well if we know how much teaching matters, it’s time America started acting like it. It’s time we treated teaching like the profession it is. I don’t want to just talk about how great teachers are – I want to be a President who rewards them for their greatness.

That starts with recruiting a new generation of teachers and principals to replace the generation that’s retiring and to keep up with the record number of students entering our schools. We’ll create a new Service Scholarship program to recruit top talent into the profession, and begin by placing these new teachers in areas like the overcrowded districts of Nevada, or struggling rural towns here in New Hampshire, or hard-to-staff subjects like math and science in schools all across the nation. And I will make this pledge as President – if you commit your life to teaching, America will commit to paying for your college education.

To prepare our new teachers, we’ll require that all schools of education are accredited, and we’ll evaluate their outcomes so that we know which ones are doing the best job at preparing the best teachers. We’ll also create a voluntary national performance assessment that actually looks at how prospective teachers can plan, teach, and support student learning, so we can be sure that every new educator is trained and ready to walk into the classroom and start teaching effectively. New Hampshire is already leading the way here by having designed a performance-based educator preparation system, and the national assessment I’m proposing would help states like this one achieve their goals for state-of-the-art preparation of all teachers .

To support our teachers, we will expand mentoring programs that pair experienced, successful teachers with new recruits. We know that mentoring is one of the most effective ways to retain the one-third of new teachers who leave the profession in the first five years. In states that have tried this, like California, only five percent of new teachers have quit. As President, I will expand these mentoring programs nationwide to give all our teachers the chance to succeed. And I will also make sure that teachers have the conditions in which they can succeed – including excellent principals who support their work, the materials they need to teach effectively, and time to plan and collaborate with one another on improving instruction.

And where they do succeed – where our teachers and principals go above and beyond the call to make a real difference in our children’s lives – I think it’s time we rewarded them for it.

Cities like Denver have already proven that by working with teachers, this can work – that we can find new ways to increase pay that are developed with teachers, not imposed on them and not just based on an arbitrary test score.

My plan would provide resources to try these innovative programs in school districts all across America. Under my Career Ladder Initiative, these districts will be able to design programs that reward accomplished educators who serve as mentors to new teachers with the salary increase they deserve. They can reward those who teach in underserved places like rural New Hampshire and across urban America. And if teachers acquire additional knowledge and skills to serve students better – if they consistently excel in the classroom – that work can be valued and rewarded as well.

Now, if we do all this and find that there are teachers who are still struggling and underperforming, we should provide them with individual help and support. And if they’re still underperforming after that, we should find a quick and fair way to put another teacher in that classroom. Teacher associations and school boards in a number of cities have led the way by developing peer assistance and review plans that do exactly this – setting professional standards that put children first. We owe our teachers that, and we owe our children that.

And while we’re at it, let’s finally help our teachers and principals develop assessments that teach our kids to become more than just good test-takers. That’s why the third part of my plan is to work with our nation’s governors and educators to create and use assessments that can improve achievement all across America by including the kinds of research, scientific investigation, and problem-solving that our children will need to compete in a 21st century knowledge economy.

New Hampshire has been a leader on this. You’ve developed innovative assessments, including digital portfolios, to develop and demonstrate student proficiency in technology, science, and other core content areas, and there’s no reason we can’t start replicating this all across the country.

The goal of educational testing should be the same as medical testing – to diagnose a student’s needs so you can help address them. Tests should not be designed as punishment for teachers and students, they should be used as tools to help our children grow and compete. Tests should support learning, not just accounting. Because if we really want our children to become the great inventors and problem-solvers of tomorrow, our schools shouldn’t stifle innovation, they should let it thrive.

One of the subject areas where this is especially important is science. No Child Left Behind’s intense emphasis on teaching to the test has been shown to reduce the amount of time spent on teaching and assessing science – a subject area that is absolutely critical to our competitiveness as a nation. When I’m President, we will make science instruction a national priority, and we’ll develop assessments that don’t just test isolated bits of information, but advanced skills like logic, data analysis, and interpretation. New Hampshire has already begun to do this, and there’s no reason the rest of the country can’t do the same thing.

Finally, as you and I stand here today, know that there is a generation of children growing up on the mean streets and forgotten corners of this country who are slipping away from us as we speak. They walk down Corridors of Shame in rural South Carolina and sit in battered classrooms somewhere in East L.A. They are overwhelmingly black and Latino and poor. And when they look around and see that no one has lifted a finger to fix their school since the 19th century; when they are pushed out the door at the sound of the last bell – some into a virtual war zone – is it any wonder they don’t think their education is important? Is it any wonder that they are dropping out in rates we’ve never seen before?

I know these children. I know their sense of hopelessness. I began my career over two decades ago as a community organizer on the streets of Chicago’s South Side. And I worked with parents and teachers and local leaders to fight for their future. We set up after school programs and we even protested outside government offices so that we could get those who had dropped out into alternative schools. And in time, we changed futures.

And so while I know hopelessness, I also know hope. I know that if we bring early education programs to these communities; if we stop waiting until high-school to address the drop-out rate and start in earlier grades; if we bring in new, qualified teachers; if we expand college outreach programs like GEAR UP and TRIO and fight to expand summer learning opportunities like I’ve done in the Senate; if we do all this, we can make a difference in the lives of our children and the life of this country – not just in East L.A. or the south side of Chicago, but here in Manchester, and suburban Boston, and rural Mississippi. I know we can. I’ve seen it happen. And I will work every day to do it again as your President.

But I cannot do it alone. Government cannot do it alone. We can spend billion after billion on education in this country. We can develop a program for every problem imaginable, and we can fund those programs with every last dime we have.

But there is no program and no policy that can substitute for a parent who is involved in their child’s education from day one. There is no substitute for a parent who will attend those parent/teacher conferences, make sure their children are in school on time, and help them with their homework after dinner. And I have no doubt that we will still be talking about these problems in the next century if we do not have parents who are willing to turn off the TV once in awhile, and put away the video games, and read to their child. Responsibility for our children’s education has to start at home. We have to set high standards for them, and spend time with them, and love them. We have to hold ourselves accountable.

You know a few years ago, a little girl at Earhart Elementary in Chicago was asked the secret to her academic success. She said, “I just study hard every night because I like learning. My teacher wants me to be a good student, and so does my mother. I don’t want to let them down.”

The challenge we face at this moment is great, but we have met great challenges before. Over the course of two centuries, we have fought and struggled and overcome to expand the promise of a good education ever further – a promise that has allowed millions to transcend the barriers of race and class and background to achieve their God-given potential.

It is now our moment to keep that promise – the promise of America – alive in the 21st century. It’s our generation’s turn to stand up and say to the little girl in Chicago, or the little boy in Manchester, or the millions like them all across the country that they are not ‘these kids’ – they are our kids. They do not want to let us down, and we cannot let them down either. That’s what I’ll be fighting for in this election, and that’s what I’ll do as President of the United States. I hope you’ll join me in that journey. Thank you.

just another thing to add to my frustrations…

as most of you know, I was supposed to be reading The Mis-Education of the Negro a very long time ago. Needless to say, I stopped at page sixty and haven’t picked it up since. But today I was sitting at my desk and I just so happened to pick it up to figure out if I was really going to take time out to finish and what do ya know. My big headed cousin decides to walk up and completely crush my plans of throwing it to the side for someone else to read. “You know thats a requirement so you might as well finish it now since its taking you so long…” Who asked her opinion anyway?? So, turns out that this book is a reading requirement for every student at Sojourner-Douglas. Do you know what that means?? Whether I want to or not, I HAVE TO READ THIS BOOK… so i’ll put it back to the side until I am absolutely forced to glue my face to the pages. uurrgghh

u open ur eyes to see…

my goofy silly nephew has a habit of walking around the house with his eyes closed. my guess is, he does it because he feels as tho he knows his surroundings well enough to manuver without looking at where he is going. it is not until he bumps into something or trips over something that he will open his eyes again. altho this is funny to me while he is doing it i was thinking yesterday that there is a lesson to be learned. how many of us walk around with our eyes closed thinking that we know everything around us?? how many of us go thru life blinded only to open our eyes when we trip up or run into a wall? well, i am tired of living life with my eyes closed because reality is, if i would only take time to look around i could save myself a bunch of skinned knees. truth of the matter is, i dont really know my way around. this week i have run into a lot of eye openers and i have learned a lot of lessons about people. but more than that i have learned a lot about me and how i handle situations. i have observed my reactions and have determined the negatives and positives about me. so im walking thru each day lookin life in the eye…

oh… and i applied to Sojourner-Douglass yesterday and i’ll be able to register in a few months for fall semester… YaY Me!!! im excited yall lolzz

my poo butt shay…

In the 6th grade I met a lot of crazy girls!! LoL!! They were my chicks all thru middle school…we got in trouble together, we fought with each other, we beefed over dumb stuff, we supported each other and we tried our best to give each other advice about issues that none of us knew about. I remember all the fights and good times and memories back at DMS… those were the good days. After middle school most of us went our seperate ways. About 4 of us went to the same high school and the rest of them were history. One of them girls that tagged along to high school was Shay, we were closest to her out of all them crazies. But anyways, since the first day of middle school til like 11th grade it was us three: Shanae’, Tanae’ and Nashay [yes all three of our names rhyme!!] Eventually Shay moved and she was no longer there everyday but we still kept in touch. She was still there for all the occasions and two years later she was still calling us her ‘best friends’ LoL!! I love my chick…she has been thru a lot in the past two years and yesterday we sat down and had a super long talk about so much stuff that she has been dealing with. So, I’ll make it my business to be there for her and I’ll make sure that she is in church bright and early sunday morning and i’ll do what I can to help her to rebuild that relationship with God. She just needs to know that no matter how many times you turn away from Him, He’ll always be there waiting for you to turn back to Him. Bottom line, I love my poo butt Shay and for the longest time, she has been there for me holding me down so now its time to be there for her. She is my longest friend and there are not too many people that I can truely call a friend but she is one of them.

pay attention to the warning signs

there was a shooting in Ohio. a kid that was suspended went to the school yesterday and shot four people before killing himself and yet again, there were warning signs. he told them what he was going to do, they complained but nothing was done. no one had time to do anything to prevent things from happening. did they think he was bluffing? well, they should’ve have known by now that anything is possible. anybody can walk up into any school, workplace or building and cause havoc. what used to be ubsurd and unheard of us becoming way too common in the world in which we live… so what do we do about it?? this could have been prevented. everything can be prevented if we do something. if people would stop being “too busy” can start caring than the down fall of a generation can be prevented. just like the principal of that school was too pre-occupied to do anything, most of us in our communities are too pre-occupied to do anything. but when it hits close to home then we cry for help. when its our own children that are in danger, then we wanna protest and do something and have a fit. look around you… there are warning signs. So, do we wait til its too late or do we do something to prevent it??

this is more than just another school shooting…

The Good Die Young

It’s crazy how someone can be here one day and gone the next. You never even think that someone could just be gone in an instant. I just got word that someone I went to school with died yesterday in a car accident. I didn’t know her that well but I know that she was a sweet gurl and she had tons of friends in the area. I know that she was going to school and actually trying to make something of herself. I know that no one even thought for a second that yesterday would be her last day on this earth. She was on her way back to school when the driver of the vehicle fell asleep at the wheel. I’m praying for her family and all her close friends. The community will be greatly affected by this tragedy… so many people loved her and clung to her great and wonderful personality. This will be a hard pill to swallow… just keep all of T.S. in your prayers… cause God knows, we all will miss her and that big bright smile that she carries.

RIP Brielle Newland, I didn’t know you that well but you will forever be missed. Watch over all of us from your seat up in heaven…

To the Fab 8::…

keep yall heads up, yall can get thru this, I know yall loved her.

a lil bit of this and that

why are there some people in this world that chose to never grow up?? i’m really having a difficult time understanding why this one person just wants to be so immature. what really does she get by acting like a five year old child, can we please move on to something better… ITS CALLED MATURITY!! i laugh at people like her because she is a prime example of what i dont want to be like when i grow up…i mean, my thirteen year old sister is more mature than she is and she is well into her 30’s. come on boo-boo, aint nothing in america that serious.

how bout i am so excited for the rest of the week to just come on and get here because i think i will enjoy my weekend for the most part. tomorrow right after work i have to go to my new part time job [congratulate me please] to fill out some paper work. i’m kinda excited because i desperately need to save money and pay bills at the same time. i am sooo super excited about friday night because i get to take my lil sister chelley to this pcif back to school night. i wasn’t going to go but i figured it would be something that she would enjoy so i’m trying to round up her and the kiddies to go ahead and have a good time.

the rest of my weekend will be spent in relaxation unless i get drafted to go somewhere or do something on saturday. i am going to church on sunday…[for all you 7:30 service people, i do go to church i just be sleep during early service and sunday school... maybe if you all went to 10:45 service you would see me there!!! LoL!!] i promise you, i have gotten at least 6 phone calls this week telling me that i better show up in early morning service on sunday. i do miss sunday school a tad bit so i might make an effort to actually wake up early just to go to service and get some breakfast… it’s just that everytime i go to early service i am tempted to leave and go to city for their 11:00 service. but i vow to try my hardest to get up in time to actually go to early service… will i make it?? who knows.

And also, let it be known for the record that I AM NOT A RELATIONSHIP COUNSELOR!! so someone please tell me why everyone seems to be coming to me this week for advice about their relationships. I’M SINGLE!!  maybe that should tell you something… hahaha!! but its beginning to make me think that i am trying out for the wrong profession… maybe i should be a relationship counselor since i seem to be the only one that can solve these people’s problems…