Being Sick

I was sick for a while. Last Friday, I started to get a bit of a cough and a headache, but I didn’t have a fever yet, so I went about life as usual. It wasn’t until Monday, my senior night, that I entered fever temperatures and was forced into isolation.

The isolation room is like being in exile. You can’t talk to people in person, and the teachers give you food with masks and the utmost protection. I was too busy burning up to notice the day passing by. When I thought my temperature was decreasing, it would spike up, and I’d lie waiting for the sweet relief of the cold AC. On Tuesday, my temperature was normal during the day, but when it was checked at night, it spiked again, and I had to spend another day in isolation.

My friends came to visit, and they brought life into the dull room. The room itself is pretty cute. I’m glad student leaders were able to work with the nurse to put up decorations.

My mom visited me when she picked up my sister for her dentist appointment. I think her visiting me boosted my spirits enough to finally stop feeling feverish. Her angelic presence blessed me with Gatorade and chicken soup.

I hope I never get sick again.

credit: Pinterest

Waterproof Mascara

I think that waterproof mascara has completely ruined my lashes. I’ve been mourning my lashes before I started using waterproof and they were just to their fullest. They were full, long, and double lined. Now their thin and t looks like I’m balding on my lash line.

Well maybe not quite, but it’s definitely not what i am used to. Although I do really love waterproof since it was one of the only mascaras that helped my lashes stay up. I need a very long break from it.

Also taking off waterproof mascara after a long night or day, even if you have makeup remover, it takes forever. It feels like I’m scrubbing my eyes for a solid 20 minutes before its even remotely off. I feel like waterproof mascara is liked by many people but no one talks about how it has bad effects. I honestly think it just thins out your lashes to a point where they break.

So if you’re reading this and your thinking about using waterproof mascara please put your lashes first. You do not wanna deal with your natural lashes looking awful even after a regular curl.

Yes it has a positive side but the negative effects of it completely take over. Yeah they stay up but is it worth the breakage? Its really not and I would throw away every waterproof mascara if I could to get my old lashes back.

I’m the type of person that always has to take their makeup off. It doesn’t matter the occasion or where we are. Before I go to bed I must take off my makeup, so if you are that person. Do not get waterproof mascara.

Brush Makeup” by kinkate/ CC0 1.0

Baseball

I went to baseball practice for the first time this year. It was so much fun. The team is much different from it was last year, but I hope we can still play well and have a good time. Mr. P was so nice and friendly until he made the entire team run in the rain. Mr. C was so mean to me when he threw me fly balls way over my head and told me things that cannot be repeated.

My friends Archer and Renji are not as skilled as me and struggled to keep up with Jacob and me. Jacob has shown immense promise as the leadoff hitter and starting pitcher with his mound presence piercing the egos of the enemies. Archer can work on a few things, like how to hit someone in the chest and how to catch a routine fly ball. Renji needs help with english but his baseball is impeccable. Renji tends to shout Japanese terms when a ball flies in his direction.

I am so excited for the season with my buddies and can’t wait to play all the country music while playing catch. Archers body is a temple, and he is meditating 🧘‍♂️ awaiting his first game.

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Spring Sports Soon

With winter sports coming to an end, the spring sports are up ahead and I couldn’t be more ecstatic. Although the winter season seems to be the shortest of them all, it’s always a great action filled season and I enjoy every moment.

With Baseball on the way in spring I see no world where the Spuds aren’t making playoffs this year. Although losing some of our seniors was rough, the talent is still there and we got our guys ready to go this year. The first practice in on the 9th with the first game on the 19th, leaving us roughly 8 days of hard practice to get ready for our first game.

Last year was a great year, as I led the team to its only 2nd appearance in CIF round 2 in school history. We may have lost some seniors who were key pieces and 2 kids transferred away, but were not letting that get to us.

Every year the anticipation to play baseball in the spring gets more and more, and I think that’s because I keep falling in love with the sport. I also love winning, which I’m guaranteeing this year.

pc: Ojai Valley News

Tea

My night cannot begin without boiling water and herbal tea. Before I let myself fall into a deep sleep, I have to prepare my nightly cup. It is a small routine, but it feels necessary. It marks the end of my day.

Most nights, I drink chamomile and lavender. Sometimes it is spearmint or jasmine. It really depends on the mood of the night and how the day went. Recently, I have been adding chlorophyll drops to my tea, turning it into a dark blue drink that feels like a mix of sweet dreams and detox.

On the nights when I cannot be bothered to heat water, I never sleep as well. Even if I am exhausted, skipping my tea makes the night feel unfinished. My body may be tired, but my mind does not settle in the same way.

I look forward to my bedtime tea every night. It is not just about the drink. It is about slowing down, being present, and giving myself a moment of calm before the day fully ends.

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A Perfect Weekend

I had quite possibly the greatest Sunday any man has ever had before. I woke up at around 9:30 and ate some brunch, where I found Mr. P. He told me he needed help on the baseball field, so after I went to the gym, we pulled weeds for 30 minutes.

After this, Archer and his mom came to pick up Ray, Mike, and me to play a round of golf at Soule Park. Even though I don’t work there anymore, the employees gaveme free golf and half off our lunch.

While on the course, we had a ball. Though the golf lacked in quality, it made up for it in laughs. I ended up shooting a 39 on the front nine with a birdie on hole 4 and an eagle on hole 5. That was special.

Archer began to get upset and blasted his TikTok for you page on the speaker instead of our music. It was at this point that we gave up, took our shirts off, and went downhill from here.

I ended golf on hole 13 when it got too dark. Luckily, my good friend, Isaac Thrope, was at the course too and played hole 13 against me for 20 dollars. I, of course, won with a par, and he lost with a double bogey.

Ended with dinner at Zaidees and went back to upper for some line dancing with the Ventucky Stompers. What a day.

Line Dancing with the Ventucky Stompers : r/ventura

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Black Hair

I’m usually not very impulsive. I always take my time thinking things out. Sometimes I take so much time it turns into overthinking, but last night couldn’t be more different. I’ve been contemplating dying my hair black for years now. I always find some worry or reason not to, though. My mom told me I should wait to get it done by professionals, but the waiting was what was shooting me down. The more time I had to think about it, the more I convinced myself it was a bad idea. Last night, as I was scrolling on my phone, the strongest urge suddenly hit me. I jumped up and called my friend to tell her it was happening. We drove to the store and bought dye, and just started painting the color in. I didn’t give myself the time to overthink it or back out; I just did it. Today I woke up with no regrets. I don’t know why I was so scared or why I didn’t commit sooner. I hope that this moment of impulsiveness will set me up to overthink less in the future. YOLO!!!

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Its Finally Done

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It’s finally over. I’ve applied to all the colleges and universities I wanted to. Now all I have to do is wait for the rest of my responses. The application process was not as bad as I thought it was, stressful yes, but when you get everything done, it feels accelerating and rewarding. 

Finishing the work required feels more rewarding than the actual reply from said universities. In my personal experience, getting the email saying “you’ve been accepted” hasn’t really done much for me emotionally. A couple of days ago, I received an email with my acceptance letter from a school in New York. I did not even realize I had received it until 24 hours later, and even then, I did not feel any acceleration. The only time I felt happy was when I saw the scholarship I received. 

In the upcoming emails, I hope I actually feel some over-the-top emotion and not just twenty seconds of mild happiness.

Complacent Divided

Hating is easy. Complaining about inconvenience is easy. Antagonizing the world is easy. Destroying in a tantrum is easy. But regardless of whether the hate is justified, it is in human nature to keep pursuing ease once exposed to and comfortable with it. And yet ease is rarely what we need.

Overcoming is hard. Fixing what’s flawed is hard. Understanding one another is hard. Giving the benefit of the doubt is hard. But recently, it seems as though people have become complacent with ease.

More than ever, I believe that we need to be more patient and willing to cooperate with one another. As much as I struggle with social interaction, it is an immovable truth that both my school community and the world at large are filled with people I constantly need to converse and engage with. So why are we so hateful? Why are we so quick to point fingers and pinpoint a single source of blame? Why do we not think twice about the things we say? Why can’t we meet halfway?

Of course, not everything in life works out as intended. No matter how much they try, some people may be inherently incompatible. But that highlights my point: we have to try. Despite our school’s exceptionally small student population, a lot of us don’t know each other particularly well. And yet, everyone is so quick to complain, assume, and accuse. If we are all forced to coexist and depend on one another, then we might as well try to understand one another.

How Many People Have Ever Lived On Earth?

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Soccer Struggles

The first week back from break, the OVS soccer team had a game against Newbury Park. The team was still sluggish because of the three weeks we had off.

I had my own set of challenges coming into the game because I left my soccer gear at my house in Palm Springs. Luckily, Kai had an extra pair of black shorts, and my white socks could be stretched to cover my shin guards. The shorts were nearly pants in size, but they worked, and I was able to play.

The game was difficult. None of us was 100% there. In between plays, I talked to Kai, who said mentally he is still in Japan playing video games. I know I was mentally still in bed or on a couch watching TV.

Over the course of the game, we kept getting slower and slower. The runs became jogs, and the team’s energy wasn’t where it should be.

We ended up losing the game, but came back stronger and won our next two games.

Athletics - Ojai Valley School

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