Of Marks of Coolness

It seems to me that all great books and stuff start with Of..., hence the title of my post. Not that the topic is all that great, but its just the idea. I've been instructed to update, and even though I SHOULD be studying for my Spanish test and my Physiology test I decided to quickly write a post. I would like to write about Marks of Coolness.

Once upon a time on the first day of school a young girl named Erika decided to start a new trend at PCHS. She sat wondering what she could do, when an idea flashed across her mind. Grasping one of her brand new Bic blue pens in her hands, she ran the ink down the arm of an unsuspecting classmate.

The classmate protested, wondering what he had done to deserve such treatment. Erika airily proclaimed it to be the new Mark of Coolness, and told the young man that he should be proud of it. Pacified, he agreed to be proud of his Mark and to wear it proudly from henceforth. Erika moved throughout the rest of her day, bestowing Marks of Coolness on all whom she saw fit.

The trend spread, although not all grasped the true object of the Marks. Some saw fit to start pen wars, using the Mark as an excuse. However, the pupils at PCHS soon learned to recognize the Mark of Coolness for what it was. It was understood that Erika had started the Mark, and that as soon as she bestowed it upon you you were free to give it to whomever you liked.

Today at Plymouth if you walk through the halls you will see arms and necks and even an occasional face bearing the Mark of Coolness. The Mark has even spread beyond Plymouth to the Sikma brothers, who hopefully are helping it to spread throughout the greater Grand Rapids area. If you live far away and have no chance to get a Mark, please inform me and I shall give you an internet Mark of Coolness so you can spread the coolness around your world.

The Things One Learns...

Once upon a time...or at least, once...I went bowling. When I got home I got on IM and talked to Pete. Upon hearing my score, 63, he was appalled and said he'd hafta teach me how 2 do better. Since Pete, John, and I had been throwing around the idea of hanging out for quite some time, it was decided we would go bowling. This was quite awhile back, and tonight it FINALLY happened.

We met at the bowling alley on Leonard Street across from some auto parts place at 7. Actually, due to some discrepancy at my house as to what my plans were, I didn't arrive until 7:13 on my clock, and felt bad for being late. Come to find out Pete and Heather were late too. They got there even later than I did!! Once there they mocked me about my van...the AUDACITY!! So around 7:20 John, Pete, Scarlett, Gordon, Lindsay, me, Heather and Kris all entered the bowling place. We went upstairs (it has two floors) and found it empty. Happy we got the floor to ourselves, we got shoes and bowling balls. Mine was a copper one if anyone was interested. It was at this point that I learned thing number one, Pete can't spell names for anything!! Heather was spelled without an a, Lindsay with a y and an e, and Kris with a Ch. Once all this was figured out, and I was set up as Eriker to my disgruntlement, we began to bowl.

Scarlett and I made a bet, during which I learned thing number two, Scarlett is really a better bowler than I, but not by much. I owe her 25 cents now!! The number three thing I learned was that bowling alleys are very loud and normally it takes FOREVER for them to play any songs you might pick out of the little music picker thingie. AND they don't have a volume to turn down the really retarded songs. As we bowled, thing number four hit me, Pete exaggerated his bowling abilities. Now don't get me wrong, he beat me, but ONLY by 28 points...may I say that I got 60 as my score.

It took us a VERY long time to bowl the one game we played due to things number five and six. The service at our bowling place was a bit slow, and the people who helped us spoke Chinese!! I was the first to notice our problem. I bowled my frame and low and behold, the next time I came around my copper bowling ball was gone!! They were eating our balls (lol john)!! Before long all 8 of our balls were gone and they were NOT coming back!! Thing number seven came into play here. I was convinced the Nazis had stolen the balls in a conspiracy plot. Obviously they were going to pummel us with the balls, there by rendering us totally helpless. My idea was scoffed up one, and Heather went to talk to the bowling guy, who she apparently knew. As she came back he followed, and spoke into the phone, which came over the loudspeaker, indecipherable to us. Pete declared it Chinese, John saying it was of the Mongolian dialect. As impressed as we were with their language abilities, we were rather disappointed that the Chinese had no apparent effect on the ball stealer. It took a good 20 minutes before our balls reappeared.

During these 20 minutes, I learned thing number eight. John and Gordon are getting married!! This was announced to us all by the happy couple. They were holding hands with their legs crossed, quite a beautiful scene. They told us they would be serving hamburgers at the wedding because "its just SO much easier!!" I offered them my congratulations, but John responded rather unkindly, informing me I wasn't invited!! So I won't be able to tell you all about the wedding, sorry. I also learned number nine, the Sikmas have a tear shaped driveway and a Pit at their house. The driveway part we learned about when I told them ours was kind of circular, which was why I hit the side of them van when I pulled out of the garage. The Pit information came when we were looking for something to do. John said we could go hang out in the Pit at their house. Number ten was that Pete has dance moves all his own. He was jamming to some insane music that people with VERY bad taste downstairs must have picked. He demonstrated, among other things, the can opener and the orange peeler.

We finished our game, during which Heather and Kris left. It was down to 6 of us, and when the games were done we just sat around talking. Number eleven was that Gordon can't sit around and chat for very long without suggesting we go do something every two minutes!! John and Pete were inclined to agree, but weren't as demanding as good ole Gordon. It was humoring Gordon that I learned number twelve. There is a large tire swing downtown!! I never knew this, and John wanted to go. I vetoed this idea, and thankfully Gordon supported me, because I didn't want to be accosted by drunk people on a swing. I'd told Pete about the Plymouth mark of coolness awhile ago on IM, and since I had a pen we very generously gave John and Pete one. Now they are truly cool.

We'd been sitting for quite some time not really doing anything, and finally we decided to pack up and go outside, hoping inspiration would strike us out there. We saw various people walking past us as we stood out there, including a dog we thought was abandoned until its owner lady came along a few minutes after. I learned number thirteen at this point. John and Pete sang Goodnight Ladies, and it turns out they're pretty good singers!! We stood for awhile longer, before I decided to call my mom and let her know we were done bowling and looking for something else to do. My mom taught me thing number fourteen. It turns out moms who aren't usually all that overprotective can catch you off guard sometimes!! She insisted upon knowing EXACTLY where we were going to go, not content with the idea of us getting into the car and just going where ever the mood struck us...go figure. This forced us into a decision. After a hurried conference, during which TPing, shaving creaming the cars at church, and various other destructive ideas were rejected, we decided to go to Red Hot. I relayed this to my mom, who agreed and asked me to call her when we got there.

We got into our vehicles, and I promptly realized that it was going to be VERY hard to get out of my spot. After trying I gave up, stopping in the small box I'd gotten myself into. Pete took pity on me and got out of his car to direct me. With his help I managed to get out of the lot. I learned thing number fifteen shortly there after. When there's a lot of lights around, its very easy for one to forget to turn their lights on. I was one of those people until we stopped at a light. John stuck his head out the door and informed me of my error. Sheepishly I turned them on.

We arrived at Red Hot around 9:30. Gordon and Scarlett ran into an older couple from their church, who seriously questioned if it wasn't past our curfew. Number sixteen was that old people have a very skewed sense of Friday night time. After gazing fixedly at the menu board for a time, we went up to the first opening in the line. The guy there told us that he only took food orders there, and to proceed down the line. We did this and were greeted by the exact same guy, who took our orders. We all got chocolate milkshakes. It was after receiving these that number seventeen was discovered. Red Hot makes TERRIBLE milkshakes. Pete said they DO make excellent pea soup though, if anyone was interested. The shakes were little more than soggy icecream. It was next to impossible to drink them through a straw, and many of us ended up opting for spoons.

We sat at the table for over an hour talking about a whole bunch of things. Pete had forgotten his camera, but luckily I had mine. We took a couple of pictures, which are sadly waiting to be developed since I don't have a digital. Pete discovered number eighteen. It turns out my camera has a timer thingie on it!! We were able to take a group picture with this innovation. The shake had made John feel slightly nauseous, so I suggested he get some water, which he did. Since he forgot to get me some, I got my own, and learned number nineteen as I returned to my table. John thinks I got dropped down the stairs when I was little!! Obviously this might be true, but he could have just told me to my face!! The water brought about number twenty. When you add water to a milkshake in effort to make it lowfat, the milk and water separate into two layers. This entertained some of us for quite some time. Scarlett and Linz decided they needed to go to the bathroom. John's theory is number twenty one. He thinks that girls bathrooms have large screen TVs in them, which accounts for the fact that girls always go in groups. Go figure!! I've never seen one, if its true!!

Around this time Pete decided it was probably time that they should be going. Since I had to be home soon too we got up and left. We ended up out in the parking lot for another little while talking. I asked John and Pete if they wanted to do the Race for the Cure, and learned number twenty two. John can't do anything next Saturday morning as he has to pick the lint out of his belly button. Pete can't because he's collecting money for the blind at the mall. Obviously I expect to see them next week Saturday. The final thing I learned that night, number twenty three, was something I tend to forget. Time flies when you're having fun!! As I glanced at my watch, I realized I was already five minutes late being home!! We all said our good byes and left.

I haven't laughed so much and so hard in a VERY long time. I can't think of a time I've seen Gordon laugh so much EVER. Scarlett and Lindsay, despite some trepidations from Gordon and I, fit in fine. Scarlett would have to admit that other than a few Looks here and there, I was VERY nice to her. Kris and Heather worked out well, too. We managed to avoid the Nazi conspiracies and didn't get kicked out of anywhere. We didn't get accosted by any drunk guys, either. I would definently say the night was a success. It was VERY fun hanging out with the Sikmas and Miskins. We'll definently have to do it again!!

Items of Interest

I fully intend to publish my bowling adventure of tonight, and am half way through it. It shall be finished tomorrow, perhaps.

Also, the Triple L club, run by me and Scarlett shall premier soon. I'm sure most of the readers will be able to join if they so desire.

The Race for the Cure is Saturday morning, September 24. It is a 5 K run/walk that raises money for breast cancer research. It will take place at Rivertown Crossings Mall and costs $21. You get a t-shirt and lots of free food once there. If anyone is interested they should let me know ASAP!!

I had a dream the other day about you blog people!! In it I was reading the newspaper. In it was an article written by Shannon about the hurricane and the way it was handled, esp. about the guy in charge who isn't even qualified. In it she quoted NL's blog!! It was very bizarre, let me tell you!!

A totally random fact, lithium can be used to treat maniac depression!!

Celebration

Yesterday was the long awaited Celebration on the Grand here in GR. Last year my class and I all went to Britts house after school then downtown for the fireworks. This year was supposed to be the same, but we were going to go the Heather's house instead as of Wednesday. On Thursday we were going to go to Ang's instead. By Friday morning half were going to Heather's, half to Ang's. Friday afternoon came around, three people to Ang's, two to Heathers, 6 to Brent's, 4 to John's, and the rest to their own houses in acute frustration. I was one of the accute frusteration cases. I arrived home late, having missed my bus due to the Chemistry class's fieldtip to Grand Haven's GVSU water quality boat thing running half an hour past the end of the day. I called about 5 different phones getting about 500 different answers as to what we should do. Finally I decided to go to John's house and go from there. I got in my beaaaaaaaaaautiful grey van and did just that, arriving without a problem.

Once there it was decided that we should all meet at once place for supper and then drive down together. This was an acceptable plan, and after conferring with my better 1/4's, we decided to go to our preferred set of fast food places, the MickyD's/Arby's/Adobe on Leonard. We called everyone and told them to meet us there at 6:30 and that we would leave for downtown at 7:15. This plan was carried out to a T...or as close to at T as 17 teenages can manage.

My mothers parting words to me were no groups of kids riding with you, and make sure you park at the Kendal place. I left Arby's with 3 passengers...not large group, right? I was the last one out of the parking lot, my first signal that something was not as it should be. I had specifically asked for at least one car to stay behind me in case of seperation. This request was apparently too much to hope for. As we drove, everyone made it through a crutial light...except me. By the time I got through the light the rest of the group was nowhere to be seen. Christie, my official navigator, told me she had thought they got on the highway, and so I did too. By the time I realized there was a detour on the exit I wanted, I also realized to get to the Pearl Street exit one must cross 5 lanes of traffic and ignore the sign that expressly forbids such an action. We got off the Market street exit instead, and frantially called John's phone, inquiring WHERE they might be.

It turns out that they had never gotten onto the highway!! This sent me into a panic. The next 15-ish minutes were quite traumatic for everyone invoved. The reason my mom didn't want me to park anywhere but the Kendall building was so I wouldn't have to navigate through the various one way and many laned and chaotic downtown GR streets. That is exactly what ended up happening. John told us to get on Michigan Street...ok, we did this. We went around a couple blocks searching for the next cross street. In our search we neglected to pay attention the the proper lane, and ended up turning right onto a street from the left turn lane...or something like that. In anycase it was hightly illegal and seemingly very dangerous. Well, guess what. as we were going UP Michigan street, everyone else was going DOWN it!! This resulted in us going on a wild goosechase.

The phone was handed to Sarah by now, who was better at explaining directions then John was. Now we had to figure out a way to turn around or at least figure out where on EARTH we were. We did this, pulling into a tiny lot to regroup. Next to us was a man in a car who looked a LOT like the cartoon Gollum in the Hobbit movie we watched last year in classic lit. He was pale as anything and incredibly skinny and generally scary looking. Anyway, so we figured out where we were going kind of, but not exactly. I was rather upset at this point, and then I noticed we were parked next to an "adult movie theater".

After nearly hitting a family with a stroller, I managed to pull out of the lot and get back to where I needed to be. Unfortunately the road I was supposed to turn onto was one way and I was totally going in the wrong direction and in the!! This seemed rather unsafe to me as you might imagine, and I refused to turn. I went through the intersection and turned into one of those ramp parking things. Turns out trying to turn around in one is VERY hard, I wouldn't recommend it personally. Finally we got to the right street and continued on until 6th street, where we found Sarah, the only person who I wasn't mad at by that point, on the corner by herself waiting to direct us to the Kendall building. Upon reaching the building I was more than releaved, let me tell ya!!

We set off for the Pearl Street bridge where all the cool people, including the whole Plymouth group and supposedly Janna and the rest of the Jurries and the Sikmas and whoever else from that group. It's a bit of a hike from the Kendall building, but we got there eventually. We reconnected with a group of guys we'd lost way back at skool. One of them told me that Gordon was there with the Sikma brothers. I was really excited, as I'd been waiting to meet John and Pete for awhile.

What I forgot to consider is the mild impossibility of finding someone you really want to find at Celebration. After walking back and forth a few times I gave up, figuring I'd find them eventually. Once one has reached the bridge there is the issue of finding a seat. Since we were all standing around talking at that point no one was really doing this. I considered it, and then suddenly Gordon appeared, John and Pete in tow. It was really cool to see 'em in the flesh, not singing Good Night Ladies or with their harems. They mingled well with the Plymouth-ites I think. Di, being her loud and slightly overbearing self, did a wonderful job talking to them. We love her anyway though. Then out of nowhere came James. It was also good to see him, and he recognized me right away, which was cool too. After Di almost killed his phone he left, but not without taking a picture of her, with me looking dreadful in the background. A few of us stood in the middle of the bridge for awhile talking. Pete left presently, citing the friendlessness of a friend of his back at his blanket. John hung around with another friend of his, Joshua, who I didn't know at all. I think John and Pete all got along pretty well with us crazy plymouth-ites. Hopefully they didn't get too scared:-)

The night was a lot of fun. Despite the traumatic driving experience, the crazy figureing out what we were going to do and where we were going to go, and all that it was definently a sucess. The fireworks were colorful and abundant. The grand finale made the bridge vibrate like crazy, it was awesome!! It was really cool to meet some of the blog people, thought I would have liked to meet the Jurries. Some other time. I made it home in one piece, thankfully. And now that I've spent like 4 hours getting this done I'd better just post it!!

Clear the Roads!!

*dings fork against glass (not wine, don't worry)* Ladies and gentlemen, I have an announcement to make. I have officially joined the ranks of those with what is commonly known as a drivers license. Last week Friday I went and took my drivers test, passing with flying colors...or at least passing. This past Tuesday I went to the secretary of states office and got my mugshot taken and received my paper license. Yesterday my mom called the insurance company and added me to the insurance policy on our van. Today I drove to Damons on 28th Street and watched the Michigan game (they won btw). I haven't gotten into an accident yet!! However, if you see a grey minivan in an accident around Grand Rapids anytime soon look twice...it might be me!!