Ah, yes. Senior year. The epic of my school years, not to mention the present grade I’m in.
Let’s see, where to start off?
Oh, I think I know what to talk about, first.
From freshman year to senior year, I had taken care of six hamsters. Spottie, Giggles, Honey, Badge, Cecil and Lucas. Surprisingly, despite the fact that most hamsters live from 2-3 years, Honey had outlasted all of the other five hamsters (of course, Spottie doesn’t count; she died before Honey was even bought).
It was probably late in September. It was days before AWA, an Anime convention that my sister and I annually went to, and I was getting pretty hyped up because I was going to be Nepeta, a character from the webcomic ‘Homestuck’. I was so excited because it was the first costume I had ever pulled together instead of buying the whole costume itself.
Honey was pretty old at this point; possibly 3+ years old. But she was pretty lively, so I never understood how she could’ve passed away while I was at school.
I came home that day, and I went into the room where we kept the hamsters. My dad was in the same room, working on his computer. We talked about how my day went, and I went ahead and checked up on Honey in her decorous cage.
She wasn’t moving.
She was laying there, completely still.
Of course, she frequently slept on the first floor of her cage, so I wasn’t alarmed at all. I then deigned it appropriate to bawl my eyes out when I picked her up. Her body was desiccated and stone cold, rigor mortis having already set in. It was obvious that she had been dead at LEAST a couple of hours.
I had gotten used to the deaths of my hamsters over the years, so it didn’t take long for me to calm down and eventually bury her. I went to the convention as usual, and while I was there, I met a few awesome Homestuck fans and we quickly became the group known as ‘Formation 9’. Sadly, the group didn’t last long. There was a lot of strife in that group over the next few months, and it just died out.
Later in the year, my orchestra had arranged a trip to New York City. This would be the last year they would ever do such a trip, since it cost so much money. My mom chaperoned once again, and we proceeded to have an amazing time in the City that Never Sleeps. The main highlights were going on the airplane, going up to the Top of the Rock and seeing the 9/11 memorial.
However, since I had never been on an airplane before, that was probably the cynosure of the trip, and it’s pretty putative and cognizant to know that I was more excited than ever.
We departed early in the morning; it was cold and rainy, and we were all still sleepy. It wasn’t until we got on the plane that I began to feel pretty antsy. I sat between two ladies who were complete strangers to me. However, they both reassured me that the ride would be fun. By the time we were ready to take off, I had gotten them both excited for the ride. My nervousness began to engender when we took off, mesmerized by the roar of the engine that took over the rest of my senses.
Needless to say, it was pretty awesome. I’ll never forget the trip to NYC.
Oh! We also visited the Metropolitan Museum, the Rockefeller Center, the Wax Museum, the Statue of Liberty, and saw the Phantom of the Opera (which had the efficacy to pull me into liking it; I mostly wanted to see Wicked while we were there) and listened to Wynton Marsalis and his jazz band at the Lincoln Center.
Just recently, I asked a boy to the upcoming prom. On that same day, I got my prom dress; a white dress that’s short in the front but long in the back. It’s a shame that prom is on my birthday; not to mention that same week is packed with a ton of events, such as my cousin’s wedding and finals. Hoo, Senior year. Definitely the most eventful and ethereal year of my life.
Symbolic Picture:
Symbolic Song:
Pomp & Circumstance
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