Shoots and Ladders
In clear testament that I am not all the Nature Gal I'm cracked up to be, I just had a girlie freak-out when I discovered a little eight-legged (well, actually six legs and one pair of antenna according to my far-more-rudimentary-than-it-should-be, half-assed attempt at Bio II AP knowledge) friend on my pillow, that brought my solo, Friday night, shake-your-groove-thang dance party to a screeching halt. I previously had nearly thrown out my back (I'm not exaggerating one little bit-- I actually had to sit down, and almost got an ice pack from the freezer!) due to my intense for-the-mirror-only gyrations and violent hip-swivels, but had kept right on rockin' to the driving beats of "Pour Some Sugar On Me," and "Sunglasses at Night," "Since U [sic] Been Gone" and, my personal favorite, Samantha Mumba's(what? who?) stunning one-hit-wonder, "A.M. to P.M." So, needless to say, it's been one crazy Friday night. I was really, really drained from this week, and relished the opportunity of having the house to myself tonight. (Please, let's not make any jokes about how any other "normal" teenager would pounced upon the opportunity of the house to oneself to throw, say, a "kegger" or some other sort of inebrieted, American fun, where I, instead, opted to throw a wild-'n-crazy dance party for no one other than my stuffed animals on my comforter and my mirror. What am I saying? It's a riot.)
But I digress. I wanted to write an entry tonight to let you all know I'm still alive and rocking out in the free world. Which would normally prompt a "mmhmm" from readers, or a "blah, whatever." But, this tidbit (my continued existence?) has become fodder for local TV stations, newscasters, and, of course, the always-thriving rumor mill.
Well, not so much my continued existence, so much as the students of my high school's existence. A rumor began about my school along the lines that a school shooting was supposed to occur yesterday (4/20), which happens to be the anniversary of Columbine, as well as Hitler's birthday, and Pot Day (oh, it also was when my BAT MITZVAH WAS, thanks very much, bitches. Way to ruin a perfectly lovely date!). And, apparently people had seen swatstikas around school (this actually scared me a bit. But, I never saw any. Anyway, I'll continue...).
So, the chatter began. "Ahhh! School shooting going to be on April 20th! Run for your liiiives!" Whispers circulated the dim hallways. Worried glances at the calender. Anxious students nervously telling their overprotective parents, who in a classic parental move (of course) called the principal, who felt compelled to send an email about the 'situation' to all the parents at our school, who then fowarded it to their entire extended families, which then brought the aunts/uncles/cousins/grandmothers/grandfathers/twice-removed-third-generation-whoevers into the school-shooting rumor.
As the paranoia built, I, of course, was completely and totally oblivious. No one talks to me, you all know that! So it wasn't until I was checking my email (yes, I'm always The Badass) in the Computer Lab when the gangly freshman next to me asked his equally awkward-looking counterpart if he would be coming to school tomorrow. FreakyFrosh 1 said he wasn't sure if he would be coming, but probably not, because it was supposed to be nice and he'd rather "hit the beach" and chalk it up to "that shooting thing" and "not feeling safe." FreakyFrosh 2 agreed with 1's brilliant plan. "Sweet, dude."
And so it was. April 20th was a pristine day, with beautiful temperatures and pastel-blue skies. The landscape of school was completed by the fleet of police officers and bomb-sniffing dogs who greeted me as I arrived at school that morning. I was directed into the gym, where these dogs sniffed my bags and textbooks, and the police gave me a once-over and decided I wasn't too threatening. Awesome. So I went about my day. Obviously, no shooting occured. There was never any fact basis the rumor ever. It was just a rumor. That's all. But that didn't stop FOX News, The WB and a few others, and all the local stations, from covering our "scary and close-to-home update." The complete falseness of the rumor didn't stop 492 students from not coming to school on Thursday (the 20th).
The entire thing was completely spun out of proportion, and ridiculously so. When I walked into school, all I could think about was The Crucible: the paranoia and fear generated ("Shooting!" "Violence!" "Death!" "My CHILDREN won't be SAFE!!!") by the vicious rumor-mill back in Salem was alive and pumping even better than ever on Thursday. (This comparison was also noticed by my (amazing) English teacher, as she reflected on yesterday's events with my class today! I almost couldn't keep my excitement in. Those in the class (themagicpebble, riegs831, yew_tree or porcelainpoodle) will probably tell you that I didn't keep my excitement in. Anyway.)
So that's basically my story for today. You never know what crazy rumor will circulate, what the consequences will be, how seriously it will be taken, etc. Now, I know many of you will say a shooting had been planned, it just wasn't executed because the police where there. Maybe so. But that doesn't change the intense fear and paranoia that ran rampant throughout the school.
WIth that, I'll leave you all with a little wisdom:
"All I'm saying is that you can't hide from certain death, so you shouldn't hide from an uncertain life." (Charmed Thirds, page 289)
But I digress. I wanted to write an entry tonight to let you all know I'm still alive and rocking out in the free world. Which would normally prompt a "mmhmm" from readers, or a "blah, whatever." But, this tidbit (my continued existence?) has become fodder for local TV stations, newscasters, and, of course, the always-thriving rumor mill.
Well, not so much my continued existence, so much as the students of my high school's existence. A rumor began about my school along the lines that a school shooting was supposed to occur yesterday (4/20), which happens to be the anniversary of Columbine, as well as Hitler's birthday, and Pot Day (oh, it also was when my BAT MITZVAH WAS, thanks very much, bitches. Way to ruin a perfectly lovely date!). And, apparently people had seen swatstikas around school (this actually scared me a bit. But, I never saw any. Anyway, I'll continue...).
So, the chatter began. "Ahhh! School shooting going to be on April 20th! Run for your liiiives!" Whispers circulated the dim hallways. Worried glances at the calender. Anxious students nervously telling their overprotective parents, who in a classic parental move (of course) called the principal, who felt compelled to send an email about the 'situation' to all the parents at our school, who then fowarded it to their entire extended families, which then brought the aunts/uncles/cousins/grandmothers/grandfathers/twice-removed-third-generation-whoevers into the school-shooting rumor.
As the paranoia built, I, of course, was completely and totally oblivious. No one talks to me, you all know that! So it wasn't until I was checking my email (yes, I'm always The Badass) in the Computer Lab when the gangly freshman next to me asked his equally awkward-looking counterpart if he would be coming to school tomorrow. FreakyFrosh 1 said he wasn't sure if he would be coming, but probably not, because it was supposed to be nice and he'd rather "hit the beach" and chalk it up to "that shooting thing" and "not feeling safe." FreakyFrosh 2 agreed with 1's brilliant plan. "Sweet, dude."
And so it was. April 20th was a pristine day, with beautiful temperatures and pastel-blue skies. The landscape of school was completed by the fleet of police officers and bomb-sniffing dogs who greeted me as I arrived at school that morning. I was directed into the gym, where these dogs sniffed my bags and textbooks, and the police gave me a once-over and decided I wasn't too threatening. Awesome. So I went about my day. Obviously, no shooting occured. There was never any fact basis the rumor ever. It was just a rumor. That's all. But that didn't stop FOX News, The WB and a few others, and all the local stations, from covering our "scary and close-to-home update." The complete falseness of the rumor didn't stop 492 students from not coming to school on Thursday (the 20th).
The entire thing was completely spun out of proportion, and ridiculously so. When I walked into school, all I could think about was The Crucible: the paranoia and fear generated ("Shooting!" "Violence!" "Death!" "My CHILDREN won't be SAFE!!!") by the vicious rumor-mill back in Salem was alive and pumping even better than ever on Thursday. (This comparison was also noticed by my (amazing) English teacher, as she reflected on yesterday's events with my class today! I almost couldn't keep my excitement in. Those in the class (themagicpebble, riegs831, yew_tree or porcelainpoodle) will probably tell you that I didn't keep my excitement in. Anyway.)
So that's basically my story for today. You never know what crazy rumor will circulate, what the consequences will be, how seriously it will be taken, etc. Now, I know many of you will say a shooting had been planned, it just wasn't executed because the police where there. Maybe so. But that doesn't change the intense fear and paranoia that ran rampant throughout the school.
WIth that, I'll leave you all with a little wisdom:
"All I'm saying is that you can't hide from certain death, so you shouldn't hide from an uncertain life." (Charmed Thirds, page 289)
