“Ah, the sweet glow of fluorescent lighting at 7:30 a.m., I’m going to miss waking up for this,” is a phrase I don’t think I’ve ever heard any one of my classmates utter in all four of my years at LHS. As senior year comes to a close, I’ve come across numerous articles shared on Facebook lamenting all the great things about high school.
Don’t get me wrong, I love high school. Yes, I actually loved my experience at LHS, and I could potentially write a lengthy list of fantastic things I am going to miss about high school life. Alas, I find it much more entertaining (and less sad) to fire off all of the things I most certainly will not be missing about high school. From the early start times, to four years of state mandated physical education, I think many students will be able to say my list is #relatable.
- The early start times
- 7:30 a.m. to be exact
- The prison-esque structure of school
- Scheduled, supervised meal times? Hmm…
- Protocol for leaving the room & using the bathroom
- “That’ll be one bathroom buck — say goodbye to your extra credit!”
- “Now” passes
- No, “now” is not a good time for me to leave class and talk to my dean.
- Libertyville Lingo
- It’s not bayd anymore.
- Pre (and post) dance drama
- “You want to be in our group? Sorry, we already have an even number of 40.”
- Awful cafeteria food
- Yum, can’t wait to dig into the food that’s been sitting out for 6+ hours.
- Mock fire, tornado, & lockdown drills
- (Cue male voice repeating “lockdown” on intercom)
- Seven academic classes in one day
- “Aw, sorry to hear you have three tests already this week, but let me add two more.”
- Sitting for 8+ hours for five days of the week
- Two words: back pain
- End of semester stress
- It’s two days before the final and your grade just dropped to an 89.1.
- Hunting for a parking place
- You know you messed up when you have to resort to parking in the back lot.
- Reciting the pledge everyday
- I pledge allegiance to the flag, that I’ve pledged my allegiance to nearly everyday since freshman year.
- Getting asked every other day if I’ve made a decision on college
- “I know I asked you yesterday, but has anything changed in the past 24 hours?”
- Getting asked every other day if I’ve made a decision on what I what to do with my life
- Finally, I’ve resorted to making up a new occupation every time someone asks this. Yesterday I wanted to be a firefighter. Today? I’m thinking space ballerina.
- Mandated gym & heart rate monitors
- “Today we’ll be running the lake! I know it’s 25 degrees, sorry I forgot to tell you yesterday so that you could remember to bring sweats! You’ll be fine — you’re moving around!”
- Before school sports practice
- And you thought normal start times were early!
- Swim unit
- I can clearly see the delectable film of oils and sweat laying atop the pool.
- Freshmen that clog the hallways because they just don’t get it yet
- Now is not the time and place to stop and talk to your friend group — there are people here that have places to be and people to see. MOVE!
- Everything
- Not really, truly high school hasn’t been that bad. Our school is quite fantastic, but right now, I’m ready to leave everything behind.
