The future is terrifying. This is known fact. 
     The future is even scarier when people are throwing statistics at you about how poorly the job market is doing. Or how young people's unemployment or underemployment rates are sky rocketing.
     I am scared.
     I am scared of failure in university. I am scared of not finding a job in my field. I am scared of debt. I am scared. 
     But the thing about the future, is that it's not too far off. The future is tomorrow, next week, next month and next year. So to prepare myself for all of these nexts, I of course turn to the internet. 
     Whist on the internet I find many things that help to dilute my fear of the future.  I found that there are universities that offer programs that will help me get to the exact place I want to be. And within these programs there are plenty of internships to apply for.

 I am scared of the future but i'm also excited.
     I am excited to be on my own. I am excited to make little decisions in my life. To decide what colour I want to pant the walls. To decide where I hang that painting. To decide the furniture that goes in my home. I am excited.
     But other than these seemingly insignificant things, I am excited to work.
     I am excited to find a job( maybe) that I love. I don't need to love it every day but I want to love it in the long run. I am excited that I can show people that I can work hard. That I can make something of myself. 
     The future is scary because it is unknown. But preparing yourself will lift some of the fear and allow you to see how bright your future can be.

      School is generally hated amongst most teens, myself included some days. So what is the ideal school system? The system that would make all students want to come to school? Well, I'm not sure what the ideal school system is but in my ideal school system there are 2 main things that should be changed from the present system.
      1. Smaller number of students in classes. Having fewer people in your class would mean that there will be less distractions from your work. Decreasing people will decrease noise and people to be distracted by.
      This would as well increase the worth of the teacher. Your teacher will be able to spend more time with you and help you to increase the effectiveness of your learning. Also, these smaller numbers would mean that more teachers would be hired, thus creating jobs for aspiring educators.

2. There should be a larger focus on self directed learning. Learning is important and you learn every second of everyday. But no kid wants to sit in a class listening to some teacher babble on about something they could not care less about. That's why I think that it's important for students to be able to choose what they want to do within the guidelines and curriculum of the course. 
     For example, if you're in history learning about World War 1 you can research certain things that interest you within the war, rather than being limited to a certain battle or section. 
      Most people assume that teens don't care about learning or school or anything but their friends. That may be true in some cases, but if this plan was put into action, I think that many teens would enjoy school and learning far more than they do now.

      Today I signed up for the, questionably named S-trip!
I think that this is an amazing opportunity that everyone should take part in if they have the chance. I am paying for this trip by myself because I just could not pass up a chance like this.
     First off, this trip is entirely based around what the students want to do. This trip aims to be a last hoorah before students graduate (you can go on the trip in any year of high school, although it is mainly for seniors). This means that they have tons of fun things to do, that you actually want to do. They have surfing lessons, zip lining, tours, tournaments, theme days, theme nights and tons more. Personally I find these activities way more fun than crafts or childish games that they usually have at trips booked through the school.
     Secondly, it is a trip with you and your friends! Why isn't that something you want to do? This trip is barely affiliated with CHCI. All the staff come from the resort you're staying at and the S-trip! team. They aren't constantly hovering over you, they let you do what you want under certain guidelines.

      Last, IT'S THE DOMINICAN REPUBLIC IN MARCH! It's a gorgeous place to be and the city we're staying near has tons of things to buy and see. The resort we're staying on is gorgeous and full of readily available staff.
      Although I will be working my butt off for the next year to pay for this trip, I have a feeling it will be worth every penny!
Here's S-trip! promo video!

      People fall into 2 categories introverted or extroverted.  This is a huge generalization, but we all fit. Let's get to know introverts and extroverts!
   Introversion is "the state of or tendency toward being wholly or predominantly concerned with and interested in one's own mental life". This essentially means that an introvert prefers to be alone and "recharges" when they are alone. This is different from someone who is shy because an introvert prefers to be alone, rather than being timid during social encounters like someone who is shy. Introverts are very thoughtful and tend to spend more time thinking about the things they say before they say them. 
Common Misconceptions of an Introvert:
- Hates people
- Hates being social
- Doesn't know how to be social
- Is a shut-in
  Extroversion is "the act, state, or habit of being predominantly concerned with and obtaining gratification from what is outside the self". This basically means that an extrovert prefers to be around people, and "recharges" from being in groups of people. They tend to speak without thinking, and is usually outgoing, talkative, and outspoken. 

Common Misconceptions of an Extrovert:
- Hates being alone
- Doesn't know how to be alone
- Can't be alone
     The thing about these personality categorizations is that every person is different, so they obviously have varying levels of these traits. 
     If we use myself as an example I would categorize myself as an introvert. If we put it on a scale of 1- 10 ,1 being extremely extroverted and 10 being extremely introverted, I am a 7. I like to be by myself and feel the need to be alone to recuperate after being with people for lengthy periods of time. But I do like to have lunch or coffee or spend the night with close friends, it's the matter that I can only tolerate people  for a certain amount of time.  
    I also encourage you to find out what category you fall into, and take this online test: http://funtestiq.com/personality/personalitytest39.shtml

      On Wednesday March 27, my class and many other FFP classes from the WRDSB went to the TEDx Youth @ Waterloo conference. This was an amazing experience, the people that spoke were truly inspiring to listen too. 
      The morning half of the day was excellent. The speakers were well prepared and all around good presenters.  There was a spoken word poet named Holly Painter. She was truly amazing, they way she used and manipulated words was incredible. She talked about bullying and the cruelty of children over the internet. When she wrote her poem, she said she was also reading the hunger games, She did a wonderful job of crossing and relating the 2 topics.  She was by far the best of the day.
      

Another speaker I enjoyed was Richard Mclean. He essentially delivered an autobiography. HE talked about his childhood and how he ended up being homeless. His story was one of redemption and coming back from bad times, and not accepting the cards you were dealt. 
     The afternoon wasn't as good in my opinion. The speakers weren't as enthusiastic and the topics they spoke about weren't as interesting, to me at least. 
     Overall it was a wonderful day and I am so happy to have gone. It's an experience I wouldn't trade or take back. Definitely not a day wasted.