I'm going to miss you guys :(

Hey everyone! I just wanted to say that I'm going to miss everyone from STM :( I hope that we are able to get together sometimes all together as the community we are. And I hope that everyone has fun at their colleges and that COVID won't ruin anything else. Also I wanted to thank Ms. King for teaching us for two years, we'll miss you !!!

(sorry I'm copying Lindsey) EVERYONE PLS READ

Writing this makes me so sad. It is my last blog post ever. I am so glad I had this class because it really was one of my favorites and one I looked forward to it every day mainly because of the people in it. So, I have a little message for everyone. (Also, thank you Lindsey for this idea it was so sweet!) 

Dear Lindsey, thank you for everything. You are my bestest friend and I hope we stay in touch forever! You have always been there for me and I hope you know I will always be here for you. Thank you for the countless memories, good and bad, I will remember them forever. Thank you for the many study dates and just always being there to talk, especially on the softball field. I am sorry I don't answer EVERY SINGLE call (lol). I love you so much and don't forget it! 

Dear Sophia, you will always be my mall chick (lol). I know you love Steven and Rosemary, but you will always be my favorite Warren. Thank you for always being there when I needed someone to talk to. You are truly one of the sweetest people ever. I know you are going to go off and do amazing things. I will always support you and if you ever need anything please don't hesitate! I will never forget our countless mall trips and food trips. I love you a ton!

Dear Elyse, first let me just thank you for going through 8th grade theater with me (lol). Thank you for all the cringy memories we made in 8th grade and freshmen year and thank you for helping me get through stuff. You are such a sweet person and I know you will be successful because of your work ethic. I will always remember our pool and music dates. You are going to do great things at Auburn and I know we are going to stay in touch so I can see them all! I will be in Alabama so don't hesitate to call me to catch up! Love you!!!

Dear Sara, thank you for always being so positive. You are such a sweet person and bring out the positive in everything. Never change that please! I am also so glad you pushed through it and played softball this year. I know it didn't end how we planned but I am so glad we got to make those final memories together. Also, our talks about the future in religion were the best. I'm going to miss you so much and just know you can always call me! I love you!

Dear Jake, geez. What do I even say. I have known you for 15 years. I will admit we weren't that close but man has that changed. You are such a sweet person and I glad to call you one of my best friends. Always keep that positive attitude and your confident personality. I know your going to go places and I can't wait to see where life takes you. Please don't lose contact! I am going to miss you so much! I grew up with you at STM and those are memories I will keep forever. 

Dear Andrew, I seriously can't wait to see whats's next for you. You have been so successful in high school and I can't wait to see what your future holds. You are such a strong person and will fight for what you believe in. You did so much for the class of 2020 this year and I am so thankful for that. We also have some pretty good memories from Latin that I will never forget. Keep being you and please keep me updated! 

Dear Elliot, thank you for always being a good friend anyone could always count on. You are so nice and kind to everyone around you. I am so glad you were in Bio and English with me this year. Those were such fun classes and I am so thankful for all the memories. If you ever need anything, don't hesitate to contact me! 

Dear Tanner, MY PIC, I feel like we have gotten a lot closer this year because of English, Environmental, and CW. I am so glad we had all these classes together because I enjoyed being around you. You have such a positive energy and always know how to make people laugh. Whether that was messing with Ms. King or bothering Ms. Richards, I could always count on you to make the class laugh. You are so talented and I can't wait to see what you do at DePaul. Please keep me updated, I want to know everything! I am going to miss you! 

Dear Cameron, I am so glad we have gotten closer throughout the past 2/3 years. I love how we rant to each other about everything randomly and I know we will continue to do this even in college. Thank you for getting through Latin last year with me. You are such a nice and honest person and I will miss you! Please keep in touch!

Dear Bharat, thank you for the many laughs in Biology this year (and really in Chemistry too). You are so smart and I can't wait to see where the future takes you. I know you are going to do great things at Tulane and I want to be updated! I will miss the constant "Bharat stories" and those are memories I hope our whole class keeps forever! 

Dear Nic, thank you for being so nice and funny all the time. I love your positive energy and you are such a talented person. I know I can always count on you to be honest and you also have amazing editing skills (lol). Your input is always valuable and never forget that! I'm going to miss you!

Dear Andreas, you are seriously one of the sweetest people ever. You really haven't ever said anything negative and I could always count on you to take perfect English notes for when I missed class. You are not only super nice but very smart. You are going to do great things at American and I want to hear all about them! 

Dear Brandon, I owe you the biggest thank you for so many reasons. We grew up together since PreK and I know I could always count on you. I am so glad we have gotten closer throughout high school and I am proud to say you are such a good friend, whether that means helping with me school work or making me laugh, you were always there. Tulane got a good one and I hope you know you can contact me whenever! 

Dear Ms. King, thank you for everything. I am so glad I had you teach me english for the past two years. It was one of my favorite classes to go to everyday, not only because of the subject but because of the people. It was such a fun class and I am so glad I got to be apart of it. Thank you for everything you do for us and we love you! 

So This Is It

So this is it. I don't think anyone could have predicted that this is how our senior year world end. I have know some of y'all for seven years and I don't know how I am going to start over again in North Carolina with y'all at my side.

In Lindsey's post she talks about my work ethic and how I get things done, but the truth is I draw my strength from others. I might fight with you sometimes, but I could not do what I do without y'all. To prove this I will list some of the major things I have done this year and tell you why it really happened.

Senior Retreat: While I did a lot of the talking with the Administration, Lindsey, Sara, and Emanuel did so much research and worked on planning the events that took place not to mention that Brandon got most of the snacks.

Senior Weird Day: On this one Tanner wrote the script and Brandon did a lot of the negotiating with Ms. Bond. I was just the organizer.

Service Day: Even though it didn't happen, without Lindsey, Sara, and Emanuel service day would never have even got off the ground. I merely dealt with passing messages between the Red Cross and St. Martin's. Y'all did the rest.

Forming YAT: While I am the President of YAT without Nick, Brandon, Eliot, Tanner and several other people YAT would not be what it is today. I just came up with the crazy idea of YAT but without my friends it never would have been a reality.

The point is I am only as strong as the people around me. Without people like Brandon who listens to me rant and tells me when I am being an idiot, and without people like Sara who know how to be creative I would never have achieved what I have. I could go on listing every accomplishment I have ever achieved in High School was because of the people who choose to work with me. If y'all ever need anything please reach out.

We'll Meet Again

Hey guys. The song below is one that was running through my head on the day before we started social distancing. The song plays at the end of Dr. Strangelove after a doomsday device destroys all life on Earth. The song is somber but also full of hope. I hope that you guys can get something out of it. Though it might not be for a while, I hope we'll meet again some sunny day.

virtual college?

are any of y'all worried about the first semester of college potentially taking place online?  On a separate note It'll be super weird not going to school anymore.  I haven't even considered fully yet what it's gonna feel like, I'm probably still in shock somehow.  I hope we all get to see each other again some time in the future.  Hopefully we have some form of in-person senior chapel, and in addition to what we do online before then if we have an online one.

LAST EVER BLOG POST….. EVERY ONE MUST READ!

Hey guys, I just wanted to let y’all know how grateful I am to have you in my life. Each and every one of you have taught me something that I use the rest of my life. Y’all are genuinely the sweetest, most caring group of people I have ever met. 

Dear Tanner, thank you for the gift of laughter. You always manage to brighten my day with your funny remarks and unique personality. I will never forget you flipping of Dr. Vaccaro and constantly getting Ms. King off topic! Tanner, you have been such a great friend and I will miss you so much!

Dear Sophia, I cannot thank you enough for everything these past 4 years. Not only have you become one of my best friends, but have supported me through everything. The way you put others before yourself is something so truly special. Sophia, I love you so much and can’t wait to visit you at LSU!

Dear Bharat, thank you for pushing me in school. You motivate me everyday and I cannot thank you enough for that. Also, your funny “Bharat stories” will never be forgotten! Thank you filling my high school memories with lots of funny stories! Hopefully I will see you next year!

Dear Elyse, where do I begin!? You were my first friend coming to STM and that has yet to change. You have stuck right next to me throughout these past 5 years and cannot thank you enough for that. We have had our fun, sad, and embarrassing moments and I am so glad I got to share them with you. Elyse, thank you for believing in me! I love you!

Dear Cameron, we have gotten so close these past two years! You are one of the funniest and smartest people I know! I love how honest you are with me. I can always count on you to give me your true opinion. I know you love when I call you WILL and bug you! HAHA! Cameron, I will miss you so much!

Dear Sara, first of all, I want to thank you for joining softball! You have made these past two years of softball so fun and funny! I love all of our jokes on the field and always being late to practice! Thank you for all your dedication to our class, it does not go unnoticed!! Love you!

Dear Nic, I can’t believe I am graduating with you! I feels like just yesterday we were in Houston competing in our dive meet. Such fun times! Nic you bring so much energy to our class and you are going to do such great things in life. You are one of the most determined people I know and I look up to you for that! I will miss you so much!

Dear Andreas, not only am I obsessed with your handwriting but also the way you treat others. You are always one of the first people to reach out to me and offer your help. We have worked on a lot of projects together and you have shown me your strong work ethic. I love the way you spend time with your family and look out for others. You are going to have the best time in DC! I will miss you!

Dear Elliot, you never fail to make me laugh! Your sense of humor is so unique and sometimes unintentional! You have helped me in so many ways these past years. During AP English, I knew I could always count on you to give me your input. Also, I will never forget how good you are in dodgeball! Honestly, like really good. Thank you for never judging me and always being a great friend. I will definitely keep in touch!

Dear Jacob, wow, we have come so far. From fighting all the time to becoming one of my best friends, I just want to thank you for helping me become who I am. I really owe it to you. I’ve never told you this, but I look up to you so much. You don’t care what people think about you and always have a smile on your face. You are one of the strongest people I know and I always look up to you for inspiration. Can’t wait to visit at LSU!

Dear Brandon, first I want to thank you for all the help you have given me over the years. I’m not quite sure I would be graduating without you. Brandon, you hold our class together. Not only are you so, so, so, so smart, but extremely funny. Our entire grade looks up, especially me. You are going to do amazing things in life and becoming so successful. However, more importantly, you will always be the kindest person I know. Brandon, sorry for annoying you all the time but know I will miss you more than you realize!

Dear Malorie, white cheddar cheez-it, etc, I owe you the world. Malorie, we may fight a lot, but that is because I care about you so much! You go out of your way to help me and always are willing to hear about my problems. I will never forget our million Puccinos dates, me taking your food, and our times of the softball field. Malorie you are such a good leader and help others before yourself. You are my best friend in the whole world and I love you to pieces! 

Dear Andrew, thank you, thank you, thank you. The two words “thank you” describe the way I feel towards you. Andrew, you are the strongest person I know and one who is never afraid to speak his mind. I wish I had some of this in me! You have represented our class and school so well during your time at STM. I cannot wait to see what you do in the future, but I know it will be for the best! You have such a strong work ethic and I love this about you. Thank you for always helping me and correcting me when I am wrong. Congrats on UNC Chapel Hill, you will have a blast! 

Dear Ms. King, I just wanted to thank you for all the love, help, and support you have shown me this year and in advisory. You truly helped me with me college essay and shown me how to love reading. I think I am speaking for the entire class when I say you have made our senior year one for the books. You should be so proud of all you do! We love you and will miss you tons!

I'M GONNA MISS YALL SO MUCH

This was one of my favorite classes this year and I'm so so so so so sad our time got cut short, but this time really taught me to appreciate school, my education, and you guys. Y'all literally made my high school experience what it is and for that I am so grateful. Happy Senior Chapel day, I hope everyone enjoyed their "milk and cookies", and I can't wait to see you all again!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I love you guys,
Sara

what have your parents been doing??

I've been seeing a lot of blogs about what everyone has been doing to keep busy during this period. People have been doing things they normally wouldn't, just because they have more time now! I've noticed this past week that my parents have started doing things that they never had done before just because of the certain circumstance we're in now.
My parents have started watching all those nature shows on national geographic, BBC America and PBS every single time they turn on the TV. Ya'll knows those shows... the ones where cameramen follow animals around while they do random things in their habitat and a calm, old man does a voice-over explaining what the animal is doing as if it's the most interesting thing in the world. My parents sit on the couch and watch these shows with the biggest smiles on their faces every single day. The other day, they were watching a show that was documenting baby owls jumping out of trees learning to fly and I could hear my parents cracking up laughing from upstairs. I came downstairs to see them happy as can be, laughing so hard they were crying, as each baby owl just jumped in the air, failing to fly and flopped on the ground. This was pure happiness if I've ever seen it.

I have never seen anything like this from my parents... and it made me wonder has anyone else's parents picked up any habits or activities that they never did before now?

Im Bored

Y'ALL EVER HEARD OF MADONNA?

Yeah I have (I know who she is, just never listened to her)

She's pretty good. I've become so bored that I've reached the darkest corner of music, Madonna. I like the old songs. All the new ones kinda suck.

Y'ALL EVER HEARD OF OUTLANDER?

I recently did

I saw a commercial on YouTube and starting watching it on Netflix. Its gotta pretty rad setting and a gnarly plot. It's got me super stoked to watch the rest of the season brotato/bratato chips

Y'ALL EVER HEARD OF MEMORY POLICE?

I do, I think I have to read it

Its a book I'm supposed to read for creative writing. I haven't started. Idk if I have to read it anymore or not. I forgot what its about.

Y'ALL  EVER HEARD OF HILL CLIMB RACING

Its pretty fun I play it to kill time. I would play it in school. Sometimes during class (but I'll never tell which class 😉)

I hope you all are doing well and are not as bored as I am. This is a crazy way for the year to end, but I believe it'll get better soon. One can hope. Miss all of you. ✌

The disparity between COVID-19 deaths

I read online while researching for my paper that in Louisiana African Americans make up 41% of the deaths from COVID-19.  The article talks about how those who have higher risk factors such as high blood pressure are also parts of the poorer communities.  It's difficult for people with low incomes to stop working, and as a result they can get exposed more to the virus.  Check it out if anyone's interested: https://www.newyorker.com/news/news-desk/the-coronavirus-and-inequality-meet-in-detroit

College Behind Bars (episode 1)

So by now everyone has watched the first episode of College Behind Bars on Netflix. I'm sure we are going to talk about it on Tuesday during our video chat, but I wanted to get a head start on the blog. I want to know what y'all thought about it. I really enjoyed watching it and seeing these men and women who are incarcerated for many years but still have hope and drive to get a degree. One of the men in the episode said he was incarcerated at the age of 17 and he was now going into his 22nd year in prison. He kept hope and wanted to get his life together. I also found it very interesting how the school itself handled being a "prison school." One of the teachers explained that they didn't care where they were, they were going to teach normal college level classes to the students (no matter who the students are or what they did to get to prison). It even said most of the teachers have no idea how long the students have been in prison or why they are there in the first place. So, those are my initial thoughts. Did y'all enjoy it? What did y'all think overall? 

Corona Diary 4

Dear Diary,

Today is my fourth week in isolation. It isn't so bad. In fact, I'd say things are looking up.

There's a Walgreens not too far away from my house, so every night at 7:00 I take a walk down there, buy a 99 cent tea, and walk back home. It's very nice in terms of keeping me from going insane.

Other than that, nothing much has changed.

That is all.

- KTDSI

Controlling What We Can :)

This is a quote from Frozen II, and it was said by Olaf. I've noticed that many people I know are cutting, shaving, or dyeing their hair. Controlling your hair seems to be the go to for many people when their lives feel out of control. What are y'all doing to feel "in control?"

My Quarantine is My Dog’s Vacation

Over the past few weeks, my family hasn’t left our house except for groceries and other essential errands. On a normal school day, my entire family leaves the house at 7:40 and we don’t get home until 5ish due to sports. With this being said, our two dogs are in the kennel all day long. They have gotten used to this over the years, but now that we have been home, things have greatly changed. 

My two dogs, Marley and Chip, are out of their kennel all day long and sleep in sleep in our beds at night. They get two to three walks a day, tons of table food, lots of treats, and constant attention. Marley and Chip have gotten so spoiled over the the past few weeks. Not only do they whimper when they don’t get what they want but are treated better than any of us! Chip and Marley are currently living their best life. As far as quarantine goes, they don’t ever want it to be over!

How are y’all’s pets doing?

Climate Change

Hey guys,
I recently read an article on CNN that discussed how people should react just as seriously to climate change as they are acting towards the pandemic. Climate change is now to cause millions of deaths each year across the globe, and measures that we are taking now could be used to combat this issue. I think its interesting and really inspiring how the globe has been working together to combat this virus, and I think we could leave this tragedy with a lot of hope for our future. I think the key takeaway from the article is that it truly is possible for everyone to be a little less selfless sometimes to solve a big issue at hand. Coronavirus is not the only enemy that the world faces; there are endless problems to solve. If we paid as much attention to climate change as we have this pandemic, then we could be saving a predicted 7 million lives each year.
This quote was the biggest thing I took away from all of this, because I think it relates to how we aren't having to do much now to save lives (we just have to stay in and be selfless):
"But climate scientists say that adapting to climate change does not require radical shutdowns -- the technology needed to reduce emissions already exists. Renewable energy sources are a cost-effective alternative to fossil fuels, and making the switch makes economic sense." 

https://www.cnn.com/2020/03/18/world/coronavirus-and-climate-crisis-response-intl-hnk/index.html

Being Busy Isn’t Always the Key

Hey y’all! I just submitted my outline and I enjoyed thinking about our current situation and how it relates to The WasteLand. However, while I was writing my outline, another thought came to mind. For the past couple of weeks, I haven’t hung out with friends, watched sports on the TV, went to get my nails or hair done, or ran errands. Although this sounds boring, and it is most of the time, it has helped me realize something. 

We don’t need to be busy all the time! We don’t need to watch sports, run errands, etc. These are just things we think that we must do. In reality, many times we need just to sit down and take a step back from the chaos of life. We need quiet, peaceful moments to realize what life is truly about. 

The same applies with school work and homework. Many nights and weekends, we have so much work that we don’t even get to enjoy the pleasure of eating with our family and simply having a conversation about our day. There comes a point when we need to realize to put work and stress to the side and enjoy the quiet.

What do y'all think about this?!!

perfect book for this class to read

So, for creative writing we are supposed to read a book from the list of the best books published in 2019. I chose to read "Solitary" by Albert Woodfox. I just started reading it and I have been enjoying it so far. I chose to read the book because of the description I read before purchasing it. "Solitary" is about a man who served 40 years in solitary confinement in the Angola prison in Louisiana for a crime he didn't commit. So, because we were already learning about criminal justice and prison and I LIVE IN LOUISIANA I thought this book would be perfect for me to read. Now that we have a lot of time I would suggest y'all read this too! 
(also this is a message for Ms. King but .... if you continue to do this podcast/criminal justice project with you AP class this book would be a good one for the whole class to read!) 

The Waste Land and Coronavirus paper

Hi everyone! How are y'all doing? I just turned in my outline and wanted to see how y'all like writing about The Waste Land and Coronavirus. Personally, writing essays isn't my favorite thing to do, but I actually really enjoyed writing this outline. It was kind of fun to do the research and to make comparisons between the two. This was probably the most I have ever enjoyed writing a paper. So, I was wondering if y'all had the same thoughts and if y'all enjoyed it too? Please let me know! On the other hand, if you didn't enjoy writing it, why? What other papers have you enjoyed writing more? 

Corona Diary 3

Hey,

I'm writing a third corona diary even though I have nothing to write. Nothing at all has changed since the last entry. I'm still just doing work and missing school. The other day Cameron showed up outside my house and awoke me from a gentle slumber. It was enjoyable seeing him, but it just made me sad. Not because it was Cameron, but because it was a person. I miss those. I'm torn. I want to hang out with people but I'm afraid if I leave the comfort of my house I'll have to get used to not leaving again. I don't know.

Also, I'm sad we drop class today. I had an awesome prank for you Mrs. King.

Sincerely,
Tanner Sykes