I’m pretty sure every upper classman can agree that freshmen can be added to the list of the top ten most annoying species on the planet. Every time I venture off into the freshmen hallway, I reminisce on how brutal freshmen year was. Let’s just say I’m not at all proud of who I was. My cheeks turn rosy whenever I think about freshmen year and here’s my apology to anyone who knew me. If only there was a “get out of jail free card” in real life, but instead a “get out of freshmen year card” and advance onto sophomore year.

Freshmen year is almost as uncomfortable as being in a relationship for the first time. It’s a new school filled with about two thousand people that are looking down at you like you’re an ant or something. The high school is twice as big as the junior high which means it’s recommended to hit the treadmill to get in shape over the summer and prepare to maneuver through the halls in less than five minutes.  I have to say I had sweat beads dripping down my face for the first week or two. All freshmen are automatically ten feet shorter than the rest of the school, so picking them out in a crowd is as easy as falling asleep while reading a book. The upper classman crack jokes and say they were never that small, when in reality, they were the exact same and maybe even dorkier. They just grow out of what everyone calls the “awkward” stage in life and get to experience the days where there’s actually a difference between the pitch of a guy’s voice compared to a girl’s.

I had an unforgettable freshmen year. Not the good kind of unforgettable, the, I should have hidden in the bathroom until the last bell rang on May 23rd kind of unforgettable. It was filled with so much adversity, which by the way I was not quick to overcome. There were several fights; the ones with words, not the punching kind because in my opinion words take less physical activity and hurt way worse. Busting a knuckle to get a point across just isn’t worth it. So many random things happened to me that to this day make me laugh so hardcore. For example, I got my hair stuck in my gym locker and had to scream my lungs out to ask for help. Also some mean kid who sat behind me I guess didn’t realize that when pop is shaken up it has the tendency to destroy anyone in its path. Well that day I was in its path. I just happened to be in the wrong place at the wrong time. He opened his pop bottle and it sprayed everywhere while he aimed it right at my head! My life was and still is a joke! These frizzy blonde locks don’t need any help to make them transform into an afro. Out of all the things that happened to me, nothing beats the incident in the hallway with the well-known gorilla, Ethan Traster.
Ethan and I became friends over Christmas break during freshman year. I was scrolling through my news feed to pass the time away when all of a sudden a message from him popped up of Facebook. What a coward, messaging someone for the first time over social media. I guess that’s what guys do these days. They just hide behind their little screens because they don’t want to show how much of a girl they really are. That should have been a sign to not even start talking to him, but like everyone in this world I fell for the trap and read the message. We started to hangout and somehow we became the best of friends.

Ethan was a football player for the high school which meant he was pretty well known. Me being a stuck up little freshman thought I was the luckiest girl alive. It’s always a girl’s dream to be with a guy on the football team, but heed my warning! It’s not what it’s like on television whatsoever so thanks a lot A Cinderella Story. Those stupid myths. I guess I have to always learn everything through rough embarrassing experiences.

Ethan wasn’t the hot quarterback of the football team that all the ladies would drop dead to have. He was more like the big teddy bear looking lineman who could probably pass for twenty one and buy you a drink at the bar. He looked like a mix between King Kong and Big Foot with black Nike socks pulled up to his waist. Because he was on the football team, he automatically had the “I’m the best and strongest man alive” kind of mentality. Man was he arrogant. That was the biggest turn off for me too and caused the most fights between us. It got to the point where they occurred daily. All he ever talked about was himself and his football abilities.  Whenever I tried to tell him about soccer he tried to shut me up real quick. He thought he worked harder than me, but I mean its football, they take a break every eight seconds between plays. Wow what a heart rate raiser. The difference in sporting events constantly caused problems between us as well.

The incident in the hallway had to be the most embarrassing day of my life, but also opened the door to true womanhood. It was just a normal day, so I thought. Although, in my life, there really isn’t such thing as a normal day. Ethan and I had been friends for about three months and I really enjoyed being just friends.  I quickly stopped at my locker to collect the ninety text books I had to drag home for homework, when Ethan came from behind to walk me half way to my bus stop. We were talking about how our day was at school while heading towards the locker rooms to say our goodbyes and depart for the day. As we were getting closer to our destination, I saw the whole football team circled up, almost as if they were in a huddle before the first big game. I put two and two together and realized where he was going to take me; smack dab into the huddle. I quietly said some words to myself because I had this gut feeling that what was about to go down wasn’t going to be so pleasant.

Right when we were about to arrive in the huddle, I tried to make a run for it and make up the excuse that the bus had arrived, but I wasn’t quick enough. He snatched my hand and squeezed it harder than my dad ever did when he didn’t want me to get away at the grocery store as a child, and pulled me closer to him. I almost felt like I was an animal being dragged along by a rope by my owner. There was no way I was going to ever let him think he was my master. He slowly grasped my waist with both hands and at this point I knew what was going down. He was going to kiss me in front of the whole varsity football team. What a joke! Ethan hunched over with his eyes closed, mouth ready, and started heading towards my mouth in what seemed to be slow motion. Words couldn’t jump out of my mouth quick enough to tell him to stop.

I had about point five seconds to make up my mind about how to avoid the smooch. This was total crap because I knew he was just showing off in front of the football team. What other reason would the whole team be in a huddle in the middle of the hallway after school? Then to make matters worse, one of his players chanted, “Get it big E!!”

At this point I had already made up my mind that he wasn’t getting squat. Right when his lips about met mine I held my breath, quickly swung my arm back, propelled it forward and smacked him square in the face! This wasn’t a light tap. This was the kind of slap where the cupping of my palm was proportional to the force I exerted on his face, so he received the full effect of the slap. It echoed throughout the halls and inside my head. His face had a tattoo of my hand print on it and his facial expressions were priceless. Ethan’s eyebrows were scrunched together like he was looking directly into the sun and his lips puckered up to form this ginormous furious look. Everyone got silent and the hallway was as still as it gets outside right before a tornado bulldozes through a town. I had the urge to laugh because I was in shock that I actually had the guts to avoid a kiss. It was no surprise that I almost laughed because I always get the urge to laugh during the most serious moments. He shoved his players out of his path of travel with his head down while he stormed his way towards the locker room.

I was caught off guard by this whole situation. We were just friends and even if he wanted to kiss me he could have at least tried to make a move with no one around. See most girls would have enjoyed this moment and would drag the kiss on for hours to make sure each and every student would notice it. They would love the fact that their guy was showing them off. He wasn’t showing me off in a good way, he was trying to prove to the football team that he could “get some”. Well his plan didn’t work that day!

After I walked towards the bus I felt extremely pleased by my performance. I didn’t even let him push me around and treat me like his property. One point for girl and zero points for the guy! He didn’t win this battle! It feels great to be an independent woman. I don’t need him to show me off to feel great about myself anymore, nor the attention from the football team.  After this tragic event I realized how much of a stuck up brat I had been acting like. I felt the need to hang out with the football team because it would make me feel more superior to the rest of the school. Well that whole attitude came back to bite me in the booty. School isn’t about becoming known. It’s about making some true friends to spend life with and explore your true self.

Unfortunately I learned my lesson the hard way, but don’t all freshmen? They all transform into better people which is why we like them a little better the following year. I ended up evolving into more of an independent woman who is true to herself and survived freshman year. So no matter what obstacles life brings, there is always a way to use them to become more true of a person.I’m pretty sure every upper classman can agree that freshmen can be added to the list of the top ten most annoying species on the planet. Every time I venture off into the freshmen hallway, I reminisce on how brutal freshmen year was. Let’s just say I’m not at all proud of who I was. My cheeks turn rosy whenever I think about freshmen year and here’s my apology to anyone who knew me. If only there was a “get out of jail free card” in real life, but instead a “get out of freshmen year card” and advance onto sophomore year.

Freshmen year is almost as uncomfortable as being in a relationship for the first time. It’s a new school filled with about two thousand people that are looking down at you like you’re an ant or something. The high school is twice as big as the junior high which means it’s recommended to hit the treadmill to get in shape over the summer and prepare to maneuver through the halls in less than five minutes.  I have to say I had sweat beads dripping down my face for the first week or two. All freshmen are automatically ten feet shorter than the rest of the school, so picking them out in a crowd is as easy as falling asleep while reading a book. The upper classman crack jokes and say they were never that small, when in reality, they were the exact same and maybe even dorkier. They just grow out of what everyone calls the “awkward” stage in life and get to experience the days where there’s actually a difference between the pitch of a guy’s voice compared to a girl’s.

I had an unforgettable freshmen year. Not the good kind of unforgettable, the, I should have hidden in the bathroom until the last bell rang on May 23rd kind of unforgettable. It was filled with so much adversity, which by the way I was not quick to overcome. There were several fights; the ones with words, not the punching kind because in my opinion words take less physical activity and hurt way worse. Busting a knuckle to get a point across just isn’t worth it. So many random things happened to me that to this day make me laugh so hardcore. For example, I got my hair stuck in my gym locker and had to scream my lungs out to ask for help. Also some mean kid who sat behind me I guess didn’t realize that when pop is shaken up it has the tendency to destroy anyone in its path. Well that day I was in its path. I just happened to be in the wrong place at the wrong time. He opened his pop bottle and it sprayed everywhere while he aimed it right at my head! My life was and still is a joke! These frizzy blonde locks don’t need any help to make them transform into an afro. Out of all the things that happened to me, nothing beats the incident in the hallway with the well-known gorilla, Ethan Traster.
Ethan and I became friends over Christmas break during freshman year. I was scrolling through my news feed to pass the time away when all of a sudden a message from him popped up of Facebook. What a coward, messaging someone for the first time over social media. I guess that’s what guys do these days. They just hide behind their little screens because they don’t want to show how much of a girl they really are. That should have been a sign to not even start talking to him, but like everyone in this world I fell for the trap and read the message. We started to hangout and somehow we became the best of friends.

Ethan was a football player for the high school which meant he was pretty well known. Me being a stuck up little freshman thought I was the luckiest girl alive. It’s always a girl’s dream to be with a guy on the football team, but heed my warning! It’s not what it’s like on television whatsoever so thanks a lot A Cinderella Story. Those stupid myths. I guess I have to always learn everything through rough embarrassing experiences.
Ethan wasn’t the hot quarterback of the football team that all the ladies would drop dead to have. He was more like the big teddy bear looking lineman who could probably pass for twenty one and buy you a drink at the bar. He looked like a mix between King Kong and Big Foot with black Nike socks pulled up to his waist. Because he was on the football team, he automatically had the “I’m the best and strongest man alive” kind of mentality. Man was he arrogant. That was the biggest turn off for me too and caused the most fights between us. It got to the point where they occurred daily. All he ever talked about was himself and his football abilities.  Whenever I tried to tell him about soccer he tried to shut me up real quick. He thought he worked harder than me, but I mean its football, they take a break every eight seconds between plays. Wow what a heart rate raiser. The difference in sporting events constantly caused problems between us as well.

The incident in the hallway had to be the most embarrassing day of my life, but also opened the door to true womanhood. It was just a normal day, so I thought. Although, in my life, there really isn’t such thing as a normal day. Ethan and I had been friends for about three months and I really enjoyed being just friends.  I quickly stopped at my locker to collect the ninety text books I had to drag home for homework, when Ethan came from behind to walk me half way to my bus stop. We were talking about how our day was at school while heading towards the locker rooms to say our goodbyes and depart for the day. As we were getting closer to our destination, I saw the whole football team circled up, almost as if they were in a huddle before the first big game. I put two and two together and realized where he was going to take me; smack dab into the huddle. I quietly said some words to myself because I had this gut feeling that what was about to go down wasn’t going to be so pleasant.

Right when we were about to arrive in the huddle, I tried to make a run for it and make up the excuse that the bus had arrived, but I wasn’t quick enough. He snatched my hand and squeezed it harder than my dad ever did when he didn’t want me to get away at the grocery store as a child, and pulled me closer to him. I almost felt like I was an animal being dragged along by a rope by my owner. There was no way I was going to ever let him think he was my master. He slowly grasped my waist with both hands and at this point I knew what was going down. He was going to kiss me in front of the whole varsity football team. What a joke! Ethan hunched over with his eyes closed, mouth ready, and started heading towards my mouth in what seemed to be slow motion. Words couldn’t jump out of my mouth quick enough to tell him to stop.

I had about point five seconds to make up my mind about how to avoid the smooch. This was total crap because I knew he was just showing off in front of the football team. What other reason would the whole team be in a huddle in the middle of the hallway after school? Then to make matters worse, one of his players chanted, “Get it big E!!”

At this point I had already made up my mind that he wasn’t getting squat. Right when his lips about met mine I held my breath, quickly swung my arm back, propelled it forward and smacked him square in the face! This wasn’t a light tap. This was the kind of slap where the cupping of my palm was proportional to the force I exerted on his face, so he received the full effect of the slap. It echoed throughout the halls and inside my head. His face had a tattoo of my hand print on it and his facial expressions were priceless. Ethan’s eyebrows were scrunched together like he was looking directly into the sun and his lips puckered up to form this ginormous furious look. Everyone got silent and the hallway was as still as it gets outside right before a tornado bulldozes through a town. I had the urge to laugh because I was in shock that I actually had the guts to avoid a kiss. It was no surprise that I almost laughed because I always get the urge to laugh during the most serious moments. He shoved his players out of his path of travel with his head down while he stormed his way towards the locker room.

I was caught off guard by this whole situation. We were just friends and even if he wanted to kiss me he could have at least tried to make a move with no one around. See most girls would have enjoyed this moment and would drag the kiss on for hours to make sure each and every student would notice it. They would love the fact that their guy was showing them off. He wasn’t showing me off in a good way, he was trying to prove to the football team that he could “get some”. Well his plan didn’t work that day!

After I walked towards the bus I felt extremely pleased by my performance. I didn’t even let him push me around and treat me like his property. One point for girl and zero points for the guy! He didn’t win this battle! It feels great to be an independent woman. I don’t need him to show me off to feel great about myself anymore, nor the attention from the football team.  After this tragic event I realized how much of a stuck up brat I had been acting like. I felt the need to hang out with the football team because it would make me feel more superior to the rest of the school. Well that whole attitude came back to bite me in the booty. School isn’t about becoming known. It’s about making some true friends to spend life with and explore your true self.

Unfortunately I learned my lesson the hard way, but don’t all freshmen? They all transform into better people which is why we like them a little better the following year. I ended up evolving into more of an independent woman who is true to herself and survived freshman year. So no matter what obstacles life brings, there is always a way to use them to become more true of a person.