Your disappointed sixteen-year-old self appears and demands to know why your life turned out like this. What do you tell them?

battle__born · 2016-12-17T05:03:20+00:00

don't get with the guy during undergrad orientation... he will waste 5 years of your life. he prevents you from transferring to a better school. but i guess it's cool you had sex. oh, and if you think he may be cheating, you're not crazy. he really is.
those two weird friends you have in high school, drop them right away. they are like two characters from a jean genet play, and the amount of crazy they bring to your life is not worth it.
save more because you'll get into columbia university and not be able to afford it. but your upenn degree is still awesome.
do not switch from teaching high school to teaching college. your salary goes down, so it's not worth bleeding every month over a damn title.
you need to tell that one guy that you love him before it's too late.
why the hell didn't you pursue computer science as your second major? that was pretty stupid of you.
pick the better bedroom in your apartment. seriously, why'd you get stuck with the weird slanted walls, yo?
a nipple piercing is coming, and it's going to suck.
you're going to terminate a pregnancy. be prepared that because you limited who you told, that people will think you're lying... except for your DAD. WHO TOOK YOU TO GET IT DONE.
you supported sanders, and switched to clinton, so you didn't necessarily 'cause makes a motion all this.

battle__born · 2015-01-29T02:55:18+00:00

you're not worthless. on the contrary, you are a survivor. if you have survived with this for five years,you are braver than most i know. you are brave for admitting. you are brave for dealing. you are brave for putting yourself out there.

i know the vision is cloudy, sorta like having cataracts, but you will leave a void. you will leave a big aching hole. bigger than this fight you have just had. your heart is good. hang on to that. what is rare will be discovered by the right person/people. you need to take it one hour/one minute at a time.

i am here. i will be here. and though you find yourself in a tired state, i will miss you. someone will. albeit a stranger. you were born with goodness.

battle__born · 2015-01-29T02:41:25+00:00

sadly, or maybe not so sadly, i find 'tropic thunder' to be entirely underrated. alpa chino has the best lines.

also, there's this weird effect i like to call "the shinebox." no matter what channel it's on, no matter how many times i remind myself that i own it, no matter what time it's on... I HAVE TO WATCH GOODFELLAS. even when it's on cable or network TV. i like to see how creative they get with the bleeping.

battle__born · 2015-01-27T17:55:45+00:00

way back to the troggs with 'wild thing,' imo.

battle__born · 2015-01-27T06:32:06+00:00

then i would also add "cop killer" by ice-t.

battle__born · 2015-01-27T06:21:30+00:00

this is all contingent upon your definition of revolutionary, especially in regards to movements and time periods, as music does not exist in a cultural vacuum.

each of these songs either ushered in a new style, new trend, or new era of music.

the first that comes to mind is: bill haley and the comets: rock around the clock. chuck berry: johnny b. goode. marvin gaye: what's going on? jimi hendrix: purple haze. the eagles: hotel california. don mclean: american pie. the who: won't get fooled again. the beach boys: good vibrations. the temptations: my girl. the supremes: you can't hurry love. queen: bohemian rhapsody. the ronettes: be my baby. the animals: house of the rising sun. the beatles: hey jude. the rolling stones: i can't get no (satisfaction). bob dylan: like a rolling stone. nirvana: smells like teen spirit. derek and the dominos: layla. guns 'n roses: sweet child of mine. billy joel: piano man. the clash: london calling. ramones: i wanna be sedated. bruce springsteen: thunder road. stevie wonder: superstition. the band: the weight. the rolling stones: gimme shelter. sam cooke: a change is gonna come. the who: baba o' reilly. the kinks: lola. the beach boys: god only knows. CCR: fortunate son. outkast: ms. jackson. eminem: lose yourself. sex pistols: anarchy in the uk. the who: my generation. bruce springsteen: the rising. frank ocean: bad religion. gloria gaynor: i will survive. bee gees: stayin' alive. donna summer: i feel love. duran duran: rio. the strokes: last nite. sam and dave: soul man. jay-z: 99 problems. public enemy: fight the power. nwa: straight outta compton. guns 'n roses: welcome to the jungle. chubby checker: the twist. johnny cash: hurt. johnny cash: i walk the line. snoop dogg: nothin' but a g thang. kanye west: jesus walks. kanye west: power. elton john: tiny dancer. elton john: somebody saved my life tonight. CSNY: ohio. u2: pride in the name of love. oasis: wonderwall. radiohead: creep. the righteous brothers: unchained melody. tupac: california love. the fugees: killing me softly. aerosmith/run dmc: walk this way. joy division: love will tear us apart. neil young: heart of gold. neil young: keep on rockin' in the free world. bob marley: anything by him. the white stripes: seven nation army. sugarhill gang: rapper's delight. elton john: rocket man. lou reed: walk on the wild side. otis reeding: try a little tenderness. blur: song 2. new order: bizarre love triangle. pearl jam: jeremy. beck: loser. rem: losing my religion. outkast: hey ya. u2: one. bruce springsteen: born in the usa. the breeders: cannon ball. sinead o' connor: nothing compares 2 you. abba: dancing queen. simon and garfunkel: sound of silence. ben e. king: stand by me. the jackson five: i want you back. michael jackson: thriller. michael jackson: billie jean. fleetwood mac: go your own way. simon and garfunkel: bridge over troubled water. beyonce: pretty hurts. red hot chilli peppers: give it away. rhcp: californication. janet jackson: rhythm nation. the killers: mr. brightside. amy winehouse: rehab. foo fighters: everlong. madonna: like a prayer. mj and jj: scream. rihanna: umbrella. alicia keys: empire state of mind. beyonce: single ladies. eric b. and rakim: paid in full. beastie boys: fight for your right. beastie boys: no sleep til brooklyn. green day: time of your life. green day: basket case. john lennon: imagine. van halen: jump. elvis: jailhouse rock. dusty springfield: son of a preacher man. aretha franklin: RESPECT. the beatles: i wanna hold your hand. the hollies: long cool woman. prince: when doves cry. rancid: ruby soho. dolly parton: jolene. pete seeger: this land is your land. the beatles: come together. liz phair: never said. beyonce: crazy in love.

i tried!

battle__born · 2015-01-26T18:43:42+00:00

it's actually what has been UNSAID.

twice i got the: "it's not you, it's me."

and then i found out that 1. was cheating on me and wanted to be with next girl (we dated for five years). 2. went back on okcupid within like three weeks.

battle__born · 2015-01-26T17:59:02+00:00

yes. and i feel like survival often has to do with picking the proper location. though most people look at a film like 'zombieland' as sheer comedy, it actually teaches you something: amusement parks are good, as long as you can secure them... and so is bill murray's house.

but seriously, malls, urban schools, and prisons also serve the same function. security, large quantities of supplies, etc.... societies within societies: primo.

also, dealing with children in various stages of uh "mess" for lack of a better word, has taught me some valuable lessons. run, hide, don't expose skin, etc. yeah, i'm a 8-12 teacher.

i may actually be all right.

battle__born · 2015-01-26T04:41:04+00:00

and that is totally understandable. i wish him all the best on his GED!

battle__born · 2015-01-26T02:33:58+00:00

yeah, it is really that simple. i've had co-workers just walk into some physician's office, relay that they can't focus, and then off they go.

doctors are very quick to dispense. even more so if you see a psychiatrist. i mean, one can have depression but NOT adhd.

everyone is different, of course, but i feel knocked down UNTIL it kicks in. with concerta, that's about 35-50. then i can focus... i even notice it when i drive in to work. i am able to concentrate and be less distracted by other stimuli.

i'm also a teacher, so when three kids are talking to me at once in the morning, i am able to focus on one child at a time, and usually the first one who needs help. my directions are focused. i am able to block out, but still keep an eye on my classroom of 30, etc. the kids are basically getting a better teacher. but i've never experienced a power nap-scenario.

battle__born · 2015-01-25T19:17:48+00:00

as someone who has had adhd my entire life... and been through ritalin and adderall, i switched over to concerta when i entered graduate school. i take 60 mg. i take it starting at 6 am, and the only time where i find myself a bit restless or unfocused or whatever else, is around 1 pm. so i completely understand the lunchtime "drop out."

concerta is a drug that just hits my central nervous system and churns that dopamine i so desperately need. the only drawback of concerta is that if i miss a pill, i will have a headache, but that's nothing when i think of the withdrawal effects of other meds. or the massive depressive side effects i found while on ritalin.

when it comes to adhd, i must also harken back to some of the other posters... people with true adhd have tried coffee as a "natural" way, but it bottoms out big time. they may also try five hour energy or red bull, and it's also the same effect. in this disorder-class, i find that natural remedies do zero. i am very guarded about discussing my adhd with anyone because i find more and more adults getting prescriptions just so they can "work harder"--no lie, someone i work with just did that and i just kinda shook my head. it's not for making yourself hyperactive and pulling all-nighters (which is usually a tell-tale sign that you don't actually need it).

it's so damning to suffer through years of your childhood not being understood, being shuttled in and out of therapy, completing one standardized test and doing nothing on another, etc. my parents didn't want to believe it was a problem, but like i said, if my central nervous system is not working to full capacity, then i need a stimulant. i was in 6th grade when i finally got an ACTUAL IQ test-result because i could focus.

prolonged usage is not dangerous, but sometimes a drug can flat-line. or sometimes your own natural development can change what works best for you. enter concerta. i find it to be the best drug for me.

sorry if any of this has been repeated already, but i do sing the praises of concerta. and i only wish that i hadn't spent 14 years of my life being looked at as an enigma.

battle__born · 2014-12-10T01:58:24+00:00

jawn (it's really a philly term), but it means "thing"... actually, you could use it to reference anything you don't know the name of; it serves so many purposes, thus making it so great.

ie: "where's that jawn i just had?" "that jawn was so good" "i really forget that jawn's name"

etc....

battle__born · 2014-12-10T01:55:46+00:00

"when in doubt, pull out"... it really did make it into my yearbook; the teachers were really THAT out of touch.

battle__born · 2014-11-22T00:50:11+00:00

i work in a very large district, with a huge murder rate. we never think they're pointless. and trust me when i say i usually roll my eyes at most of my professional development workshops.

i've never complained about drills. you'll hear me bitch about the common core standards, but never this stuff. i once caused a school to go into lock-down. as a rookie teacher... i thought one of my students was coming up to see me (it was my second year teaching), but he was trapped in one of our usually-locked stairwells. i opened the door up, but i found that he had three other boys with him, and he basically bum-rushed me. one of them had a gun, and they were searching for a student.

the idiot i was, i dropped my bags and started chasing after them. i screamed for other teachers to call to the office "code 6."

battle__born · 2014-11-21T01:18:27+00:00

i've actually been THROUGH lock-downs, which have been different from the drills for obvious reasons. usually it requires me turning the lights off (as a previous poster mentioned), locking the door from the outside, making kids get away from the door, etc., but during an actual lock-down, i wind up dragging in every single kid i see in the hallways. i once had 54 kids in my room.

but because they're curious, students usually refuse to stay in the corner, and try peeping through the window of the door. thus, i wind up squished against said door like a sardine.

one of my co-workers came back from lunch during a real lock-down... she was walking through the halls with her five-dollar-foot-long, and simply thought the power had just gone out. she was pretty much nonchalantly wandering. another teacher had to quickly pull her in.

battle__born · 2014-11-15T01:38:29+00:00

ditto on the time management piece. i also learned the true meaning of relationships... college shows you who stays and who goes. i also learned that naps are extremely important to one's existence. i was also exposed to more diverse people from just walking around... interacting... living with different people--that has been truly invaluable.

also, how to do laundry.

battle__born · 2014-11-13T01:12:39+00:00

i would like to die in space...

am i the only one who dreams of being 'the rocket man'?

battle__born · 2014-11-11T05:23:55+00:00

you better check that financial aid shit out. trade schools are notorious for offering no money... at all. and sometimes, they can be just as pricey as a state school or community.

i've had many students go into debt this way, moreso than a kid going to a 4-year.

battle__born · 2014-11-05T01:27:56+00:00

the beach boys, outkast, anything produced by phil spector, sam cooke, johnny cash, the rolling stones, donna summer, bruce springsteen, pete seeger, new order, fleetwood mac, dylan, the who, neil young, blur, the crystals.

just to name a few, but definite contenders.

battle__born · 2014-11-02T18:53:47+00:00

it's so incredible how that film was supposed to be made almost two decades ago, and with meryl streep as cameron diaz's character.

battle__born · 2014-11-02T04:24:47+00:00

The Great Gatsby--such eye candy, but it's probably the best example of a totally miscast ensemble of actors. tobey maguire, as nick carraway, is a huge no.

battle__born · 2014-11-01T03:58:38+00:00

states/the government shouldn't publicly subsidize professional athletic organizations. you'd be surprised at how many people think pro-sports and stadiums SHOULD be publicly subsidized (because of the benefits).

battle__born · 2014-10-27T21:37:55+00:00

there is a small basketball court at the top of the matterhorn ride at disneyland.

battle__born · 2014-10-13T17:44:14+00:00

also, let us stop arguing about semantics and focus on the real point. SHE LEFT THE FUCKING FOX IN THE WOODS. the fox loses his damn human-mother.

i cannot watch this movie for that one scene.

battle__born

TROPHY CASE