Hi, dears.  I'm kinda depressed and I think I've been spending too much time on the comp.  I'm not gonna post for a little while in an attempt to re-enter the real world.  Bye!

The sky had been the same color all day, an eerie shade of grey-blue that seemed to writhe and twist as it was watched.  The wind started off strong that morning and never died down.  It whipped through my hair, sending sprays of my pigtails across my face. Though the walk from the gas pump to the convenience store was short, the almost tangible electricity in the air made me wish for the safety of the big red truck.  I gave an involuntary shudder as a breeze snaked over my neck.  A bell tinkled as I opened the door.  The three people in the store turned momentarily to look before going back to whatever their business was.  I limped to the water and picked up two massive jugs, the kind all those survival nuts kept in their basement for Y2k.  The man reading the newspaper was not in line, so I went up to pay.  "So, anyone heard anything about Ophelia?" 

"Yeah," the cashier smiled.  "I heard she's a real sweet girl, loves everyone, and she's off spinning around Florida somewhere. . ."

"And she'll be here on Tuesday," announced the woman gravely.

That was the second time I'd heard that.  I'd hear it again from the news when I got home.  So it was true.  Ophelia was coming for a visit.

Who, you all may ask, is this Miss Ophelia?  Well, if y'all were watching the national news, you'd know that Ophelia is the name of the hurricane scheduled to make landfall on Tuesday in, yes loves, Wilmington, NC.  We're all preparing.  Dawn says that they might call a Hurricane Day (yes you read that right), and even if they don't, half the school'll be out anyway.  To quote my psych teacher, "If any of you surfers just happen to get sick on Wednesday because Ophelia's coming to town, you had better make up that test ASAP!"

Casper the Surfer Dude: "Ooh, yeah, when can I make that up?  I'm, uh, going to have a cold that day."

Y'all get the picture.  In a school populated by surfers, attendance is not a major priority.  Ohmygoodness, this school!  The inmates totally run the asylum here.  Like, kids will go sit in classes that aren't theirs, and no one will even notice.  And then there's the IDs.  They make us wear our student IDs on these really ugly cords (I decorated mine with lace that I tatted) around our necks all day.  If you don't have the thing on, you get suspended.  Yeah.  Stupid.  Darci and I actually switched IDs for the day, and no one even noticed.  The teachers don't check.  This one kid saw my ID and said, "Wow, now I know two Darcis!"  These people!  Kk, I'm done for tonight.  If y'all pester me enough, I might tell you about this one guy. . .

Hey loves!  It's been awhile, I know, but I'm here now.  I'm too tired to write about camp, really.  Suffice to say, it was lots of fun and all you shounen-ai fans would've loved it.  They finally straightened out my schedule so now I've got all my classes together.  1st block is Hon. Discrete Math, 2nd block is Sculpture, 3rd is Hon. English 2 and 4th is Psychology (which is so much fun!).  And guess what ;  all the honors classes are weighted!  I know, how great is life?  I'm really sad, though, 'cause I miss all y'all, but my XC team have been wonderful and I think I've developed a minor crush (not on a teammate).  More on this as it develops.  I've become an honorary band geek, or rather, orchestra geek.  I love these people!  Oh, speaking of crushes, I've got a total girl crush on Sei Shonagon, who lived during the 10th century and wrote this diary called The Pillow Book, which is absolutely hilarious.  Y'all have gotta read it.  You'll just crack up.  Oh, and I saw sea turtles hatching!  They were so cute and tiny and helpless and confused as the scurried toward the waves.  It was pretty emotional ;  some people cried.  And Daddy caught an Eastern Hognose Snake today.  I named him Hominy and he has the cutest little pointy nose I've ever seen on any critter in my entire life.  He's red and black and diamond-y and I adore him.  He puffs himself up and hisses.  It's so funny.  Mama swears he's going to escape from his terrarium.  I said, "There's a 12-pound weight on the lid and the thing locks.  She said, "It's a hognose.  I fully expect to see it coiling around my shower curtain rod in the morning."  You see, they had one before.  They named it Houdini.  Once bitten, twice shy, I s'pose.  Anyway, I totally adore him.  Ok, I g2g.  I've still gotta ice my legs and then go to sleep. 

Love y'all!