So...
I am alive in case anybody was wondering. I know I haven't been on here in forever, but I am still here and kicking. :)
A lot of stuff has happened since January/February since I was last on here. I am once again living with my parents. I moved back in mid-May, and for the most part it has gone okay--mostly because we avoid talking about our issues. We did go to a couple counseling sessions and the counselor summed it up quite nicely: "You guys do not agree on many important issues. At all." And he's right. When it comes to issues of authority and what the role of parents/children are when a child is an adult, we do not agree.
But I moved back in mainly because I truly believed that God was leading me in that direction. With the exception of a few bad days, it has gone okay. And it has been nice to be back in my own house, because as much as I love the Johnsons, and consider them my second family, living with them was not being at home, nor are they my family.
In other news, I graduated from High School at the end of May. I still don't believe that it has truly registered. School was a struggle for me from the day my mom sat me down at the dining room table at the age of six and began to teach me to read. Through homeschool and public school, I had to work to get and maintain an A+ average. But I did it! The last quarter was extremely difficult, in part due to all the family drama that was going on, but also because in the last three weeks of school, the seniors were bombarded with homework. I honestly struggle with that because one of my ITV teachers told me that the teachers in his school were told to start piling more homework on the students at the end of the year. This does not make any sense to me; at the end of the year, nobody really cares, especially the seniors. I had to force myself to go to school everyday and get my homework done because I just simply didn't care anymore. If you have to piled a lot of homework on the students--and I'm not convinced you do--then why would you not do it at the beginning of the year, when the students come back from vacation?
Anyway, that was slightly frustrating, but I did get a relief during the very last week. I took only three final tests; I was exempt from one and I had a project in another. I also had the option to throw away two tests on account of my grades. I ended up doing badly on my Algebra II final, which didn't surprise me at all as I never did better than an A- on any of my math tests. In other classes, I usually got an A+ on tests, but not math.
But at the end of the day, I did finally graduate. My little sister graduated from homeschool with me and the two of us along with Reese--one of the Johnsons--had our grad party at our church. I am so blessed because I got to spend the day with two of the most important people in my life, along with many people who have become great influences in my life over the last several years.
In the weeks since graduation, I have been continuing to work at Gastrak and I have continued to hate it. I struggle with it for many reasons, and I just want to quit. But I never want to be the kind of person who quits something just because it's difficult or because it's unpleasant. If I had another job lined up, it would be different, but don’t, so I would be quitting simply because of the difficult environment.
I did apply for another job in Pembina working as a Customs Broker. Pembina is two miles south of the Canadian border, so the brokerages in town provide the paperwork for trucks/trains to get across the border. I didn't get the full-time position I had applied for and the part time position is one that a good friend of mine has his eye on and he needs it more than I do. In light of this, there is strong possibility I will be moving to Bismarck to live with my sister. Bismarck is starting to be affected by the oil boom that dominates the western side of North Dakota, so any job I get down there will be paying well above minimum wage. Since I would be living with my sister, my costs would be relatively low so I could save money for college.
And lastly, yesterday I bought my first car. His name is Zephaniah--yes, I named my car--and he's a '94 Buick LeSabre Limited. I spent $500 on him, and my dad tells me that he should last me until after college. I am probably going to start putting money away now for another car so I can pay for it in cash when I can now longer drive this one.
I have to admit that I am proud of him. Yeah, he's an old car, but ultimately, I have worked hard for the last three years to save up enough money to buy him and I still have over three thousand in Savings, so, yeah, I am proud.
I apologize if this entry has seemed disjointed, I just wanted to let you guys know how I am doing. I know that you have been praying for me and keeping me in your thoughts and I can't tell you how much I appreciate it. I means more to me than I could ever express.
I also have Skype now, and so if you have Skype and would be comfortable sharing it with me, I would love to keep in touch with you that way!