Because like a lot of things have been happening so maybe anyone who reads this wants to know about that?
I even have pictures!
So, first of all, I had my last Riverside music concert. Doesn't seem like that big a deal, sure, until you realize that I have been playing saxophone alongside my friend Paola twice a week for four years and that was the last time we are probably gonna ever do that.
It's okay, though, we got a couple nice pictures. And we were all dressed up, because grads are allowed to do that at their final concert. :)
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| Jeffrey, Paola, and I singing Exs and Ohs (I'm sitting on a drum and tapping it with my hand). I like this picture because it shows all three of us - we were a real team in band and choir - but also because my hair looks super fly. :) |
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| Me and Paola. This picture was taken a moment before she viciously poked me in the ribs. Four years of abuse, and it was strangely nice to have that reminder that it probably isn't over yet. (We've agreed that I'll write screenplays for movies that she's going to animate - a proposition that's actually plausible, seeing as she's studying animation at Vancouver Film School and I plan to study screenwriting at UVic, so...) |
And then two days later prom happened!
What a night.
Have a ton of pictures.
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| I am wearing three inch heels in this picture and Stephen is still almost a full head taller than me. List of things that are not fair: THAT. |
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| Me and Actual Indian Princess/one of the best friends I will ever have, and definitely my longest-running one, Anna. |
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| I LOVE THIS PICTURE SO MUCH WHAT A COUPLE OF DORKS |
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| Because our shoes don't get enough appreciation. |
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| Me and one of my other best friends I will ever have, Jacey. |
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| Jacey, me, and the ever-incredible Ms. Roberge, my drama teacher and the reason high school didn't completely suck. |
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| Me and the ever-gorgeous Ozioma. I AM NOT WORTHY OF THIS GIRL'S WIT AND GRACE AND BEAUTY. (Also she's been my friend since grade 6. But like this girl has been in the newspaper so many times because she's just that amazing?? It isn't fair????) |
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| In order from left to right: Zainab, Jacey, Seth, Michael, and me. (Zainab looking adorable as ever because she's actually a smol child that needs to be protected and loved, Seth looking GORGEOUS, and Michael because I don't have enough pictures with Michael/my boss/the one who fires me endlessly). |
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| Zainab, Paola, Jacey and me. WHY IS PAOLA SO PRETTY AND TALENTED AND AMAZING. WHY ARE ALL MY FRIENDS SO PRETTY AND TALENTED AND AMAZING. |
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| Jacey, Seth, Oliver, me and Meighan. Oliver being actually classy (despite being a weenie) and Meighan being touchy-feely and awkward, as per usual. I love them. |
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| The entire group that went in the limo together. From left to right: Shaheen (Paola's boyfriend), Paola, Tiffany (Shelby's friend), Alyssa, Alex, Lynnea, Seth, Shelby, Courtney, Jacey, Kaitlyn (Alexis's friend), me, and Alexis. |
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| Courtney (another one of the best friends I will ever have, and one of the longest going), me, and Jacey. All three of us have spent many minutes analyzing the aesthetics of this picture. It is great on many levels. Tallest to shortest. Lightest to darkest. Most regal to most silly. This is an A + very aesthetically pleasing picture. Oh, and also, we're dorks. |
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| Alex and I. Mom friend and Dad friend, respectively. I'm so glad I have a picture with my wife. |
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| I LOVE THIS PICTURE TOO. HAVE I MENTIONED THAT ME AND MY FRIENDS ARE DORKS. |
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| All of us in front of the limo. Have I mentioned that me and my friends are all dorks. (Also that's Rachel on the end there, she came a little late so she wasn't in the other picture). |
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| #DAB (Shoutout to Lynnea, Courtney and Rachel who decided nah). |
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| In the limo, right before we drove off. Yes, we all managed to fit. |
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| The whole group - and also Melissa makes a surprise appearance in the second panel xD |
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| And this is why everyone thinks we're a couple. Can we appreciate the last panel where neither of us knew what was going on. |
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| Me and Alex and Jacey. These pictures are the light of my life. |
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| What regal rulers. |
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| Paola isn't the only who I've endured four years of abuse from. |
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| Me and Ms. Leonard/my English teacher/my actual real life hero. |
What a great night. So then, school happened, then it ended, and we had the last day of school, and some grad things happened:
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| The drama grads, being dramatic, onstage all together for the last time. (I'm second from the left). |
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| As is tradition, the drama grads all signed the wall. Usually we sign in the sacred green room, but because the other grads hung out in the makeup room, we literally met in the middle and signed the wall in between. I love our grad class, honestly. |
And then, the actual commencement ceremony. It was lovely. Everyone got their chance to walk across the stage with a comment of either light-hearted, smart alecky, or emotionally genuine content (I went smart-alecky, but also with a shout-out to the green room folks: "Thanks to the Green Team for being awesome. So long and thanks for all the fish.") Amber, our salutatorian, gave a wonderful speech at the beginning of the ceremony. Then we got a lovely interlude about how utterly incredible the class genius Noah Tajwar is (he got an 80 000 dollar scholarship. He won the Governor General's Award. We know how great he is, the entire class has been living in his shadow for four years, we know, we know, we know. Wish we could hate him, but he's too genuinely nice. God, that's the worst). Then Caleb, who has been in my class since kindergarten (and who my parents lowkey think I should marry), gave a fantastic speech as valedictorian, we triumphantly threw our silly hats in the air, and... that was it. I am graduated.
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| The whole family on graduation day. Yep, that happened. The gold cord is because I was on honour roll for three years straight. |
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| My grandparents and I on grad day. |
Except that wasn't it! Awards night happened! I had received an invitation, which means definitively that I was getting an award, but I didn't see my name in the program. Which was awkward. Then my friend Ozi pointed out that it didn't give names for department awards, and that I was probably getting it for English. Lo and behold, she was right (she often is) and I co-received the award for Top English Student with Justin Smith, the monstrously tall, endlessly argumentative, and honestly, invaluably smart (and secretly musically talented?). I promise you, people will be voting for him in some election in the coming years. I guarantee it.
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| Justin and I co-winning the Top English Student award. Ms Shong gave a speech about Justin, and Ms. Leonard (my English teacher and actual real life hero) gave a speech about me. It was kind of awesome. |
And, uh... that's it! Those things happened! Life was eventful for a few weeks! I got recognized for stuff! That was pretty cool.
