Every girl I knew in the 8th grade spent the ENTIRE year planning for grade 9. That may sound strange if you have junior, middle and high schools but around here we do primary school (kindergarten-grade 8 ) and high school.
In this style of system, here in suburbia many of us had been in school together since we were 4 years old. While this brings some strong friendships, it also breeds social boredom. When this style of boredom sets in; when we can predict each other’s responses and experience this high degree of boredom…..well I can only speak for the girls….we tend to look for excitement and create it ourselves if necessary. Which can lead to people not being very nice and conflict which resonates loudly in this very small pond.
If and when the other girls have become bored and you’ve made some sort of gaffe in the eyes of the social ranking of the day, your life can become miserable quickly. It’s really the nature of the beast; anyone stuck in a room together for 9 years will eventually tire of one another.
The idea of moving schools in grade 9 becomes like the finish line at the end of a marathon. At the time when I ascended the ladder, I went from a school of 140 students to one with 1500 potential friends!!
In the 8th grade when the move was so close we could taste it, my friends and I invested much of our time observing our older sisters and other friends who had achieved this lofty status. We noticed their hairstyles, clothing, social activities and seeming freedom.
The most important of these seemed to be the clothing. A person’s choice of attire often determined which social circle they fit into. We had the “preps”, “the head bangers”, “the Gina’s”, “the B boys”, the Tree people (like flower children), “the Skaters”. It felt like the choice of clothing for that crucial first day of school would outline our social life for our entire year!!!! It was a massive decision, not to be taken lightly.
The feeling of that pressure to choose remains with me, the indecision and the hope. Knowing that high school brought me one GIANT step closer to the freedom of adulthood and the Loft in Toronto I’d seen myself living in since watching Kevin Bacon in Quicksilver.
The old feeling of anticipation is one that I’ve been living with for a few months, I began the process to redesign my blog with Jessica from the Frilly Coconut months ago. There were a lot of decisions to be made and frankly I wasn’t entirely certain which look I wanted. It smacked of my high school choice of clothing, how my blog appears will either pull readers in or put them off.
But here it is!!!!!
What do I think?
I love it, I think my new blog look fits my content well and is a bit quirky….like myself!
What about you, ARE YOU LOVING IT????
Yup! I’m with you, I think it looks great! Refreshing to see some green! Nice job!
Thanks so much! I’m digging the apple green
Great Job! You always make me laugh with your take on life… bless you!
Thanks Corrie, it’s wonderful to have people who knew me with my big hair in high school such as yourself!
I absolutely love the colors and your header. It looks good.
Love it, Julie!!
Thanks Sherri
hello beautiful! Looking good around here, of course, that stunner up in the right hand corner is just the icing on the cake ;)
Rawwwrrrr, I’m kinda blushing right now
I love the lime and choco combo. The header is amazing. Content is king – you can jump right in and start reading (w/out having to immediately scroll). Kuddos to you!
Thanks for the input Tammy, I appreciate it
I LOVE the new look…I also appreciated the comparison to high school/fitting in/style of clothes….I can soooo relate!
I knew you would!
Love the site. It’s very simple but eyecatching!
Congratulations!
Appreciate it Deena
Apple Green and Brown! What idiot wouldn’t love those two colors together? Seriously, give me their names!
Okay, since this is my first day here, all I know is that this looks super nice. I can’t compare it to the old one but I’ll just assume that this one is better. Okay?
Your New Friend, m.
HA love that Mark, it’s wayyyy better ;)
Love it, so fresh and inviting! Well done. :)
Fresh, I like that.
It looks good!!! Are you happy with it?
Looks very stylish, and fun, and smart.
Nice job.
I love it, now just have to figure out WordPress!
I love it! In fact it made me smile as soon as I opened it up. Yes, those first day jitters, what to wear to high school. I still remember my choice, and boy do I wish I could forget it! I think change does everyone good….
Digging the green-ness around here! I love what you’ve done with the place! I will have to change your button on my blog now :)
Love the design, Love the colors, and LOVE Jessica @ TFC. She’s amazing and did a truly fabulous job on your blog!
Thanks for such a great post and the review, I am totally impressed!