Solitude and Sister Time

Day Thirty-Two

"That's like saying 14 is a year away from 15 which is half-way to 30, so everyone is grade 9 is basically 30."

It's been a while, hasn't it? My apologies for not posting, but I've been away for the past few days.
I spent most of last Thursday in solitude. I didn't really want to speak to anyone. I go through that every now and again when I just don't really want to talk to anyone. Last Thursday was one of those days.
So I spent the day editing Tera-Mae and Brittany's prom pictures. It took a while, but I was able to get them up on Facebook that evening. I've never received so many notifications in my life. Three hundred notifications later (literally), I decided it might be a good idea to begin packing for Spiritual Retreat. I started packing and then headed to bed.

                                                                                                               -Jess Dryden

Day 33

"Why do you hate me?"

I spent Friday with my favorite sister. She came and got me in the morning and we went back to her house. We did some Facebook creeping, email answering and picture tagging. Then she made us lunch on the barbeque; it was delicious.
I was also suppose to go help Tera-Mae prepare some food for Spiritual Retreat, but I was in the wrong place at the wrong time.
                                                                                                               -Jess Dryden

Let's Make a Getaway

                     Day 31

    "I feel my flesh burning with sin"

I took a little road trip on Wednesday. 

Kaitlyn and I decided to go to Sackville; not before we picked up Nathan, of course. We drove there, which took forever because of construction. When we finally got there, we took a walk around town to go see the swans. Then we went to Mel's to get milkshakes. We walked and talked and it was nice to not be here. On the way back to the car, we stopped in to see Kaitlyn's G-Ma. She's so cute and she's absolutely hilarious. She gave us homemade bread and cookies and then took our blood pressure. After saying goodbye, we drove back home. 

We dropped Nathan off and then Kaitlyn and I did drive-bys. And we ran into some people we know at Irving. Totally a coincidence!

                                                                                          -Jess Dryden

Oh, Prom!

Day 29

"Are you up, gurl?"

I don't really remember much about Monday. I probably spent all day in bed. I did go to work at 5:30 PM though! I remember that. I remember watching John Tucker Must Die at work. I have a bit of an obsession with that movie lately. I also remember my friends coming to visit me at work for a bit. 

After work I decided I would go to Tim's. I forgot they stopped serving bagels that late at night, so going there would be pointless. I decided to walk to Wendy's instead. On my way, Kaitlyn drove by and then kindly offered to drive me there. When we got there, I ate of course, and Kaitlyn and I decided to make a plan to crash prom. Probably the best idea I've had all week. Then mom came to get me. 

At 11 PM, Kaitlyn texted me and asked if I was still up. Of course I was, so she came to get me so we could do drive-bys. Worst idea we had all week.  But anyways, we indeed did drive-bys, then she drove me home. I then starting watching a movie and fell asleep. Pretty typical night for Jess Dryden.

                                                                                                             -Jess Dryden

                                 Day 30

               "I'll take you to prom next year!"

Oh boy! Tuesday was just the bestest! I told you Tuesdays are always great. 

Why was this Tuesday so splendid? One word: prom. Yes, the event every girl looks forward to all of her teenage years. No, I didn't go to prom, unfortunately. Well, I did actually. Let me just explain. 

I'm in grade eleven, so I only get to go to prom next year. I wasn't overly excited for prom, in fact, I wasn't even planning on going until Tuesday. This past Tuesday, I had the pleasure of spending the entire day with Tera-Mae and Brittany. I took their prom pictures. Seeing how excited they got for prom made me want to go so bad, and I made a decision that day to go when I'm in grade twelve. It just so happens I found a date, too. It all worked out quite perfectly. 

I absolutely loved spending the day with these girls. Going to get hair and make-up done, and then going to take pictures. They looked stunning, with their handsome prom dates. They've grown up so fast, and turned into such lovely ladies :') Love you girls <3

Anyway, Kaitlyn and I decided to crash prom. We managed to sneak into one prom, our school's prom, but we couldn't get into the other one. Which really kinda sucked because we could hear the music playing and it sounded like such a good time. Since we couldn't get into that prom, we decided to randomly walk around the Delta hotel and take pictures. I talked in a British accent so it would confuse people. Then Kaitlyn's mom needed the car, so with another failed attempt to get into prom, we went home and had pizza.

I actually can't wait for prom <3

                                                                                                 -Jess Dryden

Simply Great

Day 28

"If only I had a baseball bat....or some steel toe boots!"

Sunday was such a good day!

I went to Sunday morning church, of course. It was a beautiful service, and there was a BBQ afterwards. It was delightful! I love food. 

After the BBQ, I went home for a very brief amount of time. Out the door again as I went to visit dad at work to give him his Father's Day card. Then mom and I went to The Corn Crib because she had to go there for some reason. We then drove up to see my G-rents for the afternoon. Visiting with them was nice. I never realized that my G-pa was so funny. 

We took some pictures on the way home. And by the time I actually got home, I was exhausted. I spent the rest of the day editing pictures, and watching movies. A perfect ending to a simply great day.

                                                                                                         -Jess Dryden

Gummy Whales

Day 27

"Send the sharks down after it"

For the first time, I started to like Moncton. 

Saturday was an interesting day. I worked from 2-5:30 PM. Towards the end of my shift, Maddy showed up. Then Cameron because she was working the shift after me. We all hung out for a while, then Maddy and I caught a bus to the mall. We met up with Nathan (a little late) in the mall parking lot. Then I ditched those kids to go get some gummy whales. I love gummy whales. (They're actually sharks but whatever!). I found Maddy and Nathan eventually and we all went to Taco Bell. We ate tacos and stuff. So much for our plan to go Father's Day shopping. 

It was getting late so we started to walk home. We stopped in at Harry's on the way home. I kinda have a huge craving for Harry's Pizza 24/7. Unfortunately, we didn't have time to get pizza so we just kept walking. We walked and walked and walked for what seemed like forever. But it didn't take as long as I expected. Finally we got to R-View and mom came to get me. Pretty sure I was exhausted and went to bed shortly after walking through the door. 

                                                                                                         -Jess Dryden

             

Enchanting Evening

Day 26

"I was enchanted to meet you"

Friday was the best Friday I've had in quite a while.

I took two exams in the morning (Chem and Bio), which were my last exams. I was quite happy about that. So after my exams, Jess drove me home. 

I was so bored but thankfully Tera-Mae asked me if I wanted to hangout. Around 5 PM I met her at the church then we walked down to the R-View market. We ran into Henry there! He was playing guitar and singing. He's really kind of amazing at that stuff. Tera-Mae left and I went with Henry to McDonald's because I somehow always end up at McDonald's. It's getting a little ridiculous. Anyhow, we ate, well he ate and I had a bite of his ice cream because I wasn't all that hungry at the time. Then we talked for quite some time. I quite enjoyed our conversations. Afterwards, Kaitlyn came to get us and we drove Henry home. 

Since Britt was all the way in Hopewell Hill, we had to wait for like, two hours before we could pick her up. So we phoned Nathan and went to pick him up because he was super bored. Then we went to Joshua's house to see if he wanted to waste time with us. Unfortunately, he had other plans. We did a few drive-bys and then finally went to pick Britt up. We did more drive-bys and went to McDonald's. I spend so much time there. I should have a membership by now, or at least a job. We left Nathan at McDonald's for a brief amount of time, but we came back for him. 

We somehow ended up at Henry's house again. I don't know how that happened. 

Henry and Nathan both got in the car and we drove around the neighborhood. Then we all just sat outside his house for a bit and talked about random stuff that had nothing to do with anything. I'd say this is becoming quite typical for all of us. Then we had to go so Henry, Nathan and I got out of the car and my friends drove away without me because I was taking too long to say goodbye, apparently. But before they could get too far, Nathan started running around the vehicle so they couldn't go anywhere. "He looked like a dear in headlights".  It was such a good day because I got to spend it with my favorites <3

                                                                                                            -Jess Dryden

 

School in the Summer?

Day 25

"Wash that man right out of your sweater"

Today was most people's last day of school. Sad I can't say the same for myself. While my friends are chillin' at the beach and doing drive-bys, I'll be stuck in summer school. It's official. Turns out summer school is a real thing. I really thought it only existed in movies. The fortunate thing is, it's only for a month. So I'll still have all of August. Even though I'll be stuck in school during the morning, I'm so looking forward to summer!

Today was great, as always. I went to school, then Jessica and Kaitlyn drove Tera-Mae and I to the church. It was Tera-Mae's first day working there. I assisted her in planning a few of the events for the summer. Then Ben took us to Subway for lunch.

Eventually I went back to school so I could talk with my teachers about my horrible marks. Most of my teachers are pretty great, I must say. I'm really going to miss grade eleven, but I'm tremendously excited for my grad year! It's going to be so great, you know.

I should be off to bed since I have an exam at 8:45 AM tomorrow. 

                                                                                                   Thanks for reading

                                                                                                          -Jess Dryden

This Could Be the Start of Something New

Day 24

"It's not that our love died, it just never really bloomed"

It's been another great day. Had an exam this morning. Exam week is the only time you will ever catch me wearing sweat pants in public (unless I'm going to the gym) and even then I usually just change when I get there. Unfortunately, I don't think I did too well on my exam. School just really isn't going too great this year.
After my exam, Court drove me home. Then Ben and I went to lunch.
It's kinda sad because it was probably my last lunch with Ben, while he's still my youth pastor. It's going to be so weird not having him around. I went home again and then I went to work at 5:30. Dad picked me up for pizza afterwards. Second time I had pizza today.

I made a promise to myself today. I made a promise that I was going to get my life together. Get organized, do better in school, be a better person, and stop wasting time. I'm such a time waster. I'm real good at keeping promises, just not the ones I make to myself. But I really hope I can keep this one.
                                                                                               -Jess Dryden

Second Cup is my First Choice

                                Day 23 

                          "PAUUUUUL!"

I don't know what it is about Tuesdays, but they are always just amazing.

I woke up this morning and chilled around the house for a while. Then I walked to Maddy's house. It was a million degrees outside. You can't really tell from this photo, but I'm a little sunburnt. 

When I got to Maddy's, we grabbed some popsicles and when to the buses. Of course, we stopped at the ice cream stand to talk to Cameron first. We bused to Moncton and went to Wal-Mart where we met up with Nathan. We chilled in Wal-Mart for a while, then walked to Second Cup (which is waaaaaaay more than a 20 minute walk, Maddy!).

So like, 35 minutes later we were just about at Second Cup when some random boys in a vehicle yelled out to us "Girl! Girl! Girl! Girl!....." It was kinda weird. Then we saw Amy and Emily in Second Cup. What a coincidence! It was good catching up with them. I spent the rest of my time at Second Cup taking pictures with people. The cutie standing beside me is Thomas. He's, well, he's real cute!

After all the coffee (which I didn't drink) and good conversation, Peter dropped Maddy and I off in the small little town we live in.We walked back to Maddy's and her 'rents drove me home. 

Now here we are at the end of my night. It's been such a great day. I was so happy to see everyone since they just got back from America and all. Although, a couple of important people were missing this evening. 

I should probably be off to bed considering I have a Math exam tomorrow morning at 8:45. Or maybe I'll stay up and watch movies all night.

                                                                                                -Jess Dryden 

Chicken Toast

                      Day 22

               "Chicken toast!"

Once I move out, I'm buying a toaster, and stalking up on chicken toast. Then I'll be golden.

Today was a great day. I got to sleep in a little bit because my exam was at 11 AM. My friends came to get me around 10:30. We drove to school and I did my exam. I can say with confidence that I probably failed that exam. I'm really not too impressed with myself. I should have actually finished reading Oliver Twist. But, what's done is done and all I can do is hope for the best. 

After my exam I stayed in the cafeteria and read until Tera-Mae was done her exam. Then we walked to her house and had chicken toast! Yes, that's right! CHICKEN FREAKIN' TOAST! A little while after we had chicken toast, we went upstairs and Tera-Mae played a bunch of songs on her trendy new Macbook, so I could guess the title and artist. I thought I was doing an okay job until Tera-Mae's brother walked in and schooled me. (You're going down next time, Justin!)

Tera-Mae drove me all the way home but when I got to the door, it was locked and I didn't have my keys. So I got back in the van and we drove back to Tera-Mae's. We got out of the van and went for walk around the block. We had good conversation, as per usual. Then she drove me home again. Luckily, my 'rents were home this time.

So then, this American I know put ramen in his coffee because, well, I'm not really sure why. He's the coolest person I know.

I'm so looking forward to tomorrow as I may get to see my friends who just got back from America. And you know, it's Tuesday.

                                                                                                         -Jess Dryden

Summer's Coming

                                                               Day 21

                                                         "Awkwaaard"

Another great day. My Sundays usually aren't this exciting, though.
I went to Sunday morning church, of course. It was Grad Sunday. I couldn't hold back tears when they played the grad video. I'm so proud of our four grads! These four lovely ladies are becoming such Godly women. Watching them grow in Christ has been amazing. I can't believe I have to say goodbye to them in the Fall, but I know God will take plenty good care of them as they venture out into the world of adulthood.
Still, goodbyes are always hard.
Shortly after church, I went to a baby shower with mum and sister. Tina (mother-to-be) is due at the end of the month. She has the cutest baby bump ever!
Finally, at 5:30, I went to work. Nathan and Madison came to visit me. We ran into our best friends, who's names I've already forgotten that we met last Saturday. I don't remember anything unless I write it in my diary. Then dad came to get me and took me to Wendy's to get a salad.
It may not seem overly exciting, but I quite enjoyed it.

Oh! And Thomas said hi to me from America.
                                                                                                        -Jess Dryden

Too Soon Gone

Day 20

"Do you want to cut my hair?"

So I gave my best friend a haircut today. He's been wanting one for while and asked me if I would do it. I said yes just so I could cross that off my bucket list. I had some assistance from Maddy, Madison (Happy Birthday!) and Kevin. Kevin: "Hold my vegetables!" *grabs scissors*. Nathan wasn't particularly fond of his new hair, but everyone else liked it! Afterwards, we bused to the mall.
I ran into Brittany Akerley at the mall. That actually happens so much. She has a fabulous new hairdo! I got to see if before everyone else. We kinda just walked around the mall for a while and window shopped.
Then, around 7 PM, I went to my friend Kaitlyn's dance recital. She takes like, a million different types of dance. Ballet, Point, Lyrical, Hip Hop, and there might be another kind, too. I'm not really sure. She did such a spectacular job in the recital. I'm so proud!
This was such a good Saturday. If only it has lasted a bit longer.
                                                                                                                -Jess Dryden

It's a Bittersweet Symphony

    Day 19

     "Hi Jess, how are you?"

I went to school today! Only for like an hour, but it still counts. I slept through my alarm again, so I decided to walk to school just in time for last period, just so I could say I went to school on my last day. I'm really kind of sad about it being my last day of grade eleven. It was a tough year, but I made it out alive. Don't ask me about my grades.
A few of my friends are graduating this year. I'm going to be so sad to see them go, but at least we have the summer together. Plus, most of them are going to school nearby, so that's nice.
It's a bittersweet day, just like I knew it would be. On one hand, I'm sad I won't see my fellow classmates every day, but on the other, I am so excited for the summer. I have so much planned! I just have to make it through exam week and I'm golden.
I also decided to attend last period because it's Spanish class, and we had a fiesta! We had tostadas and it made me feel like I was back in Guatemala again. So nice. After that I got on the bus to go home.
When I got off the bus, I noticed my friend Adam was sitting behind me. He was going to his friend's house, which is like 2 minutes from mine. On the way home he told me that him and his friend were going to come egg my house. I didn't believe him until he sent me a picture of an egg carton with three eggs in it. So I told him I left the country.
I spent the rest of the evening eating anything I could find in my refrigerator, and editing pictures.
                                                                                                      -Jess Dryden

Good Conversation

             Day 18
"Buddy's got the whole subscription"

I spent the first half of my day in bed. Yes, I didn't go to school again. I've become quite a rebellious kid these days. I was just so tired that I slept right through my alarm. Also, I'm not sure if you noticed, but I'm all caught up on my posts! I hope it can stay that way for at least a little while.
Eventually I got sick of being in the house, so I messaged Tera-Mae to see if she wanted to hangout. She said yes, so I walked to her house. We decided to go for ice cream, but then I changed my mind and we went to Tim Horton's instead. After Tim's we walked around the block a couple of times and talked about everything from the early church to Shakespeare, and ending it off with a good old talk about boys, of course. We always have good conversations.

Well, another school year has come and gone. Tomorrow is going to be so bittersweet; the last day always is. I love summer, and I'm so excited for it, but I'm really gonna miss school. Honestly, it would be nice if we had maybe another month or so of school. Then I'd be ready for summer. It's all just happening so fast, you know. Things are changing so quickly this year, and I'm really not use to it. I suppose it's just one of those things that I'm going to have to deal with and trust that God's timing is right.
Also, I'm so very excited for my friends to get back from America. I miss them so very much.
                                                                                                          -Jess Dryden

It Rains When You're Here and It Rains When You're Gone

                 Day 16

          "THAT'S HIM!"

So apparently I have new neighbors that moved in on Saturday. I won't lie; I'm quite an oblivious person.

Since I forgot my keys, I went over to Serena's house after school. It's basically my second home. We had snacks and talked about random stuff and played Wii all afternoon until my step dad got off work. When he did, I went home and studied. And by "studied" I mean I had a nap. I might have eaten at some point in the day too.                                                                                                                                  -Jess Dryden

Day 17

"Staying safe at Trimble"

Technically, I still went to school yesterday. It just wasn't my school. Since it's the last week of school, attending class isn't really mandatory. And just so you know, I was totally planning on attending my afternoon classes, but my friends had other plans. They picked me up at lunch time and then we went to pick of Nathan, of course. We drove into town to drop Nathan off at HTHS. After we dropped him off, we decided to go inside and take pictures with the Trojans' sign. We were about to get caught by some teachers so we booked it out of there and went to the mall for a couple of hours. There's really nothing else to do in Moncton other then go to the mall, sadly. 

At 3:30 ish, we decided to take a trip to MHS. We went inside and took pictures. Walking into Moncton High wearing a Riverview Royals jacket was not my best idea. Oops. Back to Trimble from there where Brittany, Kaitlyn, Maddy, Nathan and I all hung out for a brief amount of time. Then Maddy left. So the rest of us decided to leave too, since none of us even go to that school. We got back in the car, and drove to Joshua Lander's house. I'm not entirely sure why. Nathan attempted to leave but then somehow we all ended up going to the mall again. We drove Brittany home first. We stayed at the mall for a while, but then we eventually left the premises and left Nathan there.

The day ended with talking to people who are currently in America. I miss them.

                                                                                                 -Jess Dryden

Wingin' It

Day 15

"Well tell those swamp rats to back off the merchandise!"

So this is my Guatemala bracelet. I wear it almost every day. Honestly, I miss Guatemala so much! I went there with a group of people in March, and I'd give anything to go back. It is such a beautiful place, and I have so many good memories there. I remember walking the streets of Antigua like it was yesterday; almost getting run over by cars every time we crossed the road. I could sit here and write for hours about what an amazing time I had there, but instead, I'll just tell you about Monday.

Monday was a pretty typical Monday. Ellen and I had to give a presentation for Spanish class on Guatemala. We picked Guatemala because we've both been there, and both love that place. The powerpoint I had prepared conveniently wasn't working, so I had to use the one I made at school, which was only half done. 

Each presentation was suppose to be 25-30 minutes long. We had to present that day, too. So, with only 30 minutes to spare, Ellen and I managed to get down to a computer and finish up the powerpoint while another group presented their project. Somehow, we pulled it off and went to present it. Since we didn't have time to practice our presentation, we kinda just improvised. But Ellen and I were able to just pull random facts out of our heads that we learned while we were in Guatemala. I think we aced it!

I've spent so much time talking about Guatemala that I was even a little bit nervous to speak in front of the class. Which is amazing because those of you who know me, know I'm quite terrible at public speaking.

Oh, Guatemala! How I miss thee.

                                                                                               -Jess Dryden

Another Weekend Bites the Dust

Day 14

 "Did they send me daughters, when I asked for sons?"

  "It's funny 'cause she was a daughter!"

This is actually one of the pictures I took on Friday at Maegan's house. I forgot to take a picture on Sunday, so I have to use something.

Sunday was a good day. I woke up early; far too early, to go see the final performance of Room 77. It was my fourth time seeing that musical and I loved it every time. They did such a great job! After that I went home to have lunch and then I went to work at 2 PM. I really shouldn't be working on Sundays, I know.

After work, Styler came to get me and I decided to take them out to dinner to thank them for helping me pick out my camera, and just for being awesome. So we went to Mike's because we all love that place. We ate delicious food and they gave me boy advice. Typical dinner with them.

After dinner I finished up my Spanish project on Guatemala which I forgot was due the next day. I might of got a few hours of sleep, too.

The Left Behinds

Day 13

"He is said I was cute! Like, cuter than him."

"THAT'S CUTE!"

Oh, what a day Saturday was! I woke up around 9 AM, if my memory serves correct. I didn't actually do anything until after lunch though. At 1 PM, I went to the church so I could take more pictures for the musical. 1246 pictures later I walked to Maddy's house to help her finish unpacking her room. But really, she unpacked while I talked about boys. 

We were both pretty upset because our friends left for BWSC on Saturday morning. BWSC is in America, which is kinda far away, and Maddy and I got left behind (stupid exams!) But anyways, we decided to hangout and be miserable about not going to BWSC. So we sat around and ate peanut butter filled pretzels and tore up tissue paper, as you can see in the photo above. 

Afterwards, we met up with Nathan and brought him a taco. We walked around town and ran into some men wearing nice suits. One of them liked Radiohead! We stopped to talk to them for a while and then continued on walking down the main road. And we saw a cat, which I'm pretty sure was actually a rabid squirrel! We walked back to Maddy's house and had popsicles. It was pretty funny when Nathan didn't know how to eat a popsicle.

                                                                                                      -Jess Dryden

Friday Folly

                                  Day 12

                             "I see BOYS"

Fridays are always good. Not as good as Tuesdays, of course, but next to Tuesdays, they are probably the best. Unless you're counting Saturday and Sunday, then just forget I said anything.
This past Friday (2 days ago), I went to school, as per usual. But after school, instead of going home I went to Maegan's house with Brooke and Katie so we could finish up our student seminar which we are due to present this coming Tuesday. We ate pizza and watched Big Bang Theory and spent maybe an hour working on the project. After all that hard work, we went outside and jumped on a trampoline while listening to One Direction. Maegan's choice, not mine. I think that was enough exercise for the year. I already have to walk up the stairs at school every day to get to first period. We ended the evening with a cute little bonfire and s'mores.
When I got home I think I might of had a nap, or maybe not. I'm not really sure. But it turns out that movie #48 on my list (Orange County), was on television. I decided to watch it so I could finally cross that one off my list. I'm not really sure how it even got on my list in the first place, but it's probably because every movie with Jack Black is a good movie.
                                                                                                 Thanks for reading
                                                                                                       -Jess Dryden

It's the Most Musical Time of the Year

 Day 11

    "Is my neck glowing?"

This is Kayla. Isn't she gorgeous? Kayla and I go way back to when we played school bullies together in our very first musical.
Yesterday after school I had the pleasure of going to the church and taking pictures for the youth musical.  For the last 4 years (excluding this year), I've participated in the youth musical. It's always a blast. Unfortunately this year I was unable to because I just had too much on my plate. While watching them practice yesterday, I longed to be back there practicing songs, and rehearsing lines like last year, and the years before.
Opening night is tomorrow (Saturday, June 2nd), but they put on a special performance for a small crowd who couldn't make it to the showtimes last night. They did such a spectacular job! Every single one of them did a great job performing. I miss being a part of that team so much. (I'm so proud of you guys!)
If you find yourself free tomorrow evening from 7-8 PM, or Sunday morning, please considering attending this musical which is taking place at Riverview Baptist Church. http://www.facebook.com/events/227194364059821/
It has a great message and these youth have put so much work into it. Praise God for the great work He is doing in their lives.
                                                                                                   -Jess Dryden