Why do people act like that?

I remember being in high school at a friend's house, and I heard her say something to her mom that would have caused me to possibly have my teeth put in my lip if I ever said it to my mom, if you know what I mean. We just didn't do that in my family. 

Another friend always got to go out and stay out until whenever he wanted, and I was lucky to squeeze an extra half hour out of my parents (cop's kids, you know). I complained to my mom whenever I couldn't do what my friends got to do and the answer was always the same, "that's them and this is us. This is the way we do things." I'm sure the eye rolls as I turned around were always heavy. In fact, I know they were. I'm a professional eye roller. As I entered college, adulthood, the work force, I still saw (and see) many things happen that surprise me or strike me as odd, unfair, not right. My kids in my class will tell me about something that happened to them and my answer to them is often the following: everyone wasn't raised like you. Our viewpoints are all different. We base what we do and how we act off of our experiences and the way we grew up, and while we see right and wrong, "right" and "wrong" are slightly different for everybody. You don't have to agree with everyone else (shoot, you don't have to agree with ANYONE else), but if you're trying to understand why people act the way they do, it's so important to remember that not everyone was raised like you. It also makes it a whole lot easier to get along with people when you don't have the choice of whether or not to be around them. Like when you have a job.

How do I make new friends after high school?

When you're a kid, you get to choose who you hang out with. A lot of times, your parents are friends with their friends or you meet in class. If you're lucky, you get a class with your best friend and the world is all sunshine and rainbows for 10 months of school. But what happens if you get a class and you have "no friends" or "don't know anybody" in there? Well, in high school, you have two options: mope and sulk silently all year, or make a new friend. One of those involves using your social skills. In the real world, however (work, college, and life in general), you don't get those two options. Most of the time, you get option B: be a team player and deal with it. Talk to the people around you, introduce yourself, and get to know them. This does not mean get their Snapchat name and send them random photos of your shoulder and ceiling. It means tell them your real name, ask theirs, and talk about things while looking them in the eye (scary, I know). It might involve you being the first one to say something, and a lot of times, it feels really awkward. Guess what? Life is one big string of awkward moments. You get through one, and then you're experienced in that situation! Don't let a potentially great friend get away because you couldn't get past talking to them face to face.

FREEDOM! Starbucks every day? Why not?

Life as an adult is glorious; you get to make the rules, you get to eat what you want, there's no one to nag at you about the crap in your car or your room. But the start of adulting is a major time of learning, too. And you know who the best teacher is? Failure. When we fail, we realize, "Well, I won't do that again!" And then we learn. So failure sucks, it's sometimes embarrassing, and it definitely isn't always easy. That's the entire premise of me creating this blog. I want you to fail; not because I like to see you take your Ls, but because I know that growth and learning comes from it. But I do want you to have a resource where you can come to find advice, information, and maybe some skills that you didn't know you needed. 

So here is where I'm the Dream Crusher (blame my husband for that title); this is why you can't/shouldn't grab that Starbucks (or insert your favorite vice here) every day:

IT ADDS UP. 



Take that $5 Frappucino. Shoot, make it a $4 Latte. You're thrifty, right? Now multiply that by 6 days (let's face it, it you have it every day of the week, you probably want to treat yourself on the weekends, too). 
$4 x 6 days= $24/week
$24 x 4 weeks = $96/month
$96 x 12 = $1,152 a year. That's 1-2 college classes. Or two cross-country plane tickets. 12 killer concerts. A LOT of Lululemon leggings (girls, you know where I'm going with this). A new engine in your Jeep. think about all of the things you could buy with $1,152. Now go buy a Keurig and make your own.  Email me and I'll tell you where to buy all of the fancy syrups and toppings. It's really not that bad.

College: do I really have to go to class?

The long answer is: YES.
The short answer is: YES.

Your parents' college days and the attendance policy:


If your parents tell you they didn't have to go to class, they lived in the good old days. Nowadays, most classes take attendance (they have their ways...) and they have a policy: miss more than three classes, and you lose credit for the whole semester. And here's the thing; in high school, they say that, but rarely will someone lose credit for absences (you enjoy that, guys). In college, you ABSOLUTELY WILL LOSE THE CREDIT. And guess what? You already paid for the class, so...

...yeah. They don't have to do anything for you. You are not entitled to credit for the class just for paying for it. I know people who have gotten As on every test all semester, and then receive zero credit for the class because they had four absences. And professors don't have anyone who's going to tell them to be nice to you. So be nice to them. And go to class. Even if you're dying from the flu. Even if you slept for one hour. Even if you hate the class.

Which brings me to my next point: IF YOU ARE SO SICK THAT YOU ARE SURE YOU ARE DYING, but you have a paper to turn in, a test, anything at all, GO TO THE CLASS. Let them tell you that you're too sick to be there and they want you to go home. But go to class. Turn the assignment in. No amount of notes from the Student Health Center will excuse you from missing a college class, because THERE IS NO EXCUSE FOR MISSING A COLLEGE CLASS, GUYS. Unless you have military leave or jury duty, you show up. Suck it up, buttercup.

It's almost here!

Hello and holy cow!
You've almost made it! Here we are, six weeks away from the end of senior year, and while most of you are telling us that you're SO READY to be done and that six weeks feels like six years, in a few short weeks there will be some of you who try to hit the brakes and get time to Just. Slow. Down. And that's what this blog is all about: helping you get through the best of times and the worst of times. I'll be posting schedules, helpful tips, reminders about deadlines, and hopefully some things that make your heart happy and keep you from having that week before finals meltdown.
Here's to the countdown; you're about to start the rest of your life!
Love, Hamlin

Why are the days dragging on?

I know, I know. You're almost done, you've basically had it with school, projects, fourteen tests happening on the same day (how is that even possible?!), and your teachers thinking that theirs is the ONLY class you have. I promise you, we don't schedule our tests and projects all on the same day; it sort of just happens that way! ANYWAY, it seems like Spring Break was six months ago, and you're on the countdown to FREEDOM! But wait, you can't just stop. There are (technically) five weeks of school left for seniors. Why would someone do almost thirteen years' worth of work just to stop a month from the end? That's sort of like working for paycheck, using it to buy yourself a nice steak at the end of a long, hard week, cooking it to perfection (medium-rare, please), sitting down to have the world's best dinner, AND THEN DUMPING IT IN THE TRASH. Yeah, it's kind of like that. NO quitting, guys, You're so close! And while you're at it, try to get off Snapchat for a while and go do something for you. Read a book, talk to your family, call your grandma, if you can. You have the time, I promise. Check your usage settings.

Dates to Remember

For my Thompson High School Class of 2019, we have some big events coming up! 

April 24: Mock Interviews (check your email for the schedule)
May 3: Val/Sal breakfast at 7:45 am
May 3: Seniors pick up Cap and Gown
May 3: Parade of Graduates (leave 9:15; return around 12:30 pm)
May 6-10: Senior Week (theme days)!
May 6-17: AP Exams
May 16: Senior Honors Night
May 20: Senior Breakfast at 9:00 am (Harbert Center, downtown Birmingham)
May 20: Graduation Practice (right after breakfast)

May 21: THE BIG DAY! Graduation at 6: 00 pm!