Blog Response #1

Probably the most significant experience dealing with writing for me is my senior year presentation for my high school. This experience was particularly unique and significant in that I was allowed to write and present on any subject as long as I could write on it for 9-10 pages and defend whatever thesis we devised for 25-30 minutes in front of our teacher, our class, and whoever else showed up for the presentation.  I do not intend on lying or even bending the truth in my first post, I did not do ANYTHING on this project from September - November of senior year.  Thanksgiving break rolled around and I came down with pneumonia and swine flu (so much for being able to eat on Thanksgiving), thus baring me from working over break.  With Thanksgiving break behind me it left until December 21st to finish researching, write a paper, and prepare a presentation worthy of a passing grade in order to be eligible for graduation in May (no sweat then).

Oh boy. December.  Three weeks to do a project that (some of) my classmates have been working on for three months.  I had this.  By the 14th I was no closer than I was than the 1st, still catching up from the load of work I was unable to do by my bedridden self over break.  Then it hit me.  I enjoyed my topic.  I had ensured in September to pick a topic I knew, and even saying 'knew' is an understatement, a topic i lived. I wouldn't just know more than anyone else in the class, I would know more than any of them could ask for.  So I wrote.  I wrote for one evening alone, and watched page after page of information, statistics, and personal anecdotes scroll up my computer monitor.  Then it was over... well, almost over.  All I had left was a presentation, a presentation that counted for 65% of the grade.  But that's the easy part, talking is easy, where few people expect your words to be immaculately chosen and you can change it up on the fly.