New Blog

so - it is quite obvious that I haven't blogged here in a while. and that is for many reasons.

but i have started a new blog. which is a lot more relevant to things that are going on in my life.

so, come visit me over there sometime.

http://hollyjohnston.posterous.com/

"There Was a Kid...

with a head full of doubt, so I'll scream til I die and the last of those bad thoughts are finally out."

Graduation has come and gone and in two days time I am going to be sitting on the beach with a book in my hand relaxing. As I start to plan out my summer, I am realizing that I am on the go pretty much the entire summer. I leave on Tuesday for the beach, come back next Monday. That Thursday I am heading up to Staunton to spend the night and then on Friday I am going to Mary Baldwin's campus to set up my schedule and all that good stuff. That Monday I start work, then on July 10th I am off to spend two weeks at UVa, which I couldn't be any more excited for! I come back and then up until the 13th of August I am back on the internship. Then sometime around August 22 I leave for school.

While looking at my summer schedule, which will not go as smoothly as I am hoping it will go, it seems a little overwhelming. Although I know that I can handle it and that this is the last time for a while that I am going to be able to make an impact on my community before heading off to school.

Speaking of school - I am finding it very hard to believe that in the morning I don't have to get up to go to class. I am almost a little sad. While I didn't cry on Friday night, the realization that I am never going to have a class with these kids ever again makes me sad. Although it makes me even more excited for Sorensen this summer and then heading of to school in the fall.

I can't help it, I'm a nerd.

It has been a while...

but that is because I have been pretty busy lately.

In the past few months I have:
-given a couple presentations on Darfur.
-I have had 3 interviews.
-I have been hired as a Common Good Summer Fellow for Congressman Tom Perriello's re-election campaign.
-I have been accepted to Mary Baldwin and American University and wait-listed at Bryn Mawr.
-I have gotten glasses
-Helped organized and helped ran a meeting for the Virtual Va social studies club with Congressman Perriello

Throughout all the hustle and bustle of what senior year holds, I have been enjoying life in general.

I have been doing lots of reading as well. In College Composition we have been reading the Romantic poets, and I can't help but think about how much I love Lord Byron's writing. The one line that has been sticking out in my head for days is, "I love man not the less, but Nature more."

I have also had a Henry David Thoreau quote stuck in my head. I first heard it when former Governor Tim Kaine was speaking at Girls State. He opened his speech with "I love my fate to its very core and rind." These are two lines that in general sum up how I feel at the moment about my life and I although I couldn't be more confused about what I will be doing after high school - I would not change a thing.

A Black Boot, a Red Bench, and a Aeroplane sticker

You may be wondering what these three things have in common. It is not something that is obvious and it is not something that any one reading would understand. It is something that only I understand the connections.

Each of these are things that I see and remind me of the simple things in life. In this open field lays a black boot that has been there for years. Hanging on a tree by two metal chain links is this bright red bench swing that's vibrancy has caught my attention due to the dullness of winter. Someone has placed an aero plane sticker on the ceiling above the stairs at my church. Every time I walk down the steps I look up and chuckle.

These three things remind me of the simplicity of life.

On another note that is completely unrelated - Real Time with Bill Maher has started back - and I am super excited.

Charlie Wilson

My favorite congressman of all time has passed away. Charlie Wilson passed away earlier today. Wilson is best known for getting majority of the funding for the covert operation in Afghanistan. While Wilson was known as "Good Time Charlie" on the Hill, while he was in office, he got work done. If anyone has seen or read Charlie Wilson's War then you would be familar with the wild lifestyle that Wilson led, but he was honest with his constituents and he was effective.

Wilson is the main reason for my interest in Afghanistan and always will be my favorite Congressman.

RIP Charlie Wilson

The Night That the War Began

From some reason I have been thinking about the night that the War in Iraq began. I was in 5th grade, and I can remember knowing that day that then President Bush was going to declare war. I sat that night watching the TV, waiting for his announcement, but my mom finally made me go to bed.

I woke up the next morning and watched the news as I always did - even in 5th grade I was nerdy. The footage of the bombings in Iraq are still something that are embedded into my mind. I can remember the buzz at school the next day, none of us were really sure about what was going on.

Why this has been on my mind lately, I'm not sure. It is definitely something that I have been thinking about a lot. Maybe it is because I now know people that have fought, are fighting, or will fight in either Iraq or Afghanistan. Maybe it's because of my growing awareness of the Middle East. Either way - I vividly remember the night that the war began.

Howard Zinn.

I am writing this post saddened by the news that I have just read. Today, Howard Zinn died of a heart attack at the age of 87.

This man has helped shape my views of history - and the history community lost an important person today.

I had thought about today as I browsed through my school library re-reading "A People's History of the United States" and I know now that the first thing that I am going to do tomorrow is check it out and read it.

RIP Howard Zinn.

I've been super busy...

but I'm back now. I've sent off all my college applications and I've started my last semester of high school and I couldn't be more excited about the next few months.

Although I have a lot of work to do this semester, there is something liberating about knowing that at the beginning of June, the culmination of the past 13 years of my life will be handed to me. The past 13 years will send me somewhere, on a brand new journey, at a brand new location.

For the time being, I have a bunch of homework to catch up on - so I'm heading on.

New Years Eve with The Avett Brothers

Emma and I got up early on Thursday morning to head to Asheville. When we finally hit the city, we showered, got ready and left our hotel in record time. We stood in line outside the Civic Center for 6 hours...I was determined to get a good spot...and ended up being front row.

It was an amazing night. Full of meeting great people, making new friends, and listening/dancing/screaming great music.

Here a some pictures: (taken by Emma...since it was no flash, my pictures were not good at all)


Me before the show


Timothy Seth Avett


Scott Avett


Bob Crawford - My Favett. :)


Joe Kwon - Rocking that cello!


Joe Kwon and Bob Crawford - my Favetts.



This one was taken by me - it took me an hour to get this, but when I finally did - it was simply amazing. :)


On top of everything else - they played Salvation Song - and for me it was the greatest part of the whole evening.

Holiday Wrap Up

Like everyone, I have been extremely busy. The snow has hindered me from doing a lot of things, and I am trying to catch up on everything the outside world needed me to do. I am beginning to realize that I don't like the snow that much, and I am very much so ready to see the green grass again.

I am very excited about Christmas, I can't wait to spend time with my family and friends. I also am extremely excited about New Years Eve! We just booked our hotel room, and I couldn't be more excited about it. This is going to be one of the greatest shows of my life!

I am ready for the new year. I'm ready to be done with college applications. More importantly, I am ready for second semester to get here. Which means that I should probably be studying for my AP Microecon exam, and I will...just after all the college applications are done.

Happy Holidays everyone!

And It Spread

Well, it looks like the snow is not going to stop any time soon...and for once I'm pretty excited. I really don't like snow that much, and my reason was that I hate snow days. There is nothing worse than having a snow day, because it means that you have to make it up at some point in time. Although, senior year has changed my views on that and I am elated to have a snow day, because seniorits has hit and I am ready for Graduation to get here.

I have a lot of things to get done over the break. College applications, start working on a Darfur Presentation I'm giving in January, read about 4 books that I started this school year and haven't finished, study for AP Microeconomics final and all my other exams...and most importantly, spend time with family and just have fun.

On an even better note, only 13 days until I'm ringing in the New Year with the Avett Brothers...the tickets came today...and I am getting really, really excited. :D

Sitting, Waiting, Wishing

I'm not sure how much longer I can wait for this letter. the suspense is KILLING me. I have braced myself doe the worse so if I get that letter and it's a rejection letter...I shouldn't be as hurt/sad/confused/disappointed.

So I'm waiting for the mailman to get here. I'm hoping that my letter is going to be there today. and then i hope that my mom gets here soon enough so i can open it...

I'm reading to get rid of this yucky feeling.

We came for salvation

There are only 24 days until I see the Avett Brothers for New Years Eve, and I am extremely excited! This is probably the greatest birthday/Christmas present anyone could ask for from there older sister...at least to me. :) Currently "Salvation Song" is on repeat, and this is because...in a few days, there is a chance that I could possibly have "bad feelings" towards this song. I used it in one of my admissions essays for Swarthmore, and if I don't get the letter that I want, I know that it will be a tough song to listen too...but no matter what, it will always have a special place in my heart. :)

So, here it is:

Cardboard,

I was looking through some old stuff that I have written and I found this. The more that I read it, the more I like it.

As I was reading something that I had written almost 2 months ago, and something caught my attention. I had written something that I hadn't even really thought about before.

...but I also think about how, for the most part, cardboard is durable..unless an outside force breaks it down.

When I read that, I realized, if you substituted the word cardboard with the word humanity, it's the best description of humanity that I could give at this moment.

I mean, a tribe in Africa is capable of surviving by itself until an oppressive government comes into the country and begins taking away resources, ignoring tribal boundaries, and for some places, killing off whole races and tribes.

As we get older, our "durability" to the outside forces switches. When we're younger, physical durability is something that we have a high tolerance to. We can fall and get a scrape and after 5 minutes be up and playing again.

I know that as I get older, my durability to things around me has weakened. Whether it be on a local, statewide, national, or international level; when I see something that's wrong. I want to change it, but I can't change everything.

After two extremely long, busy weeks, I am sitting in my room trying to grow used to the quietness that is overwhelming my house. I am extremely excited about what the next few weeks hold. Not only do I hear from Swarthmore, but I turn 18! and Emma's coming home in a few weeks and then there is Christmas. With Christmas break comes catch up with a lot of old (and new) friends that have gone to college. This makes me so excited about what is to come in the next few years. The more I think about it, the more excited I am about college. I was thinking about my schedule next year and I became extremely excited to think that for the next four years, for the most part, I will have the opportunity to take classes in the things that I want to study.

The one thing that I am extremely excited about is New Years Eve. I get to ring in 2010 with my older sister and one of my favorite bands! I am so excited to see the Avetts again. It is going to be one of the greatest NYE's of my life.

The one thing that I am looking forward to the most this next month is just some relaxation and family time. I'm looking forward to napping with KT-Bugg and having her yell for her Aunt Ya-Ya. I'm excited to have Emma home for a month. I'm excited to decorate the house for Christmas. I'm excited to have letters and cards come in from across the ocean.

A Jet Plane and A Big Idea, I Jumped Over the Sea

Minus the jet plane, this is essentially how Thanksgiving was started. The Europeans longed for a place that held what they considered religious freedom. So they set sail for a new land in search of there own society.

So far, I have quite the interesting Thanksgiving experience. The past few days I have a had a killer toothache, and pain is usually something that I am extremely tolerant too...this pain however, was just TOO much. So I finally caved in and let my mom call the dentist. Although my dentist was out of town, someone could see me. As someone that hates the dentist, I had never been more thankful when he walked in and immediately began asking questions and checking to see what was wrong. Within 5 minuted I had a diagnosis and two prescriptions to get me on my way. All this in preparation for a root canal that I'm going to have to get done on this tooth in two weeks, if not sooner.

As always, I am extremely thankful for everything that I have in my life. As Modest Mouse says, "My friends, my habits, my family, they mean so much."

Happy Thanksgiving everyone! don't eat too much, although I'm positive that I'll be eating enough for 3-4 people. :D

Another Reason I Love These Boys

Once again The Avett Brothers have shown me a greater way to live my life. This time it was as I was trying to figure out which one of these amazing brothers sang "January Wedding." I stumbled across the 'mission statement' from the "I and Love and You" box set, and the words stopped me in my tracks. Seth Avett has a talent for writing that I am envious of.

The words “I” and “Love” and “You” are the watermark of humanity. Strung together, they convey our deepest sense of humility, of power, of truth. It is our most common sentiment, even as the feeling of it is so infinitely uncommon; each to proclaim these three words with his or her very own heart and mindset of reason (or lack thereof); a proclamation completely and perfectly new each time it is offered. Uttered daily and nightly by millions, the words are said in an unending array of circumstances: whispered to the newborn in a new mother’s arms; shared between best friends on the playground; in the form of sympathy-said by a girl to a boy, as the respect continues but the relationship does not… The words are thought in the company of the photograph and said in the company of the gravestone. It is how we end our phone calls and our letters… the words at the bottom of the page that trump all those above it, a way to gracefully finish a message, however important or trivial, with the most meaningful gift of all: the communication of love.

Only Seth Avett could so eloquently write about one of the greatest, most complex emotions that we have in such a way.

Have A Little Faith

As an avid reader, I get hooked onto an author and I read every book by them. I am in love with Mitch Albom, his new book Have A Little Faith is one of the greatest books I have read in a long time. It took me two days to read the book. The book is Mitch Albom's second non-fiction which starts out with his Rabbi asking him if he will do his eulogy, although he is no where near death. Albom has no real, substantial relationship with his rabbi. So, like with Morrie Schwartz, he begins to spend time with him and develop a relationship. This lasts for over 8 years.

So, like always, here are some quotes that I took from the book.

"nothing haunts me like the things we don't say" - Reb (Mitch Albom's Rabbi)

"...When the world quiets to the sound of your own breathing, we all want the some things: comfort, love, and a peaceful heart" - Mitch

"He kept the outside world at bay by keeping the inside world at hand"

Happy Veteran's Day!

Today I am reminded of an elderly man that I helped take care of in his later years of life. One thing that he loved to do was tell my sisters and I old war stories. We would often end up wondering into a spare room where he would show us the Purple Heart that was awarded. It was a few days after the initial landing of D-Day when he landed at the beaches on the coast of France. He was moving across the beaches and was hit by a piece of shrapnel. The shrapnel was embedded into his arm. There were many more war stories that he would tell us. One of the coolest things that he would show us was his uniform. It was something that I can still see clear as day in my mind.

After attending VA Girls State this past summer, I have a whole new appreciation for our veterans. There is one experience that often pops into my mind. The POW/MIA ceremony. It was one of the more emotional, intimate, special moments of the whole week. I can still hear my fellow Pocahontas citizen singing "Blowing in the Wind," and it was the most beautiful version I have ever heard in my life. Thinking about it still sends chills down my spine and tears to my eyes.

As I reflect on all the conflicts past and present, I am thankful for everyone that serves in our armed forces. There is a good amount of my high school that goes on to serve in the armed forces, and to them I am especially thankful.

Physics and Politics.

Energy: the ability to produce change in itself or the environment.

In this past election, this is exactly what we [the democrats] lacked. As I was sitting in Physics class and we were studying for our test, this term made me automatically think about what occurred the day before. The loss of four different races (Governor, Lt. Governor, Attorney General, 14th HD) is still something that is fresh on my mind, being as it was only last night.

The statement has been made that the Republican party was more energized. I think that this is a false statement. I mean, they were more energized than we were, but it has a lot to do with the fact that the Democratic Party was not energized, we lacked the ability to produce change in itself or the environment. So I think that the Republican party was more appealing to some voters. We could not get the Democratic base out to knock on doors or to make phone calls. So in return, the rest of the Democratic Party did not get up and get out the vote. They sat on the sidelines and believed that it would get itself out.

As The Avett Brothers say in there new song "Slight Figure of Speech" - They say you have to lose a couple fights to win...Well, we all just lost either 3 or 4 races. So next year we have to energize the base and we have to work. We have to have the ability to produce change in itself or the environment. Granted change was created in the past 24 hours, it is just not the change that I want to see. It is not the change that I believe will "move Virginia forward."

So as a Democratic party we have to pick ourselves up, shake off the past 24 hours, and move forward.