betenoire05's Diaryland Diary ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- A ramble about kid #1 Well, it looks like Lin will be changing schools next year. Right now she is day student at an exclusive prep school. Think about the schools portrayed in Scent of a Woman, The Emperor's Club, or Dead Poet's Society and add girls. Yep, an over-priced snob factory that is more interested in image than substance. Nope, we aren't wealthy. Lin receives a lot of financial aid/scholarship money to attend. The school offers this money to "deserving students" so that any talented youngster can achieve his/her dreams. Yeah, right. The school gives money to kids who "test well" to prop up its image, so that alum with deep pockets will continue the family tradition of shelling out the equivalent of a year's salary for someone making minimum wage as tuition. Did any of that make sense? Anyway, Lin has been miserable this school year. She doesn't feel that she fits in anywhere at Snob Prep, and I think that she has given up too much of herself trying to fit in. She has a unique way of viewing life, is a theater geek, loves learning when motivated for the right reasons, is extroverted and funny, and is model pretty. Yet, she thinks that she is a failure because of her experiences at school. She doesn't play sports. She doesn't want to be a lawyer, doctor, or indian chief. She doesn't do drugs or have sex to fit in. She doesn't take fancy vacations each school break. She has too many siblings. Her parents hold her accountable for her words and actions. (yeah, I'm a real hard ass) She tries to be herself. Oh, and she's talented. Lin has been too unhappy. So, time for a change. Teens don't like change much, do they? Her father and I considered letting her attend the local high school. It's one of the best in our area, but it is still over-crowded and under-funded. Instead, Lin decided that she wanted to audition for a spot in the local "fame" school. The "fame" school is a local magnet school that offers a curriculum of performing and fine arts in addition to college prep courses. Kids graduate and move on to "art colleges" or chase after their dreams. The school supports no athletic teams. Their yearly Spring production is performed for the entire region and is always sold out. Students get lots of opportunities to work with local professionals. So, Lin got together her audition material- a monologue, set design, set model, and resume with a glowing letter of recommendation from an old drama teacher and her present choir director, and went to the first audition. She got a call back. She went to the second audition. Yesterday, we received notice that the "fame" school would love to have her join them next Fall. I am so proud of this kid. She is so much braver than I ever could be. 12:14 p.m. - February 17, 2004 ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- |
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