Kaley Cheyenne

I’m definitely a 90’s Kid

I miss those days when all I would have to do is go to school, worry about if i would get tagged out on the playground, if Home Improvement would be on once i got home, and if my gymnastics leotard, which i just called my fuzzy bathing suit, would be clean or not. We all take for granted those naive adolescent days spent being outside playing chief with things you found in your back yard or those countless scooter races with the neighborhood kids.

Now-a-days, all the kids do is stay inside and play video games. I guess the idea of going outside and getting a little dirty and scuffed up has been thrown out the window. But why? I believe kids want to grow up way to fast, and that parents are allowing them to.

For me, back in the 90’s growing up, no one knew what was going on financially, or what exactly their parents did for a living. All we cared about was getting our Bop-Its and how the heck to work those dang flabbin’ slinkies. Now it seems like parents are dragging their kids into their worries, so that the kids understand why they cant have the newest Call of Duty game. 

Why cant we go back to the days ofHey Arnold, when playing Red Rover was a daily occurrence, when Ty Beanie Babies were the coolest thing, jumping into those big ball pins filled with hollow plastic balls was thrilling, and when there were playgrounds at all of the McDonalds! Those were the childhood memories that the children of today should have, not having their days spent worrying if they are going to be popular if they get the newest gadget, or having their parents down their back about obesity ‘cause they wont go outside. 

Perceptions of a Teenage Girl

We have all had our fair share of dumb mistakes, stupid regrets, and bad decisions. Yet, there are so many sayings about how you should “live life with no regrets,” and how you should “do what makes you happy.” My question is, why do people say these things, but then turn around and complain about all their regrets and the bad choices that they’ve made? It makes no since to me.

Then, some people sit around and mope about how they wish they could just go back and change something that way things would be better. Often times those are the same people who say “things happen for a reason.” 

So the question is, if you had the chance to change one moment, or day in your life, knowing it would change everything, would you? 

It seems as if a lot of people would take up that offer, in a heart beat. I can’t help but wonder why. Sure, the moment or event that they would like to change may have hurt them a lot or even shaped them into who they are today. But don’t people see that all mistakes or so called regrets are all opportunities to learn and to grow as a person? 

I bet your sitting there thinking, “What does she know about any of this? She’s only a teenager.” While all of that is true, who am I to say that I know what people think and how they feel? The answer is simple: I don’t. All I know are the experiences that I’ve had and that I’ve helped my peers and family go through. 

Bottom line is, I’m a big believer in “everything happens for a reason,” and that people should just take all the things that happen to them or the people around them with a grain of salt and move on. Life is always going to throw obstacles in your direction, so why not look at things in a positive way? 

Sincerely,  

Just another teenage girl. 

I Am Who I Am.

I’m starting to realize that just about everything that anyone does, annoys me. It doesn’t even need to be a huge problem, but it will annoy me to no end. So I’ve created a list of things that annoy me, and here we go! 

People who smack their food.    

People who scrape their silverware on their plates or bowls. 

Spit flying out of peoples mouths when they talk.   

When I’m having a conversation with someone, and in the middle of telling a story, some rude idiot comes walking up and starts talking to the person I was talking to… as if I’m not there! 

People who wear their pants all the way to their ankles, “‘cause it’s cool.”

People who put their feet out of the car window. 

People who mess up a song so terribly that you don’t ever want to listen to the song again. 

People who tease dogs outside their gate.

People who complain about everything!! Oh wait, isn’t this what I’m doing right now? Impossible. Anyways.. 

People who say “Let there be light!” every single time they flip the light switch on. 

People who refer to themselves in third person. 

People who mumble and when you ask them what they said they get mad, and say “Just forget it!”

People who don’t use their turn signals. You know, the more and more I think of things that annoy me, the more I’m starting to realize that I do all of these things as well, and so does about almost everyone I know. Maybe it’s time to stop worrying about what other people are doing and how annoying they can be and just live your life, and be happy. Even if that means dealing with the stupid, annoying, and oh so pointless things that people do now-a-days. 

Can I Get a Nap Time in High School?

I have come to realize that I’m at a place in my high school career, where I must decide to either put my all into school, work and club activities and not have a life outside of that, or I can continue what I have been doing, procrastinate, not do any school work, and flat out not care about my school studies, only having fun with my friends. People say that high school is supposed to be the most fun part of your life; whoever said that must be a complete moron. If you are like me, then you have bit off way more than you can chew and are completely stressed out to the point of no return.

This year I’ve had to juggle my job, school work, FBLA, HTV, my family, and friends all at once. Let me tell y’all something, I do not know how to juggle, at all. Any time I try to, everything comes crashing down on me and I get hurt. So what makes this metaphor any different from real life? Sooner or later I’m going to have to figure out what needs to be cut, and it’s not going to be easy at all. Without school, I can’t go far in life and I wouldn’t be involved in HTV, FBLA, or have some of my friends. So this option is a clear no. If I get rid of my job at Party City then I would have no money to spend so I have the things I like, go on the Hawaii trip with HTV, and wouldn’t be able to have my much needed iPhone, in which my life depends on. Also, if I were to cut FBLA then I wouldn’t be as eligible for a good college. So, all that leaves is my friends and family, and I don’t think I would ever be able to function without them. Looks like I can’t cut anything, so I’m back to the starting point.. stressed, overwhelmed, and confused.

It looks like all of my hard work during freshman and sophomore year was wasted. Everything I have worked for is going to waste, getting ahead of my peers just to fall down below all of them and be considered “below average”. I have never slacked off more in my whole life then I have during this school year, and it’s only first quarter. The idea that I could fail my first semester of junior year really worries me. I guess this really is the time in my school career where I need to start thinking about what I want with my life and the type of person I want to be. It feels so weird having to think about these kind of things when only 5 years ago, my only concern was if my haircut was up to style, getting candy at the gas station every time I went, and if there was going to be a sleep over that weekend. I guess that it is true that there comes a time in every ones life where they must grow up; this time is mine

I Remember, We All Remember.

Ten years ago today, America sat in silence as one of the most tragic attacks on America was being played out. Students who didn’t even know what was going on sat at their desks at school and watched as the Twin Towers collapsed. Asking every single question that came into their little minds. Even adults had so many unanswered questions that no one knew the answer to. 

The day started off as a normal day for New York City, people getting on the subways, waiting in bumper to bumper traffic, and went into their offices in the twin towers. Little did they know around 9 a.m., their world would never be the same. 

I remember sitting at my desk in kindergarten and watching as my teacher was making dozens of phone calls, and watching the television, and trying to ignore us kids as we were asking questions about why a big building was on fire and smoking. That day felt like such a long day, because to a six year old one of the most aggravating things to deal with is someone ignoring you and not being able to answer any questions. Finally, when I got off the bus, and walked into my house I saw my sister and my mother watching the television in shock just like my teacher was. Though, unlike my teacher my mom was actually able to answer some of the questions running through my head. 

Even as I sit here writing this I am also listening to ABC’s 20/20 special on 9/11 and every time I look over to my parents, I can still see the sadness on their faces just like I did ten years ago. Americans will always be able to remember what they were doing the day that the World Trade Centers came crashing down. We will also always be thankful for those brave men and women who put their lives on the line to rescue the poor victims of the 9/11 attacks.

Proud American,

Kaley Prier

Gatlinburg

Gatlinburg seemed pretty awesome when we first got here. I mean who wouldn’t like a replica of Branson just minus the crowd? By the time that my group and I got ready it was the heat of the day, and we were starving. We all decided to eat at “Texas Roadhouse.” We all started eating all the bread as quickly as we could and for some of us the delicious salad the we ordered as a side. When our entrees finally came out our stomachs were already getting pretty full. We continued to eat anyway though, cause of how good the food was. Half way through my meal I started feeling really sick, little did I know Paige was feeling the same way, fishy huh? Well after our late lunch/ early dinner we decided to all walk around. We ended up stumbling upon this freaky “Ripley’s Haunted House” thing that ended up scaring us as we were walking by. Then we went to, drum role please, Baskin Robins!!! I don’t think anyone understands how excited I was to eat there again, ‘cause I thought I would never see another one since they were taken out of Springfield. While we were eating our delicious ice cream we started talking about how much weight everyone must have gained. We all came to the conclusion that we were all going to be five hundred pounds when we get back. Breanna then proceeded to say “We are all going to need 6 taxis, one for each of us, but two for Kaley!” everyone laughed, while I considered putting my cone in her nose, but then I realized it was too good to waste on her mean nose. So I continued to eat, and chuckle along with everyone else. Later that night, after the belated 10 p.m. meeting, a group of us decided to go get scared, so we traveled to the “Ripley’s Haunted house.” Upon arrival and talking to the ticket salesman we all learned it was going to be even scarier then we thought! So we all decided to buy this $2 light that did nothing for us, but later on would end up hitting me in the face multiple times by Mariah. Once we went through and was done we all, except for Ryan, decided it wasn’t all that scary and that the anticipation was scarier then the house itself. So let’s just say we all wasted $18 on a lousy haunted house.
So until the next town, have a good one!
-Kaley

Charleston

Charleston, Charleston, Charleston, what can I say about Charleston? Well, basically this town in gorgeous but I unfortunately I didn’t get to see much at all! Day one consisted of getting off the bus around 7:30 p.m., and having to be ready to go out at 8:15 p.m.. Talk about inconvenient! Think about this, girls scrambling to be ready for a night out in Charleston, either trying to find a story or some much needed food! Not a very good picture! The rest of the night was a bunch of us girls walking around, beads of sweat dripping down our faces, trying to find somewhere to eat. We stumbled upon a place called “Finger Lickin’”, lets just say the the title of the restaurant was misleading. Then we had to get a taxi back, it was not fun trying to fit six girls into a taxi! When we got back to the hotel Mariah and I started gathering laundry from our luggage that was starting to smell like New Orleans all over again. After two hours of playing Uno, eating nerds, and watching Nick Nutting run into an elevator, the clothes were done and ready to be folded. Then finally we laid down to rest our sleepy little eyes around 3 a.m.. 

Day two consisted of sleeping in until 9:45, latest anyone has seen on this trip, and going to the lobby to eat some stale tasting scones, yum! Then we had a meeting at 12 to discuss all of our stories and plans for the day. Everyone who didn’t have a story went shopping, and people who did have stories shopped as well, except for Jessica and I. All we got to do was get on a trolley that dropped us off of a spot that was no where near where we had to go. So after 20 minutes of looking for the right route to take on a map we decided to call for a taxi to come. The person over the phone sounded a bit strange to begin with but we didn’t care and told them to come. He said it would take 10 minutes or more to have a taxi come get us and to sit tight. Not even 2 minutes later we saw a taxi with two guys in the front and one yelled out “Ya’ll need a ride?” and pulled around to us and asked if we needed a ride again. I ended up telling them that we already called for a taxi and it was going to be on its way soon. The man told me “Oh, okay I see,” long pause “well we were told to come pick you girls up!” We didn’t care at the time that this was suspicious cause we were drenched in sweat, so we got in the taxi. While we were in the cab, there was a strange vibe, so I started to look for signs to see if it was a real taxi. So this is what I noticed; The meter never ran, the radio wasn’t talking about taxi cabs, or picking people up, plus it was very muffled, and last but not least, there were TWO guys in the cab! And to add on top of everything we did for our story went terribly! I’m not going to go into what all happened cause it would put me in a bad mood. I ended the day at McDonalds, using their wifi cause the hotels wasn’t working, with Mariah and Ali trying to think of blog ideas, and facebook was conveniently opened on another tab for when ever i got bored with writing a story. 

Now, tomorrow I have to get up early, get on a bus, and edit.. awesome! So until tomorrow.

-Kaleys late night thoughts

Panama City Beach

Panama was by far the best place we’ve been on this trip so far! But I think I can speak for all of the HTV staff, including myself, when I say the beach was the best part of this city! Although, all the water was starting to get to me. We all had the wonderful idea to swim out past the break of the water where you could just ride the waves and not get pelted in the face, cause trust me, I got my fair share of that! When we got out there instead of riding the waves we got sucked out further into the ocean! Now, I’m not going to say that I’m a terrible swimmer, but I’m also not the best either, but when it got to the point of me swimming with all of my strength and not getting any where, it got really scary! Finally, when I got to a point to where I could touch, a huge wave slapped me, and when I recovered from that another wave hit me again. Let’s just say that after all of that I was done swimming! 

While editing Jessica, and I had tons of problems! First it started off that it was going to take 5 hours to log and transfer the video files to our editing software. Then, we got our computers all fixed with the good editing software, had everything on the timeline but B-roll, so we decided to call for a time out and go out to the BBQ. When we got back tout sequence was deleted! Talk about total devastation! Luckily Rob came into the room and searched around for awhile and got the sequence back! So Jessica and I could finally start working on our story more to have it finished, we we’re only past deadline by 30 minutes, which is not expectable but it’s a lot better than having to restart completely!

So until the next location, this is goodbye! 

New Orleans

I was just informed that there was a double murder in new orleans and that the investigation is still going and that there are no suspects, can you say scary?! I know i can. Also was a hurricane, named Hunter, that is now a tropical storm located the gulf is heading past New Orleans and now heading toward Texas! All i have to say is that a news can be a very scary thing if you haven’t watched it in days! 

Anyways, New Orleans is an amazing place but the things that has happened here are not as amazing! So first of all, no one could edit their stories on these computers that apple so graciously loaned us, but yet  coincidentally didn’t have the right software ,and we had to use peoples personal laptops. Thank you baby Jesus for the people that decided to bring their laptops. Second of all, people are disorganized with their equipment and their personal belongings! All i can say about this is that people don’t care about HTV’s equipment or their own things enough and need to learn to take care of the things that they are assigned and to take care of being organized in their hotel room! Third of all, this place is just down right scary! I don’t feel the need to explain that one. 

One thing I do have to say about New Orleans is that this is just a beautiful place thats good to visit, but not recommended for families! If your willing to spend a lot of money on things that are 10X more expensive then they should be, Canal street and the french market are the places you should be hitting up!

Well I’m about to go straighten Brads hair, so until tomorrow my dear friends!