I know what you are thinking. It’s crazy that a second semester senior doesn’t have her license. Trust me, I have my excuses. But I am finally getting my license this Friday. I totally am not skipping periods 3-5 for it! School is important but I have been waiting way too long for this. The last two years without my license has quite literally been a nightmare: I felt bad having to rely on friends. Even with my parents, it sucked not being able to make multiple plans in a row since I would need to be picked/dropped off multiple times a day. Because I work at a movie theater, I also work late sometimes, and I feel guilty every time my mom has to stay awake to pick me up after midnight. So, here are the things I am going to do when I get my license, the people that I pick up, and the places I will go!

#1, Pick up a hot chai tea latte from Starbucks and pick up Louisa

Out of all of my friends, Louisa has taken on the burden of driving me around the most. Whether it was taking me to Starbucks, library study dates, or just any group gathering with all of our friends, she has always been willing to help. Therefore, she has to be the first person I say thank you to! Hopefully she can’t read this because she is in Hitzeman’s class but I would pick up her favorite drink from Starbucks (which is a chai tea latte) or maybe I will get her chicken tenders from Raising Canes or MAYBE I should get her a Mcdonald’s sprite and chicken nuggets. It is going to feel so nice to be able to do the same things she has always done for me. She deserves it so much. 

#2, Just get Izzy out of her house

Izzy has frequently told me that I am the reason that she leaves the house. Whether it be because I am planning most friend gatherings or because I am obviously the coolest person ever and she only wants to hang out with me, I can see her location so I know she isn’t lying. Whether, we’re getting food, bothering our friends, or hitting up the functions, I’ll be getting Isabella off the screens. Maybe I will help her get more Vitamin D!

#3 Take Matthew and Soohyun shopping

Although Matthew is a bit better, their fashion sense is ABYSMAL, truly an artist’s tragedy.

While I could just them shop online, I feel a thorough in person, correction is what is needed and what is most effective. We’ll make an extensive trip to the mall, basically replacing their existing closets and maybe we’ll burn the old ones on the way back. They need to get out of their basic style and develop their own unique style. Matthew needs to stop wearing sports hoodies and sweatpants and Soohyun needs to expand his purchases past Abercrombie and Fitch. The clothing industry is filled with possibilities, but these two have stopped at the same two stores

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#4 Drive Grace to work

Grace has been working at Lil Pops for quite sometime but I still have never been. “The food there is so good, Meg”. I frequently get Lil Pops fomo. This way, Grace gets a ride to and from work and I can cash in on her employee benefits. Win win win win win. Something tell me she will be opposed to this when she reads this.

#5 Drive Ivy to the DMV

She is an 18 year old who has no form of identification. Is that even legal?

#6 Drive Shan to school

This has been a request of his for a while. Paying him back for our Tuesday rides. Maybe I will make him pay for my Starbucks on the way!

#7 Drive Zach to a golf course

This is to make up for the fact that he could not come to Hilton Head with us over spring break and play in the really famous golf course there! Sorry we univited you, Zach 🙁

#8 Drive Kathryn and Celina everywhere up and down Ogden

In conclusion, I am so grateful for all of my friends who have driven me over the last two years! I can’t wait to be a more useful human being :)))))

I went to Hilton Head over spring break and honestly it reminded me of how much I hate living in Naperville. I sometimes can’t believe that vacation spots for some people are homes for others. Although I have heard people constantly say that a vacation spot only seems like paradise due to the short time spent there and for the people that live there, it is boring everyday life… I would rather have a boring everyday life in tropical weather with palm trees and beaches everywhere than the never ending sight of parking lots and cornfields in the Midwest. I liked Hilton Head since I was able to bike/walk almost anywhere. I felt so good physically and my mental health was also at new highs during the trip. Biking and walking around in such good weather helped me clear my mind and I felt less overwhelmed and stressed.

All I could really do on a bike was enjoy the perfect weather and I traveled down the streets. I have always been jealous of people who live in walkable cities (so basically everyone who

lives in Europe). I constantly see travelers on Tik Tok posting about how when they moved to Europe, they felt so much healthier and happier due to the healthier food and the biking/walking lifestyle.

Our flight to Savannah/Hilton Head airport was not a direct flight. We had a 5:20 am flight to Dallas with a thirty minute layover before getting on a flight to Georgia. All of my friends came to my house the night before, in the time range of midnight and two am. We dragged my tv into my room and tried to stay awake until three, so we could get to the airport without being drowsy and sleep on the flight to make time go by faster. That’s a hack I have discovered and I have been using it on any trip I have gone on. I pull an all-nighter and sleep on the car/plane to my destination. When I was in middle school, my family drove to Texas which was almost a seventeen hour drive. I fell asleep when we were pulling out of my driveway and woke up in Oklahoma. It makes traveling so much easier!!

Our first day in Hilton Head, we settled in our huge airbnb. Our airbnb was meant for seven people and there were only four of us. We had tons of space in the living room and an extra king sized bedroom just to put our luggage in!

After we unpacked, we went to get rental bikes. One of the main reasons we chose Hilton Head was due to the fact that we could bike/walk literally anywhere. This took the ppressure off of us to find a rental car dealership for eighteen year olds or the money to uber/lyft everywhere. Our first meal on the island was at a seafood shack, and it was probably my favorite meal on the entire trip. I got buffalo shrimp with a bunch of sides, and even though I am not a big seafood fan, I loved every piece on my plate. We biked around for a while and explored the town and plaza we were in. We also biked for like thirty minutes in the rain because we  could not figure how to get back to our airbnb oops. We picked up sushi for dinner and biked to the beach despite the thunderstorm alert once again.

 Then, we picked up our lovely friend Grace Carsello and kidnapped her!! 

We all went to Moo’s, the ice cream store on the island with the most flavors! I think they had over ninety two flavors, it was pretty crazy. I usually get chocolate but I forced myself to get a very different flavor (like black cherry) just to allow myself to experience things outside of my comfort zone and habits. We spent the rest of the night playing games and watching movies at our airbnb before calling it a night in. 

The rest of the days we spent there were spent lounging at the beach, biking around different areas and exploring different towns, and just eating good! It was such a good trip for my mental health with friends and I am really glad I was able to experience everything Hilton Head had to offer with the most adventurous and funny people I know!