Cringy - And Other Things I'm Learning in Middle School
The year was 1999.
I, along with my besties, were at the pinnacle of our middle school career. We were the big dogs- 8th graders. We had our secret languages and slang. Our sleepovers filled with prank calls and truth or dare. Our hair glitter. We really thought we were something.
In reality, we were just kids. We were awkward. We were eating up the terrible trends of the time. Looking back, all I can do is laugh and shake my head. Shaking my head when reliving the past - a total adult thing to do, right?
Fast forward twenty years {gulp}. Really? Twenty years?!?
And I'm in middle school again.
Everything is different, and yet it's exactly as it was twenty years ago.
The types of kids that cling together. The trends - both the tolerable and those that will embarrass in the years to come. No hair glitter this time though. Well, not yet. I'm still waiting on that one.
For this adventure through middle school, I'm playing the role of teacher.
So far, it's much better than last time's student part I played.
Except as the teacher twenty years removed from middle school, all of the habits, rules, and trends bring a pretty sizeable learning curve. Thankfully, the students I get to work with are pretty kind. They've taught me phrases like:
1. That's cringy.
Meaning : to cause one to cringe.
2. That's a mood.
Meaning : something just done/said by party 1 is relatable by party 2
These students also keep me informed on phrases that tend to take on a different meaning in middle school land as opposed to adult land.
1. Netflix and Chill
2. OG (original gangster)
Fun times, huh?
Being new to the middle school scene, I'm constantly comparing my new role with my old one.
My new students to my old ones. My new responsibilities to my old ones.
While I know that comparison is the thief of joy (Thanks, Teddy R.), it's hard to refrain. And not just in my work life - in my life life, too.
My training runs for an upcoming long distance race?
---I was so much faster five years ago...
My lesson planning every Sunday?
---This did NOT take up as much time last year...
It's mind boggling.
Rather than being happy about the here and now, I time travel to the past ---which is almost always viewed through rose colored glasses --- to compare performance, relationships, etc. Thankfully for me, ole Taylor Swift taught me how to shake it off. But as for these kids I get to hang out with in middle school? They're doing it, too. They're comparing their every move, choice, and performance to everyone around them.
And that is mind boggling.
I'm nearly 100% certain that the next degree I seek will need to be in the field of counseling.
Five different times last week, students sat in my office crying about something. And about everything. Nearly every student's problem can be traced back to comparison. And what they're comparing themselves to is unrealistic.
Sound familiar?
I do it, too.
But here's to stopping the comparison. Here's to being happy with the here, the now - even when it's a little cringy. Maybe I used that right!?
Here's to being back at blogging.
So you can, well, compare. ;)
See you Wednesday.
Did I dissapoint you? Were you looking for pictures of LC?
Well, who am I to keep those from you? Let me share a few snapshots from Life with LC.
I, along with my besties, were at the pinnacle of our middle school career. We were the big dogs- 8th graders. We had our secret languages and slang. Our sleepovers filled with prank calls and truth or dare. Our hair glitter. We really thought we were something.
 | ||
| No hair glitter pictured, but I do see some Levi's Silver Tab jeans and maybe even some JNCO jeans there? Not sure. Only the 90s know. |
In reality, we were just kids. We were awkward. We were eating up the terrible trends of the time. Looking back, all I can do is laugh and shake my head. Shaking my head when reliving the past - a total adult thing to do, right?
 | |
| Pig tails. Half-moon bangs. Choker necklace. Excellent choices, pre-teen Janell. Excellent. |
Fast forward twenty years {gulp}. Really? Twenty years?!?
And I'm in middle school again.
Everything is different, and yet it's exactly as it was twenty years ago.
The types of kids that cling together. The trends - both the tolerable and those that will embarrass in the years to come. No hair glitter this time though. Well, not yet. I'm still waiting on that one.
For this adventure through middle school, I'm playing the role of teacher.
So far, it's much better than last time's student part I played.
Except as the teacher twenty years removed from middle school, all of the habits, rules, and trends bring a pretty sizeable learning curve. Thankfully, the students I get to work with are pretty kind. They've taught me phrases like:
1. That's cringy.
Meaning : to cause one to cringe.
2. That's a mood.
Meaning : something just done/said by party 1 is relatable by party 2
These students also keep me informed on phrases that tend to take on a different meaning in middle school land as opposed to adult land.
1. Netflix and Chill
2. OG (original gangster)
Fun times, huh?
Being new to the middle school scene, I'm constantly comparing my new role with my old one.
My new students to my old ones. My new responsibilities to my old ones.
While I know that comparison is the thief of joy (Thanks, Teddy R.), it's hard to refrain. And not just in my work life - in my life life, too.
My training runs for an upcoming long distance race?
---I was so much faster five years ago...
My lesson planning every Sunday?
---This did NOT take up as much time last year...
It's mind boggling.
Rather than being happy about the here and now, I time travel to the past ---which is almost always viewed through rose colored glasses --- to compare performance, relationships, etc. Thankfully for me, ole Taylor Swift taught me how to shake it off. But as for these kids I get to hang out with in middle school? They're doing it, too. They're comparing their every move, choice, and performance to everyone around them.
And that is mind boggling.
I'm nearly 100% certain that the next degree I seek will need to be in the field of counseling.
Five different times last week, students sat in my office crying about something. And about everything. Nearly every student's problem can be traced back to comparison. And what they're comparing themselves to is unrealistic.
Sound familiar?
I do it, too.
But here's to stopping the comparison. Here's to being happy with the here, the now - even when it's a little cringy. Maybe I used that right!?
Here's to being back at blogging.
So you can, well, compare. ;)
See you Wednesday.
Did I dissapoint you? Were you looking for pictures of LC?
Well, who am I to keep those from you? Let me share a few snapshots from Life with LC.
 |
| LC on her first official picture day. |
 |
| LC sporting her new big girl haircut. |
 |
| Flying her newly assembled and painted plane. |
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