50th high school reunion quotes

If you graduated early, could you attend a summer camp if youre in college? Like if you were 16 after freshman year of college, could you still go to camp?

Hey everyone,
Wanted to share this story to hopefully inspire some of you on this forum to pursue your passion musically.
I’m 36 years old and grew up glued to VH1 and MTV. Some of my fondest memories as a kid were staying up late on New Years Eve watching the top 100 songs of the year countdown.
After discovering The Beatles through my parents vinyl collection, I asked for their CD’s for my 8th birthday. For my 9th birthday, I asked for an electric guitar. I only had that guitar for a couple weeks before my sisters complained and I had to trade it in for an acoustic. It was way too big and after unsuccessfully trying to play it I put it back in its case where it remained for a decade.
About every 5 years I would take it out and attempt to learn. When I got into my Alice In Chains phase senior year of high school I went for lessons but nothing stuck. When Chris Cornell died in 2017 I ordered a new guitar that night. Again, I gave up when I couldn’t form the chords.
In 2021 I started running with a man named Robert “Raven” Kraft in my hometown, Miami Beach. Ravens story requires more than a few paragraphs, but to some it up, this man has run 8 miles on the beach every single day since January 1st 1975. The run started out of heartbreak after he found out a hit song he had written was stolen from him.
Ravens dream is to have a hit. Him and I would discuss music every run (to date I have run with him over 220 times). We would fantasize about me learning guitar and him providing lyrics, starting a real rock and roll band.
In the winter of 2021 my job was on strike so I had a lot of extra downtime. I decided once again to pick up the guitar. This time, inspired my Ravens dedication, I decided I would play 1 hour a day, everyday, for the entire year of 2022.
By June, I was comfortable playing in front of my girlfriend. By October, my best friend was coming over once a week and we started forming songs. By November, we felt the music was good enough and all we were missing was lyrics.
We invited Raven over, who penned his 1701st song in about 10 minutes, our first single, Digging Her Grave.
Another runner joined us from Haiti and plays bass, another runner from Serbia came over and introduced his native Tambura to the band. Finally, a man named Bryan we found on Facebook came over and decided he wanted to produce the album.
In 2023 we became Raven and the Dark Shadows. Our first live performance was a disaster, but we regrouped and practiced more. We found a studio and recorded 10 tracks. Through my connections and Raven’s fame we convinced Dave Abbruzzese (Pearl Jam), Ian Grushka (New Found Glory), Keli Gunnarson (Agent Fresco) and Dave Pastorious (tech 9) to guest on several tracks.
We released our album, An Unkindness, in November of 2023. To celebrate, we had a show at the Wolfsonian with over 150 people attending.
Jack White’s Third Man Pressing is currently producing Blue and Yellow vinyl editions of An Unkindness that should be ready by the summer.
Our song Dracula just reached 30,000 streams. In addition to our music, I produced 4 music videos for our band. A fifth animated one will be out next week. Total views on YouTube are north of 20,000.
At a recent Florida Panthers hockey game, our song, Dead End Road, was played after the Panthers scored a goal. It’s also been used at various Spring Training stadiums around Florida this spring. The Miami Marlins have it on their batting practice playlist. Our upcoming song “Feel Like a Fugitive” is on the Grand Theft Auto 6 soundtrack, and last year we played Stephen King’s 75th birthday bash.
We are currently preparing our second album. All the songs have demos, we just have to find the time to enter the studio and begin the process. We hope to have our second album released by October of 2024.
On January 1, 2025, Raven celebrates his 50th year of the streak. We are hoping for more exposure for the band when this happens.
I hope this inspires you all. In my mid 30s I definitely didn’t expect something like this to happen, but if you really commit to something, dreams can come true.
I’d love to hear your thoughts on the project and the sound. I’d also love to get recommendations on what we can do better, as we prepare for album number 2. Check us out on all the streaming platforms
Raven and the Dark Shadows

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elementary school I pretty much had many friends. There was a few assholes but it wasn’t super bad and they became nicer later. I went to birthday parties. I went to after school camp after school ended for the day so i was able to make more friends and enjoy my self. then i got held back. I was still happy tho and made more friends at summercamps. I wish i could be able to go back in time to have these days. I’m too old to attend after school camps and summer camps so it’s harder to get friends when you get to ur 20s.
middle school: was a massive jester. Most people just said “shut up” & called me annoying and i always wondered why the popular kids got to get away with being a clown. I was sad at times but i wasn’t bothered so much by it unlike now.
My phone helped me cope unlike now. I had things to keep me busy (karate, 2 tutoring classes) so i didn’t care about hanging out with anyone. I used to whine about having those things but now that i don’t do tutoring anymore cuz one is online and soon my mom is gonna stop paying for it just like karate classes and the other tutoring place said i had to stop doing it at 18. After this my life has been more empty . Besides karate places for adults is more boring and no one talks. Also for camps as a kid you can actually have fun and do cool activites and field trips.I don’t have enough money to afford karate classes again to keep me busy either
Now i’m in my last of high school: depressed very alone and even more bored as ever before since i have nothing to keep me busy and my phone doesn’t help me cope anymore. I’m constantly thinking of the shit that happened to me due to getting more bad experiences in high school

Did you go to an arts high school? If not, how did you balance grades with practice?

Hi, I’m a 22 year old female and I’m about 5’9 weighing around 275lbs. I have had a high a1c for the past 3 years. I lost 30 pounds 2 summers ago and my a1c was still high, despite a basically sugar & carb free diet. My doctor flat out told me she won’t put me on ozempic (before I even asked) and told me to try other things first. I have since gained all my weight back, so as you can imagine I’m a little frustrated. I work a highly physical job and drink mainly water…. so I’m not sure why it’s so easy for me to gain weight.
I have struggled with my weight my entire life. I grew up an athlete but I’ve been over 200lbs since my senior year of high school. I really think I’d benefit from being on ozempic but my doctor doesn’t seem to think so? What are some things you guys told your doctors to convince them to put you on ozempic? Do you have any tips?

elementary school I pretty much had many friends. There was a few assholes but it wasn’t super bad and they became nicer later. I went to birthday parties. I went to after school camp after school ended for the day so i was able to make more friends and enjoy my self. then i got held back. I was still happy tho and made more friends at summercamps. I wish i could be able to go back in time to have these days. I’m too old to attend after school camps and summer camps so it’s harder to get friends when you get to ur 20s.
middle school: was a massive jester. Most people just said “shut up” & called me annoying and i always wondered why the popular kids got to get away with being a clown. I was sad at times but i wasn’t bothered so much by it unlike now.
My phone helped me cope unlike now. I had things to keep me busy (karate, 2 tutoring classes) so i didn’t care about hanging out with anyone. I used to whine about having those things but now that i don’t do tutoring anymore cuz one is online and soon my mom is gonna stop paying for it just like karate classes and the other tutoring place said i had to stop doing it at 18. After this my life has been more empty . Besides karate places for adults is more boring and no one talks. Also for camps as a kid you can actually have fun and do cool activites and field trips.I don’t have enough money to afford karate classes again to keep me busy either
Now i’m in my last of high school: depressed very alone and even more bored as ever before since i have nothing to keep me busy and my phone doesn’t help me cope anymore. I’m constantly thinking of the shit that happened to me due to getting more bad experiences in high school

I've been thinking a lot about this lately. I'm a single dad and my daughter just graduated from college. I invited my twin brother to the ceremony. He has narc traits (golden child, I was the outcast). He's not an outright narc but enough that I don't let my guard down around him and limit my time spent with him for mental health reasons. My daughter is the only Grandkid in that generation that wanted a degree. I raised her alone. Her mom just wasn't around. She came around later but couldn't help out financially. When she did I was just glad she was stable and present. My little girl worked her butt off and so did I to get this degree for her. We had other obstacles earlier along the way like a cancer Diagnosis that we battled together alone before mom came around as well. Needless to say, she and I are close. Covid robbed her of walking the stage for her diploma, so this commencement ceremony had extra special meaning. I was probably embarrassing trying not to cry as everything over the past 6 years just flooded over me into 15 minutes. That and an incredible speech from a classmate and watching her walk on stage and look for us. I just couldn't hold back the tears any longer. Afterwards we did the pictures and went on our way. One of the annoying things about being a twin is that we share a lot of the same friends from high school, family etc. After getting home, unloading everything etc and starting to look at my phone, I notice my brother has already posted on fb about her graduation. I mentioned that I thought it was messed up and got a lecture about how weird that was so I hung up. I honestly don't care. I've worked hard for this. I wanted to post about it. I felt like it was my news to share not his. Or at least he could have waited until we posted . It's our news . Right? I feel like he is just always an attention piggy. Am I off here?

Me and a few of my friends decided to meet up the other day and after a few drinks started talking about weird things that happened to us during our high school years. One of them brought up the time I “technically” died and it got me thinking about it, so I decided write down what happened and share it with you guys.
I believe it was my junior year that it happened, the exact day is still kinda fuzzy to me. I played football since I was in 4th grade and it was a no brainer that I would do it in high school. I wasn’t any Tom Brady but I’ll say I was a pretty good center. I remember it was a night game cause the stadium lights were on and our running backs were complaining that they couldn’t see the ball because of the glare from them.
You know that feeling you get when you did something you weren’t supposed to do? Like when you lie to your parents or break something and try to hide it? That’s what I felt like the entire day before the game. Something felt wrong. Even minutes before the game while the usual R&B music played in the stadium speakers, it still felt wrong. I would know why a little later.
It was near the end of the 4th quarter, the play was called in the huddle, we lined up, ball snapped and…nothing. Everything was dark, I could hear talking and some screaming but eventually it faded out. I felt like I couldn’t move, kinda like how sleep paralysis works.
Eventually the darkness I saw slowly disappeared and my body started to escape its paralyzed state. When I could fully see again I noticed I wasn’t on the field anymore. In fact I had no idea where I was or how I had gotten there. My brain was racing, trying to figure out what happened. I eventually settled on the obvious answer. I was hit too hard, got a concussion and passed, then was rushed to the hospital.
That’s what I thought, I was just in a hospital. But even then it didn’t make sense, the room I was in was too dark. There was no medical equipment or even a bed in there with me. I was just laying on the floor. The only thing that pointed towards a hospital was my clothes were replaced with what seemed like a gown.
Soon my brain started to conceptualize a new answer. It’s funny how the human brain will do everything in its power to make you feel as if all that’s happening has an explanation for it. While my brain was working on that, my body decided it was time to start seeing where I was. I slowly got up off the floor and headed towards what seemed like an exit.
As I walked I took notice of everything around me. The walls of the room seemed to be covered in a strange ash like substance. They also had a heated feel to them, not burning but still hot enough that if held long enough it was leave a mark. The floor seemed to be the same material as the wall, also coated in that ashy layer.
The room soon began to turn into a hall, it never seemed to end. I’m pretty sure I walked for hours on end down it, my gown was covered in ash and scuffs soon enough. I started to see what looked like light as I neared the end, and a sound started to fill my ears as I got closer.
Crackling. Like the sound fire makes as it gets to hot. My brain started to put pieces together, it explained why the walls and floor were hot. What my brain couldn’t wrap around was what I stared at as I exited the hall.
Hell. That’s what I would describe it as and where I believed I was. The sky, if you could call it that, was nothing but smoke and slight rays of orange peaking through. Mountains higher than any I have ever seen painted the back drop of this nightmarish picture. Creatures of unexplainable nature covered the ground and sky, they all looked like they were in pain. Then I heard the screams.
I had been captivated by the almost endless horror I saw that I never heard the screaming. There were billions and billions of people here with me. They all were screaming or crying, each being tortured in a different way. Some burned, some gored, some twisted into shapes Iv never seen. I just watched in horror at the scene before me.
It wasn’t long before I felt something clawing at me, I yelped in pain as I turned my head to see something scratching at my leg. It was like a snake had grown legs, but the skin of it never grew around his new found limbs. I kicked it away before someone grabbed my arm. My eyes worked up the exposed muscles of the arm, soon meeting the eyes of its owner.
He was almost beautiful, a black eyed man with bronze like skin. He held my arm, almost to tell me not the fight it. His body was covered in ashes and what looked like whip marks. He spoke but I couldn’t understand him. I wasn’t sure what language it was or if it even was a language. He pulled my arm and begrudgingly I followed, the snake still scratching at my legs.
He took me down a long stair way, making sure I could see every kind of torture being applied to the people around me. Boiling, grinding, crushing, gouging. It made me sick but I could puke, it was like my ability to was taken away. We continued to walk, we crossed herds of creatures as they seemed to eat and mutilate multiple people. I watched as they ripped them open and ate, yet the people never died. They just laid there and accepted they new life.
My brain couldn’t wrap around what was happening anymore. It started to just say I was dreaming, it was all a dream and I was still concussed. But it all felt to real. The heat, the scratching, the man’s hand gripping my arm. I could feel it all.
It felt like days had gone by since I woke up in that room. As we walked past the mountains I saw earlier I noticed they were made entirely of bones. Some human, some not. I stared up to the sky as I watched winged creatures fly through the smoke clouds, occasionally they blocked out the orange rays as they circled overhead.
We walked more and more, the snake had stopped scratching but only cause it had reached the bone of my legs. I felt it all but couldn’t yell or cry from the pain of it. I just watched at the muscles and nerves of my calfs moved with each step I made. The man suddenly stopped, he turned to look at me and pointed towards a pit.
We walked towards and as I looked down I finally could few something in me drop. At the bottom was thousands of people. They were pushed together in the tight hole, some crawling on top of others trying to get free. I watched in horror as the man pointed towards holes lining the walls of the pit. Thick, hot, red liquid pumped out of the holes, it covered the people and filled the pit. I watched as some swam to the top and cried, other being pushed down deeper into the liquid. Eventually the pit drained and the people went back to fighting and screaming.
I slowly moved away from the pit side as the man looked at me. He spoke again and pointed at the pit. I didn’t understand him but I knew what he wanted. “Get in” That’s what it was. This was to be my new home. I just started to pull at my arm, trying to get free. He pulled me closer and I started to pull more. He stared at me and let go. I don’t know why but he just let go and stared at me, speaking.
I ran. I ran as fast as I could from him and the pit. I ran for what felt like days, maybe weeks even. Each time I looked back it seemed I had only moved a foot away. I just cried and ran, no other thoughts were in my head besides the fact I had to get away. I stopped looking back and just closed my eyes. I could feel thousands of those creatures chasing after me, I could feel they breath and heat running down my neck. I heard they horrid growls and the sound of crackling filling my ears. I just screamed and cried until.
“AHHHHH!” I screamed as I sat up from a gurney, my body drenched in sweat. The two responders that were with me jumped back and quickly told me to lay down. I tried to fight back but they told me to calm down and relax. My eyes darted around and looked where I as. I was in an ambulance. I slowly laid back and let them check me, one of them told me what happened.
When I snapped the ball a defender had hit me and knocked me to the ground. My heart had stopped. They were called and saw my coach doing CPR on me. They got me in the ambulance and continued compressions. My heart had stopped for almost 9 minutes and they were ready to declare me dead until my heart started to beat again and I came to. I just laid they and started to cry.
The doctors could easily explain why my heart stopped. They had thousands of reasons why. But they never could explain the scars on my legs that appeared after I came too. It also wasn’t until recently they noticed the significant amount of damage to my lungs, like I had being breathing in smoke for years.
I would regularly visit the doctors to have my heart checked and besides the scars, everything I was told about what happened made sense but what didn’t make sense was what I saw when my heart was stopped.
I was in that hellish place for what felt like months. Everything I felt was real, sometimes I still feel my legs bleeding and look down just to stare at those scars, almost like a reminder that maybe it wasn’t my imagination. I told people what I saw and they all say it was my mind making a place holder or working to stay alive while my heart was stopped. I took that idea and ran with it for a long time but still. Sometimes when I’m alone and everything is silent, I feel like I’m still there.
The screams of those people, the growls of those beast, the smell of that smoke, and the crackling of that fire. It’s all still there, tormenting me. Like they all crying for me to return. Like they saying that even though I escaped I must come back, that that’s where I belong now.
I see those people in that pit and ever so often I’ll here those retched words. I might not understand them but I know what they are. They push past the sound of fire and screams, calmly saying to me…
Get in

elementary school I pretty much had many friends. There was a few assholes but it wasn’t super bad and they became nicer later. I went to birthday parties. I went to after school camp after school ended for the day so i was able to make more friends and enjoy my self. then i got held back. I was still happy tho and made more friends at summercamps. I wish i could be able to go back in time to have these days. I’m too old to attend after school camps and summer camps so it’s harder to get friends when you get to ur 20s.
middle school: was a massive jester. Most people just said “shut up” & called me annoying and i always wondered why the popular kids got to get away with being a clown. I was sad at times but i wasn’t bothered so much by it unlike now.
My phone helped me cope unlike now. I had things to keep me busy (karate, 2 tutoring classes) so i didn’t care about hanging out with anyone. I used to whine about having those things but now that i don’t do tutoring anymore cuz one is online and soon my mom is gonna stop paying for it just like karate classes and the other tutoring place said i had to stop doing it at 18. After this my life has been more empty . Besides karate places for adults is more boring and no one talks. Also for camps as a kid you can actually have fun and do cool activites and field trips.I don’t have enough money to afford karate classes again to keep me busy either
Now i’m in my last of high school: depressed very alone and even more bored as ever before since i have nothing to keep me busy and my phone doesn’t help me cope anymore. I’m constantly thinking of the shit that happened to me due to getting more bad experiences in high school

I just finished my freshman yr and I had difficulty adjusting to college first semester and got 2 B’s out of the 4 classes I took. However this semester I ended up getting A’s on the 5 classes I took, and now my cumulative gpa stands at a 3.7 . I know that’s not bad at all but I am nervous because I know pa schools are extremely competitive, and I had a better gpa in high school so I am nervous about this aspect of my future application. If you did happen to get into pa school how good was ur gpa? Thank you !

Personally, I had a thought of Frida Suarez having psychic powers in her teenage years at high school as a creative thought. What does anyone think? XD

Hi guys! I’m a current junior in high school (almost done yay), I love plants, watching movies and tv shows (Brooklyn 99, new girl, the office and modern family are my favs) and in my free time I bake and read a lot. I really like science (mainly bio), and I’m pretty open to most things as long as we vibe well
Feel free to reach out just no one over 19 or 20 pls

I currently go to sf fitness but I am tired of waiting for machines and how crowded it gets due to all the high school kids just standing around machines.Im looking for recommendations on a new gym.The only preference I have is if they are open late but I’m open to any recommendations!

I’m a CT surgery PA currently. I have about 4-5 years total experience under my belt.
First job out of school- I 2nd assisted cardiac cases (we had a fellowship program). I first assisted thoracic cases. A lot of my job was in managing post-op patients. Garnered a ton of knowledge, experience, and confidence in managing complicated patients. Didn’t get much cardiac OR experience and definitely no vein harvesting. It was hard to find anything nearby who would hire someone without EVH exp.
Onward to second job- did Pulm/Crit care for 4 months before I had to go back to CT surg so I ventured farther in search of EVH and first assist experience.
3rd job- CT surgery. I’ve been here almost 2 years. I’ve scrubbed in for a total of about 60- 70 EVH cases. We didn’t have very much volume. It would come and go. Sometimes 1-3 cases over a course of 2-3 weeks. I’m capable of doing EVH although nowhere near very confident. Takes anywhere from 35-50 mins on average to get a whole thigh out (for 3v CABG) and add some time to prep and clip the vein. Ive only done about 2-3 open and that was with guidance. I’m confident in my first assisting (worked with a few different surgeons).
My question is this: I’m looking to move elsewhere and may potentially interview with a private practice. With my abilities as they currently are (avg to below avg EVH time, no open harvesting experience, though confident first assist and inpatient management from ICU to step down), should I be concerned that I don’t quite have what it takes to interview or join a large private practice CT group that does very high volume?
I would stay at my current place for longer but life situations have changed some and volume here is very sporadic, often going days to a week without a case.
What do you all seasoned CT surg PAs think?

I apologize to all of those that are truly living in poverty- that is how I was raised and I know that I am now at a relatively secure place in my life, which I am very grateful for.
I live in a high cost of living area but barely survive as a single mom with two kids. I was blessed to be able to scrimp and save enough to buy a home. But it is a simple place, relatively small (1200 sq ft) and a townhome. We are surrounded by million dollar homes in a great school district.
Sounds wonderful, right?
Yet everytime we go to another families home for birthdays or other events, I am floored by how fancy their homes are. I feel like a kid again in the sense that I feel like I'm on the outside looking in. No matter my salary, I could never afford one of these homes. Everything I have goes into providing for my kids as I drive around in a 10 yo car and wear clothes from when I was pregnant 8 years ago.
I don't want my kids to feel like I did when I was young. I always felt "inferior" but I constantly have to tell them we can't afford this or that. Is there a better way to deal with being the poorer family in a ridiculously rich area? I don't know how to do this.

Just had my first ever therapy session with a psychiatrist. I was diagnosed with OCD and struggled with anorexia in high school but didn’t mention it in today’s meeting. I wanted to start on a fresh slate. After some questions about my family history, he asked some more about my current state, and I mentioned I was currently suicidal, self-harming, binge drinking. He didn’t seem concerned and said I had low self esteem then suggested a program to boost it which would be once a week at $200/30 minutes then ended the one-hour session 15 minutes early. He said no meds are needed. Is this normal? I mentioned I was under a lot of stress and pressure currently going through a divorce after a longer than 10 year marriage. I was surprised there was nothing said about OCD, but maybe my expectations were too high? It was $400 for 45 minutes of telemedicine.

So I, m 18, am autistic and into men, because of this I had a not so great childhood friendship wise, I never had friends growing up, mainly because I hadn’t learned how to mask yet and everyone thought I was weird, eventually when I finally reached secondary(high school?) I finally started making friends the first year, I had a best friend who I was really close with, but considering now I was probably too much for her given I was trying to live out my dreams of having a best friend through her, but her parents wanted her to move schools, and from then on I had a lot of trouble with finding my ppl and having close friends. As well as this I had came out just before secondary bc I had a very loving and accepting family, but I wasn’t accepted in school at all by the boys in my year, and it took about four years for me to finally make some male friends despite my sexuality, but I still had to tone down my sexuality and almost go back in the closet and act straight, I mean it was fine, they say something like “he’s the only gay guy were okay with” and “you’re barely gay” and shit like that but I always took that as my personality was so great they could ignore their prejudice. Anyways I got to a point of trying to “buy” friends, by always buying everyone’s lunches and food and snacks, I spent about €3k on the ppl in my year because I thought it was an easy way to start friendships but later on I found out ppl were talking shit about me saying “he’s buying his friends”. This year I made really good friends, made a best friend then we stopped being friends but that’s not the point, up to this point my only close friends were women and I’m trying to be friends with men more to “heal my inner child” and try live out my childhood dreams of “being normal” but I never hang out with them or anything and as summer is here I see them playing football every Saturday and all I want is to play with them, but I’m never invited. The thing is I feel like I can’t ask bc that would be way too sad but I want to so bad and I just don’t know what to because I just want to have friends and hang out with them and play football.