Volunteering and Summer

Sometimes I can't stand my dad. I was reading the Connection Center newsletter that our school sends out every week, and finally, FINALLY I saw an opportunity to volunteer at the Aquarium of the Pacific for teens 14-16. Last year, volunteens had to be 15, so I jumped at the number. I clicked the link to the site, and it was, in fact 14-16. The Spring application is due January 14th (I think), and the session starts March 5th. There's a summer one, too. I asked my dad if he thought that I would be able to have enough time during the spring to do it, and he said no. Well, I thought so anyway, since Spring is always the busiest time of the year for me. So I said, "Oh well, I'll just stick to summer, then," but he started going on and on about how I wouldn't have time. "Don't you want to do other things with your life? Education should come first. If you don't have your academics done, you can't do anything. Do you really have that much time to waste? If you finish your math and science, then you can do lots of things. But if you do that, then your education will be bad and everything else will be bad too." That doesn't even make any sense, but I can't volunteer anymore.

And it sucks because I don't even know if I really want to volunteer there. Or rather, if it will be any form of exciting, since my last summer volunteering experience at the Cerritos Library was so terrible. I guess I'm a little scared. What if I go through the whole application/essay/letters of rec/interview process and find out that it really IS a huge waste of time. After all summer volunteering sessions are 2 days a week, 5 hours each day. Transportation would take a while, too. What if I end up standing around, looking at the same fish everyday? On the other hand, I could be having the time of my life, learning about sea creatures and possibly finding out what I want to become when I'm older, as well as learning more communication skills and such (because as a Volunteen, I would be teaching the guests about whatever animals I am assigned too).

I do have quite a few things I want to get done this summer though. Although it's still half a year away, I know I have to:

• take Health class
• learn more Spanish. That may mean working at Mama's office. ugh.
• possibly go to China for business stuff. ugh. I hate China. but I want to go see exactly how the factories will produce my stuff.
• more math.

I know I shouldn't have too many expectations, because as I should know by now, things tend to crash and burn when too much goes on. I'll keep it at that for now, and we'll see where that takes me. But for now, I guess no volunteering at aquariums for me. ):