The Things You've Learned from the People Who Matter (Part 1):

The Family

sis: brothers and sisters don't have to be at eachothers throats to be close and more or less civil

mom: cleaning house is more of a ritual than a chore, per se

pop: bullying people can be an effective way to push them into being who they can be (at the expense of developing a deep connection with said person)

parents: marriages work if and only if the cardinal rule is obeyed by the husband: you can be two things... you can be wrong or you can be happy

grandma1: the stories everyone tells you aren't always true... even if they're trusted family members

grandma2: cardgames are a welcome ice-breaker, so always have a deck at hand

uncle: sarcasm is a good tool to lighten up a heavy situation

aunt: yes, interracial marriages with 10 year age differences CAN work

Joe: burning incense does NOT make you a druggy like your grandma said

Richard: videogames are a healthy way to pass extremely dull moments...

the M & M twins: ...but excessive reliance on videogames forever mires one into a sandtrap of geekdom

Carlo: even lil kids need to have their egos knocked down every now and then

Gabo: some people's personalities defy categorization... even if you still wanna go to LVA to be a dance major

Tita Maritess: dissecting co-workers with sarcasm is fun for the whole family

Elementary School

Nick: the best friends stick through you even when the entire 2nd grade is against you

Anita: yes, people can actually be afraid of snakes

Leah: not everyone's Catholic

Stephanie: no dear, you are gay (4th grade)

Jim: yep, you're gay... but that's unnatural (5th grade)

Ryan: you're crap at sports, you know?

Andrew: starring at boys will get you pummeled

LaPointe: you're a cute kid... but you need anger management

the school counselor: no... thoughts of suicide at this age are far from normal

Hentz: you can break pencils when you get angry... just not other people's pencils

the art teacher: you have a talent, my friend

James: Hi. You can call me Topher... (insert lots of good and bad)

Middleschool

Cates: yes, bald-headed men going on 30 can be really cool

Weaver: wow, you're pretty good at singing for going through puberty

Steven: yeah, some of use asians have white parents... it's called adoption

Chris L: you so do NOT want to be me

Elliot: you're shite at sports, you do know that

Jenilyn: girls can be your best friend, you know?

Jacob: yes, people gravitate to my ego, bwahaha!

Dayoob: (taught the summerschool art class I took) You know... I think you could make a living off of this

the graphic arts teacher: you have a good grasp on image designs

Petrenko: even teachers break down and cry sometimes

7th grade social studies teacher: yeah, you can borrow some of my Anne Rice books

Michael: that was fun, but we can't keep doing that

Sahith: the pursuit of knowledge is a nobel goal as long as you're not an ass about it

Blair: you can be such an ASS

Ryan K: you're closeted too?

Ashley P: yep, those spoiled rich kids DO exist

Ian: ... and so do punker/skaters/ravers our age

Dana: girl tomboys are so too cool

John and Anna: church music doesn't have to be boring hymns

Sensei Ron: martial arts is more about discipline than fighting

Andrew: you can't be perfect at everything... that's my job

(in Vegas)

Carpenter: yeah, teachers can be dead sexy too

Chris O: there are a LOT of filipinos in this town

Jenny: faking a crush is surprisingly easy

Josh: appearances are so not what they seem

Highschoo

Catherine R: there are other, better types of music out there

Sarah: people can change their outlooks, so you shouldn't brand someone for life

Miller: teachers can be uber cool before they go bipolar

Treat: be thankful you don't have a Jewish mother

Jackson: now you're lusting after a teacher... good for you!

Eric: not everyone can appreciate a romantic

Liz: fuck convention

Drew: people do use sex to control others

Lambert: a tough class means a smarter student

Andruss: never wear black in a ceramics room... it won't stay that way for too long

Rica: yep, there're other people who like anime and jpop

Theo: fuck gender

Hoffman: some classes are meant to be only socializing classes

Flavey: poor boy, allow me to educate you in the ways of bacchanal living

Alexis: being obsessed with Broadway isn't a bad thing!

Taylor: people can be sexy-ugly too

Claire: hugs are to be dispensed indiscriminately

Marcy: being dark and dreary isn't half as bad as you think

Jyl: yes, there are cool filipinos out there... GO FIND THEM!

Adrienne: they're not cat ears... they're a life accessory

Kristen: people have your problems too, so don't feel alone

Matt: friendship can be something more than convenient

Karen: a good friend is one that'll listen and be the appropriate shoulder to cry/rant on

Jaron: no, you won't be the musical god of whatever instrument you play... that's my job

Patti: choir directors can be very cool

Lee: with a good haircut, 40-somethings can still look 20-something

Emily: being a kook is a good thing

Emmelle: if someone's quiet, that doesn't mean that they're depressed

Mikey: even the smartest of us need someone to check answers with

Kloster: history geeks are just as cool as everyone else

Alford: colored people can be just as prejudiced/biased as any typical WASP

Randy: yes, you can make friends with straight guys

Mary: nothing says "fuck you" like good ol' passive aggression

Leah: you can be perky with a dark interior

Athenas: driving in a corset is a hard thing to do

Michaels: female rice queens DO exist

Zack: when you get rejected, it's okay to mope as long as you move on

HAN: I may be asian, but I'm still a slacker

Jon: some people are damn good at hiding behind a happy facade

Vee: lesbians listen to A Perfect Circle too

Casey: behold the powers of sexual frustration

Nico: craziness abounds

Patryzja: beauty is subjective

Adam: every now and then you need to sit back, point, and go "ah ha!"

Joey: not all the gay guys in this school have to be bitchy towards the other

Justin: activism is a good thing

Taylor: being cynical is okay as long as you're true to your emotions when it counts

Online

Tony: bipolar people make the perfect stone to sharpen your listening skills on

Tyler: pretty people can be lonely too

Steven: other guys have your problem too

Paul: being able to say what you want to say intelligently isn't a bad thing

Megan: nope, you're still gay... so stop trying to disprove it

Tink: people change, and only true friends stick with them

Yep. I'll post some more when I remember them.

Be happy, this'll be one of those rare, emotionally evicerating posts that I seldom type anymore.