[Shelby] Birthday Weekend; Meet Emma Stepp!!
What I've been up to and a quick interview with this year's Salutatorian!
Let’s get this show on the road:
Hey, guys, it’s Shelby! These past few days have been some of the best I’ve had in a while and I’m so excited to share them with you! And to add to that, there’s only four weeks of school left! Per usual we’re gonna start this segment off with the song of the day. Today’s song is one I literally discovered yesterday and is easily one of my new favorites: Woodland by The Paper Kites!
Paintball, Swimming, and Bonfires 🔥
On Saturday, I got to work with two of my favorite coworkers at my favorite activity, paintball. I pretty much always work paintball when I’m there and I never really get tired of it. We had three fun groups that listened relatively well and overall everything went pretty smoothly. After we learned our boss had scheduled our hours wrong, we had about three extra hours to kill. So we decided to be productive and fix a few of the broken guns and give the paintball shed a deep clean. We soon got tired of productivity and decided to go for a spontaneous dip in the lake which was probably the highlight of my day.
When I got home, my family threw a little party for me and invited my family and a few friends. We ended up having a huge cookout and a bonfire and I got to pick the music the entire time! It was a pretty nice and chill way to end a really awesome day! I got a Nintendo Switch as a birthday gift which I stayed up all night playing.
Sunday Shenanigans
Sunday came around and I had to be up bright and early for church. We had a great worship service and an awesome sermon from Brother Kromer. After church, my mom, JT, and I went out for lunch at Rodizio in Chattanooga. It’s a really cool place with some awesome decor, and its food was exquisite. After gorging ourselves, we decided to walk around the mall for a little while. I ended up getting a new pair of shoes and JT bought me a stuffed Luigi plushie that I literally love. We also bought some boba from a store in the mall which was delicious. After that, we came back to my house and chilled for a little bit. Overall, Sunday was awesome.
Seventeen🎂
Monday was my actual birthday and I just want to thank everyone for all the birthday wishes! That day I skipped school and got to hang out at home. I used some of my birthday money to buy myself lunch and chose to drive around town for a little while, taking every new road I stumbled upon. I get super awkward when people tell me “Happy birthday” in person, so really skipping school and spending the day by myself was really cool for my anxiety. Once my family got home, we watched one of my favorite movies and I got to have sushi for dinner! This was definitely a birthday for the books!
Entrepreneurship 📈
If I’ve talked to you since the spring semester started, you’ve probably heard me complain about my entrepreneurship class! If I’m being honest though, the class itself wasn’t all that bad, it was the business plan. We had to write a 10-page business plan for a company we came up with. 10 pages may not seem like a lot, but there are so many different elements that go into it and it stressed me and a few of my classmates out quite a bit. In the end, I’m really glad I pushed myself to finish it and I’ve finally turned it in, so now all that’s left to do is wait!
Get to know Emma Stepp!!🎓
Tell me a bit about yourself, who is Emma Stepp?
A little bit about me is that I am a super laid back person and enjoy all things to do with music, art, and reading. I have book smarts, but the line is drawn when it comes to common sense -- me and directions especially do not get along. I'm always up for a good time and love spending time with friends. I also have a very dry, sarcastic sense of humor so you can't really take me seriously.
What accomplishment are you most proud of in your life?
An accomplishment that I am most proud of is graduating as the salutatorian. To me it was a way to prove to myself that all of the work I did wasn't for nothing. It was also a way to prove to myself that it is possible to balance life and school -- which will evolve to life and work later down the road.
What has been your favorite part about your time here at PCHS?
I didn't go to Polk County schools until 9th grade, so my favorite thing about my time at PCHS would have to be meeting so many new people. It was scary to transfer school systems, but also cool in the fact that I got a sort of fresh start.
What are you planning to do after high school?
After high school, I plan to attend the University of Tennessee at Knoxville in the fall. I haven't decided my major yet, but I think that's one of the points of college -- to figure out who you are and what you want to do in the world. As of right now, I'm on what the university calls the "exploratory track," which is a way to experiment with classes in the different fields.
Music can tell a lot about a person! What have you been listening to lately?
Listening to music definitely ranks as one of my favorite things to do -- I'm a fan of all genres. Lately, I've been really into The Neighbourhood, Caamp, Mac Miller, Miley Cyrus, and the Smashing Pumpkins. Some of my all-time favorite artists, though, are as follows: Hozier, Nirvana, Lil Peep, The Lumineers, Fleetwood Mac, and Snoop Dogg.
If you could pick one piece of advice to give to incoming freshmen, what would it be?
If I could pick one piece of advice for the incoming freshman, it would be to enjoy high school and not get caught up in the stress of having perfect 100s. I know, this advice sounds odd coming from the salutatorian -- but it's true. As long as you do your best, that is all that matters. Nobody has everything figured out, and you only get to experience high school once -- cherish it.
And that’s a wrap!👏
Thank you guys once again for reading my take on Younger Colors! I hope that you guys enjoyed getting to know a little more about Emma, the person with the BEST style at PCHS in my opinion. Anyways, you guys will hear from me again next week, so I’ll see you then! Stay safe and have fun!