Crownover Middle School: Fill & Download for Free

I live in a town of 389 people in an unincorporated County with fewer than 7,000 residents.It's not actually a matter of settling down because, it's literally the way we live. We were raised in it and we'll die in it. (It's that country rhythm.)The thing is, if you notice, if it's an extremely small town there will be no real concept of time.There's nowhere to go and no need to hurry. People drive under the speed limit and stop in the middle of the road to talk.You will know when it's Friday because the high school will have a football game. (Or rodeo)You will know when it's Saturday because all the guys will take their cars out to whatever dirt track is within a 50-mile radius. (Unless they're too broke and busted up from the rodeo.)You will know that it's Sunday because everyone is in church and the one gas station is closed.It's more just a way of being. Those of us who thrive in small towns are completely self aware and have not only come to grips with who we are, but are perfectly comfortable with who we are. We have community activities, but we also have hobbies or talents that we engage in by ourselves.My very favorite activity is sitting out on the dock, simply existing within nature. That's it, just “being”. I love to fish or take the airboat out to where the big bull gator lives (nobody goes out there unless they're looking for complete privacy, lol. He's amiable enough that he won't move if you respect his mudhole.)I can look at the landscape and see trees that are thousands years old. I know how harsh the terrain is and I know the history, so it really puts historical accounts into perspective.Living in a small town teaches you the value of the art of conversation. It changes the way you perceive casual conversation. “How y'all doin” can be a three hour conversation.It teaches you who you really are, because it's almost impossible to impress anyone with anything of intrinsic value.We value the person, not the achievements or trappings. We value common sense and fortitude.It's a whole lot easier living in a small town because nobody expects anyone to try and keep up with, much less outdo, our neighbors.(The caveat would be football but, we actually have a county High School so we compete with an entirely different County as opposed to teams in different towns because, there aren't that many people.)Don't try to settle down, settle in.You'll find that small towns know how to have a really good time, you just have to explore and see what you like doing!You finally have time to explore your likes and examine your talents. You might find that you're an excellent medicinal gardener or, you decide to build a woodshop.Maybe you'd like to rebuild a 66′ Chevelle…you'll have knowledgeable, hands on help in a small town. (Not a car shop taking you for 85 bucks an hour, but right there in your own garage.)Maybe you'll decide you want to make your own fruit pies and preserves, buy a bushel of fruit from the local tailgate and start making your own pies, jellies, jams, preserves and cobblers. (You'll never buy jelly at the grocery store again.)Coming from a different perspective, you've got knowledge they haven't got and they have knowledge you haven't got(ten, yet). Take time to learn from your neighbors. We never mind teaching our skills and love to learn new ones. You've got a big opportunity here!Talk to everyone! (Literally everyone). They can't speculate about you if you head them off in friendly conversation.Small town folk are highly suspicious of outsiders. We love to have new people, but not everyone can be expected to behave properly, so you may get looked at squiggle eyed until they get to know you. (Don't take it personally. We're suspicious of everyone, and directly, you'll find yourself looking squiggle eyed at some other new resident.)Just take this time to learn yourself, without all the trappings of city life. You'll find that you've fallen into a smooth groove, and focused on something you want to do simply because you can. There are few demands.If you have to work, that's an absolute, but even then, the pace will be entirely different.The clothing costs drop off the charts. We don't do changing fashion. We stick with timeless styles at work and jeans (or skirts usually in my case) the rest of the time.Learn the rhythm of the town. Small towns are generally very community-oriented. We do lots of things together so you'll find something new and interesting to do almost immediately.Mostly, just enjoy the pleasure of your own company.

I've raised 15 foster kids and, I have a solution for my boys who need to take out their frustration.I enroll every single one of them in martial arts, let them learn technical street fighting, plus I get them involved in Rodeo. (But that's not a ready option for a lot of people.)Getting involved in martial arts is more than being able to defend yourself. It teaches you how to control your temper, your emotions and your physical actions. It helps you weigh things in the balance and make level-headed decisions.Don't feel like you're out of balance with the world, we all feel like we're out of balance with the world. You're out of balance within yourself. You have to learn yourself and learn to trust yourself. You need to understand what you're capable of and what you could learn to brush up on skills you already have.Because you're talking about actual aggression, it's best to meet aggression with aggression in a controlled setting. That way you don't just flip out one day and then you kill someone simply because you've had enough.One of the best ways to work through aggression is physical labor if you have no access to schooling or training.See if you can find someone that needs an apprentice. Like a Mason's tender or a carpenter's helper.Putting in a long day of physical work not only pays an astronomical amount of money these days, (which is hysterical because a skilled Craftsman can make three times what a professor with a Ph.D can make in any given year, because we have an overabundance of phds that are not in use and an under abundance of people who actually know how to do things.)Take a lawn mower apart and put it back together.Learn to do something with your hands that requires all of your attention.If you're busy trying to figure out a wiring harness on a 66 Chevy II, you're certainly not going to dwell on what people who don't even matter may or may not think about you.You have to develop your character, who are you going to be? Are you going to be someone who allows what other people have said in the past, people that don't even matter to affect you?Go work at a Livestock Arena. If you happen to top out between 5 foot 6 and 5 foot 9, become the next PBA champion!My point is, any of those things plus about a gajillion other things are fully possible. Go and build a life for yourself and revel in the knowledge that no matter what Fancy Nancy said back in the day, she'll never be able to do what you do!( for what it's worth, I was the polar opposite. At 12 years old I was five foot six and a girl, in the 70s. The average height for a fully grown woman in the 70s what is 5 ft to 5 ft 2. I was literally a foot taller than everyone in my class including the boys.I got to hear things like “that girl is so tall she can hunt geese with a rake”!“That girl is so skinny she's going to fall through her own butthole and hang herself.”“That girl is so skinny that if she stood sideways and stuck out her tongue She would look like a zipper”..Well, guess what? Now that all those busty and beautiful cheerleaders are in their 50s, like I am. All of us had some sort of growth spurt between the age of 12 and adulthood but, the tallest one, Lisa topped out at five foot four. I'm 5 foot 10.I still wear a size 5. They're all wearing a size 25.Vindication!