Bullying in High Schools

I was talking to a lady today about a problem her daughter has in High School and I thought I should share my thoughts on this issue. To begin this post though, I'll have to go back a few years... back to grade 3.

This girl, we shall call "Jane" went to a certain elementary school up to grade 3 where she was bullied by another girl who shall be called "Sally". Sally didn't have a good reason to hate Jane but she did, and Jane transferred schools because she felt threatened by her. Now both Jane and Sally are in High School, and haven't seen each other since.

Jane just transferred High Schools -as the new one is much closer to her home- and discovered that Sally goes there. As soon as Sally found out about Jane, she immediately gathered a group of friends and started to tell them about Jane, and how much Sally hated her. (Keep in mind, Jane did nothing and has been trying to avoid her). Now Jane's boyfriend has fallen victim to Sally and her friends. Every time he walks by, they yell names at him and give him the finger.

One day after much harassment from Sally and her friends, Jane got fed up and decided to take a stand. She turned around and yelled "Shut up you slut!" and turned back around. Later that day Sally came up behind Jane and punched her in the back of the head and yelled "Once you're alone, I'll get you, and I'll get you good!". Because of this, Jane has been scared to death to go back to school because she is afraid that if her boyfriend isn't with her or her friends aren't with her at a particular time then she might get the snot kicked out of her by Sally.

I am no longer in High School, and have never honestly seen this type of behavior since middle school (back then it was all talk, now I'm not too sure). I can't even begin to believe what on earth would make a couple of 16 year-olds do something so stupid and over basically nothing! The major part I don't understand is Sally can threaten, yell at, and bully Jane and everything is well and good, but the one time; I repeat ONE TIME Jane talks back her life is automatically threatened. Jane hasn't been back to school yet and it has been about a week. She has been having severe headaches since Sally punched her and is worried that she has a concussion. They are now talking to the school about it in hopes Sally will receive a suspension.

"Pink Shirt Day" is coming up soon on Wednesday, April 14th. This day was created by a couple of male students who wore pink shirts to school after they witnessed an exchange student being bullied because he wore a pink shirt. This has become a strong symbol against bullying and I am a strong believer in standing up for the underdog and trying to prevent bullying.

The story about Jane and Sally is true. I know this post probably sounds a bit preachy but I feel so bad about Jane I just can't help but do my part and spread some awareness. So, to everyone out there, wear a pink shirt on April 14th and show everyone what you stand for.

Until next time,

Live, Love, Laugh

-Missy A

**For those interested, you can purchase official "Pink Shirt Day" shirts at: http://shop.pinkshirtday.ca/

In The Beginning...

After falling away from blogging for about a year, I decided to take it back up. As much as I hate to admit it, I kind of missed it. To me, blogging is a good way to release the thoughts from your mind without anyone really judging you; a good way to get things off your chest to people who don't really care and are probably just reading to curb their boredom. So, here you go. This is my official boredom-stopper... well... for me anyway.

I'm going to attempt writing every day or at least once a week, depending on how busy my life gets. I'll be talking about discovered websites, games, other blogs, videos, and anything else that appears to be interesting in my un-eventful life while also taking the time to ramble about my daily activities and on-goings.

For my first official post, I decided that people should at least know something about me... so... here you go!

My username is "MistressAlcyone". I usually go by the names "MissyA" or just "Missy" on the internet although neither are even close to my real name... rather it's just something my mother has always called me when I do something stupid or wrong... example: "Listen Missy... you'd better get down off the counter!" In all truthfulness, it just stuck. As for the 'A', that stands for 'Alcyone', a Greek mythological figure that has always interested me for some strange reason.

I am from Canada which may lead to further questions like: "How do you get internet access in igloos?" and "Does it take long to get to school on dog sled?" and even something like "How many times a day do you say "eh"?" So... I don't live in a igloo, I live in a house with high speed internet and cable. I have a car so no need for dog sled... although I'm not sure how well that would work out on pavement. As for me saying "eh"... it's a very rare occasion... and I usually only do this when mocking the Canadian stereotype.

I have 3 cats and a fish tank which works out surprisingly well. The cats all enjoy chicken more than fish, so no worries about Nemo becoming a tuna sammich. I'm a firm believer in the thought that my cats all have their own personalities, and that shows true. Sylvester is the lazy male, and would probably have a beer-belly if human. Tigger is the Diva, and Jazmine is the princess. All three were strays we adopted, and I encourage people to adopt animals too. There are many awesome animals out there in shelters looking for a good home; so try and get one from there first.

I have many random hobbies and interests. I consider myself to be an anime freak and am surprisingly proud if it. I love to draw, take pictures, sing, play violin, piano and guitar, and enjoy listening to everything from Bach to Ke$ha. I love to travel (although I don't get to do much) and am embarking on a 2-week adventure to Disney World in about a month. I want to someday start a vlog, so I may at times put up random ones throughout the course of this blog. I love the Stumble, and that will be the place where most of my website posts will come from. I am interested in religions, countries, and different views. I am currently searching for my true self and am very open minded. I am an Anglican, although I share certain views with Pagans and other religions around the world. So religiously... I'm a mutt. I haven't yet found my true calling, but am keeping my fingers crossed that I will sooner, rather than later.

So thats basically me. I hope people enjoy my posts, and will keep enjoying the ones to come.

Until next time,

Live, Love, Laugh

-MissyA