Have you ever been gone from school for an entire week, or possibly even longer, all for school trips? Have you had to get dropped off by the school bus in some weird place, another school or an arena? Yeah, well I have, and honestly, it was kind of killer.

Well, once upon a time, there was this freshman boy, who wanted to be involved in EVERYTHING at his school. He wanted to be in every club, every extra curricular activity, he wanted to be in Student Council, Model United Nations, Academic Olympiad, Montana YMCA Youth Legislature, jazz band, marching band, the school newspaper, BPA, basketball, and when he realized that ballin’ just wasn’t meant to be in his very white Irish genes, he would stick around to manage just for fun.

But what happens when one of those clubs, or two, or even THREE of those clubs all have field trips overlapping or back to back? Well, you tell your teachers that you’re going to be gone for the next millennium, hope your advisor doesn’t check your grade before you go because you KNOW that missing assignment is giving you that F, and you endure that two week long period of pure procrastination of those missing assignments and low grades.

Recently, I went to an Academic Olympiad competition at Skyview High School in Billings, only to get my butt wiped all over the floor by “Flannel shirt guy,” or “Plaid shirt guy.” If you don’t know who that is, go Google, “Plaid Shirt guy behind Trump,” and thank me later. After being annihilated in the small old crummy rooms of Skyview High School, I was to be dropped off at the Metra Arena in Billings and wait for the Girls basketball team. I was supposed to wait with them because the boys team wouldn’t be arriving in Billings until MUCH later. Anyways, the academic tournament ended up getting over and done with about two hours early. I had the option of either

1. Riding back home in the vans, only to turn right back around with the basketball boys on the bus BACK to Billings, or
2. Wait in the Metra by myself for three hours.

Me, being a prime example of a stellar student, decided I would go to the Metra and work on my make up work in the stands. I showed up to the front doors of the Metra with my backpack on, my duffle bag slung over my shoulder, and pink leopard print tote bag carrying my Xbox in my left hand and my ticket in my right hand. As I approached the gate, the guard gave me the look of “What in the world is this?” I explained to the lady what I was doing there, that there was a timing mishap, and that I just needed to wait around here for a bit. She scanned my ticket and told me to go “take a load off.”

I shuffled my way to an upper level seat, sat down and got ready to do my work. I set my bags down, get ready to take out my laptop. I check my phone, it’s 2:30. I blink, check my phone, and it’s 4:15. WAIT 4:15?? Without even thinking, I slipped into an almost two and a half hour long nap. Well, there goes that productive period.

As I write this, I’m currently at the State Basketball Tournament in Great Falls. I really feel bad for varsity basketball player Peyton Murphy and Mcleod Versland. As soon as they get home from this tournament, they have to turn right back around and go to BPA state, and after that, Peyton has to get dropped off by the BPA group for a choir event in Laurel.

Anyways, I just wanted to take this time to write about THOSE kids that find themselves in back-to-back field trips because they aren’t ever commended enough for their dedication to whatever it is they are traveling for. For kids like Peyton and Mcleod and other kids out there that find yourself in that situation, I salute you.