I try not to write about my personal life too much, because usually it’s boring and not noteworthy in the slightest. But, for once, something amazing (and totally awesome) happened to me!

I won the lottery twice!

“But you’re under eighteen! You can’t gamble!” Yes, true. Let me explain.

I won a lottery to get into the Pennsylvania Cyber Charter School. For the second time. Last year, I won, but since my school district had a fledgling cyber school program of their own, I decided to go with that, because I had delusions of loyalty and friendship within my current school district.

At the time, I was involved with marching band (the colorguard section) and was most certain I would be senior captain, as the only other returning member was a sophomore. I was also in AP English 11 (which I loved. Great class.) and Yearbook. Parting with those things at that time would have been far too difficult for me, so I decided to stay in the district.

Bad decision on my part. I did terribly, and not simply of my own accord. Since I was partially credit-deficient at the time of my enrollment, I was expected to complete a whole year’s worth of Precalculus and Chemistry/Physics in six months.

In the end, I gained only 2.5 credits my junior year. I was left severely depressed, unmotivated, and expecting to repeat the year. I quit colorguard over the summer, due to being placed second to a sophomore and not even having the “captain” title, only being a “section leader”. Quite the abysmal year, yes.

Yet, my guidance counselor chose to place me in senior year and make me take an extra Social Studies credit, simply because in my freshman and sophomore years I had accumulated a good many credits in electives, and only needed to accumulate a few more credits in the core courses.

That day I came home and screamed my head off (and even wrote a post on it). “Why can’t they fail me when I deserve it?!” I screamed at my reflection in the oversized mirror on my wall. I turned the computer on and blasted music, to which I proceeded to imitate using my best rock scream. (Let’s just say I think I broke a glass, and not for a good reason. I can’t scream. I sound like a dying harddrive.)

They had roped me back in again. I felt trapped. On 1 September I fell ill. Horribly ill. I’m sure you heard of the E. coli breakout due to fresh, bagged spinach? I was one of those very lucky people to have contracted the disease. Every day for lunch, I had a “Spring Mix” salad from Earthbound Farms. I’m still not quite feeling up to par today, 27 September. My guidance counselor called yesterday to see if I could take English online instead of showing up for AP, because I hadn’t for nearly a month.

I instantly said yes, and to drop me from Yearbook as well, because more than frankly, I had “had it up to here” as the idiom goes. My business editor was less than friendly to me (even though they’ve been acquainted with me for the whole 13 years I was in the school district) and decided to attempt to chew me out online via AIM for not coming to school (even though I had told them I was sick, however, I did not specify what I had, because at the time, I did not know. Check out the symptoms of E. coli on WebMD or something. They’re rather embarrasing.) I did not need to return to such a hostile, unpleasant environment. If the business editor wants all the glory to themself, they may quite duly have it.

Either Monday or Tuesday (I can’t remember which) my father placed another call to the admissions center of the Pennsylvania Cyber Charter School. This time they gave us an option, to enter my name in a lottery, and if my name were picked, I would be considered for admission.

Everything depended on my winning the same lottery twice. I mean everything. My whole future depends on it. I know I’m not going to get into a very good college with my record looking like it does right now. I haven’t taken any classes I need to in order to get into any major I would consider.

Winning the lottery twice is very unlikely. Very few people ever win a lottery (for a substantial amount. We all get that two dollar win on a scratch-off ticket once in a while.) Even fewer people win twice. But I did.

I’ve been asking everyone for lottery tickets for my eighteenth birthday. Maybe I’ll still be just as lucky then. Haha. =D

I’ll have an interview in late October with the people at the Pennsylvania Cyber Charter School, so wish me luck, just in case this lucky streak should run out.