My Life

By AmeliaC

  • Birth

    (+) Born in Camarillo, CA to Carrie and George (a high school English teacher and mechanical engineer, respectively)

  • Homeschooling

    (+) Mom pulls me out of school after 2nd grade to start homeschooling.

  • SFL

    (-) We join the homeschool program Schooling For Life, where I am exposed to many new opportunities, but also relentless cruelty and bullying.

  • Acting

    (+) I take acting classes at Gary Spatz's The Playground for many years and appear in some commercials and movies before deciding acting isn't for me.

  • Mandu dies

    (-) Our beloved cat, Mandu, passes away. This is the first impactful death I experience.

  • Kipling and Roanoke

    (+) We get 2 new kittens, Kipling and Roanoke.

  • Difficult home life

    (-) Certain rifts emerge in my family, leading to dysfunctional behavior, dishonesty and abuse from all parties.

  • Robert Florzcak

    (+/-) I begin taking art lessons with professional artist Robert Florzcak. However, I am too immature to realize the true impact this will have later in my life and squalor much of my time with him.

  • Charlie

    (+/) Charlie is my first boyfriend, but it doesn't last and I eventually regret it.

  • Time For Kids

    (+) For two years I get the chance to work as an intern reporter for Time Magazine, meeting hundreds of celebrities, activists and icons. It is a very influential time for me and my writing.

  • Oaks Christian

    (+) After seven years of homeschooling, I decide to attend an actual school (Oaks Christian) for high school.

  • Girl's Golf

    (+/-) I accidentally end up joining the girl's golf team, but end up having a fantastic time despite my lack of athletic ability and dishonesty from the coach.

  • Brooke Flagler

    (+) I befriend Brooke Flagler while in Theater II and help her stand up for herself and convince her father to let her pursue her love of acting in college. It is one of the greatest achievements of my life.

  • Roanoke dies

    (-) Roanoke suddenly and unexpectedly passes away. It is heartbreaking for everyone.

  • Mr. Wight

    (+) I gain Mr. Wight as a close family friend, tutor and mentor while at my time at Oaks Christian. He becomes a huge role model for me and impacts my life immensely.

  • Ms. Biviano

    (+) I gain Ms. Biviano as a mentor, advisor and close family friend while at Oaks Christian. She becomes a major influence on my life.

  • Art

    (+) I decide that I would like to follow my life-long dream of becoming an artist/writer after accidentally getting placed into Drawing and Painting I instead of Theater III. My passion for art is reborn.

  • Switching friend groups

    (+) I make the difficult and frightening decision to leave one (potentially toxic) friend group for a new one. I gain a bigger, better set of friends and feel very accepted for one of the first times in my life.

  • Portfolio

    (+) I take a Portfolio class my junior year, expanding my art style and meeting an absolutely unbelievable group of kids. It was one of the greatest experiences of my life.

  • Oscar

    (+) After spending almost two years grieving for Roanoke, we get a new kitten, Oscar Wilde.

  • Scholastic Awards

    (+) I win the Scholastic Art and Writing Awards and take home a silver medal for a short story of mine after competing against 350,000 students nationwide.

  • Applying to College

    (+) I make the nerve-wracking decision to apply to 4 different schools: The School of the Art Institute of Chicago (SAIC), Calarts, Brown University and the Rhode Island School of Design (RISD).

  • SAIC and Nevaeh

    (+) I attend SAIC's summer art institute. Although I don't glean much artistic insight (ironically), I fall in love with Chicago and am able to meet one of my best friends, Nevaeh.