Northwest Indiana dreams

This past weekend I've spent a ton of time slaving away at my college applications as well as trying to wrap my head around the gigantic yearbook I am in charge of. These two don't sound like they'd go hand in hand, but they really do. Trying to apply to college [for you innocent souls who have not gotten to this point in your lives yet] is like trying to juggle a billion things into a perfect little song and dance that will impress the admissions counselor. You need the sparkling transcript, jaw-dropping test scores, and a list of extracurricular activities that stretches for miles. You need to have a rough enough life to get sympathy but not too rough to look like you complain a ton. You need to be well rounded in academics, sports, clubs, arts, but have time to "be yourself." You need alumni relatives and something really cool about your life. Oh, and you have to explain it all in a "short personal essay." Yeah, it's a lot. But once you get into the school of your choice, you can relax and reap the benefits of your hard work.

But yearbook is the same way. There is so much to do. There are huge sets of pages that need to be thought of, designed, filled in, and perfected within a few weeks of each deadline. There are InDesign skills that still have to be learned. You have to make sure the staffers know what they're doing [even if you don't]. You need to fake it until you make it because you never want to come across ignorant about something you are so passionate about. You need to prove all the people wrong who thought you could never do it better than them. You need to please every student from athlete to actress to teacher to principal to random kid who picks his nose. Oh, did I mention that there are 3000+ STUDENTS. Yeah, that too. But you love it. You love coming up with ideas and working and working and working until it's perfect. You love managing a staff of 74, even if you want to crawl under your desk and cry sometimes. You love working in a professional setting because a newsroom is your home and future career. You just love it. And once the book is published, you can relax and reap the benefits of your hard work.

See how that works out?

xxx