Just before the school year started, I had an apathetic view toward ninth grade. I thought it was going to be exactly the same as eighth grade. Interestingly, I was wrong. I liked it a lot. Sure, there was a little more work and a little more stress, but I liked it because:

1. High school ends forty-nine minutes earlier. I'm not going to go in depth with the mysterious intricacies of "Options," which is not optional. Basically, it's the last period of the day, but you're free to go before that if you do an MG or extracurricular like orchestra, choir, or jazz band, to name a few. Obviously having fewer classes is nice.

2. Geometry is also nice. I mean, Algebra II was nice, but a sort of "I am preparing for my future," forced, stressful nice. I really like geometry. I shall miss it next year when we have to relearn everything we've forgotten from algebra for precalc. I hear the summer packet is brutal.

3. All-City was better. I enjoyed it in middle school, too, of course. But it's pleasant to be playing music that's not a) a weird written-for-band thing with vocal parts and clapping, or b) a poor arrangement of a pop song or c) sheet music on which "Bells" or "Flute" has been crossed out and "Oboe" scribbled.

There's also a wide range of events for high school that the middle schoolers can't do. I ignored these for the most part: the dances (I don't like dancing, dressing formally, or social gatherings), Spirit Week (about which I do not feel competitive), and the mock election (though admittedly pretty cool, I did not agree with either candidate).

Nonetheless, I'm glad it's almost over.