#549 School field trip day

Neil Pasricha

It all starts with the permission slip.

Yes, when teachers send them home before the bell rings so parents can rubber stamp the bumpy yellow bus trip to the museum, then it’s on, my friends, it’s on.

Soon the days count down and the buzz builds up as the class gets ready for the day away from school. The middle-ages unit wraps up at Medieval Times, paintings are handed in before the art gallery, and everyone mails a friend a letter before the tour of the post office.

On the morning of the big day you wake up with some extra pep in your step because you know we’re all going far away. It’s time to skip the portables, soggy sandwiches, and long afternoons with the Spanish teacher.

It’s time to do something different.

It’s time … to go for a ride.

Yes, whether it’s the petting zoo, chocolate factory, or a long hike in the woods, it’s time to enjoy the school vacation with some of the following perks:

1. Subs in the house. Taking thirty screaming seven-year-olds to the planetarium is a bit much, so most teachers call in backups in the form of parent chaperones. These subs act like a sweet and sweatered army of substitutes and don’t know enough names or have enough power to mess up the fun. Of course, that’s assuming they’re not your mom or dad. If that happens, your day is done.

2. Wheels on the bus. They go round and round on the way there and back. Yeah, we all gang rush into the slippery seatbelt-free seats and enjoy a loud, laughing party on wheels. There are loud screechy songs, secret makeout sessions, and some friendly gestures at passing motorists. This is also when the classroom’s social structure is on display too — from the cool kids at the back to the nerds sitting with the teacher up front. I really did love sitting up front though. I mean, how about that view?

3. Sealing it in. A friend and I were strolling quickly through an art gallery a couple years back when we stumbled on a group of kindergartners holding a rope and looking at splotchy art paintings. I’ll never remember the jaw-dropping look of pure head-tilting amazement from the little boy at the end of the group — eyes twinkling, mittens hanging out his winter coat, and his whirring brain soaking and swallowing up something beautiful on the wall. And it’s true: field trips often help seal in the learning. Chalk one up for school.

So… let’s enjoy the memories, let’s enjoy the moments, and let’s enjoy the parking lot speed bumps. Yes, let’s all love those special days when dusty chalkboards fade away and buses wheel us down the freeway, far away, far away, far away.

AWESOME!

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Photos from: here, here, here, and here

2,210 thoughts to “#549 School field trip day”

  1. The nerdy kids who actually talk in class discussions while everybody else is too shy

  2. Realizing you actually have a decent chance of winning something and actually participate

  3. when you awake with the radio playing your favourite song and having it in mind for the rest of the day

  5. the first day of spring

    christmas has ended, your sick of the cold and the dull greyness. then one day its sunny, there is blue sky, everyone around seems upbeat and cheerfull, you feel warm. ladies and gentlemen welcome to the first day of spring

  7. Having your own pronunciations for strange character/place/thing names in novels and then hating the way other people pronounce them

  8. The most awesome thing in the entire world is when the person you fancy fancies you back. Hi Kate. x

  10. When a walk through your hometown feels like vacation

    You wake up one good saturday morning. It’s spring and you decide to take a walk outside. Because it’s a little warmer than the days before and little sunnier than you’re used to.

    And then you smell it. There is something in the air and you knew it from the start. There is spicy food and fresh garlic, there is that old lady pouring wash water into the gutter. People are carrying ice-cream cones and they are chatting loudly.

    And suddenly it feels like vacation. It feels like Italy or Spain in summer, where you used to walk around marveling and exploring a foreign city.

    Right now you are far away. On a casual weekend in your casual town.

    Awesome!

  11. Someone telling you they’re proud of you.

    There’s no other way to explain it other than it’s just really awesome.

    My parents died when I was still in high-school and since then my Uncle took on the responsibility to be my parental figure. He is so supportive, and even if I fail at something, he will always remind me how proud he is of me. I’m in law school now and, even though I’m meant to be grown up and self-sufficient, it still helps me get through the stressful times to know that, no matter what, my Uncle will be proud of me. It’s just such a lovely feeling to know someone is there to remind you of how far you’ve come, even if you feel like you’re taking steps backwards. Having someone to be proud of you can give you confidence you never thought you had. And really, that’s just awesome :)

  13. The last bite in a bag of mixed snacks.

    You’re through the beginning of the bag, where every bite is new and tasty. You’re through the middle, where you took everything for granted. Now you’re down to the end, and every bite counts… especially the last one.

    Maybe it’s an ordinary coffee crunch, a blase mix of almonds and pecans. Maybe it’s not special. That’s okay, bag finished, satisfaction granted, move on with your life.

    But maybe it’s that chocolate orange cream. Maybe it’s cashews and pistachios. Maybe it’s the perfect final aftertaste, the best possible ending. Maybe it’s the one you really wanted. Lucky you! The universe smiles down on you, and your day is… AWESOME.

  14. When little kids think they know the words to the song they are singing. But they just don’t. They don’t have the slightest clue.

    And that’s just awesome.

  15. Emails Across Time Zones
    -When you are living or traveling overseas, and the time difference between your host country and home country are such that when you wake up in the morning, you have an email inbox full of connective correspondence from friends and family that miss you! The best way to beat the lonelies and make the distance between two points seem just a little smaller.

  17. Your mum, not just as in your mum jokes, as in your actual mum. cos your mum is pretty damn awesome, and your mum insults and jokes are also pretty funky too.

  18. Waking up in the middle of the night, and hearing your partner talk in his or her sleep…because you can’t wait to tell them in the morning about how they said “Corn Pops…Yum Yum” in the middle of the night! AWESOME!

  19. Having absolutely no choice but to eat ice-cream, custard or jell-o (possibly all three together) when stricken with a sore throat.

  20. Exchanging driving stories…whether it’s hilarious policemen, outrageous speeding tickets, embarrassing fender benders, or killing the engine on a steep hill with a whole line of cars behind you…everyone has at least one story, and everyone loves to share and hear them!

  22. Finally emptying the bin.

    It’s been overflowing for a while now – and with every extra piece of rubbish comes the challenge of perching it ‘just right’ on top of the mountain already there. Then, one day, you finally snap – tie the bag up, and haul it outside to it’s fate – leaving you with a clean, empty rubbish bin and opening up a world of endless opportunities for what you can fill it with. You congratulate yourself on being so productive before the whole ordeal starts again. It’s exciting. And it’s awesome.

  23. Unintentionally Broadcasted Cute Wallpaper Display

    When a presenter is readying their computer for a Powerpoint presentation, and just as the overhead projector links up with the computer desktop screen, the audience is unexpectedly shown a hilariously adorable wallpaper photo of his or her child in a Halloween costume. Bosses or upper management supervisors have feelings and families too!

    1. Yes! Although that hasn’t happened to me lately, except at places where they have to card everybody :(

  26. Listening to something monotonous yet imagining another sound coming from it.

    When I have long documents to print, I try to entertain myself by listening to the “back-and-forth” printer sound. Thinking of any two-syllable word, say, “loser” or “T.V.”, and that word will come to life in the printer sound. Change the word, and the sounds change accordingly.

    It’s like your own On-The-Go playlist, but way too better, because you can hear the sound of. . .

    AWESOME!

  27. I live in the UK, the land of rain and fog, so every time, like this morning by the way, we see the sun, it just purely simply awesome!

    I love this blog…keep up the good work!

  28. Bromances

    (I know this is specifically to guys, but hey, there are a few bra entries)

    A man is told to be a man. Never cry. Never show weakness. Keep your face scruffy. However, there are times in every man’s life when sometimes he needs a good cry. A good emotional heart to heart. Just someone to be himself around without the pressure of showing dominance.

    This is where the bromance comes in.

    The man turns to his closest pal, goes over to his house, sits down on the couch with a bowl of nachos, and just talks. About love. About school. About life. About how excited he is about his new girlfriend, and about how terrified he is about finding a career. About how regretful he is not spending more time with his family, and how thankful he is for good friends.

    Sometimes a man is supposed to be a man. But a man is always supposed to be a person. And in moments like those, moments where a true bromance takes place, the man feels alive, feels connected, feels human.

    Awesome.

    (My next entry won’t be gender specific. I promise :D)

  31. Popping a pimple and having the pus hit the mirror!

    That blind pimple from last night now has the perfect round white head on it. You have been rewarded for not squeezing prematurely and the fireworks display is now guaranteed. Move your face up close to the mirror. You put a fingernail on either side and squeeze.

    POP

    You hear that ping on the mirror.

    For a second there you are both amazed and disgusted. You have created something that has such propulsion to breech the face mirror void from something as gross as pus.

    Straight away your face feels cleaner, you can stand up taller and that concealer works all the better. You wipe the mirror with a tissue and you are off to face the day.

    Disgusting, jet-propelled pus, AWESOME

  32. i think it’s awesome when you decide not go to class and the next day you discover that there was no class.So you don’t have to ask for homework and didn’t have to walk for nothing

  33. When someone gives you something you didn’t know you wanted for your birthday. And you realize it is exactly what you wanted.

    My best friend pre-ordered me the book of awesome for my bithday.

    She is AWESOME!

  34. Those tears that come after the question ‘Are you ok?”

    You have been holding it together all day, smiling and nodding at all the right times. But at some stage you must have let your guard down and shown someone that something is wrong. The eyes might have been the give away, maybe you didn’t laugh at a very funny moment. The the question comes….

    Are you ok?

    You’re not. Not even close and the person who noticed has just opened the flood gates.

    The tears come, the snot swells and runs, your eyes look more like an alergic reaction than a good try. You tell them through gasping breaths… No… I’m… Not… Really… Ok…

    They pass you tissues, you cry for a long while.

    Sooner or later the tears dry up and the snot has caked inside those soggy tissues. As you wipe the tears from your shirt and give your nose a final blow, you realise that you just might be ok after all.

    Awesome

  36. Getting the good shower in the dorm. When competing with 20 others for showers in the morning, the probability of finding the one with good lighting and good water pressure is extremely low. The mornings you wake up and are lucky enough to get the good shower are spectacular. What a way to start the day!

  37. Happy Smells

    They say scent is the strongest sense tied to memory and on those odd occasions, you get a whiff of something delicious that will take you back decades.

    Any time I smell “Lauren” by Ralph Lauren, I’m transported back to when I was a wee kid.

    Its winter and my mom is coming home from work. After biding my time in school followed by the daily vicious battle over the remote with my older brother, I’m ecstatic to see her!

    I rush her at the doorway with all my might, fling my arms around her legs to give her a big hug, and breathe in the sweet mixture of the cold air from outside and what’s left of that morning’s application of her Ralph Lauren perfume.

    Now that’s awesome!

  39. Finding money in a piece of clothing you haven’t worn since last year. When you take out all your winter ski clothes for a new season and while getting ready to head out, you check your pockets. And there, in all it’s glory, is a $5 bill. It’s not much, but it’s $5 more than you had 30 seconds ago. It feels like free money!

  40. You and a few thousand of your closest friends have just watched your favourite band bid you goodnight after an incredible set. They exit the stage. The lights stay low. Everyone is standing, watching the stage, waiting.

    One minute passes. Nothing.

    A few more minutes. Nothing.

    Anticipation mounts.

    And then, you start to clap. A slow, rhythmic, pulse.

    Your neighbours on either side join in.

    Then their neighbours.

    Suddenly, the entire arena is one thundering heart beat that connects your global yearning for MORE.

    Starting the clap at a concert. AWESOME.

  41. When it’s time to clean the lint off the lint screen in the dryer, and it comes off in one big sheet of fluff – awesome! Sometimes you have to pick it off bit by bit, and that is not awesome.

  42. Not sure if this one has been done …..

    When there is just enough milk left in the bag for your morning bowl of cereal.

    Cause no one likes having to change the bag while milk sits in the cereal and makes it all mushy ……

      1. The milk that comes in a bag … there are 3 bags in the pack …. rather then a carton.

        Am I the only one who buys that? haha

        This morning I had JUST enough milk left in one bag to complete by bowl of cereal. If it had run out halfway through the pour I would have had to take the time to get the next bag ready while my cereal got mushy!!!

        1. I hadn’t heard of milk in a bag either! At first I was thinking you were talking about the cow itself :)

  43. This site is at the top of my Awesome List – as I look forward to reading it every morning!!

    One of my personal favourite Awesome moments is when you go to pick up the phone to call a friend, and the phone rings the second before you pick it up – and guess who is on the other line!! A little psychic moment that doesn’t happen often, but when it does…. AWESOME!!!

  44. Reward points.

    Even better – bonus reward points. Then thinking of all the ‘free’ stuff you can get thanks to your incredible amounts of long standing customer loyalty!

  45. I am a Canadian, but have moved to the States for school. It is AWESOME whenever I come home and Kraft smooth peanut butter is on sale (you cannot buy Kraft in the States and there is nothing as delicious as Kraft p.b.). I think it is Canada’s way of saying “Welcome home, Sara”. It is the best gift ever, other than visits with friends and family!

  46. When clock rolls forward.

    Sure, that first Sunday when you loose an hour of sleep can be tough. But after you brave that unforgiving morning, you discover an extra of light to your day. One more hour of playing tag through the yards. One more hour of throwing the football to your running friends. One more hour of laying back and basking the beautiful afternoon sun. One more hour of anything and everything.

    Awesome!

    1. Not agree, I was having a great time in a bar and the bar closed 1 hour earlier because of this.

      But here in Canada daytime temperature is getting warmer, that’s great !

  48. Out walking the dog late at night, the last lone walker, and a falling star streaks brightly accross the inky night sky – awesome!

  50. When you’re looking for a shirt to put on and you open the dryer and it falls right out into your hands. Its happened to me a few times. I’ll be running late for work or some other engagement and I was too lazy to fold my clothes and I run to the dryer because I know what I want is in there, and I swing the door open and its right out front waiting for me like it new, today is the day that I will be worn!

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