#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. When a friend honestly tells you he realized he misses you after you’ve not seen him since a long time.

    I’ve been away from home for 2months now and for the 2 next months and my friend Tanya just told me this yesterday :)

  4. Things I Find AWESOME!

    Dogs. Just Everything about them. How they are so diverse and how they love their owners.

    When someone does a favor for you. It’s the little things that help us :)

  5. Replacing all your old underwear all at once!!!

    Knowing that you gonna be putting on new underwear, nice tight elastic, great colors, nice fit. Makes you realize how bad your old reliables had become. But when you take that paycheck and replace EVERYTHING in your stash, just knowing that for a long time…… no matter which ones you grab…. it’s gonna be a great day. THATS AWESOME!!

  6. The first sparkle of sunshine on open water after on a long, cold winter., when the river ice thins with underlying current and finally begins to disappear.

    AWESOME!

  8. Shirts with built-in bras! Because an opportunity to go braless should never be taken for granted. You boys might not get this, but to me it feels like FREEDOM. Also, it’s like, the one benefit to not having really huge boobies. :)

  9. The moment you remember that you packed something that you love in your otherwise boring lunch.

  11. March Madness Brackets.

    I go to an all girls college, many girls do not know anything about basketball but EVERYONE prints a bracket to fill out. Whether you base your picks on whose school has better colors or some statistical analysis over who will win, hearing people’s final four teams and comparing them to your own is awesome. The upsets March Madness brings are awesome…it is the most wonderful time of the year.

  12. When you’re from a small, insignificant town and it gets an occasional mention in national media.

    What’s that? The Battle of Pointy Swords took place where? Big Shot Sportsman was born where?The Largest cabbage in the world was grown where?

    New Bigtown? Capitalcityton? Las Majorindustry? No.
    Dropburg, Oceanville. Population: Wee.

  13. Win the 1000 Awesome Things contest and finally read the book everyday before sleep.

  14. Waking up with the dreaded feeling of getting up and going to work and then realizing it’s Saturday!

  16. The most awesome thing I’ve experienced in a long time? Having just enough milk to have one last bowl of cereal :)

  17. The pride smug that lights your face when your friends in class tell you that you’re smelling really good, even though you haven’t bathed for the last three days.

    AWESOME

  18. When you achieve a new ‘personal best’ in your sport.

    It’s a great feeling knowing that because you put in that little extra you got a little extra out of it.

    Whether you swim 200metres 2 seconds faster than last time; you score more goals in your match than you have before and help lead your team to victory. Or you just achieve something new in whatever you choose to do, winning and doing better than you ever have before just feels…

    AWESOME!

  19. Winning contests – that’s awesome

    Like when you call in to the radio and win a pizza, or when you buy a ticket for something from a co-workers kid and you win, or when you go to a halloween party and they decide that you had the best costume (and you threw it together in 5 minutes with household stuff and imagination)

    Winning is Awesome…

  21. A nap…you sit in the recliner in the early afternoon and your eyelashes gently touch your cheeks…you have drifted away into bliss. And when you wake up a half an hour later, you feel renewed. A nap is like a secret you stole in the middle of the day. Sally

  22. When medical diagnostic tests come back negative – the only tests you happily fail.

    AWESOME!

  23. When you pick up the phone to make a call and you hear no dial tone because somebody was calling you at the precise moment you picked up the phone.

    This is more and more rare as landline telephones are becoming a thing of the past, but you can’t plan for that brand of AWESOMENESS!

    AWESOME!

  24. The Perfect Pump

    There’s nothing more satisfying than a perfect pump at the gas station. No nickel and diming every last drop at the pump to get that even dollar value. One perfect release and you’re on your way. Going for the perfect pump is a risky move because the repercussions are steep for overshooting, but one perfect pump makes the 200 previous failures a distant memory as you strut to the cash register with a little extra swagger.

  25. When you’re in a mall, or at a store, or just out in public, and someone suddenly runs into a friend they weren’t expecting to see there. It always makes me smile to see them hug and go through the stages of surprise and happiness :)
    Also awesome when it happens to you! Though it’s not so awesome when you meet an ex or annoying coworker, I would imagine…

    1. Yeah, that’s like when you were a kid and your Mom ran into an old friend in the grocery store and had to stop and talk… you get the free time to check out the magazines or additions to the candy aisle or try to sneak your favorite snack into the cart if you’re lucky.

  26. Reading a new book that you are totally excited to read!

    Maybe you were patient in your pursuit for literary bliss and your favorite book comes to you in a package delivered by one of the fine folks at USPS, UPS, or FedEx.

    (Nudge, nudge… wink, wink.)

    :)

  27. Stopping a bus at a traffic light.
    I don’t know if buses elsewhere can turn traffic lights green as well, but here they can.
    And I love it when I get to stop one.

    1. Wait.. you are telling me that your buses have the ability to CONTROL the traffic lights?!?!?

      Where on earth do you live!?! That sounds insane!

  28. When Starbucks has to brew a new pot and you get your coffee for free. Should have ordered the larger size.

  31. Opening a brand new ChapStick. I recently opened a new one and realized I was unduly excited to get at the thing. After giving it some though, opening a new ChapStick is awesome for a number of reasons:

    1.) When you’re opening a new ChapStick that means that your lips are chapped enough to have gone out of your way to spend $1.19 (or $.99 if you’re into CVS Brand Chap-Block) on a new Stick. Either you’ve been putting this off for some time and your lips are crusty and dry, or you keep a stash in your sock drawer for occasions such as these.

    2.) It’s freakin’ hard to open the thing. They have the perforations on the plastic seal on the lid to make it easy, but they are often times misleading. Sometimes you’ll try, in a frenzy because your lips are so chapped, to just rip the plastic off, but this only accomplishes in taking the entire wrapping off, leaving you with a naked ChapStick. Other times you’ll try to play by the rules and just twist the lid along the perforations so the plastic comes off nice and easy, but it’s not nice and easy.

    3.) Finally, an unused ChapStick has those sharp, crisp ridges on the top and you get to be the first one to break them down and mold them to the specific curves of your very own lips.

    So, if you’ve never done this…give it a shot, it’s pretty excellent (or AWESOME!, whichever you prefer).

    Andrew D

  32. Managing to get a good grade from a teacher who is notoriously stingy when doling out grades.

  33. When you’re petting your dog and you hit the spot that makes his legs go banana’s! Its like he is in a powerless trance!

  35. I’m confused. So the book of Awesome has all 1000 awesome things in it? So then the people who get the book will know ahead of time what the blog will be?

    1. I don’t think so. The book is called, “The Book of Awesome,” and the site is called “1000 Awesome Things.” While there will be overlap, I don’t think they will both have all the same content.

      1. Yup – Jed is on the ball here. The book will have some of the best early post and awesome things from the blog (edited and expanded), and then a bunch of new content as well, only available from the book, as well as brand new and original photography!

        It’s about 400 pages of awesome!

  36. When your horoscope relates to your life at that moment exactly, and it gives inspiring advice.

    Watching someone pick their nose when they think no-one can see.

    When you find cash you’d forgotten about when you’re cleaning your room.

    Movie marathons in your pyjamas, eating piles of popcorn.

    Making a den.

    Getting a text or e-mail off a friend you haven’t heard from for years.

    Hearing a song which transports you back to your childhood, or a song that reminds you of a certain happy time like a holiday or party.

    Going into a cinema when it’s light and coming out when it’s dark.

  37. When you go into something, or go somewhere, thinking you’re going to hate it, but in turn you come out with some of the greatest friends ever. It’s like a surprise party or work or class. You walk in expecting nothing, but eventually walk out with friends, people you think of as family, maybe even a husband and a couple of kids. The fun stuff. :)

  38. Scaring someone really — really good on Halloween that they scream and maybe even wet their pants.
    -Awesome

  39. When you take a moment, while you’re waiting at the bus stop or walking to your car first thing in the morning and the weather reminds you of a special place you’ve visited. It’s the chill in the air that reminds you of a crisp morning in Chambord, France or that special light that takes you back to that camping trip in Algonquin Park….you get to experience that place again…..Awesome!

  40. Waking up the morning after a day when you’ve had a horrendous hangover. You slept like a baby, your fuzzy head is gone, you don’t feel like your body is devoid of liquid and walking & talking is no longer an effort.

    Awesome!

  41. a teacher postponing your test the day before you were supposed to take it for some random reason. Bonus if the class convinces the teacher to move it back

    1. or even better, if the teacher says she will cut down the length of the final exam or just get rid it of all together depending on what the class wants. Happened to me last Friday. She ended up making it extra credit. extra credit I do not need. :)

  43. whispering: holding a steady conversation during meetings, classes, movies, and other times when talking is a faux pas

  44. I fear that poor Freddo, the uber-commenter, who graciously offered to respond to these comments has bit more than he can chew! Though he valiantly addressed a large chunk of the comments last night before bed. It will be a full-time job to address the rest of them… good luck, bro! Neil – in addition to earning ineligibility, this poor guy deserves a free copy of your book!

    My contest submission:

    Nutella! Now this wonder-product is truly awesome – but you may be saving this for #1. I have had a life-long love affair with this creamy, delicious, chocolaty, hazelnut spread. It’s versality is awe-inspiring… Nutella is delicious on bread (and all it’s wonderous varieties – white, wheat, baguette, rye, toast, etc), on croissants, on crackers, inside crepes, on waffles, on pancakes, on french toast, in a wrap/tortilla, in ferrero-rocher chocolates, in a hotdog bun (sans hot dog of course), spread onto pound cake or brownies, as icing on a cupcake, spread onto a cookie, or in a mini-pizzelle sandwich, on slices of apple or banana, or stuffed into a pita. In a pinch, when I’m out of bread or any of the above, a spoon or a finger works just fine as a nutella-delivery tool. A jar of this miracle substance will barely last a day in my household and I hear the jar calling my name as I walk the jam/jelly/peanut-butter aisle in the super-market – it can’t hide from me no matter where they have banished it – top row or bottom row, tucked way in the back behind the dusty jars of marshallow fluff spread. I will find it anywhere….

    This perfect-food even has it’s own official day (Feb. 5), it’s own website, twitter feed, recipe book and fan club.

    And you have to admire the moxy of the marketing execs who dare to adverstise this to moms as a “wholesome health food” since they can spread it on whole wheat toast and get their kids to eat breakfast! Ha! (11g of fat per tiny serving!)

    But we don’t need it to be nutritious to eat it and love it… oh no, we just savor every delicious, scrumptious, amazingly sweet and creamy, chocolaty mouthful because it’s….
    AWESOME!

    (PS – I am not a paid nutella employee – just a devoted fan!)

    1. Ladies and Gentleman? The official sister for Freddo!

      The biggest nutella fan I know! :)

  47. Sunroofs. The weather is getting warmer, the sun is shining down, and you’ve hopped into your friend’s car for a drive around town. All of a sudden, they push that magic button and the car is filled with glorious, glorious sunshine! Awesome!

  49. hitting the snooze button….waking up really late for work, rushing to get ready, rushing to get out the door but then having not traffic at all and still making it in to work on time!

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