The carnival was coming to town and I really wanted to go. Not only did I want to go just to hangout, I was looking for something to do in my boring town. Carnivals or concerts are the only things I have to look forward to. We don't have many things for teenagers to enjoy and there are more bars and casinos than anything else. The one thing I have is hanging out with my friends or doing nothing. I've always felt bored even when I am not supposed to and I do not know how to escape the recurring feeling of boredom. 

    I wasn't going to go to the carnival the night I took the picture because I really did not feel like it after a horrendously long day and had planned to go the next day. But, my mom had asked me to go to keep an eye out for my sister who needed a ride to go. Finding out I was going to have to go out and socialize. I decided to call one of my closest friends I’ll call “Rj.” I was hoping she would be free to come hangout with me because I did not want to look like a loser at the carnival by myself. Luckily she was free and I went to pick her up with my sister and her friend.

    Once we arrived at the carnival, the sun started to set and that's when I got happy. Before, I was unmotivated and negative, but once I got out of my car, those negative feelings went away. I felt relieved I was not going to be bored alone in my room on another Friday night. 

    We walked over to the ticket booth to buy our overpriced bracelets and immediately got onto rides. The hours started going by quickly and soon enough it was getting pretty late. My mom had called me and told me to come home so I went on the lookout for my sister. Once I found her she was talking about a fight that was supposed to happen, which made me want to leave even more. So, we started walking to my car. I had noticed yelling and people observing what looked to be a fight so I left before things escalated. 

    After I had dropped my friend off, my sister complained she was hungry, so before we went home, I got her Mcdonalds. There is something so depressing about being inside of a Mcdonalds because everything just seems fake and made with no love. I believe it is a cage of nothingness.

    Once we got home, it was late and one of my other friends had asked to hang-out the next day. I said yes hesitant because I know how some kids are and didn't want to be involved in anything dramatic. They said it would be okay because I would be with them and we were going to go shopping before the carnival. After that conversation I saw a news article where a carnival worker had been beat up.

    The following day they picked me up and we went to my favorite store “Barjons.” It is a bookstore that sells rocks, incense, spiritual, philosophy and psychology books. I bought a couple of new rocks and crystals because for some reason I am obsessed with cool rocks. Shopping there always comforts me because of the relaxing vibe it throws off so naturally after that I was calm enough to go to the carnival. 

    We got to the carnival and stood in line for tickets. When we got our tickets, I was in a pretty good mood, so we decided to start going on rides.

    We rode and talked to some people. We talked to friends from school who happened to be there as well as family. Me and my friend are a part of a really big family. So, it's not hard to go somewhere and be spotted by a distant family member. I have to be on my best behavior everywhere I go because a distant Auntie can come up to me and they will tell my grandma if I was getting in trouble, but It keeps me in check so I don't mind. 

    After an hour, the carnival got full and it felt like everyone I knew seemed to be there and most of them were from my school. I got bored and wanted to leave, but my friend couldn’t leave because they had to watch their younger cousin. I had my cousin come pick me up because I was on the brink of a panic attack. Thankfully he got there just in time and I left. We went to get food and then we went back to his house for the rest of the night. We watched cartoons and played with his dogs. After a while it got dark and it was almost eleven when I got on my phone and saw that there had been a shooting at the carnival. 

    The news made me sad because it ruins one of the only things I have to look forward to. It was also at a place where people have their kids and it ruins it for them as well. After the news, I was happy I left when I had a bad feeling something was going to happen. It reminds me to trust my instincts when I get a negative feeling so I am safe. It’s not fair people ruin what's supposed to be a fun place. It’s not a good look on a place where guns are so easily accessible to literal children. I believe it is a problem we as a country need to address and it should not be a political matter. It is not fair that one person is able to destroy a community because a purchasing system did not work. This should make us realize how big this problem is and we need to start thinking of ways to fix it.