As if the end of the summer hadn't already been rough enough, it's now gotten rougher. Some of you may know about Matt West being killed at the end of July. I didn't know him (though several of my friends did), but it really got to me. Partially 'cause I know the kid who was driving, partially 'cause of how it happened, partially 'cause of the response from the general adult population. Then, not even a month later, Kayla Radack, another senior at Riverside was killed in a wreck. A lot of my friends knew her.

This weekend, Bailey Layton, who graduated from my school year before last died. He was 19. I can't say that I ever talked to him, but I certainly saw him plenty in the halls and parking lot and such. He always seemed like a really decent guy, or at least compared to everyone else at my school. Someone online made a comment today about how all the stupid guys die young. That really upset me. Not that they said it, 'cause they didn't know. But how often do I say that same thing? Or joke about controlling the death rate (and thus overpopulation) by killing off all the dumb people? Man, I'm such an 'effin jerk!

And I guess the reason I've been so upset about all these people, even though I didn't really know any of them, is 'cause my class is the first class at least since we started high school and I think even before then to make it even this far without losing someone. We'll certainly be the first class that was at Jordan when we got there to graduate without losing someone. But I just have this gut feeling, knowing the kids in my class, that we won't make it. And that scares me more than anything.
- thoughts provided by Katey Orr @ 5:56 PM