“Bridget, what are you wearing?” said Carl Lamoureux, a fellow senior friend of mine. Well, Carl, thanks for asking. From periods one to three, I wore a paper hat I received from one of my favorite establishments—Buffalo Wild Wings. When people, such as Carl, asked why I was wearing such a thing on a rainy late start day, I replied it’s “Wing Nut Wednesday!” or the classic “I lost a bet.” However, the three period time span was all it took for me to want to crawl under a rock.

“I just don’t get it,” Lucy Crofton said as we waited outside of our English class. Neither did my teacher, who lost her train of thought so many times while teaching, she eventually broke down and had to ask what was with the crown. Wing Nut Wednesday wasn’t a good enough response, and the discussion persisted. Even in math class, my teacher called on me saying, “Bridget knows the answer because it’s Wing Nut Wednesday.” I laughed and answered, but still, it was a lot of attention for a paper hat.

Students were just as perplexed as my teachers. I am fairly positive every single person I passed in the hallway felt the need to read my crown. It didn’t seem to matter if they were by themselves, walking with friends, or even in mid-conversation; they found the time to look at me in confusion or– as weird as it sounds –in disgust. That was how it felt, as if, because I had worn something unusual to school, I was disgusting. I actually went home and took a shower and a bath and another shower. I felt really gross even though some of my friends I passed in the halls asked me why I was so cute. And all I could say is that it’s not easy, my friends. Not easy.