Journal+2-Sneeze

I stepped into the gym of Penn State York on Saturday, and I was astounded at what I saw. There were so many projects, and so many of them seemed to be much better than mine. All the boards were so extravagant, and my board was so plain. Everyone here had clearly spent a lot of time, in addition to their experimentation, to make their boards as presentable as possible. I, on the other hand, had just made some last minute changes the night before, and the night before that, to the most pathetic display board ever to be made. I had made significant improvement on my board, but it was still no match for the other boards at the Science Fair. I knew, that with my uninteresting board, and my lack of preparation for my interview with the judges, I was going to be completely humiliated on Monday at the competition.

Sunday night, I didn't sleep at all. I kept thinking about the competition, and constantly thinking I had forgotten to set up something in the gym on Saturday, that I had forgotten some important piece of paperwork. Monday morning, I had Honors English, always a fun class, and then gym. In gym class, all of my worries for the Science Fair were forgotten, and I enjoyed playing floor hockey. Then, when it was time to leave for the science fair, and I put on my nice shirt, tie, pants, and shoes, I realized just how sweaty I was. To think I had just taken a shower that morning, only to sweat in gym class and stink before the judges.

I got to Penn State University, and I had to wait for hours in the cafeteria. The suspense was killing me. I just wanted to get the whole thing over with, and maybe someday I could laugh at how much I screwed up. I was sure I would terrible with my interview, but I kept my hopes up and practiced with my fellow classmates. Finally, when it was time to go, my heart skipped a beat as a judge decided to be ever so kind and judge me first. I was shocked at being judged so early, but I relaxed, knowing it would be soon over. To my surprise, I gave the presentation of my information and experimentation without stuttering, and my judge was giving me hints I was doing very well. He even said at the end, "I had a lot of questions for you, but your presentation answered most of them." Later that night, I found out that I had won a first place award, and would compete the next day for Grand Championship.