Another day in Tuscaloosa where I go to school. My name is Tammy and I go to University of Alabama. I have 4 family members living in Florida. I try to visit them as often as I can. Every year during Christmas time, we all go to the Bahamas for a Christmas with the whole family. It was mid November and I literally couldn’t wait for break.  It’s fun being in college but I was really missing my family. My dad Pete Smith calls every day to check in on me. His wife and my mom Julia live in Miami about 10 minutes from the beach. Bryce, my older brother lives in an apartment beachside and constantly goes surfing. Lucky! My older sis Kim lives in Orlando. She is a nurse and had to be close to work. Pete is a mailman, Julia is retired from being a lawyer and is trying to keep everyone in the family away from being a lawyer. She says it is miserable job that pays well. Bryce is a sports agent and is constantly traveling. I am stuck here in Alabama for another month! Time just isn’t flying by like usual. I was really looking forward to hanging out with Kim. Growing up, we didn’t really get to and that much. She always had something to do and when she was free, she was so tired that she took a long nap. Now that she is a nurse, she looks forward to family time. Bryce is seeing somebody right now. She is really nice! He seems to like her a lot and it looks like a good match.

Today, I got my math test back. It counts for half of my grade. And I got a 94. It felt awesome to see the teacher congratulate me with the grade I got. She said that it was the highest score in the whole class. When my parents found out they were so happy. It was a good way to go into Christmas vacation. I only had 2 more weeks of school before break. Bryce was going to spend an early Christmas with Sarah(his girlfriend). Kim said that she would get off of work on the 23rd and leave that night. I was so excited to see everybody. Pete and Julia would go down on the 18th to get everything set up and ready. Julia is a good cook, so she makes all of the food and makes the best hot chocolate you will ever taste. Pete cut down the tree and bought all of the decorations. He waits for everyone to get there so that we all can decorate the tree together. In my opinion that is probably the best family time that you could ever ask for. Like usual we will have our annual surfing contest. Usually it is Bryce and Pete in the finals. Kim and I don’t have enough time to surf. She works everyday and I go to school. Bryce some how finds time in between work. Pete spends almost every afternoon on the waves. Lucky! I’m just here in Alabama going to school and hanging out with friends, watching movies over the weekend. When I grew up in Florida, our house was a very popular spot to hangout. We sometimes got kids that we didn’t even know hang out in our lawn. I shared a room with Kim until I was 10, then it got old. Every once and a while i’ll go see a football game. Our team is ranked 5th in the country. I have an english class with Blake Sims, the quarterback for the football team. I did track in high school, but wasn’t good enough to compete in college. I try to run every morning before I go to class, but i’m usually really tired and don’t want to do it. My dad Pete tries to encourage me to get out there every morning or else he says that i’ll end up fat like him. The funny thing is that he is ripped!

With only one week left until break, the teachers are really taking it easy on us. I haven’t had homework in the past 2 days. I finally have a break! All we do is learn about the next topic. Not even quizzes. Christmas is coming!

It was December 19th and it was the last day of school before break. People were electric throughout campus. Nobody had ever been excited to to go to school. Today was gonna be great I had thought! I was mid way through my second class and it felt like i’ve been there for 10 hours! Lunch time came and I was exhausted! The campus went from alive to dead in just the span of 4 hours. It’s like the teachers never wanted us to leave.
“Is it just me or is this day taking forever to end?” said my friend Kelsie.
I responded in a exhausted tone, “Ikr.” What is the deal! I still had 3 more classes and only 2 felt like forever! OMG! Introduction to Education went by fairly quick but still felt long. As I walked into math class, the teacher didn’t have anything written on the board. Usually she has our plan for the day, but today she didnt? My teacher stepped on the pedestal and announced to the class,
“You have absolutely nothing else left to do! You have completed all the is required of the unit. Congratulations, you are free to go!” As the class screamed with excitement we thanked Ms. Brute and headed off. I raced to my dorm and packed my stuff. I called my parents to say I would be home early. They said that I could crash at their house for a day or so before I come to the Bahamas. I was stoked! I got on the next flight to Miami and was on my way. Bryce picked me up from the airport and drove my to Pete and Julia’s. He had to wrap up a few things with his clients and he would fly out. I booked the same flight as him so that I would have company on the plane. Pete and Julia left a key underneath the porch mat. I walked in and boom! The house looked totally different.
“Dad had told me he did some renovations, but I didn’t expect this!”  I said with joy.  As I walk into the master bedroom, I see the bed! “When did they get a Sleep Number?” I said with a surprised tone. It was getting close to sunset and I wanted to get some practice before we have our surf contest. While surfing on the most beautiful day ever, I realized how much I appreciate my life. As it got dark, I headed in. Cooked up some tacos and watched netflix. Sleeping on the Sleep Number was unbelievable. It is most definitely the most comfortable bed in the world. See the sunrise out the window was remarkable. I quickly cooked up some eggs and bacon and packed for the Bahamas.

Bryce was gonna pick me up at 11:30. Bryce drove into the driveway and opened up the door for me in a pised off mood. I asked, “What’s wrong?”
He responded, “I broke up with Trudy.” OMG!
“What happen?” I asked.
“She was being very selfish and demanding the past few days, then I come to find out that she blocked me on her phone!” he responded mad.
I replied in a heartfelt way, “It’s ok. She wasn’t the one for you. There is somebody out there perfect for you.”
“Ya, you’re probably right.” he replied.
We drove to the airport and checked our bags. As we rode down the escalator, I thought how cool is my life. I go on a trip to the Bahamas every year!
Bryce still mad about his break up took out his anger on the security. They asked him to take off his shoes and he said, “Ow ya, is there anything else you need me to take off? Or why don’t you just block my contact on your phone.” He’s overreacting, I told him to shape up before we get on the plane because you never want to get on the flight attendants bad side. Luckily, he shaped up and had a good attitude for the rest of the flight. We landed at about 1:00 there time. Bryce rented a cool Jeep. We drove to the vacation home and got into the Christmas speerate. Mom had already made lemon cakes for us. Dad was busy setting up the tree. I took one look out the window and I knew that I was in paradise.
I told mom, “I didn’t know that you guys made those kind of renovations to the home. It looks awesome!”
“Thanks sweetie. We just wanted to upgrade to the latest and greatest.” she said with a happy tone.
“More like the upcoming and greatest.” I replied.
“So have you heard any news from Kim yet?” said mom.
“No, not yet.” Bryce replied.
I unpacked my bags and sent a quick tweet. When I came back into the living room
Mom asked, “So where’s Trudy?”
“We broke up.” Bryce replied in a sad tone.
“Aw, it’s ok sweetie, she wasn’t the one for you.” Mom replied in a sympathetic way. That night Kim called saying the she was packing and will be there the next day.
It was December 23rd and I could already feel Christmas inching closer! The next day, Kim said that her flight was at 9:00. I woke up around 8:00 and decided to get some wave time. Just to see Bryce out there. Unbelievable, after a long day of traveling and unpacking he still wakes up at 5:00! Going out there when he already was just look cowardly. I sucked it up and was willing to take my chances tomorrow. Kim came it at about 11:00 and got a ride from Dad. We welcomed her with big hugs when she walked through the door. That night, we sat on the deck and watched the waves crash. It was a beautiful scene. I wish that I could live here forever. That night I slept like a baby. We all woke up at about 7:00. We poured some coffee and opened up presents. Bryce got Pete and Julia a Keurig. Tammy got Kim a pair of Uggs. Pete and Julia got Tammy a electric scooter for easy travel around campus.

Later that day, we had the surfing contest. We did it one by one. Each person had 10 minutes. Whoever had the lowest score doesn’t move forward. To be fair we have Kim judge. She doesn’t surf because she is busy with work. Pete was up first. He got a total of 36. Next up was Julia. She isn’t as experienced as us. She got a total of 25. Bryce killed it with a total of 47. And I was the last one. All I had to do was beat 25. My first wave scored a 7, my second wave got a 9. I was at 16 with 6 minutes left. My next two waves each got a 8. I was at 32 with 2 minutes left. A 5 or higher get me in second behind Bryce.  Last wave was a big one. I got a 9 on the last wave. I pulled in front of dad by 5. Bryce had 47, I had 41, and dad had a 36. Mom was out with a 25. The next round went by quick. Dad wiped out 2 times and got a 21. Bryce being the great surfer he is nailed 3 straight 9’s. He ended up with a 42. My turn, I was so nervous. If I get 21 or more, then i’m up against Bryce.  First wave scored a 6. Next two rides got me up to a 21. With 3 minutes left, I was tied with my dad. I only looked for the perfect wave. I saw a beauty on the horizon. I picked it up and had my best ride of the day. I scored a perfect 10. It was me and Bryce. He was first. He got a 49. Probably the best of the day. I rode out into the water. Feeling good, my first 3 waves were a 9. My next one was a 8. I was at 35 with 4 minutes left. I picked up a quick wave for 7 and rode my last wave with some style. Picking up a solid 9. The final score was 51-49 me. Bryce congratulated me and headed back to dry off.

I left on the 26th to head back to campus. I rode my scooter from the airport to campus. Mid way there I stopped at a light. Along comes a drunk driver swerving off his path. Rams into me at 75mph. I was instantly dead. My family got the call from the Tallahassee police department. They rushed up there and saw there baby girl dead. The drunk driver was thrown in jail for 30 years. Tammy’s family mourned in her death for months. They buried the body near a old church that they used to go to. Tragedy struck the school and the her hometown. Tammy was never forgotten! Nobody has been the same since. Bryce was off his game for a few months dropping clients, Kim was always sad and never happy at work which docked her pay, and Pete and Julia made enemies with other homeowners in their HOA.