My File

It turns out I'm not the first in my family to feel the need to document everything.

My dad is organizing his various papers before we move. I had the privilege today of looking through the 'CLARA FILE'.

It's gorgeous.

Some highlights:

• A comment from Ms. Yi, my third grade teacher, that I "think fast, write slow"
  
• A sheet of paper that only says "CLARA" on it, landscape style, in letters not big enough to make it look not-awkward.
• My fifth grade class photo, in which I look like Napoleon Dynamite. That's the best way to describe it.
• A note, dated in my father's hand (I feel like Hamlet) 2005, that reads "Clara went to go live somewhere else because she hates all of you." It is on a torn sheet of blue lined paper and written in pencil. I believe that was the night I tried to sleep in the closet. I never had the balls to actually run away.
• A short piece my dad wrote himself describing my RBI in an 8th grade softball game, May 3, 2005. Interestingly, this was also the day Tristan asked me out (WHOA BLAST FROM THE PAST) over IM. I only remember this because my dad came upstairs to talk about softball and I was completely distracted.
• 8 copies of my 7th grade SAT scores.
• A tuition record of Presbyterian Meeting House Preschool. No joke.

So clearly this was entertaining to read through.

Real conversation I just heard downstairs-

Dad: (about switzerland) Clara can't drive there, because the age is 18, but she can drink. You can drink at 14, buy at 16, hard liquor at 18

Linda: Is the water that bad over there?

If that were the reason behind the drinking laws in Switzerland I would laugh pretty hard. I can just see the lawmakers saying "Hm, our water supply is questionable. We should probably just let the kids drink beer instead."

Love always,
Clara