My name is Anne. I am halfway through my first year in high school. I go to an all-girls school that is 11 miles away from my town. I like to do things a little differently. For example, my friend Tori's birthday was in December. I decided to give her a pineapple.
It was the day before winter break started. I walked into my English class. Tori sat in the front row and I thought it would be the perfect place to give her the present, so I took the pineapple out from behind my back and set it on her desk saying, "Tori, I present to you a pineapple!" She was really surprised and burst out laughing. My teacher was also laughing.
Tori is one my best friends. She's very polite. For example, after I gave her the pineapple, our teacher showed us the film Romeo and Juliet, the 1995 version with Leonardo DiCaprio and Claire Danes, which I think is very strange. Anyway, Tori asked Frenchy, who was sitting next to her: "Is my pineapple in your way?"
I bet you are wondering why I would give my friend a pineapple as a present instead of going with, say, earrings or a bracelet. Well, the first time Tori and I met we found out that we were both obsessed with the same television show, Psych, which features a pineapple in every episode. Also, we both loved Bones, the Harry Potter series, Florence and the Machine and sports -- I'm on the basketball team and Tori plays field hockey and is a pole-vaulter. In addition, we wear the same outfit every day. Actually, that would be our uniforms, so I guess it doesn't count. In any case, we became best friends, so when it was her birthday I wanted to give her something to remind her of what brought us together.
The pineapple is part of my approach to life. I just do silly things, all the time. The other day my mom asked me to make dinner, so I whipped up a pizza from scratch; this of course, required that I paint on a curly Italian mustache to set the mood. For the next 10 minutes I walked around the house saying, "It's me, Mario" in an Italian accent. My mother was afraid I had used a Sharpie; when she found out it was only eyeliner, she let me keep it on. I just get an impulse, then the next thing you know I'm wearing a mustache or walking into second period with a ripe pineapple in one hand and my books in the other. I'm lucky to have found friends who think this is funny, instead of weird.
What's the funniest gift you ever gave someone? Have you found a group of high school friends who make you feel like you can really be yourself?