A/N: This is the first installment of my rant series. I wrote this immediately after it happened, just so you know. That being said, I was irritated enough to make crappy word choice, grammar mistakes, etc. This was meant only to let off steam in the beginning, but my Creative Writing teacher took it as my "Creative Non-Fiction" assignment. I got an A, amazingly. Still, I was mad at the time, so bear with me.

As for those who know me: Yes, I am posting! It's shocking, I know.

The Computer Lab

The woman with the overly cheerful face walked into the computer lab. I couldn’t quite tell if that creepy look was because she didn’t want to watch my teacher’s class for him, or if she was actually enjoying her slow, utterly painful patrol of the little room. I shifted in my chair, suddenly noticing how hot all those computers are making the room. Perhaps I should go outside to escape. First, though, I need to exit my forum that I had been updating.

“Is that homework?” A voice chirped behind me. Too late. I thought, slowly looking up at the woman.

“No.” I replied bluntly. Hey, if she’s going to make me close it anyway, I may as well be honest about it. She stiffened slightly, but the overly cheerful look remained. After all, I was busted anyway.

“Shut it off, then.” She clipped, and walked away, telling the creepy boy behind me to shut off his online game of bubbles (sorry, it’s “sort of” a game). A minute later, I decided to play Spider Solitaire, an offline, non-wagering card game. But soon enough, our lady told me to shut it off. I sighed heavily and rolled my eyes. Good Lord, what does she expect me to do?

“I’m sorry, but solitaire counts. Shut it off.” Said our supervising official. I knew by that irritating look in her eye that, no, she was not sorry at all. She was not at all remorseful for bringing me to the brink of death by boredom. I was not allowed to do anything online that wasn’t homework, and I wasn’t allowed to play solitaire. What was I to do? For Pete’s sake, this is an invitation to cause trouble!

It must be admitted that the rules of the computer lab are placed there for a reason. Not many good reasons are in the reason hat, but they’re reasons all the same. However, they are also broken for good reasons. Playing solitaire, for instance, is a pastime I so enjoy. When I have finished all my other work and have nothing else to do other than play a game (already on the computer), I do. However, this right has been cruelly stripped from me. Why? Because Computer Lab Rule Number 7 clearly states: “No downloading or playing games on the computers.”

Ah, what have I been reduced to? Surely there must be SOMETHING to do besides gnaw my own arm off from boredom! With no actual work to complete, I found nothing to do other than to type the alphabet over and over. Even if that didn’t break any rules, I still watched the hawk warily, half expecting her to stride over and blithely inform me that

“Computer Lab Rule Number 4,838,468,465,168 clearly states: No doing anything to occupy yourself when you have no work.”

But, to my endless relief, she simply continued to patrol the perimeter of the room, commenting to one boy that the Paint program was highly entertaining to mess around with. Is it? No. Not even a little. But then, neither is repeatedly typing the alphabet. But I digress. The point is that I was insanely bored, and was just as insanely thankful when my real teacher returned, allowing our temporary prison guard to leave. I lifted my head to the heavens, thanking the Lord. Truly, I had never been so happy to see my teacher.

But, of course, do not misunderstand, dearest reader. I mean no offense to our temporary supervisor. Insulting those who watch us in school must be going against some school rule. I imagine that Student Handbook Amendment 480 clearly states something along the lines of “Insulting faculty is punishable by death.” It’s right up there with historical Amendment 1’s

“Straps must be two inches wide”, and Amendment 200’s

“Students who die on campus MUST complete the school day to achieve the seat time required by state law. Death is no excuse. Deceased students will be kept in the corpse closet in the front office until no sooner than 2pm.”

Ah, school. I just cannot guess why so many kids drop out…