<p>This day seemed like it would never come, a new start and home, and a new place to achieve what I hope to be greatness. College is something I have always looked forward to, and something that I have witnessed my sister go through. Looking up to her and her friends since I can remember, I have always dreamed of being in her shoes, living on my own and leaving everything behind. A chance for me to flourish into my own, and hopefully a chance for me to have an opportunity to better myself so in turn I can better a people. In this life we live there is only so much we can do with our time here. I have played sports, I have made and lost friends, and I have been involved in many things that I like to think have helped define myself from others, and in turn have given this body of mine a personality and spirit. While many people from my school will probably write of how much rowing a boat helped create who they are, I believe other things, bigger things have helped shape me. My environment from a young age, attending school for the gifted since 2nd grade, while maintaining an ungifted group of friends is something that has made me stronger and more tolerant. Through attending a school that holds all sorts of different people, I have learned who I really am. A person who enjoys creativity and happiness, and meeting new people who may not be exactly like me. A school for the gifted, such an elitist title, where I became tolerant of people who hold different beliefs then me, whether that be appearance or politics. I like to think that thanks to my surrounds at this school I have in essence become a better person due to being exposed to things that my friends at the local high school could never dream about. Our surroundings are in actuality all we have as humans. We live in a place, and due to certain circumstances become the name on our birth certificate. Being in a place that holds very conservative beliefs, a place where most students have never experienced music aside from Lil Wayne, I have always been different in one way or another. Although I am popular, I always tend to go against the grain and define myself through, well myself. I want people to know who I am, not the person I wish I was, and I hope that through my time in Sarasota I have established my image in a manner in which I would be proud. Film, music, literature, happiness, sports, goofiness, friends, hardship, and intelligence are among many words which I would say have helped create this image. As I leave you, you will probably say that I have ranted or rambled, but in all truthfulness, that is who I, Daniel Carter, am. So if you leave this paper thinking that I am boring, and that I am ordinary, then you have not seen the image that I speak of. You have not seen me make an effort to bring happiness to those who are considered losers while my friends tease them in the hallways. If you feel as if I am not a good fit for your school, then more power to you, I will not be defined by the label that my school holds, but the accomplishments I will bring while attending this school.</p>