I know you're going to doubt me, but I know exactly who I am, and to be honest it shouldn't be hard to believe. I've been alive for 18, nearly 19 years now. And if I'm going to continue to be honest, I think you have a problem if you're unsure of who you are and you're my age or older.

My problem, obviously, isn't that I'm not aware of who I am, because I've known that for the past year or so perfectly well. My problem lies in the fact that I am a people pleaser, and I have been since as long as I can remember. I've always held my tongue in to spare someone's feelings. I've always refrained from pointing out when someone was wrong to avoid embarrassing them or starting an argument. And I've always created different versions of myself around specific people hoping to be widely liked. Wanna know where it got me? Throughout high school I was averagely popular, knew tons of kids from various clique groups, but I often times spend my nights sitting on the couch, watching baseball with my dad. Or football, or basketball depending on the season of course; our off seasons were spent watching old westerns and anything with Clint Eastwood. Getting back on topic, I learned from my 4 years of having my best friend be my dad, that being changing who you are to be liked by as many people as you can gets you nowhere.

So, as a credible source who has 'been there and done that,' I can tell you the importance of just being yourself. And it's hard, I know. Sometimes I still find myself trying to hide certain aspects of myself in hopes of not being cast aside by certain people. But if they're people worth knowing, they're going to love and accept me either way, right? So here are the facts:

I'm currently on academic probation. Maybe it was because I worked until 3am a few nights a week and had 830 class. Maybe it was because I piled on athletic training, calculus, and chemistry classes for my first semester of college. Or maybe it was because I take for granted the fact that I'm naturally kinda smart and use that as a reason to never study.

I use to smoke weed. A decent amount of it too. And while I don't anymore, and always graciously decline if ever offered, it doesn't change the fact that I once did.

I drink alcohol. I've had nights where I honestly can't remember how I got back to my room, and where I drunkenly made out with people and nearly had sex with them. But no, I don't consider myself someone who parties frequently or who's a skank.

If you asked me how many people I've made out with, it might take me a little time to count them. That doesn't necessarily mean it's a situation like,"Well this night I was drunk so it could have been 4 or 7," or "I lost track after 34," but the fact is it's more than just a couple and there are some nights that may have been a little hazy.

I've shoplifted before. I come from a single parent family, and before my mom started paying child support, money was incredibly tight. So if I saw something I wanted or needed and knew my dad wouldn't be able to pay for it, i'd take it if it fit into my purse.

I invite you all to judge me now. To act like you know me because you now know some of the worse facts about me you can find.