Favorite... Underrated (Semi-Famous) Person

So I'm stealing one from MasterTheory. (Sorry?)
Mine:
Mildred Taylor
Status: Author of some of the best books ever (i.e. The Land, Roll of Thunder Hear My Cry)
What's yours?

Frustrated

This week has been very frustrating. For multiple reasons. Including people. And mendacity. Heavens above, I feel like Brick, Betram Pincus, and George Bailey all meshed into one. I hate this society that I'm in, this world that is just so...bound. I could very easily be a hermit, someone who avoids or just doesn't make contact with other people. Why do people have to be so disappointing? (I believe MasterTheory blogged about this...)
But anyway I saw The Spirit and I really liked it. It's a neo-noir and films noir are my favorite, neo or regular. I have also discovered that Gabriel Macht is lethal when he speaks French.
Christmas was fun. We did Meals on Wheels Christmas morning which is an organization that delivers meals to people in Detroit who are home-bound, mainly elderly people. It was an interesting experience and just reiterates the fact that I'm lucky to live in the place I do.
Happy Holidays and have a Happy New Year.

Thanks...

...to Andrea G. for the new layout. I love it. And I think it's super cool that she knows how to do stuff like this. Thanks a bunch!

(p.s. When did you want to have an Office marathon??)

Hmm...

I'm tired and I don't want to go to swim practice. But I skipped yesterday so I figure I should go today. It's been a couple of weeks since I blogged and just a few minutes ago I was reading my friend Samantha's blog. She had this link off to the side that was entitled "seven exciting posts" or something along those lines. So I was reading through all of them and there was this one post that really got me thinking. On it, she had posted this question:
If you were not born or raised into the religion you grew up with, would you still be a member of that church?
The answer to that question would probably be: no. There are only about (give or take a few thousand) twelve million Mormons worldwide. That's not even one-tenth of one percent of the world's population. Besides, I have already decided that if I wasn't Mormon, I would probably be agnostic. Or Amish. That would definitely be up there on my list. [Atheists just seem so extreme to me (I don't know why but that's just my mental picture).] However, in growing up Mormon I have come to appreciate my religion. Many people would say that my religion's standards are too restricting; they don't let you have fun or whatever. But this is the way I see it: are the things that my church advises us not to do really "fun" or is that the world's (or even the media's) definition of fun? Do you have to participate in certain activities to enjoy life to the fullest or be accepted? I'm pretty sure I'm not missing out on much by not drinking alcohol, smoking, or doing drugs. In living the standards of my church (e.g. dressing modestly, following the Word of Wisdom, being charitable, etc.) it has helped me to become a better person. I'm not saying that I'm this great person who's practically perfect because I absolutely do not think that at all. But in being a member of my church, I think it's just really opened my eyes to things that I wouldn't have seen or noticed otherwise. For example, many people believe that the Earth was created by the Big Bang. Well I'm not going to lie, I don't know if there was some massive explosion and our Earth was created but one thing I do know is that our world just seems too complicated, too convenient, to have just been an accident. (Just in case you didn't know, I don't really believe in "accidents" unless it's like bumping into someone in the hall.)
Overall, I'm grateful for my religion and the role it plays in my life. A lot of people argue that your religion has nothing to do with the person you are. I respectfully disagree.

Probably the Best Feeling Ever...

...is when you're on JV quiz bowl and you try out for Varsity quiz bowl and you actually make it on the starting line up for the B team. Yes, I am officially on varsity quiz bowl. For one tournament. But hey, I made it. YES!
Just thought I'd share a moment of pure ecstasy with my limited readers. :)

Weight of a Polar Bear

It was a brisk autumn day. It wasn’t warm outside but neither was it frigid. The trees had lost their leaves and they crunched softly beneath our feet as we walked on the asphalt. There was the slightest breeze blowing so softly it barely rustled my hair; it had no effect on the trees, they stood still and silent as if they were prematurely frozen. My brother Luke and I were walking towards Twelve Oaks Mall to buy my mother a Christmas present. We were both wearing hoodies, our hands were shoved deep into the middle pocket to ward our fingers off from the cold. Needless to say, we were unsuccessful. We chatted back and forth about possible ideas for presents. I suggested we get her something from Yankee Candle, and Luke went on to recommend we get her a scarf or some other winter accessory. We were entering the mall through the food court entrance. Luke said something entertaining and I laughed with him. As I finished my laughter someone approached me and tapped me on the shoulder.
I turned to see a teenage boy, as was obvious from the pink polo he wore with no jacket, his baseball hat, and facial features. He was unfamiliar and I did not recognize him. His face was impassive but there was a certain mischievous humor in his eyes.
“Excuse me,” he said politely, although I was sure he was laughing on the inside, “but do you know how much a polar bear weighs?”
This confrontation befuddled me; it was all so sudden and unexpected. My mind instantly began racing. What is this? Why is he asking me this? Is this a survey? Or is he sincerely asking me for some unknown reason? Why does he even want to know? Do I even know? Am I supposed to know? I don’t have a clue, maybe they weigh somewhere between five hundred to a thousand pounds? I honestly have no idea. But why is he asking me? I’ve never seen him before…right?
I am not very articulate, especially when put on the spot, so of course my answer came stumbling out of my shaking mouth.
“I don’t know,” I replied. My face was cherry red and in my shyness I had difficulty making eye contact with him.
“Just enough to break the ice,” he said, a taunting smile breaking forth onto his face.
He stuck out his hand and somewhere inside of my brain, a signal was supposed to travel down to my hand to tell it to shake his. But in my bewilderment, combined with busy nonsensical thoughts flooding my mind, my hand remained at my side as if it were dead. My only response was my face going even redder, if possible.
I must have looked clumsy and ignorant.
“No? That’s OK,” he said. And then he was gone. It all happened in a matter of only a minute or so but it was by far the longest minute-or-so of my life. I watched the receding figure of the boy and the redness slowly began to leave my face. I turned around to see Luke smiling, forcing the laughter back.
“What's so funny?” I asked.
“Emaline,” he said, “do you realize that guy just used a pick-up line on you?” “What? No he didn’t.” I denied even the thought. I was still somewhere between mortified and bewildered. Even as Luke said it to me, though, I realized that I had heard that line before.
“Yeah, he did,” he nodded to emphasize his point and the laughter escaped him then. I smiled in spite of myself and shook my head as Luke continued to enjoy himself at my expense.
We continued walking into the mall and the confrontation had perked my paranoia. I was alert; my head was constantly turning at every little thing. I was afraid of another incident. Of course I knew I was being ridiculous. I even told myself that as we walked through the mall window shopping and browsing. I expected something else to happen, a sort of follow-up. I knew, somewhere in the back of my mind, that nothing would happen. However, I was being afraid of practically nothing. It doesn't take much of anything to scare me.
Since that incident I have learned the appropriate response for any future inquiries as to the weight of a polar bear: male or female?


So this was a memoir I turned in for an English class. Just thought I'd share :)

A Month Later...

...and I blog again. I just finished reading Samantha's blog and now I feel like my blog is incredibly shallow. I mean, hers is deep and thought provoking. Mine you read in like five minutes and you feel like you just wasted five minutes of your time. Hmmm. Whatever.
So I'm extremely sore. I started this new swim team and it's a lot harder than the school swim team. I hurt all over. My lats hurt which are muscles I didn't even know could hurt.
Lately I've been having these really weird, arbitrary bursts of thought. For about two seconds, I think I still have my brace (Elle!) and that I'm moving around too freely. I feel like I should be wearing her although my one-year anniversary without her just passed this last month. These... sensations, I guess you would call them, are just happening frequently and it's so weird. I don't know what's wrong with me.
Recently I have realized how alone I am in this world. Then I remember something I once learned and I remember that I have at least one other person I can count on. But He's basically the only one I can really depend on. I had a sort of epiphany the other day, just out of thin air, and it suddenly hit me. You cannot rely on anyone. It's a truth known throughout the universe.
Yesterday was Thanksgiving. It was an ok Thanksgiving. I feel like the day should have had more of a thankful, warm and fuzzy ambiance surrounding it. But it didn't. It was just another day.
Another epiphany I have had recently: time just goes on. Technically speaking, I don't really believe in time. But it's the only way I can measure this world. Time just keeps going. Neither you or me can do anything to stop it, pause it; no one can find the rewind button because there is none. Your futures becomes your present and your present becomes your past all within a matter of a blink of an eye. It all just becomes a memory; a fuzzy picture filed somewhere in the back of your mind. Sometimes you can recall it but sometimes you just lose your memories. I guess that's why the present is so important.
I don't even know. Like my father says, "You just can't think too deeply about things. It makes life a lot more complicated than it should be." (or something along those lines...)

I have been Tagged.

I have been tagged by my cousin Deric. So here are my 7 random, unknown, and/or weird facts.

*

1) I am going through a purple phase where I love the color purple, and it's almost my favorite color. I feel 5 telling people I love the color purple.

2) Deep down, I love to paint my nails. I don't do it very often but secretly I love it when they are painted.

3) I like swimming. I like swim practice. Swimming 500's in practice are my favorite things.

4) I can recite the BBC version of Pride and Prejudice word for word although that's not unknown about me...

5) Someday I want to be either a ninja or Jason Bourne although I will most likely never become either one.

6) I love black and white films. Especially films noir. People may say that the acting is cheesy and the technology inferior but I love it. They were all made back when filming was a form of art, something to ponder over and consider as something more than cheap, shallow entertainment. Very few films today can be really considered as a form of art.

7) I have weaknesses for the classics/antiquity. Classic films, books, and art. I have issues with this modern literature/other media.

*

So here are my people to tag:

Zoopsia/Clayton http://mastertheory.blogspot.com/

Rielly (if he can) http://raleighriles.blogspot.com/

Samantha http://froomla.blogspot.com/

Amy http://bubblylikesoap.blogspot.com/

*

I can't think of any other people to invite that haven't been invited yet. So there it is.

Spontaneous

...combustion. But not really. So for some reason today, I spontaneously decided to do NaNoWriMo (national novel writing month). For all those who have never heard of this, allow me to shed some light on the subject. NaNoWriMo is during the month of November where you drop everything and write a novel (of 50,000+ words). Some people fail, some succeed. I was in the first of the two categories last year. I'm excited for November but I'm kind of afraid of it. I have not idea what I'm going to write about. I'm thinking right now that it will be a collection of short stories. Hmmm, I don't know. But I'm determined to succeed this year!

October!

And I forgot to mention that October is my all-time favorite month. I'm so happy it's just here. I love autumn!!! :)

AHHHHH!!!

Hi. So I'm blogging when I should probably be doing AP European history homework. But for some reason I'm not doing it. I think Samantha is a bad influence because this is something she would do. My mind is going crazy, I think I'm trying to memorize too many things. I have names like Ansel Adams, Hans Holbein III, Savonrola, St. Teresa, Bruegel, and Copler floating around in my head. Mixing Quiz bowl facts and AP Euro ones don't really mix. I have a tournament (for quiz bowl) on the eleventh and that is exciting. I'm so pumped for it. Then I have a swim meet tomorrow, next Thursday, and a tournament on the 25th. Bleh! I hate competing in swim. I'm also trying to write a short story for English (1000 words or less) and that's going ok. I'm trying very desperately to use the word tintinnabulation but so far it doesn't look like it's going to work. It's about this kid name Mika who finds this valuable...treasure and then gets bit by a rattlesnake. I think I'll leave the ending ambiguous and the last line will be something like, "and he lay alone in the unforgiving heat of the blinding sun," or along those lines... But anyway just thought I'd say hi.

Yo, Home Skillet

For some reason I feel like skillet should be pronounced as if one was speaking French, dropping the 'et' at the end and saying 'ayyyy.'


Anyway.


It seems as if my life became hectic overnight. I have seminary at six a.m. so I'm up at five. I go to school five days a week. I have swimming six days a week, two hours a day except for an extra hour on Saturday. Then on Tuesdays and Thursdays I have quiz bowl. On Wednesdays I baby-sit from 6:30-9:30. I tutor two children. Needless to say I am tired. Exhausted, mentally and physically, would probably not even explain the extent of it all. I read this description in a book once and I now know what the author means. He says, "[She] was tired but it wasn't the same kind of tired one gets from not sleeping. It was a weariness from somewhere deep inside the bones, consuming her whole body, constantly there." However he was describing an elderly lady so I'm not sure if that description has all the same meaning...but it feels like it does.


But on the up side of life I am in this contest against some of my cousins and other extended family members to see who can work out the most. It's more than that but I don't feel like telling you the extended version. All that needs to be said is I am going to win. Tyler may have Wii exercise or whatever but I swim 13 hours a week. 'Nuff said. ;) I am reading Cannery Row for English and it's pretty good. I like Steinbeck. I'm reading A collection of short stories by Edgar Allen Poe and that's really good. I'm also still reading King Lear. Yes I've been grinding through that book for a month now but I am determined to finish it...somehow.

The Flat Earth Society

No, I'm being serious. There is a society in this world that believes in a flat earth. It first started in England then later its headquarters were moved to Lancaster, California. Yes, in America... Anyway.

This theory first emerged with Samuel Rowbotham who, based off his interpretations of certain biblical passages, supported the idea of a flat earth. He then published a 16-page pamphlet, which later he expounded into a 430 page book, explaining his views. According to Rowbotham's system, which he called "Zetetic Astronomy", the earth is a flat disk centered at the North Pole and bounded along its southern edge by a wall of ice (Antarctica), with the sun and moon 3000 miles (4800 km) and the "cosmos" 3100 miles (5000 km) above earth. Rowbotham and his followers gained noticed by having debates with leading scientists of the day. After Rowbotham's death his followers established a magazine but after World War I, the movement saw a slow decline. In the U.S., this idea was first taken up by the Christian Catholic Apostolic Church. They established a theocratic community in Zion, Illinois and for a while the flat earth doctrine was taught in community schools. However once the leader of the Christian Catholic Apostolic Church, Wilbur Glenn Voliva, passed away the movement struggled well into the 1950's. In 1971 Charles K. Johnson became the new president of the Flat Earth Society. For the next three decades, the society grew in size by 3,000 new members. Johnson and his wife passed out fliers, brochures, maps, and other promotional materials to anyone who asked about it. Charles Johnson died in 2001, leaving the fate of the Flat Earth Society uncertain, though a BBC news interview with leading Flat Earth proponents revealed that attempts at re-establishment in different parts of the world are currently under way.

Oh and their explanation for gravity? The Flat Earth Society maintains that the earth is moving upward at a rate of 9.8 m/s^2.

Sunset and sunrise? The planetary bodies above the earth revolve around it, shrinking away until not able to be seen anymore and then reappearing.

How about the infamous sinking ship effect? The sinking ship effect is explained by a series of perspective laws, in which a ship on the horizon intersects with the vanishing point, causing it to appear as if it is sinking.

For more explanations concerning seasons and other such phenomenons, visit Wikipedia (the source of this post) and search "Flat Earth Society."

A Dream...

Last night I had a dream. Atypical that I actually remembered it? Yes. But it was such an odd/realistic dream that I feel like I should share it. So I had a dream that I met the Jonas Brothers in person. Then the next day (or month, I don't know how time works in Dreamland) they died on a plane crash. Everyone, but me, was devastated. People were crying, people looked really upset, and this hush just settled on the world. Almost as if it stopped spinning or something. I just kind of shrugged at the news. In my dream I thought to myself, "I'm so glad this didn't happen at school-no work would get done, the teachers wouldn't teach, and the students would be so upset." The next thing I know, the world is having Jonas Brothers concert marathons on t.v., they're recapping their lives as in documentaries if they were an icon from the Renaissance such as Michelangelo or Donatello. Then I woke up. I was confused at first and thinking to myself, "Wait, did the Jonas Brothers really die?" But then I remembered it was only a dream.

Bonjour auf meine casa...

Well for you information, my back went off. I mean, it is titanium so it makes sense. Whatever.
Anyway. I have really nothing else to talk about so I'm just going to do a movie review. First up:

THE DARK KNIGHT. This movie was, how you say, Amazing with a capital a. Christian Bale pulled in another spectacular performance and I really like Michael Caine. I'm a sucker for the Brits, what can I say? Heath Ledger's performance was one of the best I have ever seen in his ever convincing role of the Joker. The cinematography was practically perfect, the lightning just great! However I will say Maggie Gyllenhall's performance wasn't all that memorable-probably equal to that of Katie Holmes'. Other than the cinema side of it, the movie was all around good. Some people complain because it's too long, almost three hours I'll never get back of my life. One comeback: Never base a movie off of its length for it makes no sense. Besides it got a 94% on Rotten Tomatoes which is enough said in itself.

MAMMA MIA. So this movie was rated PG-13 for 'some innuendo.' Yeah, ok, they went a little overboard with the innuendo. Enough is enough. The music was great-I personally thought it did ABBA justice. I was actually surprised at how good the music/choreography was considering no one knew Meryl Streep, Pierce Brosnan, or Amanda Seyfried could sing. The overall disappointment in this was the ending-come on! (warning Spoilers!) Sophie never got married after all of her wedding plans but Donna did. The cast included some pretty big names and the acting was overall good. Meryl Streep's performance was exceptional, I thought. The movie was all in all, OK but I wouldn't necessarily recommend it.

So that's all for my movie review... That's probably three minutes you'll never get back of your life so for that I apologize.

Oh,

and did I mention that I'm scared my back will go off when I go through the metal detector thing? I'm just hoping it doesn't. Later.

Hi!

I'm going to Utah for the next 12 days. Right after I get home, I go to girls' camp. So, needless to say, I will not be blogging very much. Just an FYI. TTFN!

This Really Cool Person Named Amy and a Late Tribute to my Father from Father's Day

There is this person in my church. Her name is Amy. Oh my bob, she is soooo annoying. I can't stand her. HAHA JUST KIDDING. (I got several of you guys there, didn't I?) No. Seriously. Amy is amazing. I don't think I've ever told her what I truly think about her so let me do so now. All alliterations aside, Amy is absolutely amazing. She's my other half, she completes me. She is the AWE to my Awesome. She's so nice (everyone knows that, including Amy) and whenever I'm with her, she just makes me happy. It's impossible to be sad around Amy, she's bubbly like soap! I love her for all that she is, even though I don't deserve someone like her, she loves musicals (which I detest), is a major band geek, and is very clumsy. :P What can I say, she's perfect for me.
Now about my dad. My dad is...well-rounded. I think that's a good way to describe him. He's really intelligent. He knows everything. Well maybe not 'everything' but he's pretty close to it. And if he doesn't know something, he's always willing to learn to broaden his already extensive knowledge. He's very handy (like around the house concerning mechanics, construction, and all that good stuff) and if I ever get married, my husband better be as handy as my father or else we will have some MAJOR issues. He's also very strong, physically and spiritually. When he lets me help him on projects, I'll tighten a screw with my faced all distorted and think it's the tightest it could ever be. Then my dad comes along and says, "Oh good job, yeah that's pretty tight," then proceeds to turn it four more times. My dad also has this great sense of humor. I think that's where I get it from...like the heavy sarcasm...the dry humor...the cheesy humor. Yeah, all from my dad. I also get my extremely good looks from my dad. (Haha) My dad is just great, he is the paradigm of what a father should be. I love that guy. Now many of you may be wondering what I gave my father for Father's Day...well I think it was a pretty darn good gift. I gave him.........a kiss on the cheek! Yeah! Saved myself like twenty bucks. All right!

I Really Have Nothing to Blog About but I felt I had to Post Something...

So yeah. I'm MAD at a certain person right now. COUGHSAMANTHACOUGH. WHAT in this world is she doing reading like 5 other books when she's supposed to be reading AMND????? That is just inconceivable to me. I don't get it. SAMANTHA THIS WAS YOUR CRAZY IDEA SO YOU BETTER FOLLOW THROUGH WITH ANDREA AND I OR ELSE YOU WILL BE LAME. So there! Finish AMND so we can start on the next play. STAT!
Today is Friday. I like Fridays. They're really good days. Andrea (and for Samantha when she finishes AMND), we're reading a history next. We're reading Henry VI, part 1. OK? Sounds like fun. Shakespeare reading party, tomorrow maybe? I might call you if I remember. Tchuess.

Not So Exciting but Nonetheless, Something to Blog About

Only 13 more days left of school. (not that anyone is counting...) This summer is going to be awesome/killer. Like as in the killer killer, not the slang meaning of cool. For one, I am no longer attending Quiz Bowl Camp. It is being replaced with something so incredibly dorky that I can't even bring myself to put it on my blog. However I will say that it involves a lot of reading classic literature such as Hamlet (which I finished in like, 9 hours) and A Midsummer's Night Dream and 35 others. So yes. Now I will blog about Hamlet. I have read Romeo and Juliet and must say that I did not care for it. I mean, both title characters were so nonsensical and impulsive. (And true love at first sight is basically non-existent.) But I do confess that I kind of liked Hamlet. For one, I liked the plot better than Romeo and Juliet. Another thing I liked was the ending. Endings don't get much better than killing like four people in one scene. Ophelia, however, was just plain Weird with a capital w. I mean, she drowned because she fell into this water and was singing these loud, bawdy songs and didn't bother to realize the fact her clothes were getting saturated and she was DRoWNinG. Hamlet was a cool protagonist and I loved the fact that everyone thought he was crazy/mad. Anyway. Tomorrow is Memorial Day and I'm not doing much of anything except reading A Midsummer's Night Dream. Well, I have to go do homework. 'Til the next post, ciao.

My Life...

I didn't know what to blog about. So I asked my brother. He told me to blog about stupid girls or something. I decided not to. Instead, I'll just give you a brief overview of my life right now.
I just took three quizzes on The Odyssey and two vocabulary quizzes. Totally aced the vocab quizzes considering I already knew half the words. The Odyssey quiz is a different story... I think I pretty much failed it. Well, I didn't really answer two questions so it's at least a B. I have to take a quiz in math tomorrow. I still have 2 more to make up in math then I have a mid-term to make up in science. Being out of school for 4 weeks is not as fun as it may sound. I just recently finished Pride and Prejudice... *sigh*. One can never read that book too many times. Today was my first full day back at school. I'm pretty tired. Only 16 more days left of school. I have a 4 day week this week and I'm pretty excited. This summer I am attending two camps and two family reunions. I have a church camp I'm attending then another camp that is extremely geeky. It's so geeky I'm not allowed to mention it on my blog in order to keep my reputation. *coughsamcough* I am reading a biography on Jane Austen as of this moment. I like Jane Austen, just not this biographer. She isn't very good. So that's my exciting life... ?

Good Quotes from a Movie I Love- Double Indemnity (Because I'm Bored and Writing a Paper on It)

I suppose you'll call this a confession when you hear it. Well, I don't like the word 'confession.' I just want to set you right about something you couldn't see because it was smack up against your nose. You think you're such a hot potato as a Claims Manager; such a wolf on a phony claim. Maybe you are. But let's take a look at that Dietrichson claim, Accident and Double Indemnity. You were pretty good in there for a while, Keyes. You said it wasn't an accident. Check. You said it wasn't suicide. Check. You said it was murder. Check. You thought you had it cold, didn't you? All wrapped up in tissue paper with pink ribbons around it. It was perfect - except it wasn't, because you made one mistake. Just one little mistake. When it came to picking the killer, you picked the wrong guy. You want to know who killed Dietrichson? Hold tight to that cheap cigar of yours, Keyes. I killed Dietrichson - me, Walter Neff, insurance salesman, 35 years old, unmarried, no visible scars...- until a while ago, that is. Yes, I killed him. I killed him for money and for a woman. I didn't get the money and I didn't get the woman. Pretty, isn't it?'

Phyllis: There's a speed limit in this state, Mr. Neff. Forty-five miles an hour.
Walter Neff: How fast was I going, officer?
Phyllis: I'd say around ninety.
Walter Neff: Suppose you get down off your motorcycle and give me a ticket.
Phyllis: Suppose I let you off with a warning this time.
Walter Neff: Suppose it doesn't take.
Phyllis: Suppose I have to whack you over the knuckles.
Walter Neff: Suppose I bust out crying and put my head on your shoulder.
Phyllis: Suppose you try putting it on my husband's shoulder.
Walter Neff: That tears it.


Walter Neff: Know why you couldn't figure this one, Keyes? I'll tell ya. 'Cause the guy you were looking for was too close. Right across the desk from ya.
Barton Keyes: Closer than that, Walter.
Walter Neff: I love you, too.

I Took a Quiz

So I took a quiz. It was to see what European city I belong in. Europe. I will live there someday. Anyway, so I took it and it said Amsterdam.

You Belong in Amsterdam

A little old fashioned, a little modern - you're the best of both worlds. And so is Amsterdam.Whether you want to be a squatter graffiti artist or a great novelist, Amsterdam has all that you want in Europe (in one small city).

*Sigh* I wish I lived there.

If you want to take this fabulous quiz, here's the link:

http://www.blogthings.com/whateuropeancitydoyoubelonginquiz/?newrightcolumn=yes&order=1

So ok. I blogged earlier but I decided to blog some more about a few things. First and foremost in everyone's mind, Pride and Prejudice!
Ok, so I read this book by Amanda Grange called Mr. Darcy's Diary. It is just that; his diary!!!! How exciting can life get? It is not much better than this. I loved it. There were some aspects I did not love about it (like the fact it wasn't written by Jane Austen) but I really liked how the author brought Mr. Darcy's thoughts more alive. Dannon: tell Janelle (sp?) she should read it. Then we can talk about it. Andrea and Samantha: read Pride and Prejudice or watch the six-hour version with me sometime. This is necessary!! Haylee: seeing as how you have so much time on your hands, you should probably read it, too. That is, if you haven't already and you want to. BTW, I hope everything goes well with your pregnancy just in case I forget to tell you. I'm not going to force anyone into anything but it just comes highly recommended from me. Dannon: I can't see your blog.
Next, I have some very very very very very good news. Sims 3 is coming out in 2009! OMBOB! My life could not get much better, I swear. Apparently, you can wander around the neighborhood without calling a taxi and you can see your neighbors while playing one family. Then you can customize everYTHINg about your Sims' body shape and face. Then, you can customize the Sims' houses and furniture by creating your own patterns if you wish or using the ones they pre-set. Then, you can buy them cars and go to work with them. Oh dear, oh dear it sounds so wonderful. I am so pumped. You have NO idea.
Oh and by the way, I am officially two inches taller since my surgery and taller than my mother. Thank you.

I'm Alive!

Haha. Like I was going to die. But yes, I'm home. I don't even have to go to school for two more weeks! I'm doing lots of sleeping...walking...and eating. There really isn't much else to do. I can't go in cars...well, I can I just don't like it because Michigan roads are crappy and i feel every little bump and pebble we roll over. Coming home from the hospital was NOT fun. I can't sit for more than 45 minutes. There's no bending, lifting, or twisting and I get straws in all my drinks. I've recieved six boquets, 5 plates of cookies, and lots of candy. However, the best thing I've gotten was a Dr. Pepper from my best friend (who is 4) Avery. She calls it my "special drink." (hahahaa). It hurts to laugh. As you can see, back surgery has its ups and downs.

Tomorrow

Holy Crap. It's like tomorrow. It's so mind-boggling. I just can't take it. Like I'm having back surgery tomorrow. I can't take it. Ok, good bye.

No Matter What Language, Three is Still Three

Deutsch: Drei
Francais: Trois
Espanol: Tres
English: Three

No matter what the language, three always equals three. Oh, the wonderful world of mathematics and counting!

Drei Tage verliessen.
Trois jours laisses.
Tres dias dejados.
Three days left.

Oh shoot...down to one Hand

Oh shoot. There are only five days left. *Scary thought*

Countdown

9 days left...til' Christmas. You figured me out, Andrea.
Darn.

I messed up on my last entry. I have a sufficient lack of counting skills or something. Anyway, here's the real countdown:
Tuesday: 14
Wednesday: 13
Thursday: 12

Friday: 11

Count Down

I haven't blogged in a few days, therefore I have not counted down for the last few days. (Since Tuesday, I believe). Therefore, I will do so in this post:
Tuesdaly: 13
Wenesday: 12
Thursday: 11

Friday: 10

The Republic of Pemberley

15 days left

So today was not too bad for being the first day back since Spring Break. A little long and tiresome but nonetheless Ok. Anyway, during film studies this morning (it's an online class so I take it in the computer lab, on a computer) I was searching the web for Mansfield Park text online. Then I found it, read a wonderful chapter of Jane Austen's masterpiece, and decided to explore the website I was on. It turns out, this website ( www.pemberley.com ) is a website dedicated to none other than Austenites (lovers of Jane Austen). It contains online books for her 6 major works, discussions for them, FAQ's about her works, film adaptations, and many more glorious Jane Austen related things. It's a website dedicated to Jane Austen fans! How much better does it get?? It's very interesting and you should all go there because I know you love Jane Austen like me...

A Really, Really Random Post

16 days left.
I've decided to put a count down every day on my blog. Until what, you may wonder, I am not saying at the moment.

So today was pretty boring. I went to church, learned about very important things, and came home.
I read Mansfield Park for a while and I really do not like Henry Crawford. It is blatantly obvious that Fanny does NOT love him but loves Edmund instead. Henry decides to pursue Fanny still but he just agitates her and makes her uncomfortable. She just wants him to go away! But he won't. Then Edmund-who is such a typical guy when it comes to love-thinks he really likes Mary Crawford and wants to marry her. I don't know why he wants to especially when Mary just criticizes him, his wanted future, and his choice of profession. He's just so blind to Fanny and it bugs me. Fanny, in all of her natural and genuine goodness of heart, doesn't say anything to Edmund to bring him to his senses but instead wishes for his happiness. UGH!! However, I like Fanny and greatly esteem her for feeling this way. Some literary characters would rather die then live without their loved ones which I think is simply stupid. Fanny however sees that life continues and will go on, even if she can't be with Edmund. I love Fanny Price!
So we're watching/keeping a very pathetic dog. She's not house trained, she couldn't go up steps, and she had difficulty walking. Pathetic, I KNOW. So we've been walking her and training her and she's been making some process. She still has occasionally accidents on our floors but the amount of them have greatly declined. Today, I took her for a walk around the block. Regularly this walk would take a human 8-10 minutes to walk around it and come back home but with Cotton Candy (yes, I know, a pathetic name for a pathetic dog) it takes double. She walks slowly and you have to drag her for the first little while. Today was a landmark day for her however. C.C. (what I prefer to call her because Cotton Candy is just a retarded name for a peppered shitzu) ran down the street. Usually when she runs (or tries to run in her case) you can still walk with her. However, I actually had to jog to keep up with her. Yes, I know, AMAZING. She's acting more and more like a dog every day, I swear.

Some FunNy! Stories

Blockbuster

So I went to Blockbuster video with one of my elder brothers on Friday. We were looking around for a movie to watch. We saw some interesting ones, some were scary looking, and some looked stupid. So we went down a movie aisle and there were these two girls. They were thumbing through the movies and then they picked up one of the Mary Kate and Ashely Olsen videos. They started laughing and bashing the movie and the twins themselves. Then my brother taps one of them on the shoulder and says, "Um, I have that movie." The girls are both speechless and looking at each other like, "uhh...what do we say??" So we walk away and start laughing at these girls. It was funny...

New York City!

Fact of the century: I LOVE QUIZ BOWL. Ok, so I was at quiz bowl last Thursday. Out moderator (the person that asks the questions) said, "Name these cities where these modern marvels are found." So she starts on the list and the first ones are usually the easiest. The very first one was the Eiffel Tower. Duh, no brainer right there! Or for some quiz bowlers at least. This guy from junior varsity buzzes in and screams, "New York City!" What?!!? "Oh sorry, I thought you said something else." Whatever that's supposed to cover up.

Rearranged Marriage: the New Fad

Last night at dinner we somehow got on the subject of my parents' past. We were chatting and my parents were swapping funny stories when one of my brothers asks, "How did you and dad meet?" OK, obvious question. All six of my sibling know our parents survived all Mormon odds. For one they were introduced through their parents. So my mother goes on to tell my brother how her dad and my dad's mother worked at the same place. Then she says how they swapped phone numbers, dates were had, and pretty soon the rest was history. So then my brother pops up with, "Oh, so it was like a rearranged marriage?" Rearranged marriages? I didn't know they existed...

Pun of the Year

At lunch yesterday, we were talking about weird names. People were saying, kind of adding in a weird name here and there. Haha, oh that's a good one, yada-yada. Then my friend pops up with, "I knew a guy named Steel once in second grade." In response to this question, Natasha said the pun that got her the pun of the year award (that's colorful!). "Well, at least we won't have to worry about him getting any stains." Stainless steel! Get it! Hahaha...

My Life-in Bullet Points

I decided I am going to mimic Andrea and Sam and do a bullet point list of random things in my life right now:

• Today is Friday.
• Thank goodness
• I was beginning to think this week would never come to a close
• I took a Science quiz today and got a 40/40
• Woohoo.
• I played Sims 2 today
• It was glorious
• I played the Clives (as in Brandi, James, and Maxwell) in their new house
• I love Brandi, James, and Maxwell's new house.
• This week has been terrible.
• I recently finished the book, Love, Stargirl
• I really liked it. I would recommend that and its prequel, Stargirl, to everyone to read as a really good book.
• My new favorite concept is one of Stargirl's that she gives to Leo. It says, "Nothing is empty." I love it.
• I'm listening to 'We're so Far Away' by Mae.
• I haven't watched Pride and Prejudice in a while.
• That's what I'm doing this weekend.
• I need to escape into the world of Mr. Darcy and Elizabeth Bennett
• My newest favorite music artist is Michael Buble. I've discovered new jazz and I heart it.
• Sam, if you're reading this, do you want to study for Quiz Bowl this weekend? If so, what would you like to study? French kings?
• I finally did my schedule for next year. Took long enough.
• I'm taking AP European History I and II, Civics & Economics, Algebra IIB, Biology, German II, and German III
• I'm totally stoked for next year.
• Except for the whole Algebra IIB part
• We did something in math today that I totally understand for once...just takes a while to stare at the paper before my mind processes what I'm going to do in order to solve the problem. I'm not always right but at least I think I get it...
• I am currently writing a book called 'My Own Story'
• I have hit writers' block like...5? chapters into my book.
• But I'm happy I've made it this far before hitting that cinder block of a thing.
• I will never understand why people admire Scarlett O'Hara.
• I can't think of anything else to write so I'll leave it at that.

THE END

Blenders and Bananas

Blenders and bananas. Yet another random subject on my blog thanks to Andrea. Well, it is called the anomalousness within me so I guess that compensates it. Anyway, blenders. Blenders are the coolest kitchen appliance other than the ice cream scooper. It is and there is no disputing it. Blenders are just cool enough to come in extra cool colors such as red, black (which isn't that cool), and blue. Apparently, according to some kitchen fashion expert dude, colorful appliances are IN style. Talk about a no brainer right there. Bright colored kitchen appliances are the coolest things since sliced bread.
Bananas are so yummy. They are yellow too which is even cooler. They are high in potassium , therefore making them healthy for you. Plus, the stickers on Chiquita bananas are my most favorite things to put on myself. (My favorite sticker says Appetite A-Peel; pun intended.) However, when you put a blender, bananas, and ice cream together you get one of the best things God ever created. A banana shake! I heart those things. Seriously. So yes, blenders and bananas are really cool and I'm pretty sure I've overused the word 'cool' in this post. So instead I'll say, 'Colorful blenders when mixed with delectable bananas create an absolutely beautiful combination!' The end.

Pirates...Eating Chocolate Cake

Pirates...eating chocolate cake. Most people think, "Ok, so is that? Because that sentence pretty much just says everything right there, in that single sentence." Well to me, it doesn't. It doesn't answer a plethura of questions that only somebody like me would think of. So let's talk about the pirate.
Pirates are pretty cool, but I think I prefer ninjas. Anyway, pirates. Pirates generally don't have a set home. They have a birth place but they live on a ship for most of their lives. Pirates don't make an honorable living robbing other ships because that's mean and they should be slapped on the hand, given no dinner, and sent to bed. However, they are not. They are pirates living a lawless life. But when you say, "A pirate is eating chocolate cake," there are many unanswered questions about the pirate. Is the pirate a girl or boy? Does he have red hair or black hair? Is his hair long or is it a buzz cut? Is the pirate fat, skinny, or just pleasantly plump? Is the pirate tall or short? What is the pirate wearing; Prada or Chanel?
Cake is yummy but it makes me fat. However, I still eat it. When you say, "A pirate is eating chocolate cake," there are many unanswered questions about the cake. What kind of chocolate cake is it; german chocolate or dark chocolate? Is the cake double layered? Is it frosted? Does the cake have sprinkles on it (a very important question indeed)? Is the cake homemade or store-bought? Is there is frosting, what kind is it?
As you can see, saying, "a pirate eating chocolate cake," is a very broad statement and should be more specific. Therefore, it would be more appropriate to say, "A tall skinny, brown-haired, and haggard-looking pirate was eating a homemade double-layered chocolate cake that was topped with cream cheese frosting and just a dash of pink sprinkles on it." That's sounds much more professional and pleasing.

Basketball

I play church basketball and consider myself to be an average player. However, without another player and I, my team would be completely lost. Today I got very angry. So today in basketball I scored 4 points but only 3 of them counted because of a little issue with someone stepping over the free throw line before they were supposed to (which made me really mad). That's just the beginning.Then this girl of no small size hit me really hard. I think she was running, couldn't stop in time when she saw me, so her half of her body plus her elbow hits me in my side and it hurt like crap. Then my brother thought I was bleeding and I wasn't, thank goodness. I am glad I did not cry although I was very close to it, it hurt soooo bad. However, some girls had to go and tell my little sister that I was crying out of frustration. She tries to tell them, "no, Bianka doesn't cry when she's frustrated, I know my sister better than you." But no, the girl insists she's right and then Leah gets mad at her because she knows I don't cry when I'm frustrated. (If you ask me, crying when you're frustrated is just ridiculous.) Besides, I wasn't even crying. I was trying to breathe and had difficulty doing so but I didn't cry. So I sit out for a while, trying to breath and get a voice back. Then I go back in for the last ten minutes of the game and with six minutes left in the game, I sprained my ankle. I jumped to knock a ball out of the opposite team's hand and my foot landed sideways. It really hurt but I still played the game however not running as much but trying to do my best. Overall our game just wasn't great. We had some good shots, though not a lot made it in the actual basket but our defense stunk. So today was not a really good day and our basketball game was terrible but I'm still alive so I suppose that's good news.

Penelope

Ok, so I went and saw a movie Friday night with my little sisters. The movie was Penelope (rated PG for some brief language and innuendo; parental guidance suggested). It was actually a better movie than I thought it would be. It's a fairytale type story about a girl with a pig nose. At first she thinks she has to marry someone else of a like social status to break the curse but finds out all the power she needs in her life comes from herself. So if you have little sisters and really want to take them to a movie, you should go see Penelope.

Shoes

I was talking with Andrea and somehow we came up with the idea that I should write a blog on shoes. So, I've decided to do so.
At first, I didn't think there was that much to write about shoes. Then I started really thinking about shoes and realized there's lots to write about shoes. I like shoes. Socks are my number one favorite article of clothing, then shirts, then shoes. In the summer and spring, I like to go outside/walk around either barefoot or in socks. But anyway, this is about shoes, not socks or my preferences.
There are many different kinds of shoes and there is a shoe for every occasion. There are flats, flip-flops, stilettos, tennis shoes, clogs, pumps, and many others. Flats-in my opinion-don't seem to be all that comfortable but are still 'cute' I suppose when worn without socks. I like that with flats, different colors or patterns can make a jean or outfit look more dressy/'cute' rather than the casual tennis shoe. Flip-flops are meant for the summer/pool deck and should not be worn in the winter unless you are on a pool deck in the winter, are visiting a tropical location, or live someplace where it doesn't snow. Stilettos are just ugly. They are terrible on the muscles in your feet and are just bleh. Tennis shoes are comfy if you have the right size, style, and supports in them and are my favorite shoes to wear other than no shoes at all. Clogs are ok and pretty comfy but I don't like having the closed-toe front and open back. Pumps. I think pumps are more for middle-aged women or professional type women but can work with teens or un-professional women too, if worn with the right clothes. The 'many others' category consists of other shoes such as converse (which I like), pumas, diesels, or just your other name-brand shoe that makes only one type, for the most part. Yes, I know there are probably a ton more other types of shoes but these stick out the most in my mind.
So shoes are cool and are more complex than I originally thought and this is a random blog and this sentence is practically run-on so I'm just going say tciao until my next blog!

A Post...on MY Blog...about Andrea's new Blog and Nathaniel Hawthorne

I'm not very sure what to write about but I haven't blogged in a while which makes Sam sad. Andrea started a really cool blog and here's the link to it: http://aimlesscupcakes.blogspot.com You should read it. Anyway, I am in the middle of reading The House of the Seven Gables. It is a very good book and comes highly recommended from me. I really like the way Nathaniel Hawthorne writes and his writing is the closest thing to love I have ever experienced. Just the way he describes feelings or characters in his books are just so unique but vivid at the same time. He really knows how to set the mood and keep it throughout his whole book. His plots are like none other and his characters so real. But you probably don't care and that's ok with me cause I heart his writing. So sorry if you read all the way to here because you probably wish you didn't...but now you know one of my favorite authors...so if we're walking down to Seven Eleven one day and some guy puts a a gun to my head and says, "Tell me one of her favorites authors or she dies," you will now be able to answer assertively.

Sam says...

So Sam told me to blog something about magneticness, Quiz Bowl, or her. As is the case, I have decided to blog about all three of them. (They all kind of tie in together too...) First- because she's so important-is Sam.

OK, so Sam is pretty much the coolest person I know named Samantha. And if you don't know Sam, we'll just pretend that you do. Can't we just pretend that everyone in the world knows Sam? She enjoys many things including knitting, reading, writing books with Bianka, and studying for Quiz Bowl with Bianka as well (for a more complete list of Sam's favorite things to do see her blog, http://froomla@blogspot.com) She enjoys car names and long walks on the beach (I'm not so sure about the last one but then again, who doesn't love long walks on the beach?)

Quiz Bowl!! Quiz Bowl is pretty much the best thing since sliced bread, just ask Sam or I but don't ask Andrea or she'll tell you that sliced bread is better. Quiz Bowl is like, my secret passion along with Art but, shhh, don't tell anyone. I think Sam likes art too cause she really likes the DIA, so I think that's safe to say. Sam specializes in car names and the last page of the literature packet for Quiz Bowl. We are both currently working on reading selected books from the list and organizing we-know-what but it's way too geeky for me to put on my blog for bunches of people to see.

Magneticness is not free to discuss right now. FYI: I will not be offended if anyone who knows about magneticness buys me magnets as long as they're sweet and original.

By The Way: This is Cha and I, not Sam and I! (I just liked the pic...)

Isabella Marie Swan

My bob, I do not like Bella [in the Twilight Series] anymore! She makes me so mad. Like, it's hard to explain but I seriously cannot stand her. She's soo possesive and so selfish! Edward is way too nice to her! She kind of reminds me of Jacob Black. And don't even get me started on him. Oh, he makes me soooo mad! He has to sit there, thinking of himself like always, and convince Bella that she's in love with him when she is clearly in love with Edward . Besides, Edward is just soo much cooler than some werewolf. I mean, why would you have a werewolf when you have some really good-looking vampire who loves you?? Besides, it gets worse. Jacob has to go and kiss Bella. He translucently knows that Edward can read minds and he just has to go and think about it all the time which hurts Edward. I mean, how heartless can he be?? I just cannot stand him! I really don't get Jacob because he knows that he's going to imprint someday so why bother falling in love when he knows that both he and Bella will come out of the relationship hurting?? So I don't like Bella and I don't like Jacob so maybe they should just get together and when he imprints Bella can commit suicide or something. Then Edward will commit suicide and the story would just end so much quicker. However, Stephenie Meyer would get a lot less money if this was how the story ended so I know that's not going to happen. Dang it!

ART

OH MY BOB! I HEART ART! AND THAT RHYMED!! AND I'M NOT SURE WHY I'M WRITING IN ALL CAPS! So I guess I'll stop that now...Anywho, I like art. I'm probably not as good as someone like Robert but I like to think I specialize in it. So I'm just going to list off a whole bunch of artsits who I can tell you at the very least one piece of work they did because I'm bored and have nothing better to do. Literally.

Rembrandt, Titian, van Gogh, da Vinci, Magritte, Bosch, Bernini, Michaelangelo, Donatello, Raphael, Valezquez, El Greco, Brancusi, Lescot, Lahori, Vasari, van Allen, and many more that I just can' think of right now.

So the picture above. This is called de Nachtwacht or the Nightwatch/ the Shooting Company of Captain Franz Banning Cocq. It is a very unique picture in many ways and I won't go into all of them. That would take me a while considering I am very passionate about Rembrandt. However, this is one of Rembrandt's more important art pieces to know, especially for Quiz Bowl.

This painting to the right is Christina's World. This piece of work was done by a renowned American artist in 1948, A. Wyeth. It isn't necessarily the most important painting to know but I really like it. I dunno, I guess I just like paintings that don't have very much in them. This painting-for me- really sets the mood of being kind of forlorn, sad, and gloomy which are 3 feelings I am partial to. The girl in this painting-Christina-has a muscular disorder that prevents her lower half of her body from being able to move. In this picture, she is crawling towards her vegetable patch to get vegetables (no, fruit). Though I can't really see the vegetable garden...

Wrestling

Ok, so I kind of defy my gender by saying I like to watch wrestling. Not the phony kind that's like WWF or whatever, but like the high school sport. Like, the real sport where you don't bang chairs over peoples' heads. So my brother (who wrestles) taught me this move called "the splitz." It's just that; you make a wrestler do the splitz. He was nice and did all the typical things a wrestler might do if he were in that position. So I was on top and all in position when I rolled over and he like flattened me. My back really hurts now and I have a headache but at least I caused him pain. I know you all needed to know this so, you're welcome. :)

Happy New Year, Y'all!

What happened to 2007?? It seems like only yesterday it was Jan. 1, 2007. In the first few months of a new month, people are still writing the old year and it seems like the new year couldn't be any slower. Then life gets caught up to you and you get caught up in life and the year flies by.
Many people do different things on New Year's Eve. I hung out with my fam plus two really cool people [my friends]. We played the Game of Life, and Abby had some bubble space issues with Sam but it turned out OK. Then we played Apples to Apples where I didn't get any green cards. :(
Then, we went downstairs and listened to some really good music. Call me stupid, but I learned that Led Zeppelin (sp??) is not a person, but a band! That was my blonde moment of the day. Overall, it was fun. So Happy New Year to the limited number of people who will even be reading this!