comic KAAAAAAHN...

No, I'm not actually a Trekkie, though I have been initiated into the fandom by several very persistent friends. It's going to be a long undertaking. They're quite dedicated.

Despite my lack of Trekkie-ness, you can count on my nerdy affiliations to other fandoms, like Lord of the Rings, Star Wars, the TV series Chuck, Harry Potter, among a myriad of fun things. Which is why I once again attended the Salt Lake Comic Con this April with one of my best friends.

 

Here we are, me and Linnea. We're two of the cutest little nerds you're ever gonna meet, if you're lucky. ;) This is the second time we've gone together, and we're all ready making plans for September.

Meeting Karen Gillan from the popular TV series Dr. Who, which I've never actually seen. Linnea was kind enough to let me be in her the photo. Can you tell that I'm super tired? We'd been in line for over two hours!

Meet the handsome, charming, devil-may-care and self-proclaimed "I'm a nerd just like you guys!" Karl Urban of The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers and The Return of the King. When I walked up to him, I exclaimed, "Wow! You're super tall!" He laughed and in his adorable Kiwi (New Zealand) accent, he said, "No worries!" He then put his arms around us and bent his knees a little bit. 

He is so TALL. 

But my favorite -- the man who I was so excited to meet that I almost cried -- Adam Baldwin, who plays John Casey in my favorite TV show, Chuck. Yes, I know that it's kind of silly that I about cried from happiness and excitement. It was really special for me, though. I even got a giant hug when I said hello to him. It was a literal dream come true.

We had such a good time together. I was lucky enough to go on Saturday with a few other friends. I got to see Adam Baldwin again and attend the panel where he answered questions. One of the guys I was with went up to ask a question and got Mr. Baldwin to do his John Casey growl just for me! Afterwards, we got to meet Patrick Stewart -- another step to making me a real Trekkie. They just don't give up!

Such a fun experience. I can't wait for September.

meme...

I was tagged by distracted by shiny objects over at Tidings of Magpies. Here's the rules:

respond and rework
answer questions on your blog
replace one question
tag eight other people.

1: What is your current obsession?
Current obsession, eh? Isn’t that a bit personal? What the heck, we have no secrets here. I suppose my current obsessions are: PB and J sandwiches, Pirates of the Caribbean (my father will agree with me-he’s gotten near to banning any mention of it at all), and looking through all of my past yearbooks.

2: Which item of clothing do you wear most?
Um-underwear? Lol, sorry. Probably my Scout uniform. Since it’s what I wear to work, the button-up shirt and green trousers are what I can be found in a lot.

3: What's for dinner?
I really can’t cook. And since it’s the last week of school, and we’ve got rehearsal tonight, and I’m going to a party-probably Wal-Mart sandwiches or more PB and J (two of my favorites).

4: Last thing you bought?
Gasoline for my car. And it wasn’t my money, which is always so nice.

5: What are you listening to?
I’m listening to the laptop make noises. The whirring of a well-oiled machine. I dunno.

6: If you were a God or Goddess, who would you be?
Me, but taller, skinnier, and pretty.

7: Favourite holiday spots?
I love, love, love Arches National Park, Moab, and the Indian ruins near Dead Horse Point. I love going to the Festival of Lights in Spanish Fork and the Festival of Trees in Salt Lake City at Christmas time. I love Disneyland and New Port Beach. I love going to St. George to see plays at Tuachan and visiting Zion’s National Park. I love Cedar City and the Shakespeare Festival. I love Nauvoo, Illinois and the temple there. I love, love, love, LOVE my grandparents home near Flaming Gorge.

Favourite places in the world? Take your pick. It’s funny how most of them are in my own state.

8: Reading right now?
Just finished the Well of Ascension by Brandon Sanderson, which was amazing. I’m now reading The Last Battle of the Icemark by someone who’s name I can’t remember.

9: Okay...what were you thinking about just then?
Who wrote The Last Battle of the Icemark. I still am thinking about that.


10: Who's your hero/heroine?
Hm…again there are a lot. Right now, I’d have to say Clara Barton. She was absolutely amazing, and she’s always been on my top ten list of people. I’ve loved her since I was eight years old, when I found a book that had been placed on the discard shelf at the library. First book I purchased by myself, for fifty cents. It has definitely seen a lot of love.

11: First spring thing?
Going outside to look at the lilacs. Ever since the summer I missed them (11 or 12 years old), I make it a point to go out to my backyard to see them.

12: Funniest thing you saw in your life?
That is so hard, but the one I keep thinking of happened last week when Tony got up behind Mr. Brown in class and starting imitating him. Mr. Brown put up with it for awhile, but finally threw his keys around behind his back at Tony. It was seriously one of the funniest things ever, to see Tony bust up laughing, the whole class fall apart, and Mr. Brown just stand there grinning like “Haha, I totally got you.”

13: Favourite film?
Wives and Daughters, The Mayor of Casterbridge, While You Were Sleeping, Amazing Grace, Prince Caspian, Surf’s Up…oh. It just said to list one. Well, there are way more than the six you see here. :)

14: Share some wisdom?
What is right is not always popular, but what is popular is not always right. ~Unknown

That quote was on the wall of a sewing teacher’s classroom at Payson High School when I was at a cast meeting for Singin’ in the Rain. I was ten, but I’ve never forgotten it.

15: If you were a tree, what tree would you be and why?
A willow. They can hide their faces from the world and sit in silence with their thoughts uninterrupted.

16: Fictitious characters who made a lasting impression on you?
I don’t know. For reals, I don’t. I guess I could say Sydney Carton from A Tale of Two Cities.

17: 4 words to describe you?
A work in progress.

Tag! ramblins, Chelsea, Woman in a Window, Summermoon, Maya, Kate, cuileann, and spider.

bump on the head...

I did it again. I was playing around in my room with my imaginary friends (yes, I do that often) and misjudged the distance from where I was standing to the corner of my bed. The bed corner did not like being jumped on from that awkward angle, so it spit me out. I landed in an untidy heap head-first on my bedroom floor with an ache behind my right ear. You'd think I'd learn. I will now share with you the first time this happened, several years ago.

Eighth grade had just started. I felt like a complete nobody, a useless husk, a waste of space, whatever you want to call it. Black was my color of choice-long sleeved turtle necks, black jeans, black lace-up ankle boots, black socks, and a black zip up jacket. The only other color was the red stripes that ran the length of the jacket sleeves. I kept my head down, my hair in a braid down my back. I didn't speak. I didn't make eye contact. I did my school work; I just didn't participate in discussions. So silent and such a shadow I was that people in my classes thought I was someone else, until the day that I could no longer remember who they were.

Yes, I was once again engaged in playing with my imaginary friends, namely various characters from the Star Wars series. Not just the movies, mind you. The books-Expanded Universe novels, pre-Clone Wars, et cetera. I was a completely different person-Shae Solo, youngest daughter of Han and Leia Solo, set out to rescue my nephew, Ben Skywalker, from the Yuuzhan Vong. Well, I misjudged my landing on the escaping Vong speeder and shot off backwards, landing hard on my head.

In all reality, I was making the same jump towards the corner of the bed that I did today. The bed didn't like it that time either; it spit me out. I ended up with severe tunnel vision and ringing ears. It got to the point where I realized that I'd severely injured myself. My mom took me to the ER and I was told that I had a major concussion. As I lay in the bed, the world blurred and so did my memory. I could not remember faces, names, anything. I asked for people in my classes, but I didn't know who they were. I barely remember what happened that night. I remember that they sent me home, but I was brought back after throwing up several times. I remember the IV that was put into my arm, being terribly cold, and not being able to see. That's about all.

Four or five days later I went back to school. This was the time when people actually noticed I was in their class still, but I didn't remember most of them. I remembered small details about them, but no names. We spent a lovely time in first period reintroducing everyone, with me remembering some better than others.

Luckily I had no problems with that today. It is rather embarrassing to recount that adventure, only to have it happen again. Stupid Lord Beckett. No, not the Lord Beckett of the already released Pirates stories; his son, Lord Beckett, Jr. If only he weren't so jealous.

I'll leave you to figure out what the devil I'm going on about whilst I tell you of Saturday, May 16-otherwise known as The Last Day of the AP Environmental Science Field Trip.

As I think I mentioned before, the night spent at Dead Horse Point Campground was freezing cold. I again woke up to see the moon shining brilliantly through the tent window, but instead of being too lazy to get up and take a picture I was too frozen. I found it totally brainless of me that I'd packed a stocking cap that didn't come down around my ears; what is the point of that? I spent the night as a popsicle, teeth chattering so loudly I was afraid that I'd awake Meri. She was dead to the world, though, so I was lucky.

5:35 came around (not that I knew that until later) and I finally gave up trying to sleep anymore. I went up to the small bathroom and let out a wail of frustration that brought Mr. Clark running. "What?" he asked, "is there a scorpion?" "No!" I replied, "This bathroom was obviously designed by a man because THERE IS NO MIRROR!!!"

Yes. I was upset because how was I supposed to get ready for the day with no mirror? I was more upset when Mr. Clark laughed and walked away. I was even more upset when I realized that I didn't need a mirror because my hair was still nicely placed in French braids. So, I brushed my teeth, washed my face, and tried to remain dignified as I walked past my teacher to my tent.

Never pack fresh bagels for breakfast on a camping trip. Make sure they're properly packaged in plastic sacks. Otherwise Mr. Brown can use them as hockey pucks with holes in them to throw at sleeping students. It was rather fun to watch, even though it was sad that we couldn't eat them. Yogurt, Pop Tarts, Instant Oatmeal, and hot chocolate were good enough for breakfast. Lunches were the same as yesterday, only this time I smuggled a Yogurt for good measure. What? I can't eat apples, okay? They hurt my teeth. Had to figure out some other way to get a little bit of fruit. So Yogurt hardly makes the cut, but it's better than nothing.

Meri and I didn't need help getting the tent down this time. We asked Mr. Brown for help at first, but then changed our minds. The girls got to shout about our power to the boys again, seeing as we all got our tents down before they did. Spencer was too busy having Josh hold a mirror in front of his face so that he could put in his contacts. I joined in the teasing, though I'd berated myself for not thinking of packing a mirror. I'm such a hypocrite. Anyway, the tremendous shout of "GIRL POWER" was not met with an shut ups, just rolled eyes and further furious packing. Everything was ready to go long before the bus arrived, so we sat around doing nothing and being cold.

Our first stop came at Upheaval Dome, which is either an impact crater or an old collapsed caldera or remainders of an earthquake. I only know that it isn't a salt dome, which the original geologists believed. I didn't get to hike to the top; I made it about fifty yards up the trail before my arm started to ache horribly. Pam and I tried a to go a little farther after the group passed us up, but I couldn't do it. We went back down and discovered flowers, birds, mini pine cones, and some lovely dirt to draw in. I spent some time tracing out a name which is particularly fun to draw, while Pam laughed at me. Ah, well.

The drive down from the top of the plateau was uneventful, because I was again asleep. It wasn't until we reached Arches National Park that I decided to grace the world with my alertness. I love Arches; it's my other favorite place in the world. And seeing as it's right outside of Moab, it works rather well.

We hiked down Park Avenue (one of the sites inside the park), which is all down hill and very easy. I stayed at the end with Mr. Brown and Todd. They're both photographers, so they didn't mind walking slowly. I got some good pictures, and they taught me about photographing from different angles and such. "Unconventional angles are your friend," said Mr. Brown, "That way you do things differently than other photographers." It's true, really. I've seen hundreds of pictures of the Three Gossips formation and they all look the same. Crouch down on the path and it's a whole different story. Fun stuff.

After Park Avenue came The Windows, Castle Arch (pretty sure that's the name), Double Arch, and driving past Balanced Rock. Don't tell me that erosion takes millions of years; I was in Arches a year and a half ago and trust me, Balanced Rock was bigger then. It shrunk! A lot! I couldn’t do any of the hikes up to the arches in the area, so I stayed in the bus with the driver (Lee) and Meri’s mom. I felt very sick to my stomach, my arm hurt, and I was feeling very depressed for some reason. Meri’s mom wasn’t feeling well either. Motion sickness, probably.

We had a bit of a run-in with an environmentalist, because Lee left the bus running so that Mrs. Chamberland and I could have the air conditioning on. The guy took pictures of the bus and wrote down plate numbers, called Lee names, et cetera. Lee told him to buzz off because there were sick people on the bus. The man replied saying things like the CO2 emissions from the bus were bad for the environment and would degrade the rock formations faster, that it would result in acid deposition, blah, blah, blah. I knew what he was talking about, and I knew that it takes a heck of a lot more emissions than from one bus.

Now, I’m not generally a mean person. I’m not a very brave person, either. I was, however, sick, tired, and out of sorts. I’d had it. I was not going to give up my A/C for some measly mouthed Enviro freak when those rocks had been standing around for whoever knows how long, withstood plenty of carbon, and hadn’t gone anywhere. A few grams of CO2 were not going to bother those rocks. I grabbed hold of the rails on the stairs to hold myself up and stared the Enviro Stormtrooper Geek in the face. I looked him up and down and opened my mouth.

“You know what, Bud? You’ve got some pretty nice hiking boots on there. Must have cost you, what? Fifty odd dollars? Now, if you want to keep them nice, you’ll leave, because I don’t think I can stomach your crap for much longer.”

I know! I’m such a jerk! I feel bad about it now. Sort of. Anyway, he left, and we didn’t hear anything else for the rest of the trip. Lee was rather proud of me, I think. Meri’s mom laughed, but I think she was a little surprised at me. I know I was. I guess the moral of that story is this: Do not mess with a sick Environmental Science student, because she knows what you’re talking about and won’t put up with skewed facts.

And I don’t hate environmentalists. I care about the planet a lot. I don’t, however, care about idiots who listen to one-sided arguments. You’ve gotta know both sides before you can start spouting.

All right, that’s over. Once the rest of the kids came back, we left the park and went to the Visitor’s Center for potty breaks and lunch. I’d eaten some of mine, but I didn’t want to eat anything else (too sick) so I went into the Gift Shop. I found some pens for my family, one from each of the places we’d stopped at. Practical, right? I also got a key chain with Delicate Arch on it for me. It’s one of my favorite formations, though I’ve never had a chance to hike up to it. Next time, for sure.

Heading home was the worst part of the trip, especially when we picked a movie to watch. The choices were three John Wayne movies and The Dark Knight. I’m not allowed to watch the last movie I mentioned. When people told me that my parents would never find out, I knew I’d still feel guilty. Mr. Clark put in Rio Lobo (John Wayne) which is really a horrible movie, but at least it wasn’t something I’m not allowed to see. Most of the boys enjoyed it. Probably because it’s sexist and shoot ‘em up. Don’t make fun of me because I’m 17 and still obey my parents, even when I’m on a trip miles from home. I’d feel guilty and I’d be breaking the rules. Besides, if you do make fun of me, I won’t really care. I’ve had plenty of experience with people making fun of me because I keep the rules. It’s gotten to the point where I don’t care much anymore.

So, Rio Lobo was a total fail and I was wishing that I’d brought Mulan or Pirates of the Caribbean or something like that. Sitting in front of people trying to convince me that The Dark Knight is a great movie was a fail on their part, because I wouldn’t listen. It’s dark, evil, and disturbing. I’ve seen parts of it, and the utter darkness I feel when watching it is way worse than being made fun of. Anyway, now that you know the story of my run-in with the Stormtrooper I dare you to take me on. ;) Just kidding.

We stopped in the canyon near Price about an hour and a half from home to see a large exposed coal vein. No one really cared enough to take good notes; we just wanted to go home. Tony did bring out his rock hammer to take a sample; I thought that was funny. He really enjoys geology.

We arrived home around 4:30 in the afternoon, ahead of schedule again. Dad picked me up and helped me get my stuff in the car. I got to tell him about my trip, and was in the process of doing so when I was met with a complete surprise in my living room. There against the wall stood a shiny, dark brown, beautiful piano. I do play the piano (though not well), and I suffered a great heartbreak when the piano I had was reduced to uselessness when some children who will not be named pounded on it and broke most of the keys. It was way too much to fix it; over 38 of the keys no longer played and those that did sounded terrible. To come home to an instrument that actually worked, had gorgeous tone, and was ever so wonderful was amazing. To be told that it was mine struck me speechless. Seriously. I didn’t play it though; I was too dirty to touch this treasure. I waited until the next day to play it.

My mom and I watched Surf’s Up that evening, and I went to bed early.

That, my friends, was the AP Environmental Science Southern Utah Field Trip of the year 2008-2009. I will never forget it, because it was truly amazing. Not to mention that a certain boy asked me on a date during that time. *sigh* Good times.

This has been a terribly long post. Forgive me, and if you read the whole thing, type something like.....hm....99/> or something. I hope it was at least somewhat interesting. And if you type "hm....99/> or something. I hope it was at least somewhat interesting" in the comment box to let me know that you read it, I will laugh and the smack you upside the head with a 2 x 4. ;)

Ta.

this is dedication...

Know why I'm blogging? Because I've been neglecting everyone. So, I finally decided to type through the pain and tell you all what's going on. Aren't I amazing? ;)

Okeydokey, here's the run down of the first day of the Southern Utah Trip:

Thursday:
Got up at about 4:30 in the a.m. and showered. Beautiful showers-best thing ever invented, I swear. Dad drove me to the school with my gear, which consisted of my backpack, my sleeping bag, a pillow with a coat stuffed inside, and the tent. The other kids in my class and I through everything onto the bus, had our last orientation in the classroom, recieved our flashlights and fieldbooks, boarded the bus, and took off. I sat next to Cami the whole three days. It was awesome; I love that girl. She's so fun!

Time of departure from MVHS-6:00 a.m.

It was a very long drive to Nephi. All of about 30 minutes. We stopped on the Three-Point Line where one thing meets one thing and another thing to form a single line. Yes, I paid so much attention. It was 6:30 in the morning, people. Deal with me, okay? ;)

Next came the Oak Canyon Rest Stop, where Meri, Ashley, and I spent a jolly ten minutes trying to identify trees. It was hard.

Drive, drive, drive for a very long time until we reach Capitol Reef National Monument. It isn't really an old reef. It's just a bunch of rocks/mountain that looks like a reef. I spent two hours in the Visitor's Center while the rest of my class went on a hike up one of the trails. I couldn't go because of my stupid arm. Instead, I bought a coloring book and some crayons and had a lovely time coloring bears and seals. It was so much fun. The movie that I watched about the park was boring. I was glad I could color instead.

Lunchtime! We had our sack lunches from home in this little park. It was great fun, except for the copious amounts of caterpillars that kept dropping on us from the trees. Yick. I don't like bugs. Which is why I don't like camping very much. I did get to sit by my friend for a minute (you should know who I'm talking about. :) ). That was nice. And eating lunch with Mr. Clark was interesting. He's a cool guy. Totally different than when he's teaching.

Driving....at least you can sleep on a bus, right? I did for quite awhile. We drove, and drove, and drove, and drove. I think that we drove so long that I forgot where we stopped next-I'm so caught up in the driving memories. Hm......let me check on my camera....

checking.................checking............................robin pictures......nope......ah ha!

I was right. We drove and drove and drove and drove until we reached Goblin Valley. Talk about cool. I'd never been there before, and it was an amazing experience. Even though down in the actual valley it was over 100 degrees Fahrenheit. Ick. That part was awful. Then I got a scare when Tony took off on his own. He was acting funny the whole day, kind of depressed and sad. When he walked away from the group, I was seriously afraid he might try something. Turned out I was wrong, and being wrong made me relieved and happy. Dang it, I wish I could figure out how to help him be happier. He's my friend, after all. I hate seeing my friends sad and not knowing what to do.

Anyway, the Valley of the Goblins was so cool. I hope to go back someday. After that, we set up camp in the Goblin Valley Group Campsite. Meri was my tent buddy, and she picked the tent site. She will never do that again. The middle of the tent was perched on a small mound of dirt, with the two sides draping down. It was horrible to sleep on, but more about that later.

Mr. Clark made spaghetti for dinner. It was good, and I made a new friend. Her name is Pam, and she's super nice. I like her a lot. The food was good, and coloring in my book was super fun. Yes, I used it almost the whole trip. More on that later as well.

I had an interesting conversation with a man from (I think Texas) outside the state while waiting in line for the showers. Yes, there were showers. Hallelujah! He started asking me questions about the Utah culture, starting out with education and politics, religion and education, and eventually winding up at polygamy. It was interesting that the last subject came up, because I'd just spent half an hour on the bus explaining to the people sitting next to me what polygamists in Utah believe in (yes, they live here, but they don't belong to the LDS faith, just to clear that up). It was cool to talk to someone who didn't think I was a loser because I thought differently than he did.

We went our separate ways when it was my turn for the shower. YES! I decided to test it out before I actually got in. Good thing too, because I could not get it to turn on! I got so frustrated with turning the knob back and forth and having nothing happen that I finally looked at the sky and said, "All right. I cannot figure this out. I may be a total idiot, but I need help." As I was looking up, I noticed a round silver thing above the shower head. I poked it out of frustration and was immediately soaked through my clothes with freezing cold water. Happy day. It worked. And the water got warmer, eventually, as I figured out how to change the settings.

Awkward moment: being in your pajamas with soaking wet hair, opening the door, and running into your Multimedia teacher. Mr. Brown and I were both surprised to see one another. So weird.

I got back all clean and happy. Tony did make fun of me because I'd showered earlier in the day, but I replied "I don't care. I will use my resources. Natural or otherwise." That got a laugh. Don't know why. Soon, pretty much everyone in my class and most of the chaperons walked back down to the goblins to play Capture the Flag. I stayed behind so I wouldn't hurt my arm any further. Pam and I hung out while I colored. I did an opossum and lots of shrews. Then I went to bed. Or tried.

9:45ish rolled around and everyone came tromping back, loud as ever. I ended up getting out of the tent because I couldn't find a comfortable spot to lie anyway, due to the strange hump in the ground and the rocks that fit perfectly in between my ribs. I nearly fell asleep on the table when Tony came and sat across from me. We got into a discussion on sleeping pills, and I hope he believes me when I say I'm going to try and get off of them this summer. I really am. Once school is out, I'll start working on it. :D

I got into bed before Meri got back, and when she arrived I told her that I was going to pick tomorrow's tent spot. She laughed, and we slept with our heads facing the back of the tent instead of the opening. Before we fell asleep, though, I came up with "I hate camping! I hate it so much. I hate it. It's the stupidest thing ever! It must have been invented by a man because it's so completely brainless!" I don't remember saying that very well.

So that was Thursday. And my arm kills. So I'm done.

confidence...

I love bowling.

(I only took this picture because I liked the colors of the balls next to each other. :) )

I went again with my sister this evening. I got a strike!!! I also got over 100 points for the first time ever! Highest score in my life: 120! Amanda also got over 100, bowling 104 points. Her highest ever, too. It was so much fun. Before we went bowling, we went to Christopher & Banks so that I could look at the shirts that were on sale. I got two shirts and a vest. I'm excited. We also went to Hogi Yogi after bowling and got smoothies. She got Watermelon Wave and I got Peach Treat. They tasted a lot better until my mom told me that they were actually not very good for you. :P Dang it.

Work was all right. Mostly boring and at times nerve wracking. I did data entry a lot for something like inventory (reassigning items in the computer?). And then there were all of the people who came in to get stuff for the camps. It was crazy, and then dead, and then crazy, and then dead. Oy. I almost got yelled at by customers twice (one for prices, one because she had no money left on her account. like it's my fault) but Michelle saved me. Thank you, Michelle.

After work I sort of took a nap, watched more Bewitched, and watched M*A*S*H. Please enlighten me. Does the title have an asterisk after the H, like so: M*A*S*H* :? I can't remember. The one with it after the H looks better. I don't know.

Let's see. Did I do anything else? I forgot to take my camera with me. I missed out on so many cool shots. *kicks herself* Stupid! I'll just have to go back. Too bad-more shopping and bowling. That just sucks, you know?

So I keep thinking about somebody. Not that one. Another friend of mine, named Kevin. I woke up thinking about him, and I haven't been able to get him off of my mind. He's a good friend of mine, and I haven't talked to him in forever. Should I send him and email or call him tomorrow? He just keeps popping up in my head randomly. No lovey-dovey, gooey stuff. He's just circling in my thoughts. Kind of annoying, actually. Hm. I'll shoot him an email or something.

Okay. I'm done now. Sorry the poem sucks. I'm running out of ideas. This poem-a-day thing is hard.

bowling...

April 15. Spring Break. And it's snowing. It has been for most of the day. Ah, well. Could be worse, I guess. I'd planned to cut the grass today, but obviously my plans had to change. Change they did, and my family decided to go bowling. It was rather fun, even though I suck at it. I tend to like games that I suck at. Mini golf, bowling, and chess included among those.

Mom and dad each got more than one strike, and the three of us girls each got close. Final scores:
Dad-114
Mom-115
Me-84
Meghan-96
Amanda-68

I know the picture says that mom got 105, but her score got mixed up and it didn't count one of her strikes. We just added the extra 10 points on at the end.

Not bad, I guess. After bowling, we went to Golden Corral for lunner (again with the lunner) and it was a lot of fun. My sisters and I filmed some little stupid videos involving the gummy bears that Amanda nicked from the counter. I got a needle and thread and stuck them through the top of the bears so that we could use them as puppets of a sort, and then we danced them around. It was funny and totally a "you had to be there" sort of moment.

Watching Bewitched followed naptime, and then I retreated to my bedroom to post photos on Facebook. Yay, Facebook. And a certain boy added me. When I opened my email and saw his name in the subject line, I experienced an electric excitement that was quite exhilarating. Yay for Xs. He actually added me! I didn't have to go find him! Lol. I'm so dumb.

I joined Grace in Small Things today. It's basically a thankfulness blog, where you write down five things a day that you are grateful for or made you happy. I'm not going to do it here until NaPoMo is finished. Otherwise my posts will be super boring and lame for you guys to read.

I'm done.

work day 1...

Started work at the Scout Shop today, after staying home from school for a mental health day. Mom told me to, so it's all good. It went all right; it's just super confusing. I don't know all of the codes and numbers and blah blah blah to ring stuff up. Then this lady and her husband started screaming at each other right in front of my till, complete with the man picking up a neckerchief slide and throwing it down on the counter, then storming out. *sigh* So awkward. And rather frightening. It reminds me of how my parents sometimes acted last year, but it was always at home and my mom did the throwing.

Filled up the gas tank for the third time in my life for a grand total of $19.73. Sweet sauce. And went to the mall after picking up my sisters from their junior high school, where they saw the school play "Alice in Wonderland". It was finished around 8:30, so we stopped by Christopher and Banks (no, they do not sell old lady clothes, Meghan :P) and I'll be going back because they've got pants on sale, which I need. Then we went to Bath & Body Works. Talk about allergy factory. I just go there to buy conditioner for my hair; it's the one time I totally spoil myself. *smirk*

Let's see, what else happened today...oh! I almost got hit while driving four times. And no, it was NOT my fault-they all ran red lights. Or stop signs. Grrr. But my sister was more mad than I was. Pretty funny.

Interesting tidbit that I overheard while at the mall:

Relationship Girl-I mean, he hasn't even kissed me yet. What kind of a relationship is that?
Friend-You base a relationship off of kissing?
R Girl-Sure.
Friend-*snort* Seriously, one kiss and pretty soon that's all you do.
R Girl-So?
Friend-Fine. If you want to be one of those stupid, slobber mouthed, soppy eyed girls on the cheer squad, that's all right with me. I'll just sit back and laugh.

I didn't hear the first girl's answer. I just thought it was funny. No offense to any slobber mouthed, soppy eyed cheerleaders out there. ;)

All in all it was a pretty good day. Mom hemmed my uniform pants for me, so thanks mom! Dad's sick, so Get Well Soon dad!

I'm done.

dress dancing...

So it's happened. My whole family has made it into the Wizard of Oz. I'm excited, but also saying good-bye to my summer. Auditions went all right. My voice cracked during my song due to my stupid walking pneumonia thing, which has reared its ugly head again during the recent cold weather. Other than that, it went great. My dad was amazing, as was my mom. My sisters are not amazing yet. Neither am I. We're still "yiddle" and not into our big voices yet.

When we got to auditions, we were numbers 112-116, and the number that was on deck was 78 or something. In other words, we had a long wait. I was so scared that I was literally shaking so hard that I could barely write down my name on the info sheet they gave us to fill out. And I know all the people I was auditioning for!!! :P After filling out the sheet, I sat rigid in my chair, eyes straight ahead, and trying not to throw up.

I, and my equally frightened sisters, were saved when the choreographer for the show asked if anyone wanted to try out for a part in the "Jitterbug" number. All three of us jumped at the chance, even though we were in dresses because we hadn't known that dance auditions would be on the same night. We learned a short, fast, three sets of eight routine and performed it for the choreographer. Meghan and I went together, and we did all right. It was hardest because it was fast, and we were stuck in dresses. I was lucky; I put leggings on under my dress right before we left. Meghan's skirt was sort of limiting and she kept getting stuck when the fabric would stretch too tightly around her legs. It was fun though, and none of us were nervous anymore. All that fear had just been danced out.

I still think it's funny how we were in dresses. We looked so silly, with our hair and make-up all nice and looking ready for church, sliding and kicking in time to "Ladies' Choice" from Hairspray. It was an interesting experience.

Spent the day in bed and sleeping/reading/playing Bubble Town on MSN. I've been so sick, and I hate it. My family (meaning the girls) were going to go to the General Young Women's Conference tonight in Salt Lake, but we couldn't go because I'm sick and so are both of my sisters. Now that the auditions are over, illness is no longer kept at bay. I guess we really were supposed to audition for it.

Is it just me, or does Robert Pattinson have a really strange sounding voice? It's not bad, just interesting.

piece of mind...

I need to find a piece of mind
'Cause mine's beginning to unwind.

I need a backup memory
'Cause most my thoughts keep leavin' me.

The mind I've got is such a bore.
It just don't work no more.

I was extremely close to falling asleep in Environmental Science. This popped into my head. Woot.

3.14159…

Yes, it’s Pi Day. And I have been looking forward to it for a very long time, even though my family is having chocolate cake instead of actual pie. It’s from Costco, so it’s one of those demon chocolate so-rich-and-huge-it-should-be-sent-to-prison cakes. I’m excited much.

So, for yesterday. It was a big day and a happy day for the most part. Slept through first period again because I had nightmares all night and didn’t sleep well (thanks for letting me stay home, mom). Went to second period and made a total fool of myself in front of the class as I stumbled over my pronunciation of the Spanish words while I present on Vasco, Spain. Interesting stuff happened in class, such as awkward sitting positions by certain individuals and rude jokes. Not to mention that the tape job that’s attaching the projector to the ceiling sort of doesn’t work anymore…that was bad.

Study Hall finally came around, and I left class to go meet up with the rest of Science Club to get ready to board the bus for UVU. Can you spell excited? I can! Yay! Anyway, I know Science Club sounds totally dorky, and it kind of is, but you’ll totally wish you were brave enough to admit your nerdiness when you read what we did. *snicker*

First off, they fed us aMAZING pizza. Seriously, the best pizza I’ve ever had in my life. AND we didn’t have to pay for it. Score!!! We did have to work for it, though. By sharing everything we knew about pressure and its relationship to volume and temperature. After we ate, we built something. Something awesome. And I mean really freakin’ awesome.

We built cannons. For reals. Not super dangerous ones that shoot projectiles hundreds of yards, though. Kind of a let down, but it was still fun. ;) No, we made cannons that shoot ping pong balls. How it works is you have this thing sort of like a turkey baster, you know the ones with the round bulb on the end? We removed the plastic tube and somehow inserted lamp lighters into the hole. The lamp lighters create sparks inside the bulb thing. Once it works, you then take a cigarette/fire lighter and press down on the button to release the butane gas. Don’t light the actual flame, that’s bad. Just the gas button. Then, hurry up and put squeeze your ping pong ball into the hole. Twist your flint striker and…

BANG!!!

Or pop, whatever works. Out erupts the ping pong ball, along with a lot of flames and smoke. Pretty cool, no? See, I told you it’s cool to be a nerd. You get to blow stuff up. With permission. :)

After we finished up with that, we toured the chemistry labs (they’ll get better) and some other parts of the school. Our first guide was really weird. ‘Nough said. The second guide was cool. He’s an English major, and his wife is a ballroom dancer. Next year he’ll be going to Exeter College, Oxford University. The one in ENGLAND. NOT FAIR!!!! Oh, well. I wish him all the best. My favorite part of the tour was the library. Can I just die and go to heaven? Oh, man, it was amazing. I know where I’ll be hanging out when I finish high school and actually go to college on a real campus. So stoked, man!

Went back to school, showed off my cannon to my Ceramics class, and then drove home. Went to work. It was Dustin’s birthday, and he brought donuts. I asked him why he brought treats for us on his birthday, and he said, “It’s like the kids in elementary school, how they bring treats. It makes me feel little.” Then I just had to mention that he’ll be a quarter of a century old next year. That got a groan and a smack on the shoulder. *smirk* Dustin is awesome.

While at work, I was in the faculty printing room when the door opened. Dustin came in, looked around, and let out a mock sob. “WHY are there so many printers in this school?!” he moaned. I asked if he had to turn them all off due to the energy budget cuts, and he said, “No. I printed something, and I don’t know which one it went to.” I started to laugh and he sighed, leaving the room. About two minutes later, the printer I was standing next to spit out a paper. It was the one Dustin was looking for! Funny, no? Well, I thought it was.

Finally able to go home, I ate dinner with my family (can’t remember what it was, dang it) and got ready to go see my high school’s version of “The Tempest”. Overall, it was much better than I expected, seeing as it’s a high school doing Shakespeare. I saw “Macbeth” two years ago when they did it. Did not make a good impression. Anyway, I was pleasantly surprised, except when we got “rained” on during the opening scene. THAT was annoying. There was someone in the back of the auditorium with a big water gun thing shooting it over everyone. Not cool, at all. That was the only thing I really didn’t like. Other than that, it was good. They had a raked stage (where they build up the stage and have stairs or a ramp leading up that the audience can’t see) and had covered it in sand. The set was super simple, with opaque sheet things hanging where the wings are at. It looked really good, and there weren’t any scene changes so it moved fast.

Then I went home. End of day.

TODAY!!!

Woke up, got dressed, and went to job interviews. Boy Scouts are weird. I’ve been offered a position at Scofield Boy Scouts Camp, but I have to think about accepting it. I’ll let you know what I decide. If I do, I’ll probably teach a couple of merit badge classes and/or work in the Trading Post (store). They also want me to be the camp artist (uh oh). That’s a frightening thought. I suck at art. They’ll find out, if I take the job.

I pretty much wasted the whole day after that. I’m still wasting it. I discovered Sorority Life on Facebook. Aka, I wasted my day. And now I’m getting redundant. Let’s just be done now, shall we?

I’m done. Redundancy at its finest, no?

Ohp, I forgot. I LOVE the Twilight soundtrack!!! Muse, Collective Soul, Paramore, Mutemath, Linkin Park, The Black Ghosts, and Robert Pattinson rock!!!

K. NOW I’m done. :)

Wait!! Today is Michelle's Birthday!!! HAPPY BIRTHDAY MICHELLE!!! (Dustin's sister, who I also work with)

today just sucks...

Not really, but it's sure felt like it. Nothing has been going right. That, too, is a "not really" statement, but again, it's felt like it. I mean, I didn't crash the car driving to and from school and work, and I didn't break the vacuum at work again, but still...today has just sucked.

Last night, SN Mutual was really fun. I didn't teach (yay!); we had a visiting ward come. One of the youth counselors broke his wrist doing the obstacle course that was set up, but other than that nothing very exciting happened. Sheleena wasn't there, so I was sort of bummed out. The girl I was partnered with for the evening really didn't like me, because I wasn't "her Tara," so she deliberately was difficult. It went from locking herself in the boys' bathroom (awkward) to popping balloons to make kids cry to shoving me down the stairs. She was not happy that her buddy was gone and I was there as a sub. Oh, well. I helped put tables away afterwards and got complimented on how "tough" I am by the male leaders. That's right. :) And they gave us rice krispy treats (my FAVORITE!!!). And David, the kid I carpool with, got accepted to BYU. Yay, David!

Skipped first and second period today because I felt awful. I slept until 10:30 and got ready for school, only to find out that Misty had found candy somewhere and had thrown up in the bathroom. Great. It was lovely. Then science was boring, but interesting at the same time. Some parts of nuclear fission are fascinating, and then there are other parts that put me to sleep. Hit me with a nuetron when I get tired, okay? Maybe I'll be able to "split" the parts of me that are tired and interested so they work in different parts of my brain and I can do both at once. Sheesh.

Lunch was good. I like eggrolls. A lot. My fortune cookie was kind of a downer though. "Don't continually look to the future for success when happiness is right beside you." Looooooooonnnnnnggggg foooooorrrrttuuuuunnneeee coooooooooookieeeeee. I've been chastised again.

My Ceramics project is NOT going the way I want it to. I kept getting dizzy in class and knocking it over or bumping into the new pieces so they fall off. Then everyone was laughing at me because I didn't understand what their jokes were. Like, for example, they kept doing this obnoxious "That's what she said" thing over and over again and I didn't get why they were all laughing. And we had a sub, so the kids sort of took advantage of that. Ugh. Today was dumb. Stupid project, stupid people, stupid me.

Got to see Michelle and Dustin at work, and I took the poster that Mr. Dashner signed for the school library to Mrs. Loosli. She was so excited, and she hung it up next to the signed poster of one of the Fable Haven books. Neatorama. Oh, and while I was at work, some random person kept texting my mom's phone (which I had in case of emergency). They kept telling me to meet them at a certain address near BYU and asking me what my name was, how old I was, et cetera. Text after text, no time to answer. Finally I got sick of it going off, so I texted back and told them if they wrote one more time I'd give their number to the cops. No more texts.

To be perfectly honest, I feel horrible. My friend Coty was going to come over tonight to watch a movie, but I started to feel super sick again. And it snowed. I mostly feel bad right now because I've been a bit of a monster to the family, but I said sorry. I was super frustrated with Meghan (as usual) and so was Amanda. So was mom, though. Meghan wouldn't put her clothes away and wouldn't help with the dishes. Then Buddy ate Misty's food (again), and I put too many clothes in the washing machine. No major problems, just that weird whomp noise. Mom took care of it, so it's all good. Now mom and Amanda are watching a movie and Meghan's doing stuff in her room. That has been our day. Woot.

Remember that science test I was all nervous for? Well, I got a 25/26 on the free response section and a 21/22 (I think that's what it's out of now) on the multiple choice. Yay! :D

I've tried to make some of it positive. Really, I did. But I don't know how well it worked. This could be one of my ranting, whining journal entries that no one will want to read because it's so lame. Today's just been bad. I do feel better now. It's all gone, out into the void. Kapoot. Yes.

I'm done. Holy cow, that's long. If you read the whole thing, type 990. Lol, sorry Jacoby!

oasis...

For some strange reason, I have felt awash with new ideas. Not for writing and poetry and things, but for art. It's like walking through a barren mind and suddenly stumbling upon a well of deep and interesting thoughts. I keep having visions of sculptures and drawings popping into my head, and it's all I can do to sketch them fast enough to look like how they are in my head. Maybe it has something to do with meeting James Dashner or something. Or maybe it has something to do with these new meds the doctors have me on. I dunno.

I do know that part of it has to do with feeling closer to the Spirit these past couple of days. I've been trying harder to do what blessings have told me. This video explains it better than me. It's President Uchtdorf (spelling?)speaking about creativity. Pretty cool, if you ask me.

let me die now...

OMGOSH!!!! JAMES CHRISTENSEN SIGNED MY SKETCHBOOK AT THE LIBRARY TONIGHT AFTER HE TOLD ME HE LIKED MY DRAWINGS!!! AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!

Phew. Okay, now that that's done, I will explain:

Tonight at the library, James Christensen, internationally known artist, gave a free lecture. I went with my family instead of going to mutual, and listened as he spoke about some of his paintings and his new book, "Men and Angels". I have always loved his art and was so excited for this opportunity to meet the man.

Well, I didn't realize that he is older, so I walked right past him when I got there. Stupid of me, really. But, it was fine in the end. After standing in line for an hour and ten minutes (my sisters and I were butted repeatedly, but I was too afraid to say anything and wouldn't let them either for fear of being yelled at), we made a new friend. Coleman is his name, and he lives in our area/Stake. He's a few years younger than me, but he's SUPER smart, totally artistic, and a budding writer. So, all of us hit it off immediately. It was so nice to talk to this boy. Coleman is my new brother. He doesn't know it yet, but he is.

After standing in line for a long time, we finally made it to the table where Mr. Christensen was signing people's books and papers. I had my sketchbook with me, and some little scraps of paper that I'd found. When I got to the table with Coleman and my sisters, we all started freaking out. "Oh my gosh, he's right there! Right there! He's going to sign our stuff, can you see him? Ah!" et cetera. One of the ladies told me it was fine that I was excited, but please don't faint. I replied, "I won't. He's not cute enough to faint over." I only meant my sisters and Coleman and his mom to hear it, but the ladies and even Mr. Christensen heard me. *gulp* Oops.

He signed my book anyway, after teasing me a bit and looking over my sketches. He told me that they looked good and not to worry about reality styles; each person draws differently and who cares what other people say? When he signed his name, he wrote "Work Hard!" underneath it, winked, and handed it back to me.

*sigh* I'm so happy.

And Q, I learned how to hyperlink. YAY!!!

practice...

Here are some pictures that I found on the Internet that I want to practice drawing. I find it a lot easier for me to copy elements of a drawing (hand shape, trees, figures, etc.) than to visualize it in my own head. I'm not very good at seeing a picture in my head. If it's a movie that I'd like to shoot, a story to write, or a song to sing, it comes easily. But if it's a drawing, a sculpture, or something of the like, it helps if I have references.

The website where I found most of these is http://www.peterpracownik.com/index.html.









There are a ton more that I want to play with, but I have to get up the confidence to actually start sketching. I'm horrid at drawing and such, but I want to be good at it.

cabin fever...

I FINALLY got out of the house today. I've been going nuts to see something other than my messy house. It was for school, but heck, one of my favorite places on Earth was the location!!!

My sister and I had the opportunity for extra credit in our science classes, and of course we were going to take it! The public library (I ADORE the library) is having a series of lectures on different sciences. Tonight I drove Meghan and myself over to the library, and we had a lovely time learning about Forensic Sciences and Crime Scene Investigation. I took some notes to show my teacher, and I'll be going to three or four more. Excited!!!

While at the library, I ran into Suzzie. I love that girl so much. She's amazing! We looked at books together and each recommended some. I think I handed her one or two, and she handed me four or five. We both love to read, but she's read a greater variety than I have. I'm excited to try the books she gave me.

Now I need advice: my chest has been hurting a lot. Each time I cough, sharp pain runs through my chest, and it's getting harder and harder to breath. Should I or should I not go to the doctor again?

cough, cough...

I cannot stop coughing. Seriously. I don't know what this is, but it's stupid and I want it to go away. NOW!!!

Last night was fun. I went to SNM and saw my buddy, Sheleena. During the group activity, we made "iPods." I put quotations around that because, well, this is how it works. The only songs that they play are sappy Valentunes such as "Call Me, I'm Yours, Hot Stuff," and "Chill Out, Be Mine, Luv U." The earbuds are shaped like candy kisses. Get it yet? Yep. We MADE them out of conversation heart boxes, paper, stickers, yarn, and Hershey's kisses. What you do is this:

1. Tape two pieces of white or black yarn to the back of the candy heart box.
2. Fold the paper around the box and tape it closed.
3. Stick one large round sticker on the lower side of the box for the dial, and a rectangular one on the top for the display.
4. Tape two Hershey's kisses to the end of the yarn.

There you have it. Your iPod Valentune is ready to go! It was really fun. The special needs girls were lining up hearts, and us buddies would read them out loud for their "song." One girl was all excited to share her song with the group, but another Downs girl sitting next to the girl reached over to the line of hearts, scooped them into her hand, and popped them into her mouth. The girl with the song screamed out, "She just ATE my SONG!!!" The culprit chewed slowly and hung her head. She took her own iPod out of her coat pocked and handed it to the singer. "You can have mine," she whispered. The singer looked at it and said, "That's okay. I don't even like this candy." It was really cute.

Blargh, I'm coughing again. I hate this crap, whatever it is. I missed most of History today because Mr. Carpenter was tired of me interrupting his lecture with my incessant coughing. I spent most of the class period in the bathroom coughing. I did get to a phone and mom was able to bring some cough syrup (not Niquil, but just as bad if not worse). That helped.

I really, really, really want to get better.

top heavy...

Who knew that hair could actually be heavy? Yes, I got my hair cut. My ends were so horribly split. I've been trying to get my mom to take me to get my hair cut for the past two years, and I've run out of patience. My dad and I were running errands and stopped by Harmon's to pick out a birthday card for Tony (he turns 18 tomorrow). Great Clips is right next door, and we just decided to stop in. Bing! My hair was done half-an hour later. The girl had to take off about eight inches, because I had an accident with some scissors a year ago so it was uneven. And my ends were split and fraying all the way up to the even part. Yay! It feels so good. And now that it's cut, it means that it will grow faster. I'm so happy.

The flower I got for Tony is so pretty. And I got a sketchbook for Ceramics, along with a set of sketch pencils and three new candles. Yes, I love candles. Oh! I vacuumed the van today, and it was the first time I've ever done it with a giant vacuum at a gas station. It was so cool! Took me eight minutes though, so it was two dollars. I got stuck in between the seats and my time ran out. I was glad that no one was around and that my dad had gone into the station to get a drink.

please leave a message after the tone?

The phone keeps ringing and ringing over and over again and no one is ever on the other end. It's starting to bother me a lot. I still answer it though, just in case it's some robber or someone who's trying to see if no one is home. Maybe I'll do a man's voice next time. *smirk*

Ceramics is turning out to be okay. I'm better at Woods. Then again, I was pretty horrid at Woods the first week. I guess I just need to learn more. We started working on pencil holders today. I got the entire main body of the vase finished, and next class period we'll start doing something else with them. I think we'll be adding the foot (bottom that sticks out a bit) and the lip (thing that goes around the top of the vase). Then we have to attach something to the vase (the example had a dragon attached to it) and carve in a design of some sort. Oh, and we also have to cut something out of it (like a window in the above example which the dragon is looking into). It'll be interesting. I just can't think of what exactly I want to do with mine.

Mr. Steadman is a lot better to be around when he is actually working on something or teaching students. He seems to be sort of a nervous person who needs to be doing something with his hands a lot. The one really bad thing about the class so far: we have to do a bunch of different sketch book assignments. I cannot draw. "Anyone who can hold a pencil can draw," Steadman says. Well, a monkey can hold a hammer and hit someone in the head with it but miss the nail. Yeah. I suck. *sigh* Does anyone know where I can find a nice sketch book?

So I was up late (again) doing homework for science. We started a new class, because technically the full year class is divided into two different units of study. Last semester we focused on Environmental Geology, and this semester we are doing Environmental Science (I did not know that until Monday). The homework questions are a lot harder this time. In the previous textbook (we got new ones, nice hardcover with a snowy evening and wolves on it. arooooooo!), the questions all had the page numbers marked next to them so you could find the references easily. This textbook makes you actually think logically about the answer you will write. You can't just look up a definition. You have to state your opinion. It takes a lot longer to do. Anyway, I did the homework last night. When I got to my Spanish class, I realized that I had done the WRONG chapter!!! Um, I thought I was pretty much screwed, so I did Chapter 1 in class. Grand total: 6 pages. Number of questions: 6. Mhmmmmm. Painful.

Vacuum got clogged again at work. Stupid bobby pins. They're the same color as the carpet, so I don't even know that they're there until the red light goes on and the vacuum starts spitting dirt everywhere. So my pants were covered in clay and dirt. I must be turning into some sort of seacoast or something. The lunch ladies at school, oh pardon me, I mean the Centennial Child Nutrition Program, gave me a loaf of bread for my birthday, which isn't until...yeah. It's not today. And the principal, aka the boss of my boss, gave me movie tickets. In December. Meaning I've all ready used them. And yes, I went to see "Twilight." SQUEE!!! Amazing. Loved it. And the bread tastes really good. So soft and yummy.

K, I'm done now.

so.....

bored. i am not even comprehending how bored i am. i am so not comprehending it that i can't even type with capitol letters anymore. or capital. i can never remember which one stands for which word.

my parents are "discussing" right now. in very loud voices. i'm starting to feel like violet. my parents are always arguing, my annoying little siblings can both run faster than me, and i wish i were invisible. only difference is that i can't be invisible.

wow, my feet are cold. and my dog is laying on me. she's a very warm puppy. i love my puppy. she has this pink little tongue that gives amazing kisses. whenever i cry, she always hops onto my lap and kisses my tears away. if i don't stop after awhile, she whines and puts her paws on my cheeks, like she's cradling my face. her eyes get all soft and worried, and she cocks her head to one side and licks my nose. it's like she's telling me that everything is all right, and that she loves me and she's there for me.

i think i want to message david archuleta on myspace and thank him for his album. i got it for christmas, and the songs on it really mean a lot to me. trouble is, will he actually get it, and will he just laugh? i guess it doesn't really matter. he doesn't know who i am, so if he laughs who cares! i think i will.....if i'm not too lazy.

my table looks so pretty. see? it's made out of alder and some sort of orangey-red wood that i forget the name of. it looks red because of the lacquer and finish that i put on it, a natural color is what i chose. the black edging in the mosaic top stinks really bad when you put it on. it's like tar, but it smells toxic. i think it is, actually. my teacher says it's called bondo, but my supervisor says that you only use that stuff for metal. oh well. i love it. i love it so much i even took pictures to share with you. here's how it turned out:




the drawer even opens!!!






yes, i know. it's pretty much amazing. i love it. next year, or sometime in college, i hope to make an armoir to match. yay. i love woods. be proud of me, q. i'm going to admit that i'm good at something. I AM GOOD AT BUILDING THINGS!!! yay.

Festival of Trees

I got to go to Festival of Trees twice this year! It's held in the Sandy Expo Center in Salt Lake (ish) every year as a benefit for the Primary Children's Hospital. The first time I went was on Wednesday with my family. I saw pretty much all of the trees and all of the gingerbread houses, including the Twilight one with Edward in the tree outside and the five foot tall Wellington Castle replica. My favorite tree was made out of blown glass. COMPLETELY made of blown glass. It was absolutely amazing! My other favorite tree was, of course, the Twilight one. And then the one that was a Candy Land Castle. And an angel tree. And...yeah. I liked it a lot.

The next day I went during school with FBLA. So much fun. I spent most of my time making crafts, and the favorite one I did was a teddy bear for a child who has to spend Christmas in the hospital. At the festival, you can purchase a bear for five dollars to decorate and donate for a kid. I picked a white, bespectacled bear and dressed him up. I put on a red cap with a yellow rick-rack border, a red ribbon tie, and two yellow buttons on his tummy. I named him Artie. He was adorable, and we ended up on the news together! Horror of horrors, because I HATE the way I look, but Artie made up for it. I hope the kid who gets him likes him.

I love Festival of Trees. Decorating bears, coloring and painting ornaments, getting my face painted, looking at trees. It all makes me so happy. I wish it happened more often. But then it wouldn't be as special, I guess.