To Keep Above Water

So yaaaaay I'm posting. When I should be doing school, especially since I took a break midway through the school day to go to the movies hehe. I went to see Inkheart with Lily...I think Ethan's tee shirt sums it up:

http://www.facebook.com/photo.php?pid=986017&op=7&o=global&view=global&subj=824461257&id=724350670

Yeah. -_- Since I don't think any of you guys have read the book, it would be pointless for me to point out all the flaws of this film, so I'll spare you...I guess it was just cool to do something with just Lily for once. Although I embarrassed her horribly (of course) during the previews before the movie by singing random lalala's during silent moments and clapping gleefully during the Cartoon Network commercial. She was sufficiently mortified. ^^

On Saturday there was a surprise birthday party for Marinda. We went to the beach and then back to her house. It was a good time; I think Marinda was blessed a lot that we thought of her (or rather Michelle did and got us in on it...anyway). :)

I'm supposed to write a current events editorial this week. Any ideas of a big deal topic I can "imo" on? I'm so sick of reporting on the newest mess-up President Obama is doing to "save" America.

A question that has been bouncing around in my head for a while: why are many atheists moral?

My hair looks nasty!

I haven't brushed it yet today and I look like a cavewoman lol.

Today I had to do the impossible in writing class...write a positive paragraph about Barack Obama. It was painful. But thankfully, I got to undo all that in a second paragraph that squashes him flat! XD

We finished Fellowship of the Ring yesterday. Twin Towers is next! ;) hehe Jeff. I'm getting grumpier and grumpier all the time thinking about Megsie having an 8-5 job. -_- It's not what I would have done. Oh well, she's happy about it, so that's all that matters, right?

My finger can almost bend all the way now! Not quite, but by the time I get the stitches out next week, I'll be a-ok! *knock on wood* :D

Tonight is the Ladies' Christmas Party. Yes, I know it is January. But with all that yucky snow (OH THAT'S RIGHT I said yucky) last month, we never got to have it. :( Hooray!

I've been assigned to write a summary of Philippians. Today I started on the first chapter, and it stuck out to me how much Paul absolutely LOVES those people! Such an admonishment to me; I mean, I love you guys to death, but read this:
http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=philippians%201;&version=50;
That's real love.

My family is driving me insane. But I guess that means I should read Philippians 1 again, right? >.<

Szechuan BURNING

Mom brought home the leftover Szechuan chicken and it's burning my lips like crazy! 8( Oh well, at least the dinner I made at HOME was good. Pasta alfredo with mushrooms. Yummy stuff (even though Lily said it was yucky). ^^

The bandage is off my finger, and now I'm looking at a nasty jagged line of stitches. Plus the finger is swelling up. Plus there's a couple weird bluish spots. I guess you probably didn't want to know about my creepy finger problems...sorry. XP

Today school was super-easy again, which I'm guessing it will be tomorrow too. Maybe these stitches aren't so bad after all. :) I'm counting down to the END of this school year...which means the end of high school!!! :D That's very exciting for me. Homeschooling has been a great experience, but it's starting to get to me. Being cooped up for so long can make a person crazy...jk (mostly). We already know that my fall into madness came quite a while ago, so the damage is done. :(

Mom and Dad went to dinner with the Gottwalds, who they hadn't seen for quite a while. Pray for Mike; his cancer is getting pretty advanced. Pray that he would find comfort in the Lord during his time left here.

While they were at dinner, I listened to a lot of music and chatted on Facebook with Jeff for most of the evening. That was pretty fun; now he's going to Albertsons so I'm here blogging...Bill also got a little crazy. She talks so funny online. X)

I think we're going to try to do something for a going-away type thing for Greg and Ethan on Sunday. I'm sorta counting on Ben reading this, since I forgot to call him today. And Jeff, you're invited too. Since you guys basically make up the extent of my readership (except for Washingtonians), I'll put the invite up here: we don't really know what we're doing yet, but we might hang out at my house or go to Park Lanes or something. Whatever we do, it won't be expensive. :) Do you want to come?

My fingers are so cold...breathing on them doesn't help. :'(

I printed off some piano music for Bill today. I got her Ice Dance, You Raise Me Up, and her favorite song...Harder, Better, Faster, Stronger! I hope she learns Ice Dance...Edward Scissorhands is one of the best movies ever. (Obligatory watch-with-someone-who-knows-the-scene-to-skip comment...)

Please sing me a song. I have Poker Face stuck in my head, and I think I've had about enough "mu-mu-mu-mah" for one day!

Campout tomorrow!!!

Yes I'm excited. Could you tell??? ☺☺☺☺☺☺☺☺☺☺☺☺☺☺☺☺Today was a MAD scramble to finish shopping for campout food. We loaded up three carts FULL at the grocery store. Then we stuffed it all in our little Civic. Then we unloaded it all at home. Then we loaded it all into Uncle Don's truck. Then we drove to the church and unloaded it there. And TOMORROW we load it up again and drive it up to Clearlake. Whew! But I'm still smiling! 8D
So I thought your Jeff's friend Ben was going to come on Wednesday to church too? But I suppose I misheard. Too bad, he was a really funny fellow.
I watched a movie today called Funny Girl. It's a musical with Barbra Streisand and Omar Sharif. Really good stuff. I know Streisand is kind of a nasty old weirdo in real life, but she's a really good actress. And outstanding singer. She and Dianne Weist are probably my favorite actresses. (Dianne Weist was the Avon lady in Edward Scissorhands and the evil queen in The 10th Kingdom.)
I finished packing today; it's amazing how much stuff I feel like I have to bring to a four-day trip! And I even tried to pack light this time! But what can I say: girls will be girls.
Since I'm going into my senior year of high school, it seems like everybody everybody EVERYBODY is asking me what my plans for the future are. Ugh, I don't like being reminded! How am I supposed to decide what I want as a "career" or whatever, when my ultimate goal is to get married and have kids, just like God designed. But I don't even know if I'll get that far. I mean, of course I want that; every girl I know wants that. But I just don't know if it could work. It's a little weird for me.
So I guess I should start thinking about my future on a practical level. College and work and all that lovely stuff. XP Not so lovely when I start thinking seriously about it. What's my problem? Megan wants to be a dental hygienist, Danna wants to be a nurse, Robyn's a hairstylist, Marinda wants to go into landscaping, and me? I'm completely aimless!!! Well, working with books has always sounded promising. If I could find an interesting line of work there. But it's scary to me to do anything important or to make any important decisions. I need discipline, that's what I need.

I'll think about it again after this marvelous weekend. See y'alls (or most of y'alls) tomorrow!☺☺☺☺☺☺

Agony!

Last night, I decided to try an experiment. A full 24 hours, midnight to midnight, with no eating. Sooo this morning I skipped breakfast. Not so hard. I'm also trying to drink lots of water (nothing else allowed). I don't like water very much.
So about noon (45 minutes ago) I started to really want food. But I will stick with it! No matter how hungry I get, I won't eat ANYTHING till tomorrow. Ugh this is hard...but I figured blogging might help. Complaining takes my mind off my tummy. :'(
I felt sort of out-of-place at church last night. Idk, it just seemed like whatever group I was in, I was the odd one out. *sigh* It happens to everybody I guess.
Mom's stopping at the movie store today, and I'm hoping she rents me Father of the Bride. Anything with Steve Martin and Martin Short has gotta be a winner. :D And it'll be another thing to keep me off the snacks.
Campout is in EIGHT days! That's awesome! I'm going to have so much fun at the mess hall, the gym, the docks, Strawberry Island, the hike, Vengeance Creek, the foosball room, the chapel, and everywhere else I go. :) Hey did you know that Calvin is bringing Eric to campout? That might be fun.
Well, I'm on my third glass of water. It's not fillin' me up. X'(

Aaaahhhh...Peace and Quiet

After two weeks of rubbing a cheese grater on my nerves, my cousin has gone back home. I did enjoy having him here, but two weeks is a long time. He kept saying stupid stuff like, "I am chocolate!" or "Good job," and patting me on the arm. I probably embarrassed him because I started shrugging him off and twitching away when he would pat my shoulder or whatever. It was just a little too much!

[Paragraph deleted]

Mommy's painting the family room. Shhhhhh it's a surprise for my dad! It actually looks really great; nice tan color with a little brown glow. And we're getting a bunch of bookshelves for our library. That I am REALLY excited about. Imagine: a whole wall, crammed with all kinds of books imaginable! You probably can't guess how important that is to me.
I have five books to read by the end of summer. That's not including the six I already read. I hope I get it all done! Maybe I'll finish really early and be able to cram in another one. Books are from heaven.

No title coming to mind

So Michelle spent the night after the party on the 4th. *sniff* They're going to Colorado for a couple weeks, so it'll be the last one for a while. I don't like it when friends leave, even for such a short time. Makes me depressed.

Anyway. After church, I went with Megan and her family to a park type thing. We were going to swim the creek, but it was c-c-cold! So we sat around the fire and ate Polish sausage. Quite a good backup plan. Her grandparents told us that marshmallows have pig fat in them! That is so weird and pretty GROSS.
I'm listening to a playlist I made called "Delightfully Cheesy Songs." It's so marvelous! It has stuff like Barry Manilow, N*SYNC, Styx, even Carman! hehe very very cheesy stuff. Right now it's playing Strange Magic by Electric Light Orchestra.

Ok, talk to you great people later.

Happy 4th of July!

So I've finished (I hope) helping prep the house for our party today. I am rather sad and depressed, though. I always love Independence Day parties at my house...but look outside! It's overcast, windy, and might even rain! That really makes me grumpy-faced.
I've seen Much Ado About Nothing twice in the last week, loving it both times! For those here not into Shakespeare (or those who have never tried it), I am sad for you. The tricks, the romance, the tragedy, the hilarity of MAAN is superb! Emma Thompson amazes me in everything I see her perform.
One final note on the interesting conversation my last post sparked: if I talk ceaselessly about movies and clothes, I am sorry. I will work on that.
I have a new project that is pure genius! Anybody who was at Wednesday night Bible study this week will probably know about my sticky-note project. I am having each one of my friends take a single yellow Post-It note and write or draw something on it. Each one of those is going on my ceiling! So far I have 13. So if you're reading this blog, that must mean you're my friend, right? So make me a Post-it note! No seriously.
Guess what I watched yesterday? Space Jam!

It's Time to Tell the World...

...that today is sunny! Yee-ha. Yesterday I vacuumed the car. Double yee-ha! I also watched Alice in Wonderland. Not the Disney cartoon...but the WAY better live action one. I think it was actually made for TV by Hallmark, but it's BAZOOOKA GREAT! If anybody's seen Napoleon Dynamite, you know the girl who plays Deb? She played Alice in this version when she was younger. I ♥ it.

Last Tuesday I had chicken adobo at the Tuesday Market, and now I'm addicted. It's a Filipino dish of really tender seasoned chicken over rice. They served me a heaping bowl for $5.50 and I scarfed it faster than anything. I got a recipe off the net and will make it sometime. Maybe some of you fine folks can come to my house and eat it with me! Huzzah!

I have a song stuck in my head. Care to share in my misery? It's Weapon of Choice by Fatboy Slim. Listen to it; you'll love it then hate it because IT NEVER LEAVES. Tony played it on our comp when they came for dinner Sunday. Speaking of which, I like the Varelas. Very very very nice people, and all of them hecka funny. Except it was too bad that Jordan couldn't come. He was at football camp or some such crap.

Here's the question of the day: why do children tattle? In my opinion, there are several possible explanations. What do you think?

Wow, the comment discussion really took off last post! I see both sides (even though you guys weren't really arguing, just discussing mostly) and I think maybe I didn't explain very well in my post...
Maybe I did read a little too much into the friendship between those two people, but I don't think so. What I saw was a young, pretty, Christian girl who met a young, handsome, unaved guy for lunch. It could've been innocent. But even so, "The heart is deceitful above all things and desperately wicked; Who can know it?" (Jeremiah 17:9) When you put yourself in that kind of position with a nonbeliever, it is very close to the edge.

So today I did a little work around the house...I guess it's too early to have much to say. Yesterday was a nice day, but I didn't get to spend much time outside. Not that church is a bummer!!! I had chili cheese fries from Carl's Jr. for lunch AND dinner by my own choice. I love that stuff!!
I'm rather disappointed because I wanted Lily to make applesauce cookies and she won't. I told her that nobody else will make cookies for the barbecue on Saturday, so she should. She wouldn't listen (as usual). WAAAH so I throw a fit.
I don't think I'm going to get to see Indy in theaters...Daddy keeps making plans on the days I want him to take me. Oh, well, DVDs aren't so bad.
Mommy's at the foot doctor. She really didn't want to go, but Dad, Lily, and I were insistent. I mean, she's been having pain in her foot for like a year! Time to see what's up with that.
I want some really rich ice cream, a Super Pretzel, a romantic comedy I've never seen before (preferably starring George, Johnny, or Will), and some money.
I should try to think of something to get Dad for Father's Day. Is it weird to ask someone what they want? Because he already told me what he wants, but I can't get that for him (it's $800)
I wrote a couple limericks this week. Remind me to post them sometime.
You know what would be fun? Ice skating! Anybody into doing that sometime soon?

Ok well this has been a nice little diversion for me, and a waste of your time. Shame on you! You could've been doing something productive! ;)

Makin' it quick...

I'm going to smack a rush post onto here because I have chores and crap to do.
Soooo yesterday my aunt came over to visit. This was cool because she lives in California and I hardly ever get to see her; we went to lunch (at Qdoba), had some tasty good stuff at Bella, then rented a movie. Also called Bella, interestingly.
The movie was good; pretty tragic, but really touching and poignant. I definitely recommend it. After that, she had to leave (lots of other relatives to visit), so I watched another movie. Lazy me, yes. After that, Daddy got home and we had dinner...then we watched another movie. Ok, so basically yesterday was a completely lazy day. But fun!
Right now Mom's gone to coffee with friends, and Lily's probably doing chores (like I'm supposed to). I just ate some chocolate and now I'm sitting here in my bathrobe being a lethargic loser. You'd think I'd be more remorseful...☻
I've been reading in the Bible about Solomon. He started off so well, and God was pleased with him. Then he screwed up big time as he got older. Sin is such an awful trap.

The Phantom of the Opera

I've been completely GORGING myself on the movie version of The Phantom of the Opera. I watched it Thursday, Friday, and Saturday, and I loved it each time! The music, which I'd of course heard before, still was effective and incredibly moving. The atmosphere of gothic beauty and eeriness was so gorgeously sensual!
Of course, my favorite part of the movie was the Phantom himself (his name is Erik, but the movie just names him as The Phantom). It really struck me that every time he sang to Christine, she went under this complete spell of attraction, even when she was terrified of him. I suppose I can identify with that...♥ The anger in his voice that was almost permanent was electrifying!
The other characters were a mixed bag. Christine Daae was beautiful and vulnerable and everything she should be. Her blend of youth and womanliness was lovely, and her voice--incredible! I could hardly believe that Emmy Rossum (the girl who plays her) was only 18 years old in this role!
Raoul, on the other hand, well...I wasn't so into him. There was something unmistakably feminine about that ridiculous haircut, and it bothered me intensely that he was so skeptical about the very existence of the Phantom. He seemed to automatically assume that Christine was a fanciful child who believed in fairytales--and yet she was so quick to fall in love with the "insolent boy, this slave of fashion"! But in the end, I suppose I must support his unfailing goodness. But what can I say; I'm a girl who loves the bad boys.
The entire movie was a feast, plain and simple. I can't recommend it to men, in that there is an excessive amount of low-cut dresses. But it's a chick flick anyways, so, girls, indulge yourselves in the music of the night.

Next Movie to See

I know everyone has seen these, but JUST IN CASE...
Watch The Lord of the Rings. They are quite possibly the masterworks of film creations. Of course, due to their length, you'll want to make time and plan ahead. Don't just cut it off in the middle, it totally ruins it (unless you've already seen them, and in that case, why are you reading this?)
I don't even need to describe them here. You just watch/rent/BUY them. You'll thank me later.

Not supposed to be here...hehe

I'm seriously supposed to be in school right now...but I'll just make this post first.

So, uh, here I am, same kid as always. Everything is the same. Robbie comes and goes, Michelle is in deep trouble, Bryan needs some serious butt-kicking but he'll never get it, Megan is my bff, and family is nice I guess. I pretty much stand back and watch other people go through life and all that crap.

The district church conference was great great great!!! Pastor Ray preached a beautiful sermon on prayer from Psalm 119, and I teared up at one point. There was sumo wrestling (you know, where people dress up in those huge vinyl costumes and smash each other), which was HILARIOUS. There was a nice big inflatable slide that I loved! There was food but I didn't eat very much. I met two people, one of them from Canada! She was cool.

Ummmm, let's see, what's interesting. OMG I AM HAVING SERIOUS STAR WARS CRAVINGS. Not even kidding here, I was getting ready for school this morning and I just all of a sudden started wanting to see some serious Hoth battles or something. Yeaaah, Hoth sounds really good right now. *whimper*

I saw Ocean's 13. OH MY GOSH. George Clooney is...is...well he's just the most handsome man I have ever seen in my life. There's a scene where Rusty and Danny are watching Oprah...you gotta see it, it's the sweetest thing ever.

I really should go back to school...

Hey guess what I found in our coat closet?!? On the top shelf...hidden away...I found my old purple newsboy cap and my Happy Bunny sweatshirt!!! I had a good laugh over that one. (for anybody who doesn't know, my parents took away my hat about 5 years ago. I always assumed they got rid of it, but it's been in the closet the whole time! Same story with the sweater about 3 or four years ago.) So I stuck my infamous gray dress up there, and sometime I'm going to wear them all at once and completely scare my dad. Probably on my 18th birthday when he publishes the princess picture...

Next movie everyone HAS to see: Life is Beautiful. Just make sure you get it with English dubbing (unless you know Italian). It's a really great movie that I know you will love.

Watch this Movie

Yes, yes, I know that my last post was about a movie. But you know me, I love 'em.
So I've been compiling a list of movies I think everyone should watch. They're almost all clean, because I don't watch raunchy stuff. Soooo here's the first one. I want everyone reading this to go out and rent...

The Lion King.

A kids movie? Yes. A cartoon? Yes! A classic Disney film that completely captures the essence of what we want from an all-ages film? Yes, yes, yes! If you've never seen it, don't knock it till you watch it. The songs are beautiful (written by Tim Rice and Elton John), the story is compelling, the animation is expressive, and the characters are sublime.

If I remember, I shall post a new movie next week.

The Thief and the Cobbler

Allow me to tell you a story I found intriguing, beautiful, and happily-ever-after all the way.

Once upon a time, there was a marvelous man named Richard Williams. He had much prestige from all around the world for his work in animation. Richard Williams had a dream.

He had a dream to direct, right, and animate the greatest animated film in the history of mankind! It was to be magical, beautiful, eyepopping and grand. Taken from old tales in the Arabian lore, it was a tale of young Tack, the poor cobbler, and the nameless thief, who together but quite separately saved The Golden Kingdom.

So, Richard Williams began his work in 1964. For 26 years he worked and let it lie dormant, unknown to the world. Then, in 1990, Richard's dreams began to come true. He signed a deal with Warner Brothers for his film to be distributed!

Alas, such a perfect situation was not to be. He couldn't finish the film on time, and Warner Brothers removed him from production and put it in the hands of a less able person, Fred Calvert. Fred attempted to fill in the gaps and the movie was officially released in 1991.

Horrifically, the film had been butchered. Much of the beauty and feeling was gone, replaced by cheap jokes and dialogue appreciated only by children. The movie was met with unsurprisingly little success, and was all but forgotten in subsequent years.

But the story does not end with this tragic turn. Fans and those who knew Richard's true intent for the film resolved to restore, as much as possible, The Thief and the Cobbler to its original and incredible state. The internet gathered movie buffs and collectors who submitted their rare footage of the original movie to one project. It included everything from complete movie sequences to simply storyboards that never even had a chance to be animated.

After much work and time, the movie was complete. Released on the net for all to see it the way it was meant, there was rejoicing in the streets! Well, not exactly...most of the world had never even been introduced to this masterwork of Richard Williams's.

I saw the released version as a child. I was satisfied with it, not knowing or caring that it was simply a mangled version of what it should be. Today I watched the REAL Thief and the Cobbler on Google Video. My eyes practically popped out of my head at the beautiful animation and tender characters. For anyone who watches it, pay careful attention to the checkered halls in the castle. It's a delicious illusion just to watch it. And the climax of the movie is very near the end, with the One Eye army's hellish war machine. Scary as anything you'll ever see, and yet terribly beautiful in its own right. I beg you not to miss this treat.

Let it be known that this movie is out there! I've included the link to the full film. Although sometimes the storyboard parts rob from the mood, you'll get used to it. If you've ever seen the officially released version, you MUST see this one. Don't miss it.

http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-2263043366719734101