A Typical December Day

Well, Christmas time is here.

Today, a very full day, acts as a perfectly accurate sample of the busyness of this season. This morning, two friends of mine and I went together  to see my brothers perform at "The Bird's Christmas," an event put on by a local garden/park each year. It opens up with the performance of a violin guild (in which my brother's play) which, this year, was followed by a choir singing Christmas songs. Probably the most interesting aspect of this event is the presence of an abundance of furry creatures. This year, they had three penguins, a dinosaur, Smokey the Bear, a squirrel, and Santa, along with Mrs. Clause.

Smokey the Bear terrorized my poor friends.

As we stood under shelter from the rain, innocently chatting about the performance, the animals, etc., one girl called Loraine teased Madalynn about the dancing bear, asking, "What would you do if he randomly came over and started dancing with you??" "Oh my gosh," the poor girl answered, "I'd be terrified!" Well, I suppose it is true that what goes around comes around. Almost immediately after her innocent joke, the poor Loraine was given a taste of her own medicine when Smokey came over and began dancing with her!!! He didn't ask, just grasped both hands and took to twirling.

A little later, Madalynn left to drink some water from the fountain. After waiting a while for her return, Loraine and I became anxious. "What if," I suggested, "the bear kidnapped her??" "Oh my gosh!!" Loraine answered, not really taking me seriously, but a little apprehensive just the same, "Wait, there he is. He doesn't have her." "Unless he stuffed her inside that bear costume..." "OH MY GOSH! That might be why it sticks out so much!" "Loraine! Are you calling Madalynn FAT?!"

After coming home from the gardens, eating some soup, and stopping at Chick-fil-A for milkshakes, Loraine drove me to a friend named Linda's so we could help out with her science experiment. Little did we know just what we were in for....An entire cup of black coffee!!!! EWWW!!!! A girl named Shelly thought it so disgusting, her face began to turn green. We were then given 30 seconds to memorize the contents of a box (ipod, stapler, rubber ball, feather, etc.) and a minute to try and write them all down after the box was covered. Much harder than it sounds!

Only one guy, named Jeremiah (who I teasingly call Amy), showed up. This made for an interesting afternoon when we watch the Ellen DeGeneres show. One guy in a roomful of girls watching a lesbian interview a blonde wearing J Lo's fake bangs...An experience I'll never forget. Eventually, we opted to switch to watching Monster's Inc.

After the coffee tasting, the day ended with a cookie decorating party, and a game of 10's and 2's. I decorates a bell covered in chocolate chips, a stocking lined with pearls, and a beautemous Christmas tree. I then ate them before I had any supper. Win? I think yes.

So today ended up quite a fun day! Scary bears, nasty coffee, fake bangs, a guy named Amy, and a pearl-lined stocking. Abbbbsolutely.

I'm back!.... I think.....

"Last post: January 30, 2011." Wow.... Almost a year has passed since I last posted to my blog. This fact seems rather disturbing, rather sad, and rather in need of rectification!! Much like my fingernails which need to be clipped and my muscles which need to be exercised, this blog needs to be written on and my writer's brain needs to write on it.

I have looked back at my posts from last year, and realized that they are.... not excellent. Never fear, however! I will rectify this additional rather sad fact in the near future. :) I intend to begin writing, readable posts worthy of being read on a semi-regular basis. I hope to post one or two times per week, so come back and see me! The subjects of these posts will, most likely vary greatly. Some will consist of book reviews or movie reviews. Others will describe (in my charming, witty style)  humorous incidents that occurr between me and family members or friends. And still others will contain my little insights on the world, religion, politics, etc. (These insights may be few and far between, but they will hopefully be worth reading and enjoyable whether or not you happen to agree with me.) :)

However, today's post will fit into none of these categories. No, today I will introduce myself. The sparkling creature standing before you contains several ingredients including some slight obsessions, some hobbies, some quirks, flippy hair, probably a pair of blue jeans, a smile (if you catch me on a good day), and a bit of caffeine.

Slight obsessions: Actually, I'll start with a not-so-slight-obsession. Music. Classical, country, pop, rock, folk, and even a bit of rap and a smidge of screamo. Artists that I like dislike live in every genre. I play piano, and I like to sing, though I'm not terribly good at it. I'm learning, though! :) Slight obsession #1, related to music: my fascination with country artist Taylor Swift. I love her music, her lyrics (which sound more like poetry), her personality, and her perfectly curled hair. I won't bore you with an ongoing description of her poetic genius and musical capabilities, seeing as the January 30 post right beneath this one does just that. All I'll say is that she writes her own music, she sings it well, she plays guitar and piano and several other instruments. And she's won the CMA twice, in addition to breaking countless records. You personally may not like her, but she has earned your respect.

More slight obsessions: #2, The TV show Gilmore Girls. I can quote all 7 seasons almost beginning to end. I love the witticisms, the cultural-references, the character development and relationships (not just boy/girl, but mother/daughter, best friends, other friends, and even enemies). #3, The Anne of Green Gables series. I've loved them as long as I can remember, and have read the countless times. Again, I can quote all 8 books almost from beginning to end. It tell the story of a girl's life, from a child to a growing adult. From falling in love, to losing a child, to becoming the mother of a large family, to the story of her 16 year old daughter. #4, Harry Potter. I only began reading the books last year, but I finished all and watched all of the movies, and am now proud to call myself a "Potterhead." #5, the band Relient K. #6, Christmas lights. #7, Glitter. #8, Curly hair. #9, snow-covered trees. #10, Word games. #11, Nutcrackers. I could go on and on, but I'll now move on to...

Hobbies: # 1, I love to read. I read everything from Shakespeare to Beverly Cleary to Jane Austen to J. K. Rowling. I read every night before I go to sleep. Books, in addition to music, serve as my escape from the world and its troubles. When I return to reality, I have renewed strength to face my fears. #2, I love to write. I've always loved English more than any other subject. I enjoy the writing assignments for school, I like journaling, and I've even made some attempts at a novel. So far none successful, but I did produce a short story! And even my failed attempts have been thoroughly enjoyable. #3, I like making things. I crochet, I knit, I sew, I craft. Anything that produces either something useful from something that wasn't, or something pretty from something ugly.

Quirks: #1, I always wear socks, and they never match. My feet seem to always feel freezing, so in the winter, I often wear multiple pairs of socks, and I change them regularly. From September to March, I usually go through 5 or 6 pair per day. #2, When I type a letter of a password wrong, I delete the whole thing. Not just that letter. #3, I generally say "My pleasure" instead of "Your welcome" in response to "Thank you," mostly because I work at Chick-fil-A and it becomes a habit... #4, When I eat Skittles or M&M's, I start with sorting them into colors. I then do one of two things. Either I eat the ones I like least first, and the ones I like best last or I find the largest pile and eat accordingly until all piles are equal; then, I eat mouthfuls at a time containing one candy of each color until they're gone. #5, I have an insane sensor for spiciness in food. If you put a teaspoon of Tabasco sauce in a gallon of soup, I will most definitely notice. #6, I laugh out loud and show animated facial expressions in response to books I read or conversations going on in my head.

Well now that you're adequately acquainted with me and my writing style, I hope you'll come back and continue to hear what I have to say! :) I'll post again soon. Hopefully.

Taylor Swift: Speak Now

I know this will shock a lot of people, but I kind of like Taylor Swift. I might be just a little obsessed with her. ;-) Here's a review on her new album. Enjoy!

Speak Now is quite possibly Taylor Swift’s best album so far. Not only are almost all the songs better than her others, but the collection of the 13, the way they’re arranged… It’s perfect. I stayed up till midnight and paid $15 for the album. It was worth ever penny.

Mine
Inspired not by a real story, but a real moment, a real vision, Mine is one of my favorite songs. It tells the story of a young girl whose parents never had a good relationship. In the beginning she is “Wondering why we bother with love, if it never lasts.” Then she meets a guy, he treats her well, and things work out. Towards the end of the song they [SPOILER ALERT!] have a fight, and when she’s “bracing herself for the good-bye,” he says he’ll never leave her alone.

Taylor says the song was inspired when she was sitting by a river with a guy that she liked but didn’t know very well, and he suddenly put his arm around her. “I saw the entire relationship flash before my eyes, almost like some weird science-fiction movie,” She says, “After I wrote the song, things sort of fell apart, as things so often do. That day I got an email from him. And I was like"-she claps her hands-" ‘Yes!' Because that one was sort of half-confession, and half-prediction or projection of what I saw. And the fact that it came across so clearly to that guy that he would email me meant that I had been direct enough."

Sparks Fly
This song describes the feeling, too often mistaken for love, of “Spark” of “Fireworks.” Two lines from the chorus, “Take away the pain/’Cause I see sparks fly whenever you smile” is a perfect example of the feeling every girl has when she’s with a guy who gives her butterflies.

The subtle line “My mind forgets to remind me that you’re a bad idea” gives the song more of a feeling of regret, if you remember it when you’re hearing about the happy moments they shared.

Back to December
This song is Taylor apologizing to (I believe) Taylor Lautner for the way she treated him. She said that “This guy was wonderful to me in a relationship, and I didn’t handle it the way I should’ve.” She admits that she’s never apologized to someone in a song before, but says that he really deserved it and she always tries to give people what they deserve in a song.

The song is absolutely beautiful, but beware if you’re emotional and listening to it in a public place. It’s quite the tear-jerker. ;-) It’s just so sad that she broke-up with him even though she loved him, and now she can’t go back and change it.

Speak Now
I was surprised at first that Taylor named the album after this one. It’s a neat song, but to me it seemed sillier than naming potential. One of the lines “[She’s] in a room wearing a gown shaped like a pastry.” But I heard her explaining it, and she said what she does is go through her song titles and see if there was a theme, and she found one. Speak Now.

This song in particular is inspired by a friend who was in love with a guy who was getting married, and Taylor speculating what would happen if somebody actually “Spoke now” when the preacher said to “Speak now of forever hold your peace.”

The other songs that carry this theme are not necessarily about marriage, but they do carry the theme of saying your feelings when they come to you.

Dear John
Nobody doubts that this song is about John Mayer. 6 minutes and 44 seconds long, Taylor has some words for this guy. In the words of this article,
“Joe Jonas, you got off easy.”

From what I’d read of this song, I expected it to be a fast, angry and bitter song. Instead, it’s more slow, sad and melancholy. I was glad, ‘cause I like that style much better than laughable bitterness. Sometimes the angry songs are good, but this one is beautiful the way it is. It’s an amazing song.

Mean
By far the countriest song on the album, this song is heavy on banjo, fiddle, and clapping/snapping. The storyline is a drunkard who has always been, well, mean. Taylor talks about him “in’ in a bar/ talking over a football game/with that same big loud opinion/but nobody’s listening….Drunk and droning on about how I can’t sing”

I personally love this song, but if you don’t like country/twang I’d advise steering clear of it.

The Story of Us
This song is about the dream every girl has about “telling the story of us,” but then the story “looks a lot like a tragedy now.” By far the best line in the song is “I’ve never heard silence quite this loud.” I think everyone’s had that feeling before.

I really don’t have a lot to say about this song. It’s really good, it’s really sad, there’s not a lot more to it. Listen to it and lemme know what you think!

Never Grow Up
Taylor’s sentiments about a baby that she doesn’t want to grow up. Later in the song it turns into wishing she had never grown up. What this song instantly brought to my
mind was the classic line, “Life was so much simpler when boys had cooties.”

I wanted to cry listening to this. It’s so beautiful. “No one’s ever burned you/Nothing’s ever left you scarred/Even though you want to/Just try to never grow up.” At the end she describes her first night in her own apartment, how life’s not what she thought it would be she wishes she’d never grown up. “I could still be little….It could still be simple”

Enchanted
I didn’t like this one as much as the others. I mean it was good; it just seemed, I don’t know, weaker than the others. Taylor meets a guy at a party or someplace and is “Enchanted to meet him.” The song is just about her wondering if he was enchanted, if he felt anything, is he taken, etc. It’s fun, just doesn’t really compare to the others.

Better Than Revenge
This song contains the two most laughably bitter songs in the entire album. It’s about a girl who steals Taylor’s boyfriend, and “Doesn’t she know/There’s nothing I do/Better than revenge.” The lines I thought were funny are “She’s not who you think, she’s an actress/But she’s better known what she does on the mattress.” Bitter much? The song is good though. It does have that angry bitter style, which I’m not typically crazy about, but I liked it.

Innocent
The most forgiving song I’ve ever heard Taylor sing, this song offers forgiveness to Kanye West. The whole theme of it is he’s made mistakes, but it’s not too late. “Who you are isn’t where you’ve been/You’re still an innocent.” It’s a good song I liked it. Not the most amazing she’s ever written, but it was good.

Haunted
This one opens up with a kind of spooky background music. The lyrics are about, (you guessed it!) Taylor breaking up with her boyfriend. She says she’s always known they walk a fragile line, but she never thought it would break. She’s trying to move on, but she’s “haunted.”

To me, the lines “He will try to take away my pain/And he just might make me smile/But the whole time I’m wishin’ he was you instead” imply that she met someone else, but, like I said, she’s trying to move on and she’s still haunted. She feels betrayed, like she’ll never recover or be able to love someone else.

I love songs like this that really make you feel what the singer is feeling. I’ve never experienced anything like this, but as I listen to the lyrics, I find myself sympathizing, almost feeling like it’s me that’s hurt.

Last Kiss
This beautiful song is devastatingly sad. It’s one of those relationships where they love each other, but it can’t work out between them.
I almost feel like a break-up would be easier if you walked away thinking “What a jerk! How could he do that?! Good riddance!” than to be thinking “Wow. He really loved me. I loved him. I still do. Neither of us ever did anything wrong. But we can never be together.” That would just be terrible!

Again, I feel what Taylor is feeling, even though I’ve never been through anything like this. Although, with this particular song, I think a lot of my “sympathy” is more fear that this could happen to me. And I don’t know how I would handle it.

Long Live
I don’t know how many people would agree with me, but I believe this is a second song to Taylor Lautner. It’s memories of times
they had together. My favorite lines are “If you have children someday/When they point to the pictures/Please tell them my name.” I don’t think she needs to worry about them knowing who Taylor Swift is. =)

It’s a beautiful song. It’s another story of “We loved each other but can’t be together.” It’s sad, but it’s a wonderful song.

So, altogether, I say the album is a success. Way to go, Taylor!! I don’t know if you’ll ever read this, (I might faint if I found out you visited my blog,) but in case you do I LOVE YOU!!! <3 Thank you SOOO much for all your song you’ve ever wrote. There’s not one that I don’t like and I can relate to every one without fail. (Sometimes it’s through misinterpretation or a line taken out of context, but it’s relating never-the-less!) keep up the good work!!! =)

I NEED HELP!

So I know I’m a terrible blogger since the last thing I wrote was like 2 weeks ago, and even that wasn't really a real post, but I do not know what to write about. Any ideas??

Aragorn and Arwen

This is amazing. I love Aragorn and Arwen, and I love this song. This video is just amazing.

Timothy

Here is a trustworthy saying: If we died with him, we will also live with him; if we endure, we will also reign with him. If we disown him, he will also disown us; if we are faithless, he will remain faithful, for he cannot disown himself.

~2 Timothy 2:11-13

I love Timothy. First and Second Timothy are probably my two favorite books in the whole Bible. I have so many verses highlighted in them, but every time I read it I notice something I didn’t before. The pages of Timothy in my Bible look the way my whole Bible should look.

I think one of the reasons I like Timothy so much is because it was written to a teenager, so I can relate to it. I know that the whole Bible is applicable to everyone, but there’s something about being in the same shoes as the person it was written for.

Of course, some of the verses are a little hard to swallow. Like 1 Timothy 2:11-12 says ^“A woman should learn in quietness and full submission. ¹²I do not permit a woman to teach or to have authority over a man; she must be silent.” Is this verse saying that men are better than women? Absolutely not. What it is saying is that men have authority over women. That’s not the same as being better. For example, children should listen to their parents in submission. Parents have authority over their children. But that does not make parents better than the children.

There are several verses like that, but each one makes sense if you look close enough. Those verses appear throughout the entire Bible, and some of them we won’t understand until we get to heaven. We just have to remember that, “All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness.” 2 Timothy 3:16.

I would someday like to organize a Bible study for Timothy and look at all of those difficult passages. The only thing is, it would take months.

Now, in the beginning of this post I mentioned being in the same shoes as the person it was written to. Well, that’s not entirely true. One problem with today’s teenagers accomplishing God’s tasks is the expectations. People don’t expect a whole lot of American teenagers, and that make’s it hard. When you do small things, such as say thank you when someone opens the door for you, the world flips out about what a great kid you are. They pat you on the shoulder till your arm falls off. With that much appreciation over simple things, it’s hard to go the extra mile. You are already appreciated. Why should you do more?

Well, that’s a discussion for another time. One of my favorite websites answers that question. They also have two books dedicated to answering that question, and every summer they have a conference that, again, answers that question. Their key verse is from Timothy. It’s one of my favorite verses in the Bible.

“Don’t let anyone look down on you because you are young, but set an example for the believers in speech, in life, in love, in faith and in purity.” ~1Timothy 4:12

STOP THE NOODLE SCHOOZ!!!!

Gilmore Girls. I rather like Gilmore Girls. In fact, I love Gilmore Girls. The wit is quick, the storyline is good, and it’s an all around great show. It is a culturally literate person’s dream; to watch it, and see how many cult references they get. I blame this show for the fact that I talk so fast, and no one can understand what I’m saying. :P

But, you’re probably wondering about my title. What is The Noodle Shcooz, and why are we stopping it? Well, I actually don’t know. It’s a Gilmore Girls reference. There are several things from that show that I can quote, and they are funny in the context of the show, but also just saying them.

I mean come one, don’t try to tell me you can hear the phrase “Stop the Noodle Shcooz” and not laugh. It’s just not possible. Some other random phrases are, “I made that dish a hundred times, it never exploded!” “I was attacked by a band of swans as a child.” And, the all-time classic, “COPPER BOOM!”

So basically, my point is, you need to watch Gilmore Girls. I don’t care who you are, your age, or you gender. It doesn’t matter. This show is still awesome. Watch it. Like right now.

Oy with the poodles already...

Family Force 5

So. I love “Family Force 5.” They are amazing. Here are some of their songs:



This one was not my absolute favorite, but it was still really awesome.



This one is really cool, but probably it would be best as background music like at a party.



This one I think is one of their Christian ones. They're a Christian band, but not all of the songs are Crhistian and some of them are kind of vague.



So this one could be taken as a boy/girl song, but I think he could be referring to God. hehehe

Star Wars III: The Revenge of the Sith

SPOILER WARNING!!! THIS POST IS WRITTEN UNDER THE ASSUMPTION THAT YOU HAVE SEEN STAR WARS III, OR HAVE AT LEAST SEEN THE OTHER STAR WARS AND PIECED TOGETHER WHAT HAPPENS. IF THE ABOVE DOES NOT APPLY TO YOU, STOP READING!!! LIKE, RIGHT NOW! SSSTTTOOOPPP!!!!!!!!!!!!!


I really liked Star Wars III. It wins the award for the first movie that ever made me cry. I know that’s a little weird… It’s kind of like really Katie? You made it through “Bridge to Terribithia” and “Romeo and Juliet,” but put in Star Wars and you bawl like a baby?? Yeah, the love story part was badly written. Almost every conversation between Anakin and Padme had terrible dialogue. But still… I don’t know. When Anakin turned to the dark side, I cried a little. When Padme found out, I cried. When Obi-Wan was talking to Anakin while he was being burned in the lava, I cried a lot. When Padme died, I cried a lot.

Even though the love story was badly written, the rest of it had awesome writing. You could really see Anakin’s side, and why he joined the dark side. He thought he was saving Padme. The Chancellor used his anger, his hate, and his pride to deceive him. It worked. By the time Anakin figured out that he wasn’t saving Padme, it was too late. His loyalties were with The Sith Lord.

Now, there were some pretty intense scenes. In a fight with Anakin, Count Dooku looses his arm, and The Chancellor tells Anakin to kill the Count, even though it’s not the Jedi way. He does. Anakin also has some nightmares about Padme while she’s in labor, and they’re kind of scary. Then the scene where Anakin turns to the dark side is pretty intense. He helped The Sith Lord to kill Master Windoo, and right afterwards he goes into a room and kills really young apprentices. Tiny children, who were being trained to be Jedi. Also, the last two scenes are really intense. Anakin gets thrown into a pit of lava, after he looses an arm. It shows them performing surgery to get him in that suit. Padme has her babies, and then dies.

Now, before I finish, I have to poke a little fun. First of all, has it ever occurred to anyone that basically everyone in this movie loses their arm at some point?? And now, I have to quote a facebook flair. “A guy can only be called ‘Ani’ so many times before he flips.”

Music

I believe that music is an important part of our culture. Even before we had CDs, Tapes, or even records, music has always been important. Beethoven, Bach, and Mozart, are only a few examples of countless other musicians who were appreciated for their work. I personally don’t enjoy listening to Classical music, but I can appreciate that they were great artists.

But ever since Rock, music has become even more important to our culture. The Beatles, Journey, U2. Rock artists who affected the world around them. Why is it that these artists live on, while others from their same period, possibly with an equal amount of talent, were forgotten?

Well, one reason is Band Hero. People between the ages of 11 and 16 have discovered some of their favorite music because they played it through a video game. But I think another reason is that these artists not only had talent, but their songs had meaning. When you listen to a song by Taylor Swift, Lady Gaga, or Miley Cyrus, regardless of whether or not you enjoy it, there’s no meaning. Now maybe they have some good songs, but when you get down to what the song is telling you, there’s no substance. Now don’t get me wrong, that’s not necessarily a bad thing. Taylor Swift is my favorite singer. I love her songs, but that’s not the point. Like I said, they have no substance.

When you listen to a Journey song, it makes you think. Maybe in their love songs, it makes you think about the true meaning of love. Eternal love. Faithfully, Open Arms, and Send Her my Love are just a few examples of song about love that lasts. True love. Or they have songs like Wheel in the Sky that expresses musician’s feelings about always traveling and never knowing where they’ll be tomorrow. I wouldn’t be able to sympathize with that because I’m not a musician. However, I still feel like I have an understanding of how they feel because of songs like that. They’re written so well, I can feel what the artist is feeling. It’s like reading a good book.

Whereas Taylor Swift’s love songs are about breaking up, or even if they’re not, it’s teen-love. It’s not true love. Again, it has no substance. And that’s all she sings about. At some point it kind of seems like it’s the same story over and over.

Now, Taylor Swift may still live on, because she’s a country singer. They typically stay popular longer. Miley Cyrus, however, will be forgotten as soon as all of today’s pre-schoolers are 30 years old. Lady Gaga may be remembered longer, but if she is it will be because, like Britney Spears, her life will be a train wreck. People won’t love her for her music, but because they like a juicy story.

So why is music so important to our culture? Well, Why are books important? Or movies? Or really any other type of media? It’s because it’s an art form. When you look at the history of literature, it’s the same story. William Shakespeare and Jane Austen lived on. Him because of his poetry, and her because of her excellent writing and, once again, her books had substance.

Now I’m not saying that substance is the only good stuff out there. I enjoy reading formula fiction and watching things like I Love Lucy. I also listen to Taylor Swift. But those things are fluff, and not important to our culture. The kind of music you listen to says a lot about you. And the culture you live in.