New Halloween Costume

So, as it turn out, I've decided NOT to be Mrs. Lovette for Halloween. Since I am going to the Black Bear Books Halloween party thing, I'm going to go as a book character.

And that character is:

KATNSS EVERDEEN!

The girl on fire.

Okay, I've never actually seen the movie, so I am not dressing up exactly like what everyone else thinks of Katniss, instead, I'm dressing up like how I imagined her.

On fire.

Okay, not literally on fire, but in a dress that looks like I am.

But my only problem is that I don't have Katniss's pin yet.

Soooo, I have to somehow get myself one before next Wednesday...

Anyway, I just wanted to post something today.

And now I have to go make dinner.

Cheers!

Yesterday

Soooooo, Yesterday.

It was an unexpected day.

Not that I didn't know that Thursday would happen but...

Well, I can never get the hang of Thursdays.

So, yesterday morning, I got up at 7. Normally, if I get up that early, I can't get my brain to function properly. But for some reason, when my sister came to get me up, I jumped straight out of bed, got my queen-sized, difficult, and rarely ever made bed, made.

Then, since my dad had to open the store, we got him some breakfast and got him out the door. On time. Another oddity in this house.

THEN, we ran around the house, cleaning and doing various chores, before I realized I needed to get dressed for the day. It takes us a while to get out of our pajamas sometimes.

After lunch, I expected to have a leisurely day until 2, when I was supposed to start back with my guitar lessons.

Not going to happen.

We decided to go ahead into Boone so that we could take pictures of the kids who are in our homeschool group for the Yearbook.

So we went to Thoughtful Thursdays, the place where some of the homeschooled kids go to take some random extra-curricular classes.

Guess who was there?

Yep, Sharon, the girl who practically lives with us.

So we took some pictures of her and her mom for the Yearbook, then went upstairs to the band room to take some pic of beginner band.

Not too long ago, I was in band too. But then, since playing several instruments while trying to graduate was getting to hard, I sold my clarinet and switched only yo guitar. Not like my band teacher and guitar teacher weren't the same person, but still, I couldn't make it to band every week like I should have.

So, my friend Jason, whom I haven't seen since probably last Christmas, takes band. He has been in band longer than I have. I was so glad to see him, and I suppose he was glad to see me too, since it had been so long and I have known him since he was a very little child.

And then there was Anna, who was also glad to see me. She is the girl I sold my clarinet to. And I am glad to see she has put it to good use! She plays very well!

So, after we took some pics up there, we went back down to wait for advanced band, when there would be other kids we needed to take pictures of.

Then Sharon got out of class. Just picture her with us for the rest of the time we were there. Because she was.

Then, art class let out and Erika came out. The look on her face was priceless when she saw us.

So we walked her up to the band room and took her picture, then we waited for Bryce to come.

And we waited.

And we waited.

And then we got bored and came back downstairs where our mother told us that Bryce had just gone upstairs, looking for us.

So we went back up and Mim took his picture.

Then, it was time to go.

But it was really time to stand in the parking lot with Sharon and her mom for a while.

And then, somehow, Miriam ended up going with Sharon to her house for a while before me and mom were going to meet them at a potluck/presentation night that we weren't planning on really going to.

So now Miriam and Sharon are gone and its just me and my mom, headed back to the mall, where I am supposed to have guitar lessons.

So, me and my friend, Caleb, played this weird State Stack game for a while while I waited for my guitar teacher.

Then, when he came, I went to my first lesson in about 6 months or so.

I forgot how much I missed playing my guitar.

So now I'm learning a song called Boceto Andaluz, which is a Spanish piece, written by Bartolome Calatuyud.

And I'm learning the Charlie Brown Christmas song, probably my favorite Christmas song of all time.

So, since I'm playing a Spanish piece, my teacher told me to become Spanish, so we started trying to speak in only Spanish, which neither of us is really all that good at.

When he asked me, "Where is the bathroom?" in Spanish (because anyone who know Spanish at all knows how to say that), I pointed in the direction of the mall bathrooms, because that is really the only way I knew how to respond.

Apparently that was very funny.

So, after my lesson that was only supposed to be 30 minutes but ended up taking longer, my teacher started to leave, but my mom had to pay him, so we all headed towards the ATM.

On the way out, I ran into my friend, Nathaniel, but since I had to go with my mom to the ATM, I didn't really get to stop and say hello.

So, at the ATM (which is probably the worst ATM in Boone) we ran into this guy we've know for like, 10+ years, and who's kids were our constant companions in years past.

While Mom was talking to him, I went back to the store and, since I was starving, started eating candy out of the Halloween candy bowl.

That was a bad idea.

After that, I starting getting really spastic, and then I started talking to Nathaniel (who had gone into the bookstore after I had passed him) and we started talking about WoW, which made me get all excited and even more spastic. So you can imagine how spazmatastic I was being.

After that, me and my mom headed over to Heaton, where we were supposed to meet meet Mim. We thought we might be late because I had talked at the store a lot longer than I should have and then we had to stop the the grocery store and the gas station on our way over.

Luckily for us, homeschoolers are never on time, so we got there first.

Now, I had not told my friend, Mackenzie, that I was going that night, and I had not seen her in a loooong time. So when she got out of the car and saw me...well, the look on her face was awesome.

After we went inside and helped set up the food, we still had to wait for one more family to show up, so me and Mackenzie wandered around the church for a while, talking like maniacs (well, I was a maniac, remember?).

There was also a new boy who had just joined the homeschool group. He was really funny and nice, and me and Mackenzie both enjoyed talking to him. I wish I could remember his name!

So, when the last family finally got there, we said a prayer and were (at last!) let loose on the food, which we devoured.

This was supposed to be a presentation night, remember? So that means they needed people to present things. But there was only one person there who was actually going to do anything, so Mackenzie's mom asked me to do something.

Somehow, I ended up playing my guitar (which was still in the car from lessons earlier that day). I am sure I was blushing, but I couldn't help it. My piece was kind of lame after Daniel played this beautiful piano piece and sand along with it.

Anyway, after that, Mim and Sharon disappeared into the church somewhere and we spent the better half of an hour looking for them.

Then, of course, we stood in the freezing cold parking lot and chatted with our friends for a while.

Seems like the end of my day?

Wrong.

After I came home, I asked my friend if he wanted to come play WoW (or maybe he asked me, I don't recall, I was tired), and so we played WoW until almost midnight, (which is what keeps happening when we play). This is the same friend who I had been talking to about WoW earlier, in the bookstore. And now he has actually bought the game and we can play Pandas. And that makes me very happy, because the Pandas are adorable.

Except not when the male Pandas laugh.

After a while, I got to where I was too tired to play anymore, so I logged off and ended up on Facebook until out internet crashed.

And so I went to bed.

And that is the end of  my most recent Thursday.

Which I can never seem to get the hang of.

Cheers!

(PS, sorry there are no pictures in the post, I have none to put in here. Not really.)



 

Catching up!

So, I'm sure you've noticed that I have not written here in a while. Sorry 'bout that. But, during the time I haven't written, a lot has happened, so there is plenty to write about :)

First of all, I've been playing Mists of Pandaria, the new WoW expansion. WE GET PANDARINS!!

I love the Monk class too. I have sooooo many now though, it's becoming excessive lol

I have also been writing a story that I've been working on for about 4 years now. When it is finally finished, I will post it on my blog :)

My 17th birthday was last Monday. I have been 'celebrating' for a lot longer than that though! The Wednesday before my bday I went with my mom to get my nose pierced (I also managed to pass out in the parking lot afterwards, but that is another story). Then, Friday, I was going to have a friend over, but she couldn't make it. Instead, our friend, Sharon, came over to spend the night.

And then, there was the lovely cake that my friend Margaret made for me.

As I'm sure you know, I love Sherlock. My cake is, of course, the Benedict Cumberbatch Sherlock.

So, after that, we ate cake. And ate cake. And ate more cake. And now I know why you only get birthday cake once a year.

Me and my father have been watching all the Avengers movies. We watched Captain America first, then the Avengers, but I had no clue who Loki was, so we went back to watch them all.

I can't decide who is my favorite. Its a toss up between Captain America, Hulk, and Iron Man. And of course, there is Loki, who is really my favorite. I don't care if he IS the bad guy.

So, Halloween is in 17 days and I am yet to really work on my costume. I plan on being Mrs. Lovette from the movie Sweeny Todd.

Later, I will write a movie review for this movie, since it is one of my favorites.

Anyway, this is Mrs. Lovette:

Even though you can't see it very well, this is going to be my costume! I'm even going to carry around the rolling pin she has in the beginning. 

I am actually going to have to make my skirt for this costume. To be period appropriate, I am going to need a bustle... that should be interesting.

We had coyotes attacking our chickens for a while. Well now its big cats. Out of the original 37 chickens we had, now only 11 remain. And if it is a big cat, like we think, then a lot more then our chickens are in danger.

Chester, my dog, likes to run around outside after dark. Well, there is no more of that for my sweet little boy!

I used to have two sweet little puppies, Sam and Pete, but because of allergies. When we first gave them away, I cried so hard, but now, with cats and coyotes eating all the little creatures around the house, I am SO glad they are safe.

Sam: 

 And Pete:

And that is me, holding my sweet boys on one of their last days with me. Just by looking at them, I'm sure you can see why I didn't want to give them up. 

Yesterday, we went to our friend's movie premier of the movie The Rabid Troll. It was by far the funniest thing I've seen in a while.

And on the way home, we picked up a stray child. Well, she was riding with us anyway, but that's not the point. Yes. It was Sharon. Second time in less than a week that she has spent the night. 

I was up playing WoW with a friend last night until after 12. Then Miriam and Sharon were up at 6 and at 7 were watching Doctor Who on Miriam's computer. Right outside my bedroom door. 

But who can blame them? It IS Doctor Who after all.

But anyway, I'm done with my randomness right now. I'll try yo remember to write again. Very soon!

Cheers!

SPOILER ALERT: Movie review of Napoleon Dynamite

Hello Blog-readers!

Sorry I haven't posted in a few days. Been busy.

So, last time I was thinking about posting, I was thinking, maybe a movie review of Napoleon Dynamite, one of the funniest movies on the planet. And this review might rival the funny-ness, because telling someone about that movie is not easy.

Here goes!

A movie review of Napoleon Dynamite

 So the story is about a guy named Napoleon Dynamite in highschool in the 80's. He's not real popular, he has no weird parents or anything (I actually don't think he has parents at all). He lives with his 32 year old brother and his grandma.

I the beginning of the movie, Napoleon's grandma leaves to go to the sand dunes. While there, she falls and breaks something.

So to keep an eye on Napoleon and Kip(his brother), their Uncle Rico comes to stay for a while.

In school, Napoleon meets a new friend: Pedro, the only boy in school with a moustache(I think that is how that word is spelled)

He also meets a girl named Deb.

So while Kip and Uncle Rico are attempting to make some cash by becoming door to door salesmen, Napoleon is at school with his new friends, hanging out.

Then, the school has a dance. Pedro and Deb decide to go to the dance together, leaving Napoleon with nobody. Pedro suggest that he draws someone a picture as a gift, then he might get a date.

So Napoleon sets his sights on Trisha and sets to work on a drawing of her.

Trisha's mother knows that Napoleon asked her out, so she makes Trisha go with him. When they get to the dance, Napoleon goes off to the bathroom and Trisha sneaks away with her BFF, Summer.  

So Pedro lets Napoleon borrow Deb for a dance or two.

Later, Pedro decides to run for class president.

So Napoleon and Pedro get to work, trying to make sure Pedro beats Summer. 

Meanwhile, Kip's online girlfriend has come to town. Kip is smitten.

Uncle Rico has been making a general nuisance of himself and ruining Napoleon's friendship with Deb. So Deb gets angry at Napoleon and doesn't talk to him for a while.

Whenever it's time for the candidates to give their speeches, Napoleon and Pedro discover they were supposed to have a skit to go along with Pedro's speech, but they have nothing prepared. 

After Summer gives her speech and skit, Pedro comes to the stage.

And Napoleon comes up with a last minute skit. This is Napoleon's skit to save Pedro's political career.

So, then the movie is almost over. Kip leaves town with his girlfried, Lafawnduh (that's how he spells her name).

Napoleon's grandma comes home.

Uncle Rico leaves and returns to his camper, throwing footballs at his camera.

Pedro wins the class election.

And Deb makes up with Napoleon.

So, now you should go watch this movie. 

No, I didn't tell you the whole story.

This movie is the kind of movie you'll just be sitting quietly in a room with other people, minding your own business, when all of a sudden, you'll burst into uncontrollable laughter because you start thinking about 1%. Or children on a school bus. Or a llama. 

Just go watch the movie and you'll understand why.

I would like to say a special thing here about a guy in the sound box. He is awesome and works at a bookstore. He knows who he is. That is all.

Cheers!  

The Day After

Hello my darling readers!

Sooooo, if you read my post from last night (or rather, really early this morning, around 12:30ish) then you know I was hoping to go with my dad to work so when he paid the people from UNCHAINED, I might be able to see Neil Gaiman.

Well, I did go with my dad. I didn't see Neil Gaiman.

In fact, I didn't get to see anyone from the tour. The lady we called and were supposed to meet to give the money to ended up being asleep when we called (it was only like 8:30 and the event lasted until pretty late last night)

But even though I was disappointed there, I had a pretty interesting day otherwise.

For starters, have you ever stayed up really late because you just had an exciting event, then hit your bed like a rock after its gotten incredibly late, only to hear your alarm blaring at 6:45 in the morning?

If you haven't, I would say you're lucky, but that probably means you've never had the opportunity to stay out late doing something that you really love.

If you have, then you know how I felt when I was shoveling a bagel into my mouth and rushing out the door at eight this morning.

It usually takes anywhere from 45 minutes to an hour to get from our house to Boone, so we left with plenty of time. Dad was supposed to be there at 9.

We were there at 8:25.

So, we decided to go for coffee, since we both needed a little pick-me-up.

Son's light was closed. One of the town's Conrad's was closed. Doc's coffee is closer to Blowing Rock. Starbuck's isn't that good.

So we decided to go to the second Conrad's in town (we forgot about Stickboy's until we had already bought some). I got a mocha that tasted completely burnt. I'm not sure why I drank almost the whole thing when I kept meaning to throw it away.

After that, we dropped off the money for UNCHAINED and went to Black Bear Books.

All of my friends have told me that the Hunger Games is an excellent story, so I picked up the only copy in the store and sat down to read it before the store opened.

Then the store opened and I had to put it back :( So far, I reeealy like the story. But NO SPOILERS thank you very much!!

After that I helped price and shelve books, sometimes helped someone find a book. And I barely sat down because every time I did, I almost fell asleep.

So, between this, that, and the other, my day...crawled by. Isn't that how it always works when you're sleepy? Time passes soooo slowly.

Anyway, so now I'm home and I'm getting ready to go play World of Warcraft. Mists of Pandaria comes out in exactly one week from today. If you're a WoW nerd like me, then just by the title of my blog I'm sure you can guess how super uber WoW nerd-y I am. I am so excited about the new MoP expansion!

Anyway, time to go!

Cheers!

My Mostly Normal Day (with just a dash of Neil Gaiman)

Hello Blog readers! Thought I might blog about my day today. :)

So first of all, I got up waaaaaay earlier than I wanted to. My sister came and got me up at 7:30. My dad had to leave for work early, so she had set her alarm for seven. I would have probably gone back to sleep, except I had been dreaming about eating cheese toast. So, after she left my room, I sat straight up with one thought in my mind:

"I can eat cheese toast for breakfast!"

Well, I went downstairs and...we had no cheese.

No biggie. Ate rice pudding for breakfast  instead.

Then, Mom couldn't go to work today. She didn't feel so great.

We were supposed to babysit these kids we know this morning when she left for work, but it turns out they didn't need a sitter.

I won't bore you with telling you about the various (tedious) chores we did.

Then, we decided to go to Boone.

We live a about 45 minutes away. But we decided to go anyway. Mom felt better and either way, we needed food (meaning CHEESE) for our weekly Doctor Who party with our friends.

So, on our way into Boone, we saw some friends in the parking lot at the post office. Mim and I started yelling for mom to turn around so we could go say hi.

Not like we don't see some of them every week (at the previously mentioned Doctor Who party), but when you see some friends in a parking lot, who doesn't make an almost illegal u-turn to go see them and stand in the freezing cold rain for almost an hour?

So, after all that, we continued on into town. First, we stopped at the Boone mall were my dad works at Black Bear Books.

Then I went to the video game/movie store (also in the mall) and bought one of my favorite movies. Napoleon Dynamite.

After that, we went to eat dinner and I called my friend to invite her to my house for my birthday (coming up in three weeks exactly)

After that, went to Local Lion and got a Chai Latte. I have tried Chai at pretty much every place that serves it in the town of Boone. I'm trying to decide who has the best chai...

Then, we went downtown to Boone Saloon (no, I'm not old enough to drink, I'll only be 17 on my bday). This was my first experience in a bar. It smelled awful. 

So we were sitting there, at a table, watching these guys play pool. I've always thought it might be fun to play, but I've never really tried. Brown shirt guy (since we didn't know his name, my sister and I called him Brown shirt guy. The guy he was playing against was White shirt guy) made it look soooo easy.

Oh yeah, and did I mention, NEIL GAIMAN WAS THERE?

I LOVE Neil Gaiman!!

When I was much younger (about 7 or 8) we went to Charlotte to the mall there and waited in line until well after midnight to have him sign our books. My parents met because they were both wearing Sandman t-shirts. He is one of my little sister's earliest memories. And we saw him again tonight at the Boone Saloon.

Of course, me and my sister didn't get to stay. I'm almost three years older than her and I'm not 17 yet, so I'm sure you can understand why my parents decided not to let us stay at a bar after 7:00. Even when we were there, my dad loomed near us, making sure all was well.

Neil Gaiman is currently on the UNCHAINED tour. We got a picture of us in front of their bus.

(that's me in the blue sweater BTW).

After we left, my Dad got to go meet Neil Gaiman for a second time. While they were talking, he (dad) told Mr. Gaiman about how he and mom met. They talked for a long time and Dad even got to hug him!

Mom, who was on the phone with Dad not long after, told us that Neil Gaiman had told Dad to tell us hi, since we didn't get to say hi ourselves. He even said he was sorry we didn't get to stay.

Since we didn't stay, we left some pictures of the Doctor and Sexy (the TARDIS in a woman's body. You'll have to watch The Doctor's Wife to understand) and Neil Gaiman, hoping to get them signed.

Not only is Mr. Gaiman a genius author, but he also wrote an episode of Doctor Who (The Doctor's Wife). That just makes his even more awesome. Now, if only he would write for Sherlock...

Anyway, he did sign our pictures. He also said he really like Boone and thought he might come back.

Anyway, I have got to go to bed now. If I get up early enough, I'll get to go with my Dad to work in the morning when he pays the guys from UNCHAINED. And there's always that chance of getting to meet the epically awesome, really nice guy, Neil Gaiman. Wish me luck!

And BTW, we bought some cheese. CHEESE TOAST FOR BREAKFAST!

Cheers!

SPOILER ALERT(kind of): Review of Sherlock

So, what shall I post today? How about another movie review? Or better yet, a television show review!

"But how? How a whole tv show?" you might ask.

I'll tell you: A review about a British show.

Because a 'season' in a British show can be three episodes long and it still counts as a season.

For example: Sherlock.

In fact, I believe thats what my review will be about. After all, there are only 6 episodes (and thats two seasons my dears).

So, this particular version of Sherlock Homes is a modern take on the stories by Arthur Conan Doyle. By the way, random factoid about Sherlock Holmes: Arthur Conan Doyle became Sir Arthur Conan Doyle because the Queen of England knighted him for his Sherlock stories.


Okay, now for the review.

I say review, but I am slightly biased. This is my favorite show at the moment.

So, as I said, this is a modern take on the story. As before, John Watson is a doctor. But in this version, he is an army doctor who was injured. In the beginning, he (Watson) is talking with his psychiatrist. Since he had been in war, her suggestion to him is to write a blog. She thinks this will aid him in re-adjusting to civilian life.

Well, John really has nothing to write.

One day, he is out walking (which is rather difficult since he has an injury and has to walk with a cane), when he meets an old friend.

They get to talking and John's friends mentions a guy who is looking for a flatmate.

So is John.

So his friend introduces John to a man at the morgue (he isn't dead, he's just doing some 'research' or something there). John lends the man his phone. With only looking at his phone and watching him walk into the room, the mysterious man can tell John has been to war, has a drunk brother (actually, its a sister, but he didn't know that at the time), and is looking for a flatmate.

This man, of course, is Sherlock Holmes.

So, he tells Watson to meet him at the a flat the next day. Its 22b Baker Street, the iconic home of Sherlock Holmes.



Of course, they get the flat. And the adventures begin.

Inspector Detective Lastraude (I believe that is how you spell his name) is stumped. There have been a string of apparent suicides.

Well, he can't figure out what's going on, so he calls Sherlock in on the case, and Watson tags along.

The most recent 'suicide' was a girl who was from the media 'judging by the frankly alarming shade of pink' she was wearing (this first case was called A Study in Pink, BTW). Sherlock figures that she must have an overnight bag somewhere, but its nowhere near the body.

So he goes on a hunt for her case.

Which of course he finds. He is, after all, the world's leading (and only) Consulting detective. He didn't become that for no reason.

In this case, Sherlock notices that the woman in pink's phone is missing. So he texts her phone (using John's phone of course. He doesn't want his to be tracked). And gets an answer.

I don't want to spoil the ending, so I'll leave the first episode at that. Mystery shows aren't as much fun when you know who the bad guy is. Of course, I'll re-watch it, but I've always loved Sherlock Holmes, and this version especially.

So, in the second episode, John and Sherlock have been friends for a while.

And John finally knows what to write on his blog. He takes to writing about the cases Sherlock has solved (in the books, it reads as if John is the author. In the show, he's the writer still, but he just blogs about it).

Again, I really don't want to spoil the story. Especially with episode three. Thats the end of the season. If I say much, it'll be major spoilers.

So, I'll just say this: if you like Irene Adler (the woman, as Sherlock says in the books), she is in the first episode of season two. This one is based off of A Scandal in Bohemia. I personally didn't watch that one. I am lucky enough to have parents who pre-watched that episode. Apparently, that one was a pretty inappropriate. But what can you expect from Irene Adler?

The second episode in season two is based on The Hound of the Baskervilles. I haven't read that one yet, but I can tell you, the show was pretty scary. Steven Moffat (the genius who wrote this version of Sherlock Holmes and all the best episodes of Doctor Who) has a thing for gas-mask episodes. And he really good at writing scary stuff. If you've ever seen The Empty Child (Doctor Who, season one), you'll know what I mean. 

The last episode of this season is the most recent of the whole show. I hate British shows for that reason. Three episode comprise an entire season...

Anyway, this last one was really sad. It was based off The Final Problem. If you've ever read that one, you probably have an idea of why its soooo sad. I was literally about to cry through almost the whole episode. Of course, I really can't say why, but I will say that Moriarty shows up in this one.

I really hate not writing more about each episode, but I think if I do, that will ruin pretty much the whole plot.

Even though I usually hate when someone tries to 'modernize' something, I really liked this one. Maybe because Steven Moffat did it. Maybe its because its Sherlock Holmes, and I love pretty much all things Sherlock. Maybe its because Martin Freeman plays John Watson.

Martin Freeman also plays Arthur Dent in Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy

 And he plays Bilbo in the upcoming version of The Hobbit (which I am soooo excited about BTW!)

And of course, John Watson :)

I don't know. Either way, I love this show. Its defiantly worth watching, especially if you're a fan of Sherlock Holmes.

So, add Sherlock to your watch list!!

Cheers!