The In Between Place

I get the question a lot of, "What's your favorite time of day?" And it's sort of a really complicated question. So, I tend to answer, "Nighttime." Because it satisfies people, and I don't have to spend thirty minutes attempting to explain my favorite time of day.
I used to be a morning person. Like, get up at 7 morning person. Because I used to have anxiety problems, and it made going to bed easier at night. Because as soon as my head hit the pillow, I was out.
I used to hate nighttime. The noises, the dark, it all just creeped me out.
Now it's my favorite time of day. See, I'm a huge night owl now. I go to bed somewhere between midnight and three normally. And then pull myself out of bed between 9 and 11 the next morning. Or earlier, depending on the day.
Okay, now's where things get complicated.
I tend to sit in my living room, or in my bed working on school or writing until late. And it's practically impossible to fall asleep while doing so. See, under normal circumstances, I would probably fall asleep every night in the middle of biology. I can fall asleep anywhere.
And then came the interrogation light. This is what my mom fondly refers to it as. And I literally cannot fall asleep while it's on. Don't believe me?

It's like looking into the sun. You try falling asleep with that on.
So, back to what I was saying before. My favorite time of day, is the point where I flick off my lamp. Because then the darkness envelops me, and then I lay there and make up a movie in my head for an hour.
You know, that point where you're making up a story in your brain, and then all of a sudden a penguin shows up and you know you're about to fall asleep?
That's when I flick on my lamp and pinch myself. Because I don't like sleep. Partly because I despise all dreams, and partly because it comes normally right in the middle of a great story in my head.
My favorite time of day, is that in between place. In between waking a sleeping, between dreaming and thinking, between staying and leaving.
That's my favorite.

Book Review: The Scorpio Races

The Scorpio Races is written by Maggie Stiefvater.

The Summary:
Every year, in November on the island of Thisby, the Scorpio Races are held. These races consist of riding the vicious water horses that come out of the water every October to the end of the race. People die every year.
This year, Sean Kendrick plans to win for the fifth time in a row. He will ride the horse he loves to the finish. He will not care about any of the other riders. Until, he sees a girl on the beach training to ride in the race.
Puck Connolly, has to ride this year. For her family. She is the first girl to ever ride in the races, and she is totally unprepared.

Violence:
Between horrific water horses... and more horrific water horses, there's a lot of blood and stuff. Someone dies, and a horse is maimed for life.

Language:
Some crude slang.

Romance:
A few kisses.

Suggested Age:
12+

My Opinion:
I have a really hard time getting into books when the theme has nothing to do with romance for the majority of the book.
So, I did not have high expectations of this book.
I was blown away.
At one point, the author said something that I have said so many times, but never knew how to put it into words so I didn't look like lunatic.
That being said, I would have loved a) a teeny bit more romance and b) some more background on the island/water horses.
I'm a big background person, so the fact there was literally no background sort of bugged me.
But, it was an amazing book. :)

Bitten By the Bug

I've been infected by the Wanderlust bug.
Wanderlust: A strong innate desire to travel or roam about.
Let me explain something to you. I live in a small town, I've probably lived in 20 (give or take a few) different places in my life. I move. It's what I do.
Except I've been in one house for five years.
There's something wrong.
I don't think it's the itch to move, as much as it's the itch to start over. See somewhere new. Be totally unknown.
My house doesn't help things.
I live in a house with five other people, a dog, and two gerbils. (Plus the 4 billion mosquitoes/roaches that think they can live here without paying rent. -_-)
I am slowly being suffocated.
Same town. Same house. Same street. Same room. Same stuff.

So, I did what any sane person would do. I explored. About a year ago, I discovered that I really loved the overgrown forest on the other side of my street. It's totally overgrown, there's poisonous plants everywhere, and bugs (I found one the size of my big toe on my thigh the other day. Yes, I screamed bloody murder.).
But...
There's something special.

Something there that let's me pretend my wanderlust is satisfied.
(Btw, this was taken 2 winter's ago.)
I'll take my dog over there, and we'll run through the trees, or I'll take my ipod and listen to music. And sometimes I'll even write.
There's a spot that just out from the street that I can sit on and see the entire thing swooping below me. If I fell... I would get hurt. But, it's SO pretty.
Now, I just wish the bugs would go away. There's all kinds of bugs out there... except.
The Wanderlust Bug isn't there.
And that's just how I like it.

Book Review: Delirium

Delirium is written by Lauren Oliver, and is the first in the trilogy.

Summary:
Lena Holloway lives in a world where love is a disease. And when you turn 18, you receive the cure to wash the disease out of your body. After you get the cure, you can no longer feel the happiness, sadness, anger, or joy of love. Lena can't wait until she can get the cure. She can't wait to be rid of the thing inside her that killed her mother.
Until. She meets Alex.

Profanity:
Everything, but G****mn. The f word is used twice.

Romance:
Yeah. Okay, mostly just kissing. There is like 2 paragraphs in the middle of the book, that says they touched each other a lot, and that Lena's shirt came off on occasion. But, it's talked about in past tense, so it's not as bad as it could be.

Violence:
A dog dies, a dog tears a leg apart, people are clubbed and beaten, the inside of a jail cell is described in length.

Suggested Age:
14+

My Opinion:
I have heard mixed reviews about this book. I spent an hour last night debating as to which book to buy, and this one finally won out.
I really really liked it. There's nothing too unique about Oliver's writing style, but her word choice is flawless. Lena was very relatable (at times, I did feel like shaking her though), and Alex is just... awesome. I did feel he was a little too perfect though. Like he was inhuman or something.
The plot was really great, I followed it easily enough.
I was very pleasantly surprised at the amount of The Book of Shh! (The book with all the rules for the country in it) in the book. I thought it was very neat. That being said, I would have loved to have known more, not only about the Wilds, but also about the leaders of Lena's country. They only came up like, twice.
Also, talk about a cliffhanger. You thought the Hunger Games left off on one... you were sorely mistaken...
Anyway. I wish the 2 paragraphs (up in Romance) were not in the book. Because, it so easily could have been taken out, and if they were, my suggested age would have been, like, 12. But because of like 7 sentences that didn't really go with anything, I had to raise the age by two years. Yeah. Frustrating.
Oh! So, I don't know if y'all know this about me, but when it comes to books, I simply cannot be surprised. I just figure the ending/plot/surprising twists and turns pages before I get there. I don't know why.
But! The surprise in this book completely shocked me. Talk about awesome.
One of my favorite quotes was really simple: "I'd rather die my way, than live yours."
And maybe it was because it was like right in the middle of a super gory fighting scene, and so when she thinks this, it's like time just freezes. It was pretty neat.
Overall, it was a good book. I'm looking forward to the next one.

Day 17

Question is...
What do people most misunderstand about you?
LOLOLOLOLOLOL.
'xcuse me.
Most people misunderstand my sarcasm for meanness, my following the rules for a goody two shoes, and my constructive criticism for hatred.
I know this, because people tell me these things. (I had people at camp tell me they hated me. Yeah. Fun week.)
I don't really want to delve into this, since I think my list sort of speaks for itself, but yeah. That's it.

Day 16

Question is...
Name 10 people (not related to you) who have influenced/helped you. (Do this sort of like a book jacket.Thank You Name for blah blah blah...)
Again, not really a question.
Mrs. Davis, my second grade teacher. She was one of the best teachers of all time. She told me I could write, and pushed me to do so.
Suzanne Collins/ Veronica Roth for just being awesome writers, and making me want to follow my dreams.
Charity Jones, my teacher a few years ago. She's just an amazing person, and always knew what to tell me when I felt like my life was falling apart.
Arielle Sinnett/ Amanda Bowen/ Aubrey Poole, for always listening and laughing with me.
Madison Levine, for being the best freaking friend possible.
Emily Haynes, for helping me find the joy and laughter in every situation.
All the people who made me cry and tried to break me: Thanks. I laugh at you now.

Day 15

Question is:
What are the first ten songs when you put your ipod on shuffle?
1. Control by Royal Tailor
2.Sparks Fly by Taylor Swift
3.Good Girl by Carrie Underwood
4. Hit the Lights by Selena Gomez and the Scene
5. Call Me Maybe by Carly Rae Jepson
6. Safe and Sound by The Civil Wars and Taylor Swift
7. This Cat's on a Hot Tin Roof by The Brian Seltzer Orchestra
8. Rumour Has it by Adele
9. Long Live by Taylor Swift
10. Undo It by Carrie Underwood

Day 14

Question is...
If you could move/ visit one place, where would you go?
Well.
This is quite the interesting question, since I want to move and see EVERYTHING possible.
I like traveling.
So.
Hmm... Like, I have a list of places I would love to visit: Paris, England, Egypt, Israel.
If I could move to one of the above it would probably be Paris.
If I could visit one of the above, it would probably be Egypt.
Complete opposites, I know.
I'm just awesome like that.

Day 13

Question is:
What are 5 names you love, and why?
Seeing as how I already have my kid's names all picked out,. this is both a difficult and easy question.
Anneliese:
Um... I don't really know why I like this name... I just... do...
Tess:
My mom always wanted a girl named Tess. So, after a while, I sort of wanted it too.
Juliet:
I have always wished I had been named Juliet (it was on my parent's list of names for me actually). I've toyed with the idea of spelling it Juliette instead of the original way... but I just don't know.
Grant:
Again, not sure why I like it.
Grayson:
Well... okay... there was this super cute guy at camp... and his name was Grayson... PLUS... I really do love the name.

Day 12

Yeah, yeah, yeah. Slacker, slacker, slacker. I get it, k?

Question is:
If you could listen to only one song the rest of your life, what would it be?
First of all, if I could only listen to ONE freaking song the rest of my life, I would die. Music is like breathing to me... so I would die.
That being said, it would probably either be:
Switchblade 372 by the Brain Seltzer Orchestra...
Jump Jive and Wail by the Brain Seltzer Orchestra...
OR Rock This Town by.... the Brian Seltzer Orchestra.
I just... really like their music. A lot.
And I'm not really sure why.
Since I don't normally like music like they put out.
Hence my confusion as to why I am in love with every single one of their songs.
And now I'll stop talking (writing?).
I'm done now.
Seriously.
K, bye.

Innings and Idiots

So, I went to go see a Braves game with my dad last week (I went when I was six... but I don't remember it. So, I counted this one as my first).
I find it extremely funny that every single situation I'm in, I find myself at some point thinking either
 a.) That would make a cool picture
or
b.) That would make a good blog post

In this case, the Braves game was both.

The blog post I realized I would get out of it, was courtesy of the lovely fellow behind me.
The guy was probably 25 or 30, and very... opinionated, shall we say.
I grew up in a hard core football house, with yelling and screaming, so the fact that people around me were yelling didn't bother me.
What bothered me about the guy behind me, was that he was just... mean.
Throwing insults to the batters, yelling foul language, and overall just being a jerk.
What seriously bothered me, was the fact that there was no reason to tell the batter that he should go back to Little League baseball. It's not like the guy was going to go back because one person he didn't know or care about told him to.
So, what's the point?
Why do we pull people down when there's no reason? When it won't benefit us in any way?
Because the world had twisted us. We think if we pull others down, it pushes us up.
How twisted is that? Let's pull the ankle of the guy above us and jerk him down below us. By default, now we are higher than that guy.
By default.
Because we didn't do anything to be better than that person.
If anything, even though technically we are higher than them, we are lower. Because in the long run, where you are spiritually is so much more important then where you are physically.
Sure, you might sit there and taunt the guy who's having serious issues hitting the ball, but because he doesn't turn around and shriek at the entire stadium "HOLY CRAP! JUST SHUT UP ALL OF YOU AND LET ME HIT THE FREAKING BALL!" (Which, by the way, is what I would probably do), he is better than you.
Without having done or said anything.

If someone strikes you on one cheek, turn to him the other also. If someone takes your cloak, do not stop him from taking your tunic. - Luke 6:29

Blogger of the Year Award...

Nope. I'm not dead, kidnapped, or quit caring about my blog.

I am simply stressed.

I started school last Monday, and in between juggling that, and trying to work out volunteering somewhere, I am so bogged down.
So, no I am not giving up blogging, but my blog posts might not be as often as they used to be. Because it's not summer anymore. And my mother doesn't approve of my being up till five a.m. with a pot of coffee.
I don't understand why.

Anyway. I do have a few book reviews lined up, plus a few other posts.
I swear, I'm getting on it.

Day 11

The question is...
What are your five most favorite quotes?
5?!?!? FIVE?!?! HOW IS IT POSSIBLE TO ONLY PICK FIVE?!?! I HAVE 248 QUOTES ON A PINTEREST BOARD!!
Sorry... okay. This is not cool.
Hmm. Okay.
Definitely: "Imperfection is beauty, madness is genius, and it's better to be absolutely ridiculous than absolutely boring." ~ Marilyn Monroe 
Because it's so true! I actually quoted this to my dad the other day when he informed me I was weird.
"You don't love someone for their looks, or their clothes, or their fancy car, but because they sing a song only you can hear." ~Oscar Wilde.
I'm a big fan of all things Oscar Wilde for some reason, so when I found this and read it, my brain went like this, "This is a beautiful quote... I wonder who wrote it... Oh! Oscar Wilde... go figure."
"Fairy tales are more than true. Not because they tell us that dragons exist,  but because they tell us those dragons can be beaten." ~G.K. Chesterton 
I just really like this one. I'm not exactly sure why.
"And those seen dancing were thought to be insane by the ones who could not hear the music." ~Nietzsche
This one is so simple... yet so deep.
"Never love anybody who treats you like you're ordinary." ~Oscar Wilde
This quote was my introduction to Mr. Wilde, and I've loved his quotes and books ever since. He's just right with a lot of the stuff he says.

Day 10

The question is...
What are your top five most quoted movies?
Huh.
Well.
Star Wars. More specifically the: "Patience, young padawan." (so much better than the grasshopper quote in my opinion) "Luke, I am your father" and, "There is no try. Only do or do not."
Toy Story. The only one we quote all the time is "Everybody say Bye House!" We say this basically every time we go away from our house... or any house... for awhile.
Up. I quote Up a lot. "My knee hurts.... my elbow hurts... and I have to go to the bathroom!", and "Here snipey snipey!" and, "The cone of shame"
Mulan. Okay, so I actually only saw this movie only a week ago, but quote-wise it has already high exceeded most disney movies. In specifics: "Would you like to stay for dinner? Would you like to stay forever??!", "Sign me up for the next war!", "Down, Bessie."and, "Dishonor on you! Dishonor on your cow!"
That last one is my favorite.
The last one is probably Tangled. Not because I love it so much... but because it's ALWAYS on. My favorite has to be: "When I look in the mirror, Rapunzel, I see a strong, confidant, beautiful young lady. Oh look! You're here too!"
:)

Day 9

The question is...
What are 5 of your weaknesses?
Payback for yesterday's freakishly simple question I guess.
Trust: 
I have a tendency to trust people that I know I shouldn't. Even when everyone I know is like "That person's not good for you!" I have a tendency to ignore them.
Absolute Disorganization:
My room is constantly a state of havoc. Like it looks like as hurricane swept through there right now. And while I have my reasons for having everything on the floor... sometimes I can't *find* my floor. It really sucks during the school year. Because if it hits the floor in my room... chances are, it ain't coming back.
Prioritizing/ Procrastination:
Yeah. Big one. I just... am a chronic procrastinator. I write schedules, I set alarms... and still find myself stuck on Sunday night with a ton of homework to do.
Being Mortally Shy:
Okay, so most people who know me are cracking up laughing right now. And that's fair. I'm not shy around people I know really well. I'm like... terrified around people I don't know. And I don't really know why.

I need one more. Hmm.
How about frappichinos/coffee in general? That counts as a weakness right? Just a food... weakness...

Day 8

Question is...
What TV show(s) are you addicted to right now?

Well, when Survivor is on, I'm addicted to that.Like seriously.
 I'm also addicted to Sherlock. Majorly.
And House. (seriously in love with Jesse Spencer. And his accent)

This question wasn't very deep, was it?
Yeah... so, I don't watch TV like a ton, but when I do, it's one of those three ^^^ most of the time.
The thing is, Sherlock only has three episodes out, Survivor season hasn't yet started, and House is on VERY sporadically.
So.
Yeah.
Annoying.

Day 7

Question is...
If you could be any animal, what would you be?
I'm really tempted, right off the bat, to say a dog. They are one of the few "pet" animals, and I would get to live indoors (score!) and get rubbed on the head all the time. Win win.
But, if I couldn't be a dog... hm. I know I wouldn't be a cat. I hate cats. With every fiber of my being. I wouldn't want to be living in an environment where there's constant danger. Like the jungle... arctic tundra... desert...
So maybe a bird? Yeah... I like that idea. So, maybe like a jaybird... they're little but fast. They don't have that long of a lifespan... but I would have an even shorter life span if I were to live in the midst of constant danger probably. And plus.. my nickname is bird... so it sorta works. :)

Book Review: Gathering Blue

Gathering Blue is written by Lois Lowry (author of The Giver and Number the Stars)

 Summary:
Kira grows up in a village that will not be brought down by imperfection. So, when Kira is born with a twisted leg, her mother has to fight for her life. She wins, but when she dies years later, Kira is left with a village who doesn't think she can do any good. She must prove herself, because she has a special gift. She has to show it to everyone before it is too late.


Profanity:
None.

Romance:
A reference to "coupling".

Violence:
Someone is shackled, mention of his bloody ankles. A man says he was slashed, blinded, clubbed and left for dead.

Suggested Age:
9+

My Opinion:
Again... with the cover... come on now..
Anyway.
I was very very VERY confused. This book was said to be a sequel to The Giver. Um... I'm sorry... there was no mention of Jonas here, or even of his community. I realize these books take place in the same time period, but you cannot consider this a sequel if there are none of the same characters. You just can't.
I also felt oddly detached from not only the story, but from Kira herself. I just felt it really hard to get into the story. Then of course... as Lowry is known for... she leaves off at a TOTAL cliffhanger that makes you want to beat your head against a brick wall.
There is supposed to be a third installment called The Messenger, but since this "sequel" absolutely sucked as a sequel, I do NOT have high hopes for it.
I also thought that the part of the book that the title is named for didn't have enough to do with anything to be the title. This is of course, an opinion.
The plot was actually pretty interesting though. Just not my type of book.

Day 6

The question is...
What is your zodiac sign, and is it accurate?
I would like to first and foremost point out that I'm a strong Christian... this is merely for fun. I don't believe in the accuracy of zodiac signs and whatever else.
Just so we're clear.
I'm a Gemini- the sign of the twins- since I was born June 5th.
I would also like to point out: Everybody has different opinions about their zodiac sign. So, while I found a few things that most places thought Gemini's had in common, it was hard to find a lot.
Here's what I did find:
Adaptable/Versatile: Major yes. Moving over 20 times in 14 years makes you versatile even if you didn't start out that way.
Communicative/ Witty:  I'm witty... I think. Don't know so much about communicative. I have about as much social life right now as a caveman.
Intellectual/ Eloquent: This doesn't seem like the type of question I should be answering... I mean, I know I'm not stupid. But, I'm not Einstein either. And we'll leave it at that.
Youthful/ Lively: Well this seems awfully weird... my name means "youth". Anyways. Um... sure? I mean... I'm not "lively" but I'm not a slug either. This is hard.
Nervous/ Tense: Nervous? Yes. Tense? Meh. Not so much.
Superficial/ Inconsistent: I'm not superficial. I am very inconsistent.
Cunning/ Inquisitive: Well, I'm not exactly "cunning" but I am definitely inquisitive. My parents refer to me as "20 Q" a lot. (20 questions for all you who haven't had enough sleep or coffee... I didn't get it either at first).
So. Yes and No. Some, for sure. Others, not so much.

Book Review: Number the Stars

Number the Stars is written by Lois Lowry (who also wrote The Giver and Gathering Blue)

Summary:
Annemarie lives in Nazi occupied Denmark. She helps her family smuggle her best friend Ellen into Sweden, but there are many unexpected dangers along the way. When Ellen's safety rests on Annemarie's shoulders, will she have the courage to help her?

Profanity:
None.

Romance:
None.

Violence:
Fear of capture, Ellen in is serious danger.

Suggested Age:
9+

My Opinion:
Lois Lowry is not my favorite author. Her books are for a very specific taste(and not my taste, mind you), which is why I was so dang surprised that I loved this book. It's pretty short, and could use some further meat on the bones of the story, but it was really good. I was pretty deeply engulfed in the story and have read it more than once. A little thing that really extremely bugs me is the cover. First off, I hate that the name of the author is bigger than the title of the book. I get that you want your name to be known. I get it, I do. But, the fact that it's bigger than the title itself, makes me sort of mad. That she thinks that people will pick the book up just because she wrote it. And while I'm sure some people did, I don't think it's fair to assume that.
Another issue is with the girl on the front of the book. She's just.. not anything like I pictured Annemarie to be. Just nothing like her. So, yeah that kinda bugged me.
But other than the cover, which is just a little flaw, this book was really good.

Book Review: Twice Upon a Marigold

Twice Upon a Marigold is written by Jean Ferris and is the sequel to Once Upon a Marigold.

Summary:
It's a few years after Christian and Marigold's wedding/ Olympia falling in the river. Everyone in the kingdom is so much happier now that she's gone and everything is peaceful again. But, unbeknownst to them Olympia washed up on the shores of a small village, not knowing who she was at all. Actually she was quite nice.
Until the morning she wakes up and remembers everything. She storms back to the castle, intent on getting her kingdom back. And intent on making a bunch of people pay.

Profanity:
None.

Violence:
A woman is dropped from an elephant. She is thought to be dead.

Romance:
A few people want to marry one another. Christian and Marigold are in love.

Suggested Age:
9+

My Opinion:
It wasn't as good as the first one. It just... wasn't. I don't know why exactly. It was cute and charming.... but it wasn't as good. It was well written, but even the author said she only wrote the sequel because the readers asked for it. It was an afterthought. And it was obvious.
I mean, the plot was good.... but it was sort of bland for me.
But, give it a try... you just might like it.

Day 5

The question is...
What are 5 of your favorite hobbies?
Writing.
Obviously. Some one should have seen that coming... really.
I'm myself when I'm writing :) Like, I get to think about something other than my weird life while I'm writing about someone else's. Escaping reality ;)
Photography.
That one was pretty obvious too... I started being interested in photography around the time I turned 9. I got a little digital camera and had it for four years. Then it bit the dust around a year ago, and I got a bigger fancier Nikon. I love it. I like taking pictures, because it captures moments. I love going back and looking at pictures from times I can't remember very well. It's pretty cool.
Reading.
Yeah. These are all pretty obvious. I know. Sorry. I just like reading... again... escaping reality...
I like swimming. A lot. I don't really know why...
I refuse to go try out for the swim team, because I don't want to turn my hobby into something competitive. Plus, I don't like swimming laps as much as coasting along the bottom of the pool and diving for pool toys.
Okay... so then there's like singing and acting... which is kinda being put on a back burner right now. But, I like it so it's on here.
That's five. *phew*

When Names Actually Mean Something

Juliana: "Youth or Jove's Child."

This is the meaning of my name, that I only looked up very recently.
I looked up "Jove's Child" only to find that Jove (or Jupiter, king god in Roman mythology) didn't have any kids that lined up with "youth". So, I took a different path. What if Jove's Child, meant Jove as a child?
Bingo.
It made sense that it would be Jupiter as a child (youth made sense now).
Jupiter was the head god in Roman Mythology (I've always been a big sucker for mythology. I took a year of Greek mythology in third grade, and I've always been interested in it. I know some about Roman mythology, but not as much as Greek) who was the ruler of the skies, thunder and lightning. Hence the picture of the sky with my picture.
Jupiter was the Roman equivalent of Zeus.
Also, I find it weird that this is the meaning of the name "Juliana" since Jupiter was obviously a guy. I guess since my name is the derivation of Julius... but that doesn't make too much sense either. Jupiter... Julius?
Anyway.
I thought it was pretty neat that my name actually meant something.
The cherry on top is the fact it came from mythology... I'm still sorta really excited with this new found information.
Like really excited. Like I've been on my laptop all afternoon looking up stories about Jupiter and anyone who ever sneezed within 4 miles of him.
:)

Day 4

The question for today is...
What are 3 legit fears you have?
First of all. Adding the word "legit" to a question does not make it cooler. I wouldn't have given 3 pretend fears. You don't have to add the word legit. And if you were to use the word, why couldn't we make it "legitimate"? Why do we have to shorten it and be all "cool"? It's stupid.
I digress.
3 *legitimate* fears... hm.
Heights:
I am seriously scared of heights. Okay, not heights. The impact of falling off something high. I don't really know when I developed this fear... I know I wasn't always this way. I have to close my eyes on bridges (not the ones over water. Those don't scare me, because if I fall there's water. And I can swim. The ones over another street or something hard scare me. Like in Atlanta when all the highways overlap over one another? Yeah, those.) because it's so scary to me.
Losing a Member of My Family:
This is a big one. I'm so scared that something's going to happen to one of more of them. I love all five of them so much... and if anything ever happened to them I would probably lose it.

I'm really tempted to put something like "Die an Old Maid" or "Cannot Have Biological Children" or "An Apocalypse Happens and Everybody Dies" as my last one... but maybe this is where "legit" comes into the picture.

I am legit (grrr!!!) scared of the first one (and let's be honest... the second one too.) though. So maybe we'll just end with those. You can interpret those any way you wish.
You're welcome.

Book Review: Enchanted

Enchanted is written by Alethea Kontis.

Summary:
Sunday is one of the seven Woodcutter sisters. When she happens to meet an Enchanted frog one morning, he asks to read out of the journal she's carrying. Soon, they become fast friends. They might even be falling in love. But, then the frog's enchantment is lifted, and he is a man once again. The man that Sunday and her family have come to hate because of an event that happened in the past. Will she be able to love him despite that? Will he be able to win her back?

Violence:
Magic (which isn't violent.. but I threw it in this category anyway), deaths, talk about blood being used for magic purposes.

Romance:
A few kisses.

Profanity:
As* and Dam*

Suggested Age:
12+

My Opinion:
This book frustrated the absolute heck out of me. It's a beautiful story, and really well told.
But.
Why are there so many curse words? If this is a story written for pre-teens... what the heck are the words doing in there?
The book was great. I felt the story was awesome, and it was told in an interesting way. Of course... towards the end, I had some issues with Sunday (I didn't agree with one of her decisions... I was actually quite confused).
However, it was a good read. :)

Day 3

31 Day Blogger Challenge: Day Three
Question is....
If you could have any superpower, what would it be?:
This is a fun one :)
Okay... so I've always wanted to be invisible, but then I realized people would bump into me all the time, and I would be so mad that they didn't apologize that then I would say something, and they would find out about my power... and what's the point of being invisible if everybody knows it?
I thought not.
So, then I decided that being like Elastigirl, would be pretty awesome. But then I decided that would leave me really fat because would never get up to do something, I would just reach. So, that's out.
Running really fast would be cool. Except... everyone would know it was a superpower.
Bionic hearing would be nice... except I would be able to hear the mean things people say about me. And my hearing's already pretty good.
Maybe, like X-Ray vision? Like seeing through walls? That would be really neat. Yeah, I think I'll stick with that one.
~Bird

Invincible Summer

"In the midst of winter, I found there was, within me, an invincible summer."
~Albert Camus

This picture just seemed to go with this quote. (Which btw, is one of my all time favorite quotes.)
Winter is a time of everything frozen over and dead. Cold, white, dead.
Summer is a time of rebirth. Warm, fun, joy.
Total opposites.
I love this quote so much, because, what's is saying here, is that no matter what's dying or cold or lifeless, you will always that spark in you. No matter what kind of living hell your life has become, there will always be that joy somewhere. Somewhere lurking, waiting to be found.
This picture went with it, in my mind, because I'm shutting my eyes. Shutting your eyes to the world, to the winter, and finding that invincible summer within myself.
I also love that he threw the word invincible in there. It just reaffirms that absolutely nothing can ever make your spark go away. Nothing. Ever.
Boom.
(I also think it spoke to me, because winter strikes me and black and white. White snow, black trees... I don't know... but this picture was black and white, so it worked.)
I had planned up until tonight, to use a different quote this picture. A more literal one, about eyes and whatnot. But... well, you just can't pass up the opportunity to use this. T'would be a terrible waste, don't you think?

Day 2

Day 2!
Question is....
Talk about your school.
I would like to first and foremost point out: This is not a question.
But whatever.
Okay, I homeschool. I have since fourth grade, and I go to a co-op (a HUGE one) once a week.
This year, I'm taking American History (at home), Biology, Spanish 1, Intro to Lit, and Geometry.
Oy.
American History looks like it won't be that bad. I've already started it, and got a 95 on my first quiz.
Biology, I'm hoping is going to be good. I've heard the teacher is pretty easy... but it's science... so there's always the possibility things will go sour.
Spanish 1, I'm going to crash and burn in. I took Latin for three years when I was younger... and wasn't that good at it. Not to mention the teacher looks really hard. Any teacher that makes students and parents sign documents at the beginning of the year... is bound to be hard.
Geometry I'm being optimistic about. Even though I can barely tell a circle apart from a square...
Just kidding! Sort of...
That's the gist of it...
Till tomorrow! :)
~Bird

31 Day Blog Challenge

I'm doing a 30 day blog challenge for the month of August. It's not a specific one, more like a bunch of questions from different blog challenges.
So, I picked 31 questions (I had to tweak it and add an extra question) and threw them all in a jar. Each day I'll pick one out at random and answer it.
Today the question is.... *drum roll*
What are 5 of your strengths?:
Why is this the first question? Out of all the normal ones... I get this extremely deep question. Grr.
Okay... so strengths as in things I'm good at literally or emotionally... or what? I'm going to have to use my imagination here...
Anyway. Writing is one of them. It flows out of me naturally, and it's something I must be doing. No matter where I am I can write. And I know I'm not awful... cause my parents are pretty honest and they don't think the stuff I write is awful.
Listener:
I've been through enough pain in my life to know sometimes, you just need someone to listen to you talk. I'm pretty good at listening patiently and then giving advice.
Making people laugh:
I really like making people laugh, and since I grew up in an extremely funny family, I'm pretty good at it. I'm also extremely sarcastic... which can either make people laugh or make them want to kill me. I've had my fair share of both.
Being perceptive:
Most of the time I have a good sense about people before we even talk. I can sense whether or not we'll be friends, or if I'm going to want to claw their eyeballs out of their head.
Now I'm stuck.
That's only four... hmm...
Okay, I can't think of another one.
So.
I'll post another question tomorrow! :)
~Bird