Blagh-ing

Yep. Say "blagh", just like "blog", except with a sigh.
The school year is coming to an end. On Wednesday, to be exact.
This year has been a very...interesting year for me. I realized, about halfway through the year, that this has been my first year being "the new kid" since third grade when I went to school for the first time. And honestly, I'm not one of those people who can walk into a new place and automatically feel at home. It takes me a while...quite a while, actually, to really get comfortable in a new place. And this year, it seemed to take me a really, really long time. I mean, in third grade, for the most part, it was really easy to make friends. Even if they weren't the forever kind of friends, they were the friends you could hang out with on the playground and share your third-grader secrets with.
Ninth grade is a different thing, entirely.
Making friends is more about relating to another person than sharing your cookies with them (of course, sharing never hurt anyone :))
So now, I find myself at the end of my first year of High School. I feel like I've only just gotten settled, and now it is all coming to an end.
That idea is sigh-worthy, right?
But instead of being upset, I would rather rejoice in the fact that God has blessed me with these last couple of months. I've made friends, I've become settled in a place that I'll be returning to, and because of those things, I've been able to let go of what used to be.
I'm coming to the end of this year honestly feeling like I'm ready to move forward in my life, as opposed to dwelling in the past.
.......................................................
Yeah, this sounds super inspirational, eh? ;)
Anyway! Summer is upon me, and I'm almost ready to embrace it. A summer...full of Algebra 2.
Oh dear...now that is a sigh-worthy thought.

True Story

So, tonight, I went to a concert, by a band by the name offfffff. Rush Of Fools. That's them up there. Minus the guy in the middle...the one with the beanie ;)
Anyways! It was most definitely the best thing I've done in a very long time. The music, of course, was awesome (check 'em out here) but they were also very hilarious.
They came out and played a song, and then they were introducing themselves. Wes, the lead singer, (the guy in the black vest & tie up there ^) launched into a story. About airplane toilets?
Yep.
Here is, or at least, as close to as I remember, the dialogue that ensued.
"So, we flew out here from Birmingham, Alabama, and we were on the plane and I got up to use the bathroom, or shall I say, lavatory. And you know, the toilets are just way too loud, like, louder than anything you're gonna hear tonight. You know, you kind of have to cover your ears. So anyway, the lady comes out and she goes 'I know! They're just so loud aren't they!' and I was like, 'Yeah'. Anyway, you know, people basically hate bands on airplanes. Here we come with all our guitars and our gear, and we're just taking over the overhead compartment. And people always think we're coming to play music on the plane, but the only music we'll be playing is the music coming out of our headphones! So, the flight attendant asked if I was in a band, and I was tempted to say that we were just the roadies, but she was nice, so I answered 'Yes' and when she asked what the name was, I said Rush of Fools. Well her mouth dropped open and she said 'Nuh-uh, you are not Rush of Fools!' and I was just like 'Yeah..we are' so the flight attendant said she listened to our music all the time, and she had seen that our gear said Rush of Fools, but she thought that we were just, like, pretending to be Rush of Fools"
Then, the lead guitarist, Kevin, (the one in the plaid vest up there ^) goes,
"But we said that nobody would be that lame as to pretend to be us."
So...that was kind of long...but...that's the point. It was a long story...but does anyone see the point of talking about a loud toilet? Haha.
And then, they went on with their introductions,
"We aren't professionals up here, we're just up here to worship Jesus with you, and you know, we're not rock stars...we're just a bunch of...well, nerds and geeks. And we're also rednecks from Alabama. So as you spend more time with us tonight, you'll start to hear our twang come out."
Then, they were done talking, and they played some more music. Which was, again, awesome. I'll tell ya, I seriously have not heard a band that sounded so good live before. They have real voices. Not sound doctored in the studio.
Anyways, they finished with their song (Undo, my favorite song ever) and the guy, Kevin, asked everyone to sit down, and started talking to us. It was a really good, deep, spiritual discussion. And he was saying something about the "simpleness" of it all, when he stopped, looked at the lady who was signing for the deaf people, and asked
"Is simpleness a word? (Which it is, by the way) I'm sorry...can you even sign that? I was just talking and like...put the word together...by the way, I just wanna thank you sweetheart for doing that, let's give her a round of applause...man, I really wish I could do sign language." Then...he put his hands out in front of him and started, like, waving his fingers around, trying to do sign language.
"Yeah, I really wish I could do it! Oh...FOCUS KEVIN!"
Best.Thing.Ever.
More music...and during one of their songs, there was this really weird noise, and when the song ended, the drummer, Jamie (the one all the way on the left), and the bassist, Jacob (the one all the way on the right) were talking to each other and pointing, and Kevin and Wes asked what the sound was, and Kevin goes:
"Yeah, we were just having a good time and all the sudden there was some weird noise! Like a...turkey on fire...with a four year old little girl chasing after it!"
He looked at Jacob, (who, at the concert, had blond on the top, black on the bottom of his hair) and goes...
"well...he is a turkey on fire! I'd be running if I had that hair too!"
Then...he laughed...and started saying something about giving Jacob a personality complex...and everyone was all quiet, and Kevin keeps laughing and says:
"Oh! Awkward moment! Man, I love awkward moments so much!"
Awkward much? :P
More awesome music.
And then they were saying something about the drummer, and Wes said
"His name is Jamie, but we all call him Jan for some reason..."
And Kevin says
"True story...we do call him Jan."
BAM. There ya go, that's why it's called "True Story" and if you're really close to me...you know that that is one of my most-used phrases. Yeah, true story. ;)
So, sadly, the concert ended, but then we got to go to the lobby anddddd....meet them! Oh yes. Life goal completed right there. To meet someone famous. We (My sister and I) got autographs, and a picture taken. Yesss.
So, that was really long. Sorry about that. Seems that once I find something to write about, I just can't stop! But anyways, it was really fun. And their music is amazing, and they have really deep-rooted in the Lord that shows through their music. So check them out!
True Story!

I'm Blogging From...

...New York, at 6:49 in the morning, after three hours of sleep. Oh yes, this should be an interesting post.
Well, I came to New York (not NYC :)) with my sister to surprise my cousin, and surprise her we did. Somehow, we managed to make it up here from Maryland without her knowing. We got here around 10 at night when she was still babysitting, and along with my Aunt, hatched a super awesome plan...
When she was almost home, my Uncle took my sister's car and left.
My sister and I hid in my cousin's room...in the dark.
And I wish I could say that she walked right in her room and that was that...
But of course, I can't. :p
We stood in her room (in the dark) for about five minutes until we heard her walk in the door. So we were all tensed up, our hearts beating like crazy. Anddd...she had to go to the bathroom. So we're waiting...waiting...she comes out, and starts doing something else. (Insert a dramatic eye roll or two here)
My Aunt tells her that there's a package in her room with no return address and to go get it, so eventually she walks to her doorway...and...s t o p s.
Naturally.
She's standing there, right in her doorway, talking to my Aunt. I was so worried she had seen my sister and was just stalling so that she could ruin it (Just the type of thing she would do)
Well anyway, she starts walking in the door and...finally.
We jumped out and scared her so horribly...she jumped back in the hallway, grabbing her neck (I guess she thought we were axe murderers...who knows)
And we all laughed.
So...here I am, in New York...I find it sort of (when I typed "sort of", it was in a British accent...proceed to read it that way if you like :)) ironic that I'm up earlier than I would be if I were in school...
But anyways, I should go...and work on my research paper. Or at least try to. I might crash here at any second ;)

Make A Wish

Well. It's been a while...again. I think the big problem is finding something to write about. I mean, I could get on here and write all about the research projects, tests, and papers to write that I have coming up, but what would be the fun in reading that? :)
So today, I went with my two sisters to a family friend's house. There lives the most adorable four year old on the face of the earth. As soon as I got out of the car, she came running out of the house with a blanket tied around her neck and a Burger King crown on her head. She grabbed my hand and explained, "I'm a princess!".
I played with her for a while, and then she wanted to go outside. She was walking around and I picked up one of those white, fluffy dandelion seed...flower things. Anyway, I handed it to her and told her to make a wish. She thought about it for a second and then turned to me and said "I wish that my mommy will buy be a Belle (Beauty and the Beast) dress" then, she blew really hard on it. Only a few of the seeds blew off, and she stood staring at it for a second before ripping the rest of and throwing them on the ground.
I smiled and watched as she picked up another one and wished that she would get special surprises for Christmas and did the same thing over again.
So, that's my story for the day.
What do you think of the new look?

Did the Broccoli Offend You?

So, today, my sister Erin took me to the Melting Pot for a late-ish Birthday present. I told her I would blog about it. So here I am. The evening started out with me trying my hardest to not bust out laughing hysterically at the waiter. There was absolutely nothing wrong with him, he was just...extremely animated? He reminded me a lot of my brother, actually, which added to to the whole laughter thing. Oh yeah, his name was Rob, server number 22.
So anyway, the whole system there is that you choose a type of cheese to get, and they come and mix it up in the little fondue pot sitting on your table. Then, you get a salad and an entree, which is raw meat and vegetables that you put in your fondue pot full of boiling broth to cook.
That's when things got...amusing. Rob, server number 22 (who we secretly named Peter) brought us our plates of meat, several dipping sauces, and a bowl with raw broccoli, potatoes, and mushrooms. He also brought us the "search and rescue spoon". The way he described it?
"This is the search and rescue spoon. When you're cooking your food and you can't find it, you search for your food and rescue it!"
Rob, server number 22 had some sense of humor, eh?
Well, we went on with our meal, and we poured the bowl full of vegetables into the broth. We got them out when they were done, and Erin tasted some of each while I continued to cook my meat.
"Does the broccoli taste spicy to you?" she asked.
I told her I hadn't tasted it, so I took a piece and took a bite. It was spicy.
It was actually kind of gross, but I ate every single piece because I couldn't figure out the flavor. Hehe.
So anyway, Rob, server number 22, came back and I asked him: "Um..were there spices on the broccoli?"
"My answer to that would be...no. But I can ask management and the kitchen...did the broccoli offend you?"
I, again, tried not to laugh hysterically in his face and simply shook my head no.
The next time he came around, he answered "Nobody's fessing up to any secret spices!" So, we left it at that.
Then desert came around and Rob, server number 22, decided to be nice to us.
"This doesn't have to be done, but I thought it would be fun to flambe your chocolate!"
So...was Rob, server number 22, trying to make up for the offensive, spicy broccoli, or trying to singe our eyebrows off? I suppose we'll never know! The rest of the evening went fairly uneventful, except for my continual struggle not to laugh at him. And the food was amazing.
So, that was our evening at the Melting Pot. I guess I have to step it up for Erin's Birthday, huh?

Hmmm.

Well it's been a while...over two weeks now since I last blogged! And it's not that I haven't had time, but I've had absolutely no clue what to write about. I still don't, actually. But it's another one of those days where all I feel like doing is procrastinate doing homework, so here I am.
I guess I could tell you about my week, or write about "what's new", but honestly...the answer to both of those things are the same: not much.
My life consists of the everyday monotony of a student. School, homework, chores, sleep, and the occasional, much appreciated break of having a social life. Which actually reminds me of something to write about.
All my life, I've absolutely loathed summer. I've never really loved any activities that come only in summer, so mainly I've only focused on the negative aspects of summer.
But this year is much different. For some reason. I'm longing for summer. And although I'm looking forward to a three month break from school, that's not even the whole thing.
I guess it's after all this snow, but I can't wait for the heat to come. And to be able to get snowballs, Rita's, and other things that come with summer, to walk around in the backyard barefoot, lay in the sun, and walk inside to the cold, air conditioned house after being out in super hot weather.
Yes, I think this summer will be a good one. And for the first time in my life, I can't wait.

Rediscover You

So, lately this has been my favorite song. I like the band and the sound of the song, but I especially love the lyrics. They really are raw and true. I was watching an interview the lead singer did about the song, and he explains that a lot of times musicians, including himself, can get caught up in just producing a song and putting it out there, but that this was one of those songs where it was true and raw feeling.

I need to just admit

My faith is paper thin
I'm feeling so burned out on religion
I say an empty prayer
I sing a tired song
I need to just admit
that the passion's gone
And I want to get it back
You told me
Look for you, and I will find
So I'm here
Like I'm searching for the first time
Revive me, Jesus
Make this cold heart start to move
Help me rediscover You

Those are personally my favorite lyrics in the song. The whole song is relate able, but for me that first part and chorus just describes for me what I feel at times.
I think that's all for now, just wanted to share that song with you :)