Sweeping Out 2006.

We used to spend New Years Eve at the Nieft's house just down the street. Craig would bust out a broom at midnight, open wide the front door, and sweep all the old junk out the door. I always think of that at New Years, even though the Niefts have moved to Belvedere. It's a great metaphor for what everyone should be able to do at the new year. Brush off all the old problems and start a new year with a clean slate. I wish I was still a kid so that the problems of the previous year would vanish with the coming of the new.

Out with the old and in with the new. This year will be a great one. May 2007 be as phenomenal as it can possibly be.

Happy New Year, everyone.

The Mint Shack.

I'm so. Upset. There was this ancient, abandoned shack on Bartlett Road. It was mint green and the door hung off the hinges. Sometimes it was closed and sometimes it was open. I drove past today. And it was all in pieces, packed in big ol' dumpsters. I always meant to explore it.

This is what happens. When you put things off.

Also, I just found out that an old asylum on Munger Road was knocked down in 2003. It kills me, the loss of these places, so full of stale pain and dusty memories.

The fact that my camera will never capture their honesty. Just tears me up.

Maybe I can find something interesting in the wreckage of the house. If I don't do it tomorrow I may never get to.

It's Not.

Horace said, "Carpe diem."

Jay Livingston and Ray Evans said, "Qué Será, Será."

Ghandi said, "Be the change you want to see in the world."

Dr. Seuss said, "Unless someone like you cares a whole awful lot, nothing is going to get better. It's not."

I'm going to change the world, let me tell you. Even in bitty little ways. I'm gunna do it.

Christmas Break Premonitions.

Hmm. Shouldn't Christmas Break be an enjoyable recess from all the shit you've got to worry about? Time to spend with your family, time to ignore school, time to relax.

Well. Not for me. No. My mother works for the school district. You know what that means? That means she's home all through the break to make my life a living hell. I'd rather go to school.

I, stupidly, let slip that I took time off from work during the break. It's my senior year. It's my last chance to fuck around during my break before having to accept all the adult responsibilities that are going to come with college life. I'm very good at managing my money. I have a set amount that I take out of the bank every time for gas and spending and I usually don't even use all of that. I only take out $40, max, every two weeks. $20 usually goes to gas. Which leaves $20 for me to spend over two weeks. Usually, I have leftovers. I only opened a bank account two months ago and I've got nearly a thousand dollars in it.

I have new expenses, what with shareboarding Legacy now. $125 a month. It's not a problem. I make at least $125 each paycheck. Which means, each month, at least another $125 is going into my bank account. I'm in no hurry to save. I've still got six months till I graduate and that leaves all summer for me to work my ass off and save even more money for college. I was going to offer to pay for my room and board for freshman year. It's about a thousand and I've got that in my bank account already.

Now every time I try to relax over break I'm going to have to endure snide commentary about how I could be using my time better. Fuck that. I'm tired. I want a break from everything, including this stupid house.

Anyone want to adopt an extra child for the holidays?

Movie List

forces of nature
stepmom
transamerica
the crying game
the craft
practical magic
requiem for a dream
braveheart
benny and joon
crash
fight club
pulp fiction
sin city
office space
can't hardly wait
american beauty
renaissance man
the hound of the baskervilles
swing kids
the squid and the whale
thumbsucker
gummo
junebug
the ugly dachshund
art school confidential
the big sleep
my first mister
brokeback mountain
memoirs of a geisha
the family stone
the chronicles of narnia
13
a clockwork orange
elephant
girl interrupted
donnie darko
the breakfast club
can't hardly wait
napoleon dynamite
carrie
strangeland
ferris beuller's day off
american graffiti
the lost boys
dazed and confused
half baked
fast times at ridgemont high
risky business
cocktail
the order
dogma
edward scissorhands
amelie
run lola run
fight club
st. elmo's fire
michael
splash/overboard
schindler's list
one flew over the cuckoo's nest
pulp fiction
the shawshank redemption
life as a house
pi
garden state
matchstick men
white oleander
animal house
windtalkers
saving private ryan
forrest gump
goodfellas
se7en
memento
cidade de deus
y tu mama tambien
phonebooth
eternal sunshine of the spotless mind
war of the worlds
elizabethtown
the trumann show
about a boy
the whole nine yards
pretty woman
indecent proposal
a walk to remember
lolita
secretary
riding in cars with boys
mona lisa smile
west side story
steel magnolias
collateral
rainman
much ado about nothing
spanglish
ocean's eleven
pay it forward
titanic
as good as it gets
jerry seinfeld: live on broadway
robin williams: live on broadway
fahrenheit 9/11
he loves me, he loves me not
the notebook
bridget jones's diary
the amityville horror
the ring
saw
saw 2
lords of dogtown
finding neverland
tristan and isolde
george lopez: why you crying?
Du poil sous les roses
the chumscrubber

Stewpot the Hobo.

So, I just had this sudden memory of fifth grade. We used to do these "reading group" things where we'd pick a book and like...five other people would read the book and we'd all have to discuss it.
And I remember this one book...I don't remember the title, but there was this character named Stewpot and he was a hobo. He lived in an old train car or some shit. Anyway. We all HATED this book. So we called Stewpot the Hobo...

Stupid the Homo. Instead.

HAHAHAHAHA. Oh, man. HAHAHA.

XD

P.S. Today was a snow day, but my mother insisted on making my life hell instead of allowing me to enjoy it. She told me, and I quote, "Nobody wants you here." Yeah. I can't wait to go to college.

Wishful Thinking.

Snow day, snow day, please, snow day...

Please.

Thanksgiving.

Life has been...interesting lately. I got into the college of my dreams. I'm going to be leasing a horse soon. I'm almost halfway through my senior year. My home life, as usual, has been hellish.

But things are certainly looking up.

I've got plenty to be thankful for.


"Reality leaves a lot to the imagination."
-John Lennon

Daydreams Confirmed.

I just received my acceptance letter from Findlay. I'm mailing in my $100 deposit in a little while. I. Am so. Happy.


I GOT IN, I GOT IN, OH MY GOD, OH MY GOD, I GOT IN!

Oh my god.

Pet Post.

This has been an odd weekend. Kind of relaxing and yet...Not. I decided that this blog fits into many, many categories. Cooking, Gardening, Pet, etc, etc. So, here are some pet bloggings.

So, here is Bodie of the past.



And Bo of the present.



Bo: Yeah, I'm a beast, so what? :3



Dakota: Pssht. I still kick your ass every day. >3



Bo: ;__; Oh, yeah...Guess so.

Here's Talulah, my vicious corn snake. She'll be a year old this November. She was my Christmas present from Santa last year :3

Lou: Whatchoo lookin' at, muthafucka?

And here's my beloved Gambler.

Gambler: I'm a sweet boy and I'm not being properly cared for. Look how badly my hooves need a trim. Hopefully that'll change after we move to our new place...

I think that Georgette has hauled him and the others off to Burlington by now. I wonder if she'd let me visit and ride him again...I need some pictures of me riding him. And I need to check in on him.

I'll post some pictures of Tango and the turtle kids soon. :3

"It is not enough for a man to know how to ride; he must also know how to fall."
--Mexican Proverb

Bananna Bread.

So, my parents were in Colorado for a week. Did I have a big party? No. Did I get into the liquor that they didn't bother to put away? Of course not.

But I did have both of my grandmothers over to flippin' babysit me. That pisses me off, at the root of things, but honestly it wasn't so bad. Gramma D let me record her telling me the beginning of her life story. Which I plan to finish recording soon and write a book about someday. She's had a pretty interesting life.

It was nice to, essentially, live on my own for a while. I even got sick while they were gone and had to take care of myself. Good practice for college. Oh, I got a parking ticket, too. Blocking the sidewalk. Are you fucking serious? It's my fucking driveway, muthafuckas. If someone's out for a walk...they can't spare a few more steps and walk around the end of my car? Fuck, you people XD

Anyway, the parents' flight was cancelled so they got home a day late. There was a big Halloween party that night, but you know what I did? I stayed home and baked bananna bread, from scratch. I hate baking. It's such a precise science. I'd rather just cook and wing it and be able to play with it the whole time. Baking is more of a waiting game. The bread turned out great though. Next time I'm gunna try layering some caramel sauce into it.

Oh, first quarter's just ended. You know what that means? That means I've got 3/4 left of my senior year. Three quarters of a year left to make it the best year there ever was :3 I think I can do it.

"I'm all right. I'm good. There have been better times, but I'll be okay."
--Kenny Chesney

p.s. Kenny Chesney and Russel Crowe, my new obsessions. "A Beautiful Mind"? If you haven't seen it, do it. Now. I insist.

My Goals.

"This is one dream I mean to cling to."
--Vianne Rocher, Chocolat

Things that are struck through are completed. Things in italics are works in progress.

-Leave everything a little better than I found it.
-Learn to understand football.
-Kiss underwater.
-Find a balance between the things I want to do and the things I need to do.
-Fill my passport.
-Sing every day.
-After moving into my own apartment, buy a cheap dining table and six mismatched chairs, and throw a small dinner party. With candles.
-Try absinthe.
-Have a kitchen garden and houseplants. Take good care of them.
-Get a fireproof box for my important documents.
-Do something dirty in an elevator and/or airplane bathroom.
-Learn to belly dance.
-Write by snail mail every so often.
-Get better at embroidery.
-Take a picture of something at least once a day.
-Volunteer at "Cowboy Dreams".
-Learn how to drive a stick shift.
-Get a tattoo.
-Go on a cruise.
-Be successful in the horse industry.
-If that fails, have a charming roadside bar with a bad-ass reputation.
-Finish reading everything on my list of "classic books to read" before I die.
-Renovate a house or at least get into some interior design.
-Find a message in a bottle. Send one.
-Take a roadtrip.
-Whiten my teeth.
-Revamp my room, empty it out, start over.
-Create my own website. Create a better one.
-Ride in a taxi.
-Cut my own hair.
-Have a bonfire on the beach.
-Sleep under the stars.
-Take a photography class.
-Play board games.
-Speak Spanish fluently.
-Dabble in other languages, like Russian, Japanese, Urdu, and German. Sign language, too.
-Learn to play the harmonica.
-Pracice my violin and my bass.
-Learn how to hotwire a car.
-Compile recipes from all my greatest friends and family.
-Give blood.
-Sew a quilt for my child.
-Coach a youth softball team.
-Adopt pets from a rescue or shelter.
-Bake better Christmas cookies.
-Take a first aid class.
-Rally, demonstrate, and protest. Stand up for what I believe in.
-Fall in love - ridiculous, inconvenient, consuming, can't live without each other love.
-Vote.
-Buy a hypnotism CD.
-Own a jukebox and a record player. Use them.
-Ride a motorcycle or moped on my own.
-Learn to whistle with my fingers and with my hands cupped.
-Give things that I hate a chance.
-Design and build my own barn. Don't forget a hidden room.
-Support unsigned musicians.
-Dye my hair a crazy color.
-Get better at skipping the small talk.
-Build something functional out of wood. A bookcase, a small table.
-Take a martial arts class.
-Break a bone.
-Try surfing.
-Establish a bedtime routine.
-Hear a homeless person's life story. Again.
-Recognize at least ten constellations.
-Wear hats.
-Philosophize.
-Learn to skateboard.
-Own an economical car - hybrid, fuel cell, or ethanol.
-Relearn how to read palms.
-Discover all the branches on my family tree.
-Be a better employee.
-Apply for at least three scholarships each week.
-Stay in touch with my extended family. E-mail Aunt Dar.
-Research religions.
-Stretch every morning.
-Open a checking account.
-Volunteer with Habitat for Humanity.
-Take a ballroom dance class.
-Perfect my calligraphy.
-Fold a thousand paper cranes. (Maybe.)
-Live in a studio apartment with sparse furnishings and big windows.
-Bake home-made bread every Sunday, when I have my own family.
-Constantly expand, subtract, and perfect my DVD collection.
-Keep up with politics, foreign affairs, and other current events.
-Learn to knit.
-Bartend.
-Get back into cross-country skiing in the winter.
-Have a wrap-around porch and a porch swing or a rocking chair.
-Go to a strip club.
-Study abroad.
-Try a new recipe every month.
-See the aurora borealis.
-See the Cirque Du Soleil.
-Be a tourist in my own town.
-Have garage sales.
-Spend a month driving around the country and staying in dumpy motels, photographing everything.
-Go skinny dipping. In the Mediterranean Sea.
-Save someone's life. (Does giving blood count...? :3 Maybe I'll cross this off if I never save someone another way.)
-Get business cards.
-Get my allergies tested and figure out what's up with my ovaries.
-Handle my snake every day so she gets used to me. Before she gets big enough to bite off my hand.
-Go on a whale-watching boat. Actually see some whales.
-Return to Niagara Falls and D.C. Appreciate them more this time around.
-While I'm up in New England, take a ferry to Novia Scotia.
-Barrel race.
-Do cartwheels.
-Learn more about the Burning Man festival and possibly attend one day.
-Go to Mardi Gras in New Orleans.
-Learn how to shoot a rifle.
-Play pool and darts well - the sports of the bar.
-Learn how to use a sewing machine.
-Learn how to rig a fishing pole. Always bait my own hook and unhook my own fish.
-Make an ofrenda every year for Day of the Dead - there's always someone's memory to honor.
-Dye my hair a funky color after graduation, to celebrate.
-Get a Daily Deviation on DeviantArt.
-Dye one of my pets a bright color - with non-toxic vegetable-based dye, of course.
-Write something in wet cement.
-Raise a child.
-Tie the stem of a cherry with my tongue - because maybe I can.
-Wear skirts more often.
-Go clubbing.
-Go paintballing.
-Build a treehouse.
-Go to at least two concerts over the summer.
-Light a candle for someone.
-Get a massage.
-Write a letter to the editor.
-Press flowers. Every spring.
-Find that place where it looks like, if you keep driving, you'll fall off the edge of the world.
-Swim in natural hot springs.
-Go waterskiing.
-Get a pedicure.
-Perfect a cookie recipe.
-Record Gramma D telling her life story. Finish it.
-Plant a tree.
-Fly a kite.
-Roast marshmallows in the back yard.
-Go apple-picking.
-Go to the drive-in as often as possible.
-Ride a bicycle built for two.
-Catch fireflies. Again.
-Build a snowman. Again.
-Go sailing.
-Have a birdfeeder.
-Actually listen to Martin Luther King Jr.'s "I Have A Dream".
-See a bullfight.
-Roll my own sushi.
-Kiss on a ferris wheel at an old-fashioned carnival.
-Listen to classical music.
-Investigate falconry.
-Ride a mechanical bull.
-Get into UrbEx.
-Go downtown at least once a month.

p.s. spell something out with photos of things with letters on them.

Late Bloomer.

This is my Velvet Queen Sunflower from earlier this year. I planted it far after the growing season and I didn't honestly expect it to survive to bloom.

But it did.

I think it's kind of a sign.

It's what my life is like right now. Struggling, balancing my energy towards different things (What is this called in biology..? The balancing of energy for survival...), and - hopefully - eventually blooming.

Horse Sense.

So, my life has been absolute hell, lately. Working at Starbucks. Training. Stressful. Coming home to fight with the parents and try to do homework.

Daydreaming about horses again. My dolls have fallen quite a ways behind the backburner at the moment. I need a new camera for my family, a camera for me, supplies for photography class, money for riding lessons and new riding boots since I never did have a proper pair, and also the beginnings of savings for a laptop for college.

I swear, I'm gunna live somewhere JUST like this someday. This one is actually perfect. Too bad it won't wait for me.

http://www.1horseproperty.com/EquestrianRealEstate/index.php?a=2&b=1517

Hard copy in case the link ever stops working...

"Equestrian Real Estate: Horse Property > Illinois

Ad No. 1517
Horse Property For Sale
This horse property is located in or near Pecatonica, IL
Contact:
Ad Number:
1517
Email Contact:
hmarrie
Location:
Pecatonica, IL United States
Pecatonica Horse Property Details:
Price:
$ 499,900
Description of Equestrian Home and Horse Facilities in IL
1.5 Hours NW Chicago!Equestrian Delight! Forest Preserve on 2 sides. 10 scenic acres. Stone front ranch home. Newer 80x36 horse barn with 8 stalls, office, tach room. Indoor arena 80x40. There are 8 paddocks with vinyl fencing. Breaktaking setting. Sharp 3 bedroom, 2.3 bath ranch home. Open floor plan, cathedral ceiling living room. Newer kitchen, family room with stone front fireplace, sliding doors to deck and fenced yard. $499,900For a Virtual tour go to: http://www.GambinoRealtors.com/73472 gmeyer@gambinorealtors.com "


this one's almost better. http://www.horsepropertyclassifieds.com/ForSale/index.php?a=15&b=212

The Dreadful Trifecta.

I got braces yesterday.

I broke up with Nick today.

I start school tomorrow.



"Remember: A kite rises against the wind rather than with it."
--Anonymous

I won't be brought down.

Bite the Hand that Feeds You.

Well. This morning I woke up around 7:30. I had a dream that I had woken up already and my snake was escaping from its cage. I went to put it back inside the tank and it constricted on my hand and viciously attacked my wrist.

I should have accepted that as a sign that it was going to be a bad morning, but instead I got up and went outside to give the puppy some excersize before getting to work on my Spanish scrapbook. My mother decided to take this opportunity not only to order me around, but at my refusal to do her shit just a few minutes after waking up, decided to scream and cuss at me as well. Oh, no. Now that I'm a "goddamn fucking bitch" I feel SO guilty for not helping you out. Yeah. Water your own fuckin' flowers while I "kiss your big, fat white ass." Ooookay. Then she calls and cries to dad who bitches me out as well. It's like...she doesn't even get that she's the ADULT.

Wait, wait. What?

ADULT. You're the ADULT. Most parents, most ADULTS, don't go around saying "kiss my big, fat, white ass" and calling their daughters "goddamn fucking bitches" minutes after their rolling out of bed. Most parents don't go tattle to the other parent so that he can play "conflict resolution" or, in this case, "ruin Jess's life some MORE." Most ADULTS know how to explain themselves. Now, after the fact, I understand that she was running late for work and she could have used the help. Okay. Let's think. Now, if she had explained that to me in the first place, BEFORE dishing out orders, BEFORE screaming at me, BEFORE calling me names...it would have been a different story. How the fuck am I supposed to know you're running late unless you COMMUNICATE.

Oh, wait. I forgot. We only communicate with raised voices and swear words in this house.

My mistake.

A Solitary Bean.

Oh my gosh. I grew a bean >3 One bean. Well...:/ There are others growing still, but only one was ready to be picked XD Here's a little update of how my patio garden is coming along :3

To be added later!



After weeks of active searching and YEARS of begging...-_- I finally got a car yesterday >3 It was one of those 'fate' type things. We were at a dealership called "Feeny Chevrolet" looking at a 2000 Pontiac Grand Am. :/ It looked nice on the outside, but when I started it up for the test drive it ran HORRIBLY. So I ditched that one immediately and the saleslady pointed out a Chevy Cavalier for the same price as the Grand Am. :3 It was in much better condition and had only 67,635 miles on it. As soon as I sat in the driver's seat I knew it was perfect XD We drove it home for Dad to look over and he kept me in suspense while he crawled underneath it, opened the hood, tested it for every little thing he could thing of, all the while with this glaring determined look of disapproval on his face. ;__; It made me super nervous, but finally he stepped back, crossed his arms and said.

"...It's a great looking car. I like it."

XD So. We all drove back to the dealer and my dad negotiated and then left my mom and I there to deal with the hours of paperwork -_- Typical..XD Finally, I got to drive it off the lot >3 I almost hugged Violet, the saleslady, when she handed me the keys.

Anyway >3 Here it is, if you haven't yet seen it in person. It needs a name XD
















>3 Here is a quote by Lao Tsu, who is known as the Father of Taoism. Taoism being a religion in which one cannot speak of the Tao - the highest level of spiritual understanding and the source of all things - once it is reached. :3 My favorite quote by him.

"A good traveller has no fixed plans and is not intent on arriving."
--Lao Tsu

Memento Mori.

BrahmaCd (12:31:54 AM): max zeman, yano?
StillUpAt3AM (12:31:58 AM): uh-huh?
BrahmaCd (12:32:08 AM): killed himself this morning around 3.
BrahmaCd (12:32:25 AM): *nod* hung himself in his back yard
BrahmaCd (12:32:40 AM): in his poem-letter thing he said he didn't wanna grow old


Life is short.


Max...Silly ol' clown. You'll be missed, seriously. I'm so sorry.


I dunno what else to say..

Donutgasm.

Transit Som (11:51:31 PM): Donut?
StillUpAt3AM (11:51:41 PM): YES :D I DO HAVE AT LEAST ONE FRIEND!
Transit Som (11:51:46 PM): XD WOOOO!
StillUpAt3AM (11:51:48 PM): XD
StillUpAt3AM (11:52:10 PM): i am.
StillUpAt3AM (11:52:11 PM): sp/
StillUpAt3AM (11:52:12 PM): sldkjfalsh
StillUpAt3AM (11:52:13 PM): so.
StillUpAt3AM (11:52:15 PM): happy.
Transit Som(11:52:26 PM): Donutgasm.
StillUpAt3AM (11:53:50 PM): srsly.

Lyndsay took me to Dunkin Donuts at eleven thirty at night :3

I love you, Lyndsay ;__; I really...really...love you.

Almost as much as I love French Crullers x.x I am now going to slowly and painfully devour this beautiful donut.

Goodnight, World.

The Pushers, The Shakers.

Here some lyrics for Switchblade Symphony's "Into the Sky". I don't like the band much, but this is a great song. Download it if you can.

The pushers
The shakers
The feelers
The fakers
The loudness
The silence
The sweetness
The violence
My wings will pull me
Up into the sky

The feelings that I have
They haunt me till I'm mad
The heroes
The villains
The daring
Decisions
My wings will pull me
Up into the sky


Things I Want
-Barber pole
-Aviator goggles
-Megaphone
-Kimono


So, it's become completely impossible for me to do anything that vaguely resembles chewing. I have eight blue spacers between my teeth which are causing me more pain than I had expected. I've been having terrible cooking urges, but I've been resisting since whatever I make, I will probably be unable to eat. Currently, at nine o'clock pm, all I want in the world...is a donut. I need a donut.


I'm going.


To cry.


If I don't get a donut.

Don't bother with me, God.

Here's something that makes me think. The following quote taken from a random file I came across on the internet. Scrolled through it quickly and that line caught my eye :3

"She lifted her fist into the air. 'Don't bother me with God.'"
--Anonymous

At first I thought it said "Don't bother with me, God." Sounded to me like a voice of independence and strength and, somehow, at the same time...defeat. Now that I've read it again and realized what it actually says...I'm not sure which way is better. ^_^

I want to include, also, another thing that makes me think.



Afghan children in Kabul, the cover image from an article about Afghan druglords and NATO's increasing involvement in the country. Although I'm not sure of the childrens' relevence to the article, it's a fairly stirring image in my opinion...Look at the stress and exhaustion that girl is showing. The maturity. The hardships that she's seen already. The way she sits, protecting her brother, like a parent. Like someone ten times her age. It makes me sad. He has no shoes. And hers, with those colorfully hopeful little flowers on those filthy little feet.

Speaking of places far, far away...Many things have recently motivated me to learn more about my heritage. Months ago, I started reading up on Slavic mythology. It fell to the back of my mind, but has returned with my rental of "Everything is Illuminated" and the recent WGN feature on Whiting, Indiana's Pierogi Festival. I've never made pierogies from scratch, but now I plan to. I don't want to lose my history. It's too important to me.

Here's what seems to be a good recipe for pierogies. I'd like to get one from my Gramma Slota, but...she's not the type of woman who cooks from a recipe :3 I admire that.

Note to self #1: Check out this website for fun new recipes.

Spent the day downtown with Mom, Rachel, and Aunt Kathie. Arby's for lunch. Funny homeless guy telling us about birds dropping from the trees due to the heat :3 Had a psycho old foreign bitch give me a make-over at the Dior counter in Marshall Fields. XD She made me pretty, but she got mad when I wouldn't buy her fifty-dollar foundation :/ No, thank you, Crazy Dior Lady. No, thank you. Bought a cute shirt at Nordstrom and a scarf which I really didn't need in the heat of downtown Chicago XD Then headed to Ford's Oriental Theatre for Wicked :3 It was-...well -_- *sigh* wicked, i must say. It was phenomenal. The singing was fabulous. The outfits...fantastic. And the script was genuinely enjoyable :3 hilarious. I had a thoroughly good time.

I have to remember to go downtown more often >3 While I'm still around.

Note to self #2: Remember to post progress shots of how the garden is doing. <3

School, Sprouts, Russian, and Rubber Bands.

So, I'm getting braces. And I basically want to die. Let's not discuss the particulars. Just know that it's probably the worst time in my life I could possibly end up with those. I used to want them when I was a kid and everyone had them. Just like I wanted glasses. Ended up with those too, just last year. Way later than everyone else. Now it's senior year and I'll have metal for the whole year-prom, graduation, and then through my first year of college.

StillUpAt3AM (2:37:30 PM): maybe i'll just wait a year to go to college -_-
StillUpAt3AM (2:38:01 PM): i'll go travel the world where no one will recognize me and my braces.
StillUpAt3AM (2:38:02 PM): -_-
this is faux pa (2:39:18 PM): lol
this is faux pa (2:39:21 PM): that's so overdramatic.
StillUpAt3AM (2:39:25 PM): i know. :3
StillUpAt3AM (2:39:28 PM): *laughs* XD

Thankfully, Collins always knows how to cheer me up :3

StillUpAt3AM (2:49:53 PM): i had ihop for breakfast.
StillUpAt3AM (2:49:56 PM): fuck me, it was good.
this is faux pa (2:50:06 PM): hahaha i love ihop
StillUpAt3AM (2:50:12 PM): me toooo, man.
StillUpAt3AM (2:50:28 PM): i had an argument with my friend about wether it was SEErup or SIRup.
StillUpAt3AM (2:50:45 PM): and then we asked the waitress and she was like 'fuck if i know.'
this is faux pa (2:50:44 PM): sir up!
StillUpAt3AM (2:50:49 PM): sirup all the way.

Speaking of college, I went on a campus tour of Bradley with Kelly, her parents, and my mom the other day. It was-...all right. I wasn't impressed. It was out in Buttfuck, Nowhere. The campus was ugly. The only thing that held promise was their Academic Exploration Program, which allows you to enter as a freshman with an undeclared major and offers opportunities to take classes which specifically teach you about the uses of certain degrees you might be interested in pursuing. I'm going to apply there because not only is early application free...Scholarships abound at that point. Can we sayyy..."safety school"? >.>

Kelly slept over that night so she could go on the boat with us the next morning. We had so much fun. I love that piece of shit old boat. I love the feeling of flying. So many memories. Then Sunday Kel picked me up in her goddamn mustang convertible ;__; and we went over to Ari's for food and movies. Ari's condo is fabulous. It's trendy and beautiful. There were pebbles in her bathroom sink. I want to live in a place like that. We ended up back at my house to watch "Everything is Illuminated" :3 My latest cinematic obsession. Look it up on IMDB and RENT IT, for chrissake, if you've never seen it. It's set in the Ukraine :3 The land of my people! :O

I've decided to learn Russian. My grandmother speaks..seven or nine different languages, I can't remember. But she's originally from the Ukraine. XD I've picked up three words over time and a few letters. Are you ready..? 'Da', 'spacieba', and 'karova'. 'Yes', 'thank you', and 'cow'. XD I lied. I know one more. 'Kartoshka'. Potatoes :3

Potatoes! Speaking of potatoes and other things that grow! My plants are growing! :D


Mum bought me this the other day. It's a Hen and Chicks. I love them :3 They spread like mad, with cute little offshoots XD So neat.


My bean plants arrising from the soil :3 They started sprouting up only yesterday.


What's left of one of the beans I planted. Just the hull after the plant broke out ^_^


The alyssum have been up since the 21st. They're multiplying, though. Still no sign of the daisies there in the center.


And last but not least...My favorite. A Velvet Queen Sunflower. S'gunna be sooo pretty ^_^

Well. Closing out with a quote by Henry Miller, an American author whose bold writing helped pave the way for what Wikipedia calls "the Sexual Revolution" :3 Definitely a man to be honored.

"All growth is a leap in the dark, a spontaneous unpremeditated act without the benefit of experience."
--Henry Miller

You Grow, Girl.

-_- NO. That's not me being a cheeseball :/ It's the name of a gardening website. I hear it's a neat website, though I haven't visited it yet :3

Today-...I gratified my lusty gardening urges. And it was goood >3 *snickers* Went to Super Target (A.K.A. Employment HELL), Ace Hardware, Jewel, and Bartlett Fresh Market. Jewel was closed due to the power outage from the huge lightning storm last night. (Ever see "War of the Worlds"? That storm in the beginning? Yeah. It was outside my house last night :3) I bought groceries at the Market, including this positively adorable little head of lettuce called a 'Boston butter lettuce'. It's like...a personal serving size for a salad XD Toooo cute. I so want to grow some. Got seeds from Ace Hardware and pots from Super Target, but I only bought two packets of flower seeds >.0 I'm gunna go to Jewel when it's open again and get more stuff, I think :3

Now for a photographic narration :O

All the tools, the supplies, the empty pots, my cacti, and the ponytail palm that I replanted earlier ^_^


My beloved cacti collection after repotting into the old ponytail palm pot. Say that five times fast.


Everything all watered and planted in good soil and mushroom compost XD Note the mystery plants in the middle :/ I have no idea what they are. Mom made me repot them XD


And my lovely meal after I was all finished working and cleaning up. Frozen chicken nuggets with honey mustard and ranch dressing XD Coke with fresh lemon is a taste I aqcuired in Spain :3 Sooo yummy. Of course, you have to drink it with a bendy straw. I keep them around for special occassions. Such as..when I actually HAVE a fresh lemon >.>


The end :3 Or-...Is it the beginning? XD

Aeonium arboreum.

When you start taking out chunks of your own flesh with your fingernails...:/ You know it's time to cut them.

I've been getting these mad cooking urges lately, which have been topped off by an odd yearning to garden o.O I planted radishes along the edge of our flower beds earlier this spring and green beans in front of five small trellises. The funny thing is I know NOTHING...not the very first thing about gardening. I've managed to kill three of the numerous house plants I try to keep =x Two tiny rose plants and one cactus XD It was such a fucking cute cactus, too...with this weird orange-ish growth on top...;__; Gah. I came home from Spain and it was rotted to mush. I think they're called 'Moon Cacti', but I guess that's just a marketing strategy because they're really just two types of cactus grafted together XD The colorful part is grafted onto the regular cactus so that it can survive =x It's not green, so it has no chlorophyll. No chlorophyll=dead plant.

So, anyway. When I have my own house and my own garden and my own kitchen...I can't wait to use the best of the best stuff :3 Like...for example, super-wonderful extra virgin olive oil! (Read: super-expensive extra virgin olive oil! :D)

I already have some crap together for when I move out and have my own place o.o My mother calls it a "hope chest", but whatev'. It's not in a chest, sooo. Forget that.

Stuff in my "Hope Chest"
-Pepper mill (This thing is so cool ;__; Here's a picture.)
-Five sets of multicolored chop sticks (:3 For eating ramen when I can afford nothing else!)
-Metric WonderCup (Look it up, bitches -_-)
-V-shaped knife (for cutting fruit =x or some shit...)
-Measuring cups and spoons (:3 I am obsessed with these things. I'd collect them if i could >.<) -Salt dish (OMJ, these things are adorable =x They're really kinna dumb, but...It basically is a tiny bowl with a tiny spoon and it goes by the stove so you can...yaknow. Scoop tiny amounts of salt onto your food XD)

Stuff I Still Need
-Egg slicer
-Cheese grater w/measurements on the side
-Cheese slicer
-Peeler
-Mortar and pestle
-Can opener
-Jar opener
-Splatter screen
-Cutting mats
-Rolling pin
-Ice cream scoop
-Spatula
-Spoon
-Ladle
-Whisk
-Potato Masher
-Corkscrew
-Cheese slicer
-Sifter
-Strainer
-Pan scraper
-Fruit Wedger
-Juicer
-Pizza wheel
-Pocket mitts
-Colander
-Can crusher (:D I love these things.)
-Canisters
-Spice rack
-Scale
-Dish scrubber (:D Look how neat! Perfect for squeamish people like me who hate washing dishes :/)
-Mixing bowls
-Bread machine
-Corner mesh sink strainer
-Butter dish
-Measure conversion magnet
-Tongs
-Corn holders
-Corn butterer
-Egg/pancake rings
-Cookie cutters
-Gravy boat and ladle

So, moving on. It really is fascinating the kinds of oppression the school boards get away with these days. No cutting classes...No midriff-baring clothing...No GRILLZ. WHAT? Yeah, you heard me. Grillz. Check this shit out. Not that I give two shits about "grillz". Honestly, they're a horrendous trend and they should be put to death for the sake of sanity and-...fashion, even XD But guaging your ears? That is a personal and semi-permanent choice. A painful choice at that. It's self-expression. Body modification is an art form that goes back thousands and thousands of years. It's culture. It can tell stories, it can show social status, it can be a memorial. It has meaning. What kinds of stories can your "grill" tell me? Except, perhaps, that you had broccoli for dinner :/

Note to self:
In my garden or my house, I want "mother of thousands", "jade", "mini fan palm", "bamboo", and "hen and chicks". :3 Among others. I'll post a full list sometime.

Marshmallow Peeps.

XD This kills me. I thought I'd include it for future reference. If I'm ever working in an environment where I need a Web Fire Escape I'll know where to find one.

StillUpAt3AM (8:35:56 PM): i wish i had some marshmallow peeps to explode.

:D What an enjoyable thing, to have a new journal to spam all over. I can't wait to spew my opinions all over my new bit of webspace like a Marshmallow Peep's guts on the inside of my microwave :3

Video on Demand.

Sometimes, in life, it's necessary to clear the scoreboard. Start a new game.

In retrospect, LiveJournal and I had a good run, but it's time for a change. New chapter, new journal.

So here goes.

P.S. When I used OneLook to search a verb for "to start over" to put in the entry title...it came up with, among other things :/ "Video on Demand." I'm not sure how that's relevent and, come to think of it, that reverse dictionary has never accurately helped me with a single search XD Another option was "Tabula Rasa", which quite honestly would have made a good bit more sense :3