As Inspired by KillerQueen

"And no, my friends aren't crazy..."

I disagree. My friends are crazy. But that is exactly the reason why I love them. There is NEVER a dull moment in what we do. My friend LaQueefa and I once went with her sister and a friend to Iowa City, on the way back, LaQueefa showed some passersby truly what a full moon looks like. On this same trip, when we arrived back in town, we decided to sit outside the car while driving down some back roads. I have never had so much fun with a group of people in 6 hours.

As KillerQueen mentioned, there is never a time where we don't find ourselves quoting/acting out Harry Potter scenes. As seen in KillerQueen's picture, we find ourselves looking for sticks to act as wands and we then cast spells on each other. We even went online to find the true pronunciations/meanings of certain spells on this website.

When we are with this group of friends, I'm pretty sure we get a ton of crazy looks. We tend to go take pictures in the most random places and just have fun. On homecoming night, we went to Noelridge Park and a place called Hamburger Mary's and ate and took tons of crazy pictures (go to facebook for the rest of pictures). I'm pretty sure we spent about an hour at the park just taking fun pictures like the one to the left. This was the most fun I had ever had on homecoming, just because we goofed off the entire night.

At my birthday party, we had fun by dancing with a bubble maker blowing bubbles all over my living room. We have good clean fun by doing things that don't get us in trouble. We just enjoy ourselves just being ourselves.

Will you have fun with your friends?

Friends Part 2 "How you doin??"

Well I figured I will keep blogging about my favorite television show. Don't worry! I won't do it every week, just once in a while.

Friends is, hands down, the BEST television show ever put on this planet. I have thought more and more about it and I just can't find a better show. The way that these characters are developed and the chemistry between all of them captivates me in EVERY episode!

My friend that I dubbed the name Pheebs in my last post still has all my seasons of Friends and if she reads this post, I WANT THEM BACK! The reason I named her Pheebs is because we have had this ongoing Friends "marathon" where we named who we thought would be what character, well we decided she would be Phoebe and I would be Chandler. I don't think you can really call what we had a marathon between the two of us because alltogether I think her and I think we've watched 10 episodes? It seems that because they are at her house, she watches them with a bunch of her other friends. I'm not mad, just jealous that she gets to have the pleasure of watching our favorite TV show without me.

Once again, I will bring up Phoebe Buffay. Phoebe's cookiness on Friends makes me laugh every episode. A hilarious moment in the series in when she is "possessed" by an old lady that died when she was giving her a massage. She claims that the lady wanted to see everything before passing on, so when Phoebe went to a gay marraige wedding, she loudly professes that she has now seen everything, and then leaves Phoebe's body. I just about died laughing, mainly because Lisa Kudrow does such an astounding job of creating different characters in on body, but also just because of the hilarity of the entire situation.

One final thing that capitivates me with the TV show is that no matter what, ever episode makes me laugh. Even during the break-up of Ross and Rachel in season three, I was laughing because the rest of the friends are staked out in the bedroom listening to the entire event. And I laughed in the final episode because Joey kept sitting in the paint and leaving butt prints everywhere. No matter where or when, Friends puts a smile on my face.

Will you laugh at Friends?


Photo Provided by Flickr.com

All-State Schmall-State...

So yesterday started at 5:15 sharp at Happy Chef. Holy cow that was such an early morning, especially for a Saturday! Anyway, this was the beginning of the day of All-State Music Festival auditions. Our choir director always tells us that any good famous vocal performer will tell you that to do your best performance, your voice must be awake four hours prior to your performance. Well, the all state auditions begin at 9, so we are awake and talking by 5 a.m.

The All-State audition process is pretty messed up/ineffective. You can audition in a quartet, trio, or duet (mine was a trio), and any school can bring up to 28 students, 7 on a part (SATB). Well, when you arrive at your location in the state (based on school's location), you receive your cuts of the selected All-State pieces. You see, when you audition, you audition in front of ONE judge, not two, not three, not four, but ONE! Basically what I'm saying is, if that one judge does not like your voice, you are SCREWED. Two of my good friends, Lion and Pheebs, got screwed over for their third year of auditioning. They have just had the unfortunate circumstance of getting a judge that wasn't fond of their voice.

As well as auditioning in front of one judge instead of multiple, all of the high schools in our school system attend the same location for All-State auditions. Our school system has a lot of the state's most talented singers, and the fact that they ALL go to the same location makes it horribly competitive to get in. Each location picks about thirty on a voice part and with five Cedar Rapids schools with talented singers plus the other little schools in the area, many are left in the dust. I propose that we divide up Cedar Rapids schools into two different locations.

Once the first round of All-State auditions are completed, recalls are posted. Recalls are for those that they need to hear again. While the recalls are taking place, the list of those that made it first round are posted. It is a time of tears and joy. Those that made it console those that didn't, some, like my friend Lion :), get mad at those that don't shut up about making it. And others believe that there is always next year.

I have determined that this whole All-State thing is a bunch of, for lack of a better term, bullcrap. Some of THE most talented people don't make it simply because the entire process is subjective. Lion and Pheebs definitely deserve it more than anybody know, and definitely deserve it over a certain someone that made it. Only they shall know who I am talking about. All-State is a bunch of hooplah that doesn't do a whole lot for your future. Sure you can put it on resumes, but what else?

Will you let the All-State process effect you?

"I think you'd be good at treating the psychotic..."

I would have to say that this weekend was one of the most fun weekends of my entire life (minus Saturday morning). I began with the PSATs in the morning... that was a bit of a downer, but afterwards a couple of my friends and I headed over to the Spring House. Oh man was that goooood! Following that was a nice nap and the "Art of Imagination" show that took place at my high school.

That wasn't the best part of the weekend, what happened to follow was the most fun. You see, it all started when my friend, who we'll nickname Rihanna for only reasons she would understand, got extremely mad at me because I wasn't coming up to visit her at college. I felt bad enough as it was, but when she got mad it made it all the worse. This is when I decided to call up her sister (Rihanna II) and ask her if she would accompany me to go surprise Rihanna. She was in on the idea immediately. We did some planning and I decided we should get flowers and make signs for her. When we arrived on campus we went straight to her dorm and slid the signs under the door. Of course she wasn't, so that had no point whatsoever. You see, Rihanna II told Rihanna that their mom was taking her up and that she had to leave right away. I was hiding in the kitchenette next to her room when she arrived. As she read the notes, she assumed I sent them with Rihanna II, but then I walked out and she freaked out. She was ecstatic that I was able to make it up there.

At this point in time, I was planning to leave at 10. We were going to go swimming at Rihanna's friends hotel room and then leave. However, when I got to the hotel, I decided to text my mom to see if there was any remote possibility I would be able to stay. To my dismay, she replied with, "Just get a toothbrush and SLEEP!" If that was all I had to do, I was in! Swimming for about an hour, and then just hung out the entire night. It was nice to find out that the group of people Rihanna made friends with don't do anything of the illegal nature (i.e. drinking, drugs, etc.). It was just good, wholesome, pure FUN!

This was one of the most fun times I had had in a long time. I just would like to thank Rihanna for getting pissed off and making me realize I had to see you! And thank you Rihanna for introducing me to your friends!

Will you truly have fun?

"Just wait for the little white guy..."

Well, I would like to start off by saying that the person featured in this blog/my best friend EVER will remain anonymous and be named Gertrude (Gertie for short). So the summer before freshman year, Gertie, her mom (Lila), her sister (Pat), and I decided to go to New York City, New York for a random vacation. Yep, the Big Apple to see Wicked with my best friend. Couldn't be better right?

Right (You all expected me to say wrong)! This vacation was one of THE most fun adventures of my life. Now, there were a few tiffs here and there, but mostly dealing with lack of sleep...(Gertie... you know what I'm talking about). You see, the night before we left for NYC, we stayed at Gertie's cousin (Flo)'s house. This was the first time Flo and I were introduced and I'm pretty sure I had never laughed so much in my life before that moment. We stayed up until about 4 in the morning, when we had to leave at 6. Not a smart idea by any means. This was just starting this 4 day vaca off the wrong way.

Going tired into a vacation with your best friend can lead to trouble. We both can agree that we get on eachothers' nerves quite a bit. This is through no fault of our own, it just simply happens. It was all set off, however, when Gertie was walking across the street when the little white guy that signals walk had gone to the solid red hand telling you to stop. Well Gertie was in the middle of the street and we were all still on the sidewalk. She got scared (understandably, New York drivers are scary) and just stood there. Well, when the cars started moving, that was even scarier. She ran to the other side and when we got back to the hotel she was set off. Well, once she cooled down, she went to bed. THANK GOD! Pat and I then hung out and roamed around the gigantic hotel. When Gertie woke up, she was in as pleasant a mood as ever and everything was all good.

The moral of the story here is, when you go on vacation with your best friend, make sure you are both well rested. Especially when travelling to the "City that Never Sleeps."

Will you stay well rested?

Can you hear me now?

Now, I tend not to have a lot of terribly important to say, but I'm still here aren't I? This whole thought process began when I read Jeepers Creeper's blog about being the last to know everything. Well today, I participated in a talent show at my church and while we were there, my mom was talking to one of our pastors about something or other, I still don't know what. And as she finished and walked right by me, I'm pretty sure I yelled her name at least 10 times, calling out "mom, mother, mom, mother, (her name), mother, madre, mom, (her name)!!" But nope, she just walked right on by. I'm not sure if you could call it selective hearing, but when your son has a question to ask, you'd answer it right?

Well this goes back to when I was a kid, you could technically call it poor planning on my part, but for the sake of this post, let's not, I used to want to have sleepovers and what not, but of course, when I would ask the night before/of my parents would say, "Oh, not tomorrow/tonight, we going out of town." And I'm thinking, well why couldn't you have told me we were going out of town, that way wouldn't have even gotten my hopes up. I simply am the last to know.

As well as this whole "poor planning" issue goes, I am not sure if my parents even realize that the entire issue would just be avoided with taking less than a minute out of there day to say, "Hey we're blah blah blah... next week." It's as simple as that, just letting me know. My mother says she just "forgets" who she already told and just assumes she told me. I recently learned never assume because you make and "ASS out of U and ME."

If you couldn't tell, it just bugs me when I'm just looked at and not paid attention to. Would it kill you to just hear what I have to say? I am a person, I like to be heard, and I like to be told!

Will you be the last to know?

The Advancement of Technology

Nowadays, teenagers spend more and more time texting each other. Laws are being created against those that text and drive, and teachers are more harsh about those that text in class. As texting becomes the "in" thing, what is happening to email? Back when I was in middle school, email and instant messaging on AIM were the way to go. As time proceeded, these fads became obsolete.

I once heard that technology doubles in its efficiency every 1.5 years. Not for one second do I doubt that. We have found ways to make things faster, communicate over social networks, and talk face-to-face over the computer. I am not stating that instant messaging is obsolete, but the use of AIM among teenagers certainly is. Teens are now using Facebook and Skype to communicate amongst one another. When one thinks of emailing, they think of the ways to give people information or invite them to do something, but as I recently found out. Email isn't that reliable. Now, for those that check their email regularly, it's not a problem, but for those that do not wholeheartedly use their email, you can find it hard to give them information. Don't get me wrong, email was an amazing invention, but when one needs to get information to another quickly, it is just simply inconvenient.

I must admit that on social networking I am a bit of an addict. I tweet and text just about 24/7 and I am constantly on Facebook for my phone. I just find it an easier method of communication. Texting takes up a huge portion of the teenage society. You can ask just about any teen if they text and 9 times out of 10 the response will be, "Of course!" Lately, school districts have been coming down on the whole texting during class thing. Teachers resort to taking the phone over night. I know that I would not be able to function without my phone for a day. To follow on that last statement, I think it is sad how the teens of today have been basically brainwashed into NEEDING their phones. We technically don't NEED them, but we rely on them so much that it is a necessity in life.

Finally, the use of social networking within schools. Teachers will argue that it distracts from class time, but I would like to pose an argument against that. Websites such as Facebook and Twitter actually have a learning curve. If you are doing research on a celebrity, nowadays just about every celebrity has a twitter and you can really dig into their personal lives. On Facebook, there are many different ways in which (in psychology) the user can do research on the way people represent themselves online and in person and their differences.

The idea that technology doubles is not just put in the back of my mind. I think about it quite a bit. Teenagers have to deal with the constant changes and just adjust to the latest thing, whatever it may be.

Will you be enthralled by technology?

"Don't Mind My Hairsss, I Know Iss Liek Umid Ouside..."

Baby Smiley, oh what do I say about you? I must start off saying that this post is inspired by my friend Rose. Rose first introduced me to the wonderful world of this improvisational comedian named Gloria Shuri. She is a hit on YouTube, with over 250,000 views on her "back to school" video and over 35,000 hits on her "Confessions to La Quandra II" (featured below).

Improv comedy has always been a skill that I lack/envy. One of my good friends, MCGriddle, has this skill in the bag and I am extremely jealous of that. Improv, I feel, is a type of comedy where you literally just let everything in your mind go and just say what comes naturally. This is the part where everything goes wrong for me. I have tried and tried, but failed miserably. I have learned that I am constantly worrying about one person might say and how I should respond to that. This is NOT the way to approach this type of comedy.

For those of you that do not know (though many could guess simply from the word), improvisational comedy is basically just coming up with comedy right on the spot, minimal preparation is involved. Generally, in competitions, you are given a scenario and allotted somewhere between 2 and 4 minutes to come up with a story line (i.e. intro, plot, conclusion). You then are given roughly 5 minutes to perform what you came up with. This performance is strictly one person acting off the other and feeding into what the crowd is enjoying.

One of the most famous improv shows out there is the show Who's Line is it Anyway? In this television show they have the main leader guy (Drew Carey), and the 4 panelists. The leader calls out the title of the game and the scenario and the panel has NO time to come up with anything, it is the true definition of improvisation.

I would love it if someday I could develop the art of improvisational comedy. But as for now, it is nonexistent.

Will you be an improv-er?

PG-13: May contain adult content not suitable for those under the age 13

I recommend watching her other videos on YouTube as well. Just search 'glowpinkstah'.

The Warmth to Beat Cold

Living in the Midwest has one thing ensured when you live here, you will be cold! This morning we experienced our first snow of the season...in October...yeah that's right, OCTOBER!

The ways people find warmth vary immensely, however. Me, I find warmth sitting under three layers of blankets in my bed. I believe that many people would support me in this, whether it be curled up in a comfy chair or your bed, you beat the cold with blankets. One of the latest editions to the blanket world is the Snuggie. Now if you ask me, this was an amazing invention. You are able to stay warm whilst doing all your daily activities (i.e. homework, computer work, etc.). I have yet to purchase this item, but it will definitely be added to my collection of blankets.

Others beat the cold and find their warmth in other people (no, I did not mean that in the way you dirty minded people at there took that statement). Living in the Midwest, you will also find some of the most hospitable people you will ever meet in your life. I have been walking through stores and someone you have never met before will just say, "Hello!" I find this to be a fascinating thing. Travelling to New York City gave me insight on this topic. In New York, you can't just ask someone on the street how they are doing and expect a nice response. The Midwest truly has some of the nicest people. The warmth and hospitality of others definitely help beat the cold.

Finally, people find beat the cold with the heat of a nice cup of hot chocolate. Some people prefer their hot cocoa with the nice little marshmallows on top or some whipped cream, and some like theirs plain. Some like it made with milk, some with water. But no matter how you like your nice steaming cup of smooth hot chocolate, it is sure to keep you warm in the midst of bitter cold winter.

Whatever your method of staying warm this upcoming winter, make sure you start preparing now. Winter is coming faster than expected. The cold is on its way!

Will you stay warm and beat the cold?

The Complete Works of those that are Sleepy

I do not by any means consider blogging a dreadful task. But when one is extremely tired it makes such a task a very hard thing to do. With the musical now done, I have a feeling I will be more on top of this blogging thing. Rather than waiting until the day before they are due.

When a person is tired, their body tends to just shut down. They no longer have the capacity to complete anything that needs intellectual thoughts. Sleep is the necessity to refuel your body with the energy needed to make it through the day. Sleep also "detoxes" the body.

As students try to function in the mornings without much sleep, most, if not all, of the information they are given is not retained. It is basically going in one ear and out the other. Sleep is the way to have energy without all those high sugar, high caffeine drinks many teens drink.

Naps are also extremely beneficial to those that are sleepy. But one must only take a nap of about 20 minutes. The naps that last 2 hours only make you more tired.

People must get sleep. I am about to go to sleep right now so I can function tomorrow at school.

Will you get enough sleep?

"He's her lobster!"

"P as in Phoebe, H as in Hoebe, O as in Oebe, E as in Ebe, B as in Bebe, E as in Ello there mate" -Phoebe Buffay
The television show "Friends" premiered on September 22, 1994. This TV show was an outstanding representation of life in New York City. The quirkiness of Phoebe and the romance between Ross and Rachel, and Chandler and Monica, have captivated audiences around the nation. This fun-loving show is my absolute favorite show of all time.

"Awww Pheebs" -Phoebe Buffay "Honey, that's your name." -Rachel Green " "Oh, I thought that's just what we call eachother!" -Phoebe Buffay

The show consists of 6 main characters, Phoebe, Chandler, Joey, Rachel, Ross, and Monica. These people live in New York City and are best friends no matter what. They show the true problems of relationships and the fun times that go on behind closed doors. Each person is related somehow or another as well. Chandler has been best friends with Ross since high school. Monica is Ross's sister. Rachel is Monica's long lost best friend that comes back into her life in the Pilot episode. Joey becomes Chandlers roommate (Joey doesn't really have a back story with the rest). And Phoebe once mugged Ross when he left a comic book store.

"(Blinks) I'm doing it! (Blinks) I am totally doing it! (Blinks multiple times) I lost it." -Phoebe Buffay

My favorite character of this show has to be Phoebe. She is just such a fun and unique human being. Lisa Kudrow does such a phenomenal job of creating this kooky character. Phoebe is just such an outspoken, almost ditsy, person that makes her just so much fun to watch. Lisa Kudrow was/is the perfect actress to play Phoebe Buffay. She was an amazing addition to Friends If you noticed, every quote I have added to this post has, in one way or another, included Phoebe.

"Alright, now when she comes out, you plug her nose, I'll blow in her mouth and the baby'll pop right out of her!" -Phoebe Buffay

Friends is an addicting show and if you have not yet seen it, I highly recommend you try it. It's high ratings and goofy cast captivated audiences of all ages.

Will you be captivated by Friends?

"I don't just jump into bed like an acrobat..." TAKE 2

I have made it through the first musical of the year. It was a huge success! We sold out 3 of our 4 shows (the one we didn't sell out was a matinee with many elderly people ;) ). Each performance went inexplicably well, every actor brought something better and new to each show.

The week prior to showtime we had dress rehearsals EVERY day. We were all sick of running the show by the end of the week. One student even suggested to the director we don't use our costumes until the preview day. I thought this was a splendid idea, for I was sick of the costumes as well. Of course, our director said that that wasn't happening, but it was worth a shot right? When showtime came, I realized why we did all those dress rehearsals. They definitely helped me plan my time for costume and make-up changes so I wasn't late.

Thursday night came, our first show. I walk in to see a sign posted on the ticket booth saying "SOLD OUT for tonight, tickets still available for Friday and Saturday." A rush of nerves flew over me. Sold out? I had also been informed that there would be standing room in the back and any "no-show" seats would be filled. This audience was going to be packed. The show this night was next to flawless, a few minor mic errors took place, but that is about it.

Friday night is next. I walk in at 530, only to see a sign that says, "SOLD OUT for tonight, tickets still available for Saturday matinee and night." The same set of nerves rushed through my body, once again, we were going to have a packed crowd. This show was next to perfect as well. We fixed problems from Thursday and developed other slight problems. Nothing major at all.

The Saturday matinee took place at 2 o'clock. That "SOLD OUT" sign was nonexistent. In fact, we had quite a few seats to be filled. This show is often the least popular show of all for teenagers. Most are still asleep and just don't want to do anything until the night time. Low and behold, this audience was filled with grandmas, grandpas, aunts, and uncles. Our director asked us to treat this show as any other show and just take it as a practice for the Saturday night performance.

What I didn't tell you is that this musical is being adjudicated to go on to the International Thespian Conference in Lincoln, Nebraska. This would be a huge honor if a show from my school could make it. This is basically a once in a lifetime chance. The fee for the adjudication is extremely high. You have to pay for the two adjudicators to fly in, and you pay for their hotel and food while they are in town.

Every actor/actress is nervous. We all know what is at stake. Our director got a call that the two adjudicators were on their way. We do our warm-ups as we have every night. We have a circle talk as we do every night. We get ready to put this final show on. We must make it our best.

Saturday night has arrived. I find that sign that says, "SOLD OUT, standby for empty seats and standing room." This night has the most people out of all three night. The show was as close to flawless as any show could get. It went outstandingly well. From what I heard, the adjudicators laughed throughout the entire thing. It is now a waiting game.

In one month we will get our response from the adjudicators. We will receive our yes or no. We will find out if our hard work paid off even more than we expected. It is all in the adjudicators' hands now. They have all the control. Will we get to perform this show once again?

Will you let those 4 shows be your last?