blog being moved again

Blogger is irritating me as it is difficult to navigate and has these occasional hiccups where it doesn't want to do what I have asked it to. I am moving to tumblr. My new address is

mechanicalimagination.tumblr.com

eh, crafty blog title

There are not enough words to truly state how much I'm looking forward to fall. Yes, yes, the first day of fall has come and gone but, to me, it hasn't. To me, August is summer and fall starts the first day of October. What about September? Well, I think September is an in-between month that doesn't belong to any season on account of telling people they can't wear white and keeping my birthday from getting here faster. That's what you get September. Do better.

Anyway, the main reason I can't wait until October (besides my birthday, con, and Halloween) is I have decided to go all Julie and Julia on that biatch! Well, except no French cooking... replace that with random Halloween inspired deliciousness. I have decided I want to learn how to cook from mostly scratch and, since I'm busy the rest of this month, I have decided to start October first. Well, maybe September 30th...we shall see. I have never been known to be a patient person.

As for things that happened today, well, that can be summed up in one sentence.

Lemon ice cream with chocolate on top is freakin' awesome!!!

Okay, yeah, I've been told I'm weird but its seriously one of my favorite flavor combinations in the world. On a whim, I took myself to TCBY and, when I found out they had a new lemon sherbet, I was like "put some chocolate on that biatch!!!" I encourage you to try it. Double chocolate or chocolate chunk may be too extreme so stick with regular. If you can't handle that much, then try it with two sample spoons. Either way, life is all about broadening the horizons and it's Carly approved.

Update

It was brought to my attention that I haven't updated this in a while. Sorry about that.

Well, so far this semester is not going how I thought it would. For some reason I imagined excitement and friends but all I've gotten is a near breakdown and people I don't have time to see. Funny how that all works out.

This semester I'm sorta packing on the stress so my last semester wont be so bad. I have two honors classes and some research to do for my thesis and, when I write that out, it doesn't seem so bad. Well, you're wrong. I'm not sure if its having classes from 7am-8:30pm twice a week while working all the other days or if it's the fact that everything evil in this universe decided to pop straight up outta hell and announce that it was gonna make a class called "Logic" and then require me to take it...either way, this semester is ticking me off and we are just on the third week.

What's not ticking me off though is my relationship. DHF has to be the single most wonderful man in existence and I have this huge cocky smile from knowing he's mine. I dunno how he does it but he manages to balance work, friends, family, me (my bullshit included) and gracefully cut down on smoking. Seriously. I mean, he managed to keep me from going postal at twelve this morning even though he worked a twelve hour shift and had to wake up the next morning at 5:30. He didn't even get irritated. He just smiled and told me to chill. Amazingly, it worked.

In happy news, I should be asking for my Saturdays back starting next month. DHF and I both figure it will help me chill and what makes it more awesome is this will allow me to visit my friends out of state more often. Considering almost all of my friends have moved out of state for graduate school, that's more awesome than I can say.

Another thing that makes me super psyched, I've almost got all my credit cards payed off. I only have three left to go and one of them should be gone by October 1st. Whoot!!!!

I dunno, I got a lot to be happy for...I guess the reason I'm so stressed is that I'm in the homestretch and nothing has really come to pass yet. It's like I've been underwater too long and I'm swimming to the top and my lungs feel like they are on fire but I haven't broke the surface yet. Make sense?

Okay, back to studying. I have a logic exam Thursday.... ew.

hecticness

I know I haven't posted anything in a while and that isn't from a lack of things going on in my life-it was too much. Literally, there was so much going on that I couldn't bring myself to write about it. I thought if I spoke about it one more time I would go crazy. I did write a quick blog about some of it back when it happened but I never posted it. I have been working a lot, my brother had emergency brain surgery, I cleaned out a section of my dad's apartment, I got a new car, I started school, I got approved for my thesis....the list goes on and on and, frankly, I need a break. I may post what was going on with my brother soon but, as for now, I still don't wanna deal with it. My plans for tonight involve Spike TV, drinking a smirnoff, and working on some logic homework. Forget doing anything else.

What I got out of Drop Dead Gorgeous

To be clear, I am discussing the independent mock-documentary by Philip Alberton about a dead body being used on modeling shoots and not the comedy about a beauty pageant by Michael Patrick Jann.

I just wanted to be clear since the comedy is the one I thought I was watching but was misinformed and just got physically ill. Instead of passing it up as possibly life-scarring bad luck, I thought I would write a blog about it and discuss what I got out of the movie since I can't seem to find many websites discussing it.

The premise of the movie is a documentary group have come to follow the rise of a young model, Cynthia, as she lands a big modeling contract with a very famous fashion designer. However, on the set, she dies (they suggest an overdose) but the photographer keeps shooting her. The modeling company decide that, in order to stay on schedule, they will continue to use her dead body and excitedly talk about starting a revolution in the fashion industry.

The message from the movie is pretty clear for anyone who can manage to listen to the dialogue over their stomach flipping at the sight of..well,...everything on screen: to the advertising industry, women are meat. We have no soul, no personality, and that is what is truly desired. The photographer in the movie doesn't look at the models' faces when he speaks to them but instead focuses his attention between their legs. When the models' go 'off-screen' to wretch, no one looks twice and later encourages them to lose more weight. The people 'interviewed' who work in the fashion field talk about how the worsts things about the models' are their relationships, their looks, and their need to be accepted. The photographer goes so far as to say that, for these women to be beautiful, they need to be used, abused, and sexualized, and-once they are on the verge of being ruined spiritually- give the impression of innocence and virginity.

Once Cynthia dies, a whole new world opens for the fashion world. No longer is she difficult to work with because they can prop her up, paint her, and dress her as they see fit. They no longer have to worry about complaints of long hours, relationships, and a life outside of her career. They move her and place her as they need and she goes on ice afterwards to await a new day of being used. Because she is dead, she is no longer the problem, it is now the other models who they call in to work with her. They become the ones who are difficult to work with as they don't want to be so close to a body or because, since one happens to be in her twenties, they are too old. One quote from the movie, "For Cynthia, it was too much too soon...wait, how old was she? 18? Then it was too much too late."

In the end of the movie, the advertisement was pulled from magazines and billboards but, because it was so shocking, kept getting reprinted. The designer she was working with went from being hated to admired for his revolution. Models killed themselves to get better work and her agent became the lead agent in dead models. Nothing was learned because society refused to.

Perhaps the dead body thing is a bit far-fetched but, honestly, advertising agencies aren't telling us much different. Women are screamed at from every side and a very early age; this is how you should look, how you should be, what you should be. You are worth nothing if you aren't these things. The images they present to us are unobtainable and often contradictions. We must be sexual virgins, submissive fighters, and commonly exotic. Our worth is determined by our body, our personality is irrelevant. In the end, we become something less than human. Models become mannequins and the end result leaves us with a picture asking a simple question....

Is she even real?

If you would like more information on the topic of how women are used in advertising (I assure you the following video will be more entertaining and better put together than my spur of the moment blog) then Watch Killing Us Softly By Clicking Here

Step One for Self-Sufficiency

If you ask me what my dreams for the future are, you'll get two answers: 1) that I will be a college professor/sociologist without borders 2) that I will be as self-sufficient as economically possible.

I want lots of land, preferably with some woods on it, and a little cottage home with a porch. When I'm not at my job, my time will be taken up tending to the produce DHF and I grow and cooking in a kitchen whose size will not cause me to have a nervous fit (my current one would make a cockroach claustrophobic).

It's funny because, when I was little, I grew up on a farm near the woods. My time was taken up chasing chickens around, avoiding the geese (they get testy), exploring the woods, and playing on the train tracks. I would help my grandmother shell peas and, on a couple of occasions, churn butter and I would wake up to the smell of biscuits and bacon in the morning.

Needless to say, my dream growing up was getting the hell away from their. I wanted city-life, the sounds of cars and people, and the pulse that only downtown can give. Then I moved there and I can the sounds of cars, sirens, and people yelling and the smell of dumpsters and homeless that only a neglected downtown can give.

It's funny 'cuz my dream for the future is the one thing I never wanted. It's weird how that works.

Currently though, DHF and I can't do much for self-sufficiency right now. I'm finishing up my last year as an undergrad (translation=broke and time consumed) and he's working a new job that calls for 12 hour shifts. Neither of us can afford a house here and we find it kind of pointless since we will be moving out of state after I graduate for graduate school. So, since we can't do many of the things we want, we have decided to start planning for when we can.

Our step one involves paying off as much of our debt as possible. He's already succeeded in most of that since he works full time but I'm just getting started today. I have decided to aim for credit cards since my hope for the future is only having one and for emergencies only. Currently, I have five and have plans in the works to bring it down to four by August 26th. Eep! Excitement! Today I plan on setting up a 'pay off schedule' that will help me form a budget and get them all paid off by next May. I may not have a really good idea of it until after I get my car but at least I'll have a general one.

Activist Post: Anonymous Threatens to Kill Facebook on Nov. 5

For Caterpillar:

(Click on the link below for more information)

Activist Post: Anonymous Threatens to Kill Facebook on Nov. 5

A lot of people complain that this attack is idiotic but I disagree. What Facebook is doing is wrong and they are destroying lives of people who are unaware that they've become addicts. There is no longer a sense of privacy. Facebook apps can take your personal contacts out of your iphone (look it up), they keep tabs on things you discuss, and businesses can check their employees or possible employees pictures, statuses, and comments. People have lost their jobs because somewhere in an album is a picture of them holding a beer. Never-mind that they never drank at their job and were at their own house because, with Facebook's help, what you do in your free time is also your boss's business.

We have a right to privacy. Stop selling information. If Facebook continues, they should respect the 'privacy settings' set up by their users. That doesn't just go for other users, it should apply to companies and government agencies.

Because We Share The Same Goals

The Edge of Revolution

The world is on the edge of revolution. Turn on the television and riots are on every station. People are dissatisfied. They have a right to be. For too long, the government and big businesses have sought to quiet us. They have taken away our rights and replaced them with mindless dribble. They say speak freely but not if it is something they don't want to hear. They say right to happiness but limit it to what makes them happy. They say live your life but they make us their slaves.

Large companies destroy the hopes and dreams of those people who open honest business. They treat their employees poorly-some like slaves. They deny promotion and insurances that may benefit the lives of the people they rely on in order to operate. Fat cats get fatter while people who have suffered continue to do so.

Where are the citizens to go when it's government authorities are corrupted? Many are more worried about what big business with it's big wallet wants than they are for the people who rely on them to make their voices heard. The news screams at us that the only way to change things is to vote but all many of us see is a choice in picking the less evil of two 'bought' politicians.

It seems the idea of revolution has become something to fear and destroy. It quakes people who are too distracted by the 'gift' of social media and mindless television to notice that something is terribly wrong. We are in debt, people are losing their jobs, their homes, children are hungry, the elderly are living on pennies, and education costs get higher and higher while loans get harder and harder to obtain. The government gives tax break to the rich while the poor starve in a land of plenty. It's not working. Nothing is working and things need to change.

We are the change. This goes beyond being American or the 'youth of the nation.' This is the human spirit and we refuse to be broken.

Tear Drops and a Mariner's Revenge

THE CONCERT WAS AMAZING!!!!

Oh, my gosh, I don't think there are enough words to describe how utterly amazing it was nor do I think I will be able to relate everything that happened. It's like a happy hodgepodge of awesomeness in my brain. ^_^

I'm not sure where to begin. I guess I can start by saying that I have been to a lot of concerts over the years but this was by far the best and I'm not just saying that because The Decemberists are my favorite band. Many artists will come on stage and say 'Hey, Nashville, you guys rock!' and then pretty much ignore the audience the rest of the time and just do their thing. The Decemberists, however, spoke to the crowd-even so much as responding to things that were called out to them- and made the audience become active in the show. On several occasions, they wouldn't continue playing until everyone was standing, jumping, or dancing. During one song, Colin asked people to get out in the aisles and start two stepping. When no one did, he asked if anyone here even knew how and, when no one responded, he jumped down into the aisle, grabbed a chick, and danced up and down the aisle with her while the rest of the band continued playing. Also, during another song, he jumped back into the crowd and gave his guitar to someone and asked them to do a guitar solo (BTW, Guitar lessons may be in my future).

The concert became more of a play in which everyone had a part. The audience stomped and clapped in rhythm, banged on the seats, and sang along. Everyone was so enthusiastic that they did two encores with one of the songs being The Mariner's Revenge. During this one, the audience was asked that, when the cue was given, everyone was to scream and wail as if they were the ones being swallowed by the giant whale. During that time, DHF and I grabbed hold of each other and screamed at the top of our lungs along with everyone else. During the instrumental part, the entire concert hall was covered in blue light and we all swayed like we were the ocean.

One of my favorite songs they played was This is Why We Fight, a song which reminds us that "freedom cannot be bestowed-it must be achieved" (Roosevelt). Hearing that song live was like a spiritual moment for me. In my truest Christian roots, I even held up my hands as witness :P Looking back, I'm sure I looked silly but heck if I care.

And, because I can't possibly forget to mention this, when they first appeared on stage, I cried. I couldn't believe I was in the same room as Colin Meloy. If you know me, you know how out of character that is for me. I'm snarky and I don't care about celebrities in the least. With this though, it's just different. I couldn't begin to tell you why except that it is and wonderfully so. I cried all through that first song and held DHF's hand and I don't care who knows.

Having DHF there was seriously the best part of all of it though. I am so happy that I was able to experience this with him. Even though this band wasn't his cup of tea going in, he greatly enjoyed himself at the concert and I think his mind changed about them a little bit. It was wonderful knowing my baby was holding my hand through the songs and actually enjoying himself instead of putting up with it for me.

Before we went into the show, we waited in line at the merchandise table where DHF informed me I was to get whatever I wanted. I just asked for one t-shirt. Disappointed in my request, he got me the shirt, a water bottle, and the limited edition poster (which is now sold out). We have plans to get some items off their website along with a frame for the poster.

The songs played:

Oceanside

Down by the Water

Calamity Song

Rise to Me

The Bagman's Gambit

The Soldering Life

We Both Go Down Together

Won't Want for Love

The Crane Wife (1&2)

The Rake's Song

All Arise!

Rox in the Box

This is Why We Fight

The Chimbley Sweep

----

Hey, That's No Way to Say Goodbye

The Mariner's Revenge

---

June Hymn

Well, I think that's all I can think of to say. Honestly, I'm exhausted today and I think I may curl up for a bit and watch TV. Night y'all :)

August 8th

Ugh! I have this feeling like I'm antsy but not at the same time. I would be all like 'things need to hurry up and happen!' but things are happening. I'm reading, pondering, working, kissing DHF; you know, all those good things. I even sat down and re-watched Gone With The Wind (BTW, Frankly, he doesn't give a damn).

I dunno though, I think I'm just antsy about all the stuff coming up within the next few weeks. I'm seeing The Decemberists on Saturday which makes me wanna explode with excitement! I'm for real! I mean, I am going to be in the same building as Colin Meloy!!!!

I kinda wanna cry just thinking about it. Also, I just found out that he wrote a children's book (possible birthday present, perhaps? Hmm, perhaps not. Dunno if I can wait that long).

Another great part about this concert, it's in Nashville which means I'll get to see Kristina! I have plans to get to Nashville early so I can meet with her for lunch. That'll leave a few hours to get present for the wedding on sunday (DHF's friends) before crying tears of joy as the second greatest man sings to me. *Happy sigh* He's got nothing on DHF though. Good thing he's already married. I would hate to have to turn him down :P

After all that, DHF's birthday will be coming up, school will be starting, and then I'll be visiting relatives in Alabama. Gosh, so much so soon. I'm gonna try my best to relax and read but, as I said before, I'm getting antsy with my downtime.

As if to prove my point, I'm now bored writing this entry. I think I'll clean. :P

The Story of Peter as told by Madea

(The following is from Tyler Perry's I Can Do Bad All By Myself)

Madea: You know who you remind me of right now? You remind me of Peter. You know who Peter was? Peter was one of the twelve disciplines. And they were out on a boat near an isle in the Greek Atlantic Ocean. And when they was on this boat, a storm rose up and the twelve disciplines, they got really, really worried and upset. They said, "Oh Lord, what are we gonna do?" and they saw something coming towards them that looked like a ghost. But it wasn't a ghost. It was Jesus. And Peter said, "Jesus, if that's you then let me come out to you." You gotta be careful what you ask the Lord for. So Jesus said, "Come on out." So Peter stepped out of the boat and was walking on the water.

On the water. He was walking on the water toward Jesus. Long as he kept his eyes on Jesus, he stayed on top of the water. He took his eyes off him though. You know why? He got distracted. You know why he got distracted? See, this is what you got to do. When you got your eye on Jesus, you can't get distracted by nothing. Jonah passed by in the belly of the whale. He looked down, Free Willy, with Jonah inside the belly and it made him distracted so he started to sink. He said, "Jesus, Jesus, help me." Jesus said, "I can't. I got to go to Calvary. I'm late." So Jesus went on to the cross. He said, "Don't worry though. I'm gonna send you a comforter. When the comforter come, you gonna be alright." So he's swimming. He try and swim. He was worried. And Jaws was coming. Spielberg did that Jaws thing. And he was surrounded. You know what happened?

Just in the nick of time... See this is what I'm talking about, when you think you ain't gonna make it, in the nick of time, something happens. Noah came up in the arch. That's right, Noah came rowing up in the arch of St. Louis Arch. He pulled right up beside him. Peter got on there, he said, "Thank you for saving me." Noah said, "No problem, man. It's cool. What up, fool?" So he showed him around. Noah had turned the arch into a cruise ship cause he ain't have nothing to do after he saved the world. Hey, you know who was on there? Eve.

She was in the VIP section. And Peter asked, he said, "Eve, come on, go to the show." So she went to see this show. They had tigers. You know, they had two tigers, two bears, two lions. You know how they had the male and the female. Well, Siegfried and Roy was there, and they had the two lions there. And them Lions jumped up and scratched Eve. That's how Eve get them two paws there. You ever see Eve with the paws? She got two paws right there. Read your Bible some time, honey. Read your Bible.

Last page, promise :P

(That would be DHF, Headmaster)

(Don't worry, Draco. I love you.)

Hell yeah!!

(Note: Nothing belongs to me. Found images while surfing internet and their original sites are unknown to me)

You-Know-Who I'm Talking About!

(*Note: None of the pictures belong to me. They were found while surfing the internet and their original sites are no longer known)

Mean Wizards

Apparently it's pretty popular to take scenes from the Harry Potter movies and insert 'Mean Girls' quotes on them. If you haven't seen 'Mean Girls,' what's wrong with you?! Tina Fey wrote the screenplay; how can you argue with Tina Fey? That's right, you can't. Go watch it. But first, enjoy some 'Mean Wizards.'

(*Note: None of the pictures belong to me. They were found while surfing the internet and their original sites are no longer known)

Sweet Freedom

Well, I am now no longer a Facebook user! You have no idea how freeing this actually is!...unless you've done it, of course. At first, I found it surprisingly difficult to delete my account but, as time went on, it became almost fun. If you read my previous post you know I went about it by deleting friend by friend and sending them a message. By the third day, I was like 'whose gonna make it to the next round?! Not you, Mr. guy in my psychology class!" Once I got it down to eight people, I tagged them all in a goodbye status and once they replied I clicked on that deactivate key faster than this little girl can run!

AHHHHH!!!!!!!

Okay, perhaps that's not very fast. I'm pretty sure a snail with a body cramp could outdo her. *sigh* I don't think she even realizes she's running in direct line of the bear.

Alright, it was a bad example! But the picture was way funnier than the one running away from her boyfriend and it will get me way less phone calls from a worried DHF.

The scary part about deleting my profile though was the really creepy thing Facebook decided to do. When I clicked on the deactivate link, it sent me to a page where my remaining friend's random pictures (Facebook chose to show me the ones where I was in the pic with them) were enlarged and then put "So-and-so will miss you..." (it even had the "...") "Send them a message."

I was like.. 'uh, no Facebook. But how about you go chill with my Mom? You both can bond over guilt tripping me.'

In the end though, my Facebook is gone-which makes me happy- and I inspired people to do similar acts-which makes me happier. Several of my friends also deleted their accounts because they agreed with DHF and I's viewpoint and our doing something about it encouraged them to do the same and one friend is giving up those little clicky games. Whoot!

It's a good day ^_^

Alright, I'm heading off so I can hunt down my fingernail polish remover. I need to redo my Slytherin nail polish :P

"Sooo, Ron....got a date to the Yule Ball?"

I freakin' love Ron's expression in this picture. Before y'all go watch the movie in slow-mo, from everything I've read this pic is totally photo-shoped. Still funny as hell though. Thought I'd share :P

WTF, Mate?

I had a big plan as to how to go about deleting my Facebook account. Recognizing myself as having an addiction, I thought I would go about it slowly. I would take a month to get all my pictures off and statuses I wanted to remember, as well as get some friend's contact info so we could all still keep in touch. My plan was to delete a friend or two a day as I got their info so I could have my account gone by September 1st.

I got as far as deleting two people before panic set in. My heart started racing and all kinds of thoughts went through me head about not wanting to do this. I kept telling myself that I wouldn't be able to update my statuses on how I was feeling and what about when I moved? How would I be able to keep in touch and show pictures and connect with the people I had left? Yeah, I could call people and stuff but that's just not the same. How did people even survive without Facebook? How were they able to communicate?!

Then I came to my senses. I was being crazy. No, I was thinking like an addict. My amount of time spent on Facebook had dramatically decreased and I was still panicked over the thought of losing it. This shouldn't be a big deal. This should be something simple and should be accomplished without much stress. Sadly, that's not the case. Even now I'm trying to calm down. WTF, mate? I mean, I was doing the deleting a friend or two at a time thing cuz I figured I might have some reaction to it but I never imagined this much of a reaction.

I don't think I even have much else to add on this post. I'm still surprised it affected me the way it did.

If June Cleaver could see us now

Last night DHF and I were talking about what it's like to live in America now and neither of us liked it. It seems the American dream is now all but obtainable.

This idea of a little house with a white picket fence has now become the dread of foreclosure. The hope of self sufficiency has been replaced by major credit cards, microwave dinners, and a lack of knowledge of anything that may be useful to living while having an increase in trivial bullshit concerning the media. Family time has been destroyed as we replace knowledge about our relatives likes and dislikes with that of celebrities, and this insane desire for safety and trust has become just that, insane.

When I walk into wal-mart now, I am screamed at by televisions telling me to buy, buy, buy and what aisle I can find this product on. I never really liked wal- mart to begin with but, as they take over our souls, mom and pop stores become harder to find and, when you do, they have been forced to raise their prices so high it becomes too hard on your wallet to support their version of the American dream.

People have become so involved in social media that they have forgotten what it means to be social. It seems we must always have our phones in our hands and Facebook blaring in our face. Even moments when we are out with friends or at the dinner table with our family, people feel the need to plug in and loose themselves in a computer screen that promises false love and comfort. Our self worth is now dependent on the amount of 'likes' to our status updates... It's pathetic.

I also raised the issue of my blog to DHF, asking both him and myself if having it was also part of a technological leash. He basically replied only if I let it. I'm only on my blog once a day if that and only long enough to connect to the world and purge my mind of its busyness. Yes, perhaps the same could be said of Facebook- that using it in small doses is not a problem but I must clarify. My fault is not with Facebook. My fault is how people act on it. My fault is in how I can find the same people on it sun up from sun down constantly updating their statuses and filling their photo albums with pictures of themselves and the insides of their homes because they never leave it anymore. My fault is that I used to be the same way and thinking back on the hours I wasted scrolling up and down statuses irritates me. I could have been doing so much more with my time.

If you still use Facebook, whatever. It's not my place to tell anyone how to live their lives and if it makes you happy then more power to you. However, I find no happiness from it and so I'm quitting it. In my attempt to find my American dream, I am stopping the wasted hours on that site and actually get off my couch and speak to friends of whom now I only see pictures. I will make a better effort to be friends with those I don't hang out with much anymore and become a person not tied down by the constant call of the electronic.

Gandhi asked us to be the change we want to see in the world. I'm starting with Facebook. I'll let you know where else I'm heading as it comes to me. Peace y'all.

Floating along in salt water

I am beginning to think it would be super wonderful to have more hours in a day. Well, that and unlimited work hours in my lab. It just feels like I don't have enough time to see my family, DHF, gather research for my thesis, work, tutor, see friends, and enter data.

For my data entry I'm pretty limited on the hours as they are assigned to me and I have to get as much done as I possibly can in that time slot. Summer lab hours end August 12 to give everyone a short vacation before next semester starts. Since next semester I will be writing my thesis, my personal goal is to have all the data entered so the next four months will just be analysis. You have no idea how awesome that would be...well, unless you work in a research field. Yesterday I stayed late to enter a few more things so I'm hoping tomorrow I can do the same. If I can finish entering information for two more classes, I will be super psyched!!

Work also isn't something I have a lot of control over. I work with specific clients at specific times which I'm fine with except I would really like to be making more money. DHF says not to worry, that I should focus on school and he will help with the rest but I don't feel that's fair to him. I would love to be making at least forty dollars more a week but since I have school and such, I have no idea when I can fit in the extra hours. I'm already strapped for time as it is.

Tutoring may have to fall to the side, as much as I hate to admit it. I can't charge for this service due to who it is and their needs. I love teaching it and the guy I tutor is wonderful but I think I would have more room for flexibility in other aspects of my life if I didn't have to worry about making sure I meet with him twice a week. I feel like an ass saying that since it's only an hour but it becomes an issue when anything else in my life has to be moved to a different time. I think I have cancelled on him more times than we've met. I dunno, I guess I'll let him know today that I'll have to stop by September. That should give him time to find someone else.

Family is almost an impossible goal. We all work so much and have completely conflicting schedules that we just assume everyone is still alive and go about our merry way. Seeing them might be easier if I didn't work on Saturdays but until I can pay off my credit cards, I don't see me being able to have that day free. As for DHF, well, I may have to just bring my laptop on days he and I hang out and just do my work at his place until I get caught up. Next semester is gonna be a world of only slightly fun as I have so much research to do. (I say slightly fun as I love the research part but the writing everything up part is a bit poopy.)

Well, I guess there isn't much else to say about things. I gotta cowboy up and kick this pig. It's only gonna get more stressful the longer I wait. I'm sure things will fall into their proper place though. If not, they won't and I'll be screwed. Eh, it's sink or swim when it comes to life; hopefully though, it's in salt water.

Deathly Hallows Part 2 review

(WARNING: MAY CONTAIN SPOILERS)

Can I tack on another star and give it five?

I'm not even sure where to begin this review besides saying the movie was absolutely stunning. It begins with a bang and goes out the same way and, for us Harry Potter fans, it's possibly the most satisfying ending you can imagine....well, I still miss Snape but I will overcome with fan-fiction and cookies.

That aside, I think the movie gets it's power by staying as true to the book as much as a PG-13 rating would allow. The movie took it's own creative liberties; most noticeably with the final fight scene, but when it did so, it was just as believable and enjoyable as if they had followed the actual book.

The special effects were done so flawlessly that it was almost difficult to tell the difference between graphics and actuality; the same for the makeup. I have read about some people hating the narrative and dialogue between the characters but I didn't notice any problems with it and, if there is anything I notice, it's language. Believe me- I'm a libra.

The movie lasts about two hours and ten minutes in it's duration but the pace is set so wonderfully that it seems to have all been over much too soon. However, I do feel that this may be partly due to it's lack of in-depth explanation on many things. Many events such as the eyes in the glass or Dumbledore's history with his sister is quickly glossed over in order to get to more important scenes. Someone who had never read the book would still be able to understand everything going on but people who were more familiar with the story would have a deeper knowledge of what these happenings meant. Of course, those events allowed for A to connect to B but they weren't really necessary to dive into for a movie perspective. The only issue I had was the lack of explanation of Luna suddenly showing up at Hogwarts. Out of everything, that's the only problem I have....I think that's saying a lot.

I'm sure I'll be asked about the crying factor and, for that, I have to say not to go to the movie without a tissue. I forgot one and had to settle with DHF's sleeve. Some may have issues with certain characters not getting enough attention when they died but, keep in mind that many of them were minor characters and there isn't enough time to give a Shakespearen death to please every fan. Snape, however, was wonderful. I sobbed as he spoke his last line in life and, a few moments later, sobbed harder at the one sentence answer "Always." Snape had always been my favorite character since book one and, if he had to go, he went flawlessly....and with enough tears from me to drown small children in his honor.

All-in-all, it was epic and you are an absolute idiot if you don't see it in theatres. 3-D is optional but I skipped that option and was still just as satisfied. I just say the theatre thing because, if you are a large a fan as I am and grew up on the books as I had, the final chapter deserves a trip to the big screen. It's how it should be viewed: the big screen, tissues, and your friends or family. You'll need them to hand you more tissues.

Showing a Little House Pride

Technological Leashes and Learning to STFU

Social media is beginning to irritate me. I feel constantly tied to 'social' that it is beginning to feel like too tight a collar made tighter by a technological leash that keeps tugging. Facebook is swarmed with status updates every ten or so minutes, twitter lets everyone know when you breathe or take a shit, and text message is constantly going off as people find it more convenient to text than actually be personal and speak to one another. Why is it necessary to let every person in the world know our every thought?

Yes, I do get the irony of that statement being on a blog but you should also recognize there are many things which I think and feel that I do not feel the need to share. Not that they are unfavorable, but that I-as an individual- deserve something that isn't broadcasted; something that is mine and only mine. If it can't be my thoughts, what can it be?

I know I'm getting irritated when I contemplate deleting some of my Facebook friends because they never seem to STFU. My news feed is constantly swarmed with what causes they are joining, what they are doing, and how they are feeling. It's all fine and dandy to let people know what you are doing with your day but please recognize that not everyone cares you made eggs and bacon for breakfast. At least I don't.

To solve this problem, I think I am going to pull away from social media for a bit. If people want to text me, they can expect a phone call and a planned visit to continue the conversation. As for Facebook, I'm changing it from my homepage and allowing only two visits per day until I get it down to far less than that. The internet is much harder to stray from as my college and research demands it but I will do what I can.

I'm sick of this. Social media seems to be doing little more than making people unsociable.

Wednesday