Shark Week O-Ah-Ah

It's Shark Week, the best week in the year, aside from spring break. Watching these educational shows makes me miss old school Discovery Channel, when it was almost all programs like these, not "X Road Truckers" or shows about fishing. It just reminds me, when I think back to the old days, how we have been dumbed down into needing reality entertainment shows instead of shows meant to make us more knowledgeable.

The day was pretty good, if uneventful. I saw Rango which was enjoyable if very weird. My mom goes back to work tomorrow, and I've got to clean the exterior of my grandma's car. I'm not looking forward to either of these things. Her going back means I'M going back soon, which is never good. At least Totoro Tuesday is almost here.

Silver Linings

I've had a pretty good day today. Went to Cracker Barrel, and, even though my meal wasn't that great, I still had a nice time. Went to the library, and even though I couldn't get The Princess Bride, I did get True Grit and John Hodgman's Areas of My Expertise, which is proving to be quite amusing so far. I couldn't get into Pottermore today (no one could), but I did get plenty of time to read and listen to Wye Oak. Also, listen to that song, as it's brilliant. I posted it on the Tumblr today, and I can't stop listening. Also, the lead singer's intro is hilarious in its dryness.

Oh, and I've already told Jessica, but no Harry Potter World for my 21st. HOWEVER, if you guys would be interested, there's a chance we can go November 11-13th, or round about then. There's a Harry Potter fest at HPW at that time, so we might be able to go and celebrate that. Plus, it'll be cooler out, which means we might see the staff dressed in robes :-D

Which reminds me, my mom's boyfriend (?) is coming the weekend of my birthday... I don't know why, aside from the fact that my mom enjoys me not being completely comfortable in my home.

Silence Fell

I have such a great time when Jessica and/or Ashley come over. Or when I spend any amount of time with them. I haven't had this much fun since Jesse left, so it was great to end this two week drought. It was also awesome FINALLY finishing series 5 of Doctor Who with Jessica, followed by showing her the Christmas special and the first two episodes of series 6. I was especially thrilled when she became terrified of the Silence, who are genuinely scary. Hell, I still get freaked out when I see them. Overall this was an extremely epic day of epicness, and I can't wait for Totoro Tuesday.

A bit of this and a bit of that

I keep worrying about my future all of a sudden. Fuck the passage of time, I want eternal summer. I haven't worried at all since leaving FGCU in April, and now I'm suddenly being assaulted by it again. It's just so... unknown. And difficult. And yeah, scary. I even have ideas in place about what to do, but, even so, it's the future, and the future is impossible to plan for fully.

I cleaned the inside of my grandma's car today. When she's focused on something, she's actually okay to be around, so it wasn't the worst experience. Plus she had a couple fans going, so it wasn't impossibly hot either. I'm so excited to see Ashley and Jessica tomorrow. I've missed them like crazy.

Our Song

I haven't played this for Jesse yet, just because he hates this kind of music (go figure) but I like to think of this as our unofficial song.

Felt sentimental, thought I'd post it for you guys :-)

On the Road

Watching Top Gear makes me realize how miserable I'd be if I had to drive as much as these folks. Shitty cars, middle of nowhere places, and driving all day for days on end. I couldn't handle 10 hours up and 10 hours back. It's just... nuts.

There and Back Again

Yay I'm back! Oh that was a great week. I'd call that one of the best weeks of my life. There was so much magnificence and happiness and brilliance and awesomeness and wonderfulness and mbdkfshadjla... I miss him already. I miss you guys a lot, too. I demand we hang out again soon.
Also, this song kept playing on the radio. And I actually liked it... which is weird.

After driving for 40 hours this past week, is it okay if I never drive again?

Please?

Well this sucks

I'm coming home tomorrow. There's few things harder than experiencing pure happiness for so little time and then having it taken away. This was one of the greatest weeks of my life. I'm so glad I did this... but I miss him dearly.

We played the blind Bertie Botts' challenge

I got fish. It was horrible.

I really do miss you guys

Seriously!

I totally miss you guys

Just saying.

Hey Guys

These don't need to be of substance, right? :-p

So....

I actually really like Avatar: The Last Airbender. Thanks Jesse.

Y'all know what's up

So here's a song! Yay!

If you're also reading this

Then I'm coming home :-)

If you're reading this

Then I'm on the road right now. Wish me luck!

"I'm Not Going Home... Not Really"

And so it ends tonight. Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part Two releases at 12:01, and when the credits roll, our childhoods come to an end.

I was in the third grade when I was first exposed to Harry Potter. My dad bought the first three books for my mom to use in her classroom, which she never did. My teacher, Ms. Priebe, decided to read Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone to us, and made it a daily routine. At the same time, she assigned us a book report on a mystery story. Enjoying Sorcerer's Stone (though admittedly not getting it all, since I was so young), I decided to read Chamber of Secrets concurrently. I wouldn't say I was particularly spoiled or confused, reading the second book before finishing the first, but I knew from my fellow students that the second book had more of a mystery than the first, so I read it. I came to really enjoy the series, but I wouldn't say I loved it.

Fast forward a few years and Goblet of Fire was released. This, you might remember, was when we had the big boom in Harry Potter love. I was quite swept up in that wave. I remember getting GoF for Christmas, reading the first few chapters, and giving up, not understanding it at all. I guess somewhere along the line I read the third book after having read the first two a few times, and eventually went back and read GoF.
My first memory of Harry Potter as a fan was pulling into Toys R Us with my grandma, me reading the graveyard scene. I didn't even want to go into the store, I was so enthralled. I finished reading it on the way home with my parents, and had my first case of post-Potter depression.

In the years between GoF and Order of the Phoenix, I read and re-read the first four books and became more and more engrossed into the series. I got some of the memorabilia that was marketed as from the books, not the films. I even had a Clue-style boardgame, which I remember bringing to our beach condo. I was sitting in our old van with it on my lap, supporting Prisoner of Azkaban, which I was re-reading intently.

I flipped out when I heard about Harry Potter coming to film. I found out in a Lego magazine, which had just the owl carrying the letter teaser. I raced online and found out, yes, Sorcerer's Stone was being made into a movie. I remember watching the trailer on the computer, practically throwing a tantrum when that crappy old technology refused to properly load a video.

My mom, grandma, and I went to the first showing of Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone at Bell Tower the day of its release. I had skipped school that day just to see it. Decked out in a Hogwarts cap, Hogwarts jean jacket, and Nimbus 2000 green t-shirt, I sat and watched as everything I had imagined came to life before me. I must have seen it four times in theaters. I was eleven years old, Harry's age. Getting my ticket was like getting my acceptance letter, and seeing Hogwarts before me was like going to the school. It was... well, magic.

Order of the Phoenix was sent to me in the mail, I get Half-Blood Prince at a Walmart at midnight, and I got Deathly Hallows at the midnight release at Barnes and Noble. I saw Chamber of Secrets on a rainy November day, Prisoner of Azkaban on a warm summer evening (which was my first date, by the by), Goblet of Fire on another rainy November day, Order of the Phoenix on a hot July day with Gaby, Half-Blood Prince with Ashley and Kristine Zadrovitz, and Deathly Hallows Part One with Jessica, Ricky, Travis, and Ashly, and, finally Deathly Hallows Part Two with Ashley and Jessica tonight. All of them at Bell Tower. I started my journey to Hogwarts on film there, and I'll end it there.

I know I'm rambling at this point, but I need to add my opinion on the end. This is the end of an era. We've grown up with Harry in our books and on film, and in a way, we're saying goodbye to him. We'll never have another midnight release, or a trailer to look forward to. We'll never again have that joy of seeing what we imagined first being played out before us. But you know what... it's not really the end. We're not putting Harry away, we're not taking the Hogwarts Express back to the muggle world for the last time. We still have the books to read, the movies to watch. We still have the memories and friends we made through this wonderful series, and we still have that feeling of joy and wonderment whenever we read about or watch the Boy Who Lived. Just because we're growing up doesn't mean we're leaving our childhood behind. We've always got Harry Potter, we've always got Hogwarts, and we always have our home on film or page.
I leave you with this little segment of dialogue and song from A Very Potter Sequel and Musical.
HERMIONE: Harry, can you believe that we only get 7 years at Hogwarts?
HARRY: Yeah, but that’s what makes it so special. Sure, we have to go back home for the summer, but imagine how totally awesome going back’s gonna be. Till then, I got to go back to the Muggle world. They’re going to try to tell me this was’t real and none of this happened, but you know what? It was real. It did happen. We spent time here, we made friends here; it’s a part of us. Hogwarts is bigger than any of us…it’s bigger than any of its founders, and it’s going to be around long after we’re gone. Maybe we’ll see our kids come here one day. That’s the thing about Hogwarts: No matter how long you’re away from it, there’s always a way back.
Back to wizards and witches, and magical beasts
To goblins and ghosts and to magical feasts
It's all that I love, and all that I need.
At HOGWARTS, HOGWARTS,
Back to spells and enchantments, potions and friends
To Gryffindors!
Hufflepuffs!
Ravenclaws!
Slytherins!
Back to the place where our story begins
It’s Hogwarts, Hogwarts!

Oh God it's tomorrow

Tomorrow my childhood ends. Shit.

Rambling about synths and nostalgia

There's something about the synths at the beginning of this song that make me nostalgic. They're very ethereal, and they remind me of the old fantasy cartoons I watched as a kid. The ones they made back in the early to mid 80s, with the cheap animation quality. They told dark stories but made them kid friendly, and they used synth music like this, because it was the 80s and everything used synth. I wish I could think of an example but I really can't. In fact it's a little difficult to explain now. The closest I can come to is The Black Cauldron but I don't think I saw it until a few years ago.
Anyway, it's one of those things that make me think back to fantasy in childhood, which helped form my love of fantasy in young adulthood to the present.

Freedom!

Today is my last day dog-sitting, thank God. These animals have been driving me insane. And now I'm getting my money, huzzah!
I swear there's been dementors around lately. The weather keeps becoming rainy, and everyone is horribly depressed about the end of Harry Potter. Can't say I blame them. At least I've got great music to make me feel better!

Days of Summer

FINALLY watched A Very Potter Sequel today. I love the chick that plays Draco and the guy that plays Snape. Someone actually made a good point in one of the comments that we kind of root for the bad guys more than the good ones in the show, which I'd say is accurate :-p
My desire to do some acting this summer kind of waned from the beginning. We've done so much so far, and I am really happy about that. But if we feel like acting something out, we'll do it.

Been Watching Harry Potter All Day

I never really thought I'd do that since I was 12, but here I went and just watched them all. Well, to GoF anyway. And you know what? They're still really good.
There's a big Harry Potter post coming on Thursday. Look forward to it.

Oh a deep post

I really want you guys to give this song a listen. It's got that epic quality that I adore in my music. It sounds like the music that plays at the end of a movie, where the hero had to overcome a lot and finally gets the girl.
Life really does play out like a movie sometimes. We're each the star of our own story, and we do face challenges that could win any award. Even the most boring day is something special.
This sounds like a strange place to get a quote from, but Bob Ross, the guy famous for painting on PBS with the afro and voice like velvet, once said that "we walk around everyday looking but without really seeing." I think there's something beautiful and inspirational in our everyday life, but sometimes it gets lost in our rush and stress. If we take a moment to actually see, we would feel much happier with life.

7/7

Oh my God Tumblr was depressing today. With the Harry Potter premiere, and seeing everyone saying such wonderful things, it really felt like the end. And then Jo herself shows up and says that Hogwarts will always be there to welcome us home, and I felt so emotional from just... reassurance, perhaps. It may seem like the end now, but we can always go back.

POST POST NOW

Oh quickly a post! Um, driving around for an hour in the rain isn't fun, eating pizza and playing Portal 2 is. THERE!

Now You're Thinking with Portals

I love having Ashley and Jessica over. We really have the best time. Our pizza and chat was great, followed by the fun and bafflement of the Uncharted 3 beta, in which we were trounced by upper level guys, but we certainly dominated in the rest of the matches. I blame our split screen. This was followed by the thrill of Portal 2, in which Jessica and I pwned as Atlas and P-Body. Playing the campaign was also such a thrill. I'm so glad we had this day together :-D

The Twilight Zone

I'm watching this episode of the Twilight Zone where a guy and his family are trying to escape their home from an impending nuclear holocaust. The guy tells his wife that this time tomorrow the end of everything they've ever known will come, and all the people they've ever met will be dead. It's eerie to imagine that you know the end times are coming, and that it's impossible to stop, so the only thing you can do is try to get your family and friends away. It's so eerie that it's really bone-chilling. I can't imagine having to be in that position. Everything that you're cozy with will be gone. All the teachers, students, and strangers we've ever encountered would be dead. The only thing that you can do is hope to escape with the people closest to you.

Happy Independence Day! :-D

A Title

Eh, I'm just filling this out. Sorry folks :-x

Posty Post

I have such a love/hate relationship with laziness. I love lounging around because that's what I feel like doing, but I hate when it causes me to procrastinate. Like right now, I should be up doing something, but I feel tired so I don't want to.

#Thatsit #Coolstoryself

IDGAF Day

Had a day of dog-watching, which was the calm before the epic storm of sushi Friday with Ashley and Jessica, in which the GPS trolls, we get caught in the rain, sushi is waited for, awkward stares made, and lulz were had :-D