Snowcone?

"At the best of times his face was unreadable. Now his face was a book written in a language long forgotten, in an alphabet unimagined. Silas wrapped the shadows around him liked a blanket, and stared after the way the boy had gone, and did not move to follow."

This quote is from The Graveyard Book by Neil Gaiman which I just finished reading for my children's literature class, and I'm not sure why, but I was honestly amazed by this book. I mean really, read the above quote again and tell me that's not amazing. When read in context it'll send shivers down your spine I swear.

Besides going to class, going to work, finishing up The Graveyard Book, and doing other homework energy has been a little crazy around here with the current crazy snowfall. The snow has already piled up considerably, and it's still going strong. My roommates are hopeful that it'll keep snowing and we'll get school canceled tomorrow, but in all liklihood it'll either A) Start raining in the early morning and the snow will be mostly slush by the time we get up or B) There will still be LOTS of snow but the school will tell us that we should "use our own judgement" which will mean I'll need to get to school. I mean honestly. I have classes where if you miss more than three times you fail, or you lose 2% every time you miss. I know that in reality if I seriously couldn't get to school it would be fine, but meh. I just want classes cancelled.

Anyway, regardless of whether school is canceled tomorrow or not, I'm currently eating a snowcone made from actual snow. Which, by the way, is why today is awesome.

W3CG Video about Books!

Here's my WeThreeChallengirls video for the weeks in which I talk about the craziness of my life and books. Mostly books.

The links to the sites with the award winners are this link for the Printz award and this link for the other ones like the Newbery award. I'd really like to read Ship Breaker and Moon Over Manifest personally. Anyone else see an award winner that strikes your fancy? Or did you read a children's or young adult book in the past year that you think would have deserved any of these awards much more?

When it's New

Despite the trepidation and fear people have towards change, I feel like most people experience some form of excitement about new things. And when I mean things, I mean both physical objects and doing new things. Learning a new skill is often exciting and practicing that new skill is often way more fun when it's brand new. Going to new places is fun and exciting. Forming new friendships. Learning new things. New. New. New.

I always get a little excited when I get new classes at the beginning of the year/quarter. Getting new books and starting off with a clean slate is always a fun experience. This quarter the things I was least excited about were the things I'd already been doing the whole year. I had a "ho-hum" sort of attitude about most of these things.

Some old things can turn into new things too. People you've known for ages can surprise you with random facts or stories from their pasts. Skills you've been honing for a while can become more exciting when you discover a new technique. While change can be frightening, it can lead to this sense of excitement and "new-ness".

Mostly, these were just thoughts that were on my mind today as I thought about a few things. Also on my mind today was HOW MUCH ICE was everywhere. Seriously. I love snow, but really? And now I need to go finish my homework because my university NEVER cancels school regardless of how dangerous things get. Well, maybe not that far, but I imagine it will take a lot to get them to cancel school. Teachers might cancel an individual class, but school itself will never get canceled.

WTWA: I know I complained about the ice but this is why today was awesome...

Also, I made a hat :)

I look weird in this picture, so ignore the face and just look at the hat.

Why Today is Awesome

So Kayley Hyde of fiveawesomegirls (owlssayhoot is her personal challenge) posted a video today showing her "Why Today is Awesome" journal. For those of you who don't know what fiveawesomegirls (FAG) is, or what that has to do with FAG, it was a channel on youtube where five girls for three years posted (mostly) daily videos talking about their lives, doing challenges, and saying why their day was awesome. Sadly, they decided that they wouldn't carry on with daily videos anymore, basically ending the project, many people have decided to start daily journals to say why their day was awesome (including Kayley). I thought this might be a fun addition to my daily blog to state why my day was awesome. Sometimes I think I forget in the midst of all the craziness and stress and constant busy-ness the little things that do make my day awesome. Like yesterday when I showed up to the class my roommate and I are taking together she handed me a nonfat vanilla latte, explaining that she knew I'd had a rough night the day before and that today was going to be difficult so she bought me coffee to hopefully make it easier/better. So, you know, things like that make my day awesome.

If you want to view the video that I mention, you can view it HERE. As for now, I'm going to sleep because I have to getu p at 6:30AM on a Saturday in order to take a test (in order to be a teacher) that's more of an insult to my intelligence than an actual test.

Why Today Was Awesome (WTWA): My friend Chris came over so we could study for this test we're taking tomorrow (him, my roommate Emily, and I are all taking it) but mostly we ended up eating pizza, making fun of the test, and playing Halo: Reach so I could show him how the grunts explode with confetti and children cheer when you kill them with head shots. He was MUCH more appreciative of this than my roommates were. Which, honestly, is the correct way to react to enemies exploding into bursts of confetti when you kill them.

Lost and Found

Lately I've discovered I've been leaving behind a lot of things. And when I say that I mean like I left my rain jacket at my parents' house when I moved back to college a week ago (and when you live in Western Washington, losing your rain jacket in January really isn't a good idea), or yesterday I left my TARDIS emblazoned pencil case that holds all of my school supplies (and normally my zune, but thankfully that was at home) behind in the library. I may also be losing my mind in the process, but that's incredibly likely due to the circumstances outlined in yesterday's "post" (or whatever you want to call the blurb I made yesterday)

This made me think of other things I've left behind. Decisions I've made to let some friendships weaken in some way or another for some reason or another, or other decisions to forgo certain life paths in exchange for something different. It makes wonder where the never found material and immaterial things we leave behind end up. The Island of Misfit Toys? That space behind the washer where I'm sure all of my left socks ended up?

Regardless, I'm just happy the library has a lost and found. And that someone found my Doctor Who pencil case I've had since my sophomore year of high school for me. I think with everything else that is going on, losing that forever would have been a sign I should drop of out school.

Day 5: That is All

Again, barely posting in time but the post is still here. However, I'm somewhat drowning under large amounts of reading (in the forms of weird theory books that refuse to use words that you can actually understand), studying I still need to do, and work responsibilities despite the fact it's only the second day of school! Plus, if I don't take a break every now and then, I will go crazy. Due to this unfortunate reality of mine, I don't really have an extended amount of time to post anything too substantial.

I will say, however, that I do not like the new Starbucks logo. I'm not a graphic designer or anything, but it looks weird.

That is all.

Day 2 Traveling

It might be 11:14 on day two of my 2011 project, but I'm still going to write something because I told myself I would. I mean, I'm already one day behind, I didn't really need to add another this early into the project...

I won't make this too long because I do need to get to bed at some point due to the fact I start classes tomorrow (which I'm really not looking forward to) but I do have a few thoughts.

I've always kind of looked at traveling between my school home and my parents house as a sort of time traveling. I go home, and sometimes I feel like I'm only partially participating, but mostly observing a world I used to know but has gone on in time without me. I feel like I've traveled back in time two years, and I see a world and a time I don't quite belong in anymore. This isn't necessarily a bad thing, and I do realize obviously life goes on without me. However, I feel this time traveling so much more over winter break. I helped at the dance recital that I used to perform in, I went to my old church, and I see the friends I used to hang out with almost daily two years ago.

But now I'm back at school, and back in the present. While back in the past I wasn't entirely sure I wanted to go back to the future, but now that I'm here I think I'll be fine. Although, really, only time will tell how things will go.

But really, despite most of us not having blue boxes that are bigger on the inside, or not happening upon black holes, or possess a car that has been converted into a time machine by a slightly crazy long haired scientist, I feel like most of us travel in time in some way or another. And now, I must really speed up time and go to bed.

Day 1 (2)? Start of Something New

Oh look at that, I let another month go by again. Not that much has happened over break. Plus, I took my computer in to get the fan replaced and it took them about three times longer than they said it would so I had to borrow my mom's computer. I've been making things and playing video games and hanging out with people, but its hard to blog about such things when you're on a borrowed laptop. Not that my mom uses her computer much (or hardly at all) but I did feel a bit bad if I used it too much of the time. And I didn't want to create too many files or make too many new things that I'd have to transfer later.

Still, I meant to write over Winter break, but it never quite felt right. I would come up with things to write in my head, but I couldn't actually get it down. My thoughts have been a little tentative and messy lately, and I don't really know what to do with them. So, in an attempt to become a little more okay with the person I am in my head I've been thinking of doing something to get out of my head. And now I'm getting a little too figurative and weird, but really, this is going somewhere.

Even thought it's currently January 2nd I've been thinking of attempting to post something every day this year, BEDA fashion. Will it actually happen? Probably not, I'm sure I'll miss a few days and I've already technically missed day one. However, I think even if I just post a picture, something I learned that day, or just something I thought of it will work for what I want this to be.

As for today, I'll leave this here but I'll also direct you to my craft blog in which I am just about to post one of my last projects HERE. Feel free to look at that, and hopefully you'll see me again tomorrow :D