Aaron Asked...

We all know what my hair looked like straightened and unstraightened before, but...what the heck does it look like now?

I was just as curious as KnightWing (who needs to post more TJ just btw :P), so when I took a shower for the first time after my haircut, I took a couple of pictures for you XD

First out of the shower...

As it's drying...

The poofy finished product! XD

I foresee much straightening in my future! Lols XD

~Kendra

I'm in Love

Aaah! I did it! I got side bangs! And about two inches off, and more layers. And guess what?

Oh. You read the title?

Well, fine, yes :P I LOVE IT. It's my new favorite hair cut :D

Captions on the bottom.

Before I straightened my "old" hair.

After I straightened my "old" hair.

MY NEW HAIR!

~Kendra

Hair Cut

Okay. So, some of you might remember what happened last time I got my hair cut. Just reading that post makes me shudder. I've only recently gotten to where I like the length of my hair. Yeah, a 10-minute hair cut took me six months to recover from.

And today, I have an appointment. Hair cut.

I used to be terrified of getting my hair cut, then I loved it, then that little disaster in February happened and now I'm terrified again. Even more than usual this time, because--guess what?

I'm going to get side bangs.

I think.

I know it's a little late to be having second thoughts. My appointment is in--LESS THAN TWO HOURS? D: But yeah. Side bangs. I think.

I think I'd look fine with them, and I've always wanted to try it. But at the same time, so much could go wrong. Soooooooooooooo much.

They could be infinitely annoying. Whenever I dance, they might fly in my face. Whenever I get sweaty, my hair gets curly, and is there anything worse-looking than a piece of hair two inches long going out of control around your eyes? NO. They could also just get in my eyes all the freaking time. During school, when I'm writing, when I'm talking to people, just living life in general.

I'd have to keep them straightened. All the time. No exceptions. My hair isn't the kind of hair that will be okay with side bangs unless it's straightened. True, straightening side bands takes all of three seconds, but I'll eventually totally fry that little piece of hair. And it might look weird to have ONLY my side bangs straightened, which means I'll ALWAYS have to straighten ALL of my hair. Which definitely takes a lot more than three seconds.

I could look really bad with them. That's completely possible. It could draw attention to my big nose. (That's something my February Disaster did. With short hair, you just see this face and then the NOSE and then...yeah, it's bad). This is a fear I just thought of. And it's now a big fear. I have a big nose. Don't try to tell me otherwise. Sometimes it's not so bad, but certain things I do to my hair make it a lot worse. What if this is one of those things?

So you see, I'm a bit petrified about my appointment. And I know most of you are in school, but if you're not and you happen to be reading this, please, please leave me your thoughts.

I think I'm going to get them. I've always wanted to try them, and after all, hair grows back. But I'm soo nervous, and if you think I shouldn't, I'll definitely reconsider...

I just need help XD

~Kendra

"The King and I"

I never liked the name Eliza, but now I love it :) It feels like a part of me. I've been Eliza for the past week, and I loved it. All the waiting backstage during the shows was pretty boring, but dancing is always so worth it. And this time there was acting involved, too. I didn't know I could act. I always felt like I could, but I'd never tried. Apparently I'm not too bad at it XD (Although yesterday, the day pretty much all my friends came, I didn't do as well with the acting *sigh* Of course.)

The costumes and makeup were crazy. I can't say that I liked the process, but seeing how different I looked was kind of fun :) Pictures? If you insist :) This was a great experience and I'll never forget it.

Captions on the bottom.

Momma experimenting with how to get my hair in a bun exactly on the top of my head XDDying my hair black :DAll the supplies for my bun XDMaddie, the cutest Siamese princess in the world.Me and my mom (note the black bun :D XD).Me and Danae. She was a fellow Hun in "Mulan"!Danae doing a pose from the ballet ("Small House of Uncle Thomas").Princess Ying YaowlakMore friends :DSIAMESE WIFE MAKEUP!!!! I could hardly recognize myself. It was so strange looking in the mirror.The dress for the song "Western People Funny" when the Siamese wives dress up like European ladies.The dance for "Western People Funny".The opening for "Small House of Uncle Thomas", starring.........Eliza! Played by yours truly :)Oh yes. And my baby. George.
Eliza and the Angel.A part of the ballet.Me before Eliza makeup.Me after Eliza makeup :) (Too bad I'd already taken down my hair in this picture :-/)Eva, Eliza, and Topsy :)Eliza (who looks awful in this picture XD) and her evil master, Simon of Legree! I really wish he'd hold up his mask in this picture, it's SO FREAKY. I'm gonna try to find a picture of it...Me, Lizzy, and Princess Maddie :)Me and Maddie.My hair after I took it down!

~Kendra

Prom Preparation

So, I'm an intelligent person. Not gonna lie. I'm talented in some areas, like writing, dancing, and (supposedly) singing. I'm good with kids, I can get them to listen to me. I'm a good debater (when I'm ready). I read fast, learn quickly, and think on my feet.

But there is something about hair and makeup that spells F-A-I-L to me.

My mom and Lizzy and I left the house early before my dance class and bought me some more makeup. (Apparently eyeshadow from Claire's just doesn't cut it anymore XD) We got good stuff, including a little set of eye makeup. With instructions. WooT XD

I actually DO have good taste in clothes and makeup, I'm just never sure how to do it. I can tell you what I want my face to look like, but getting it there...That's something else.

Usually I don't really plan or practice getting ready that much. I always intend to, but it always ends up that we have to leave in fifteen minutes and I'm putting myself together for the first time. My mom strongly suggested I practice with the makeup, so I did last night.

Yay, for instructions. And yay for labels. And yay for--holy crap, my face looks bad.

To put it nicely, the directions did not speak to me. Kyle is my witness -_-

No wonder people can major in cosmetics. There is some definite skill to be had. Skill I apparently lack. Who would have thought that simple instruction like "Blend" could be so...not simple?

So I started over, ditching the directions entirely, and experimented. I used common sense and not too much creativity XD It looked fine. I was pretty pleased with how it all came out. I practiced it again today and it was even a little better. Hallelujah.

Today I decided to brave the world of hair. It went worse than the makeup XD I have an awesome friend coming over on Saturday who has promised to help me :) Yay for friends.

Yay for moms who buy new makeup even thought it's not cheap.
Yay for makeup experimentations.
Yay for "Blending" fails.
Yay for hair.
Yay for prom.
Yay for Cavender :)

~Kendra

Today. And Tomorrow.

So, hi :) I don't have any more character introductions ready just yet, so today is going to be a plain post. A not-too-long plain post :)

Today I was tired. (Four hours of sleep.)
Today I was nervous. (Ill-prepared debate.)
Today I was freaked out. (Big, black grasshopper dissection.)
Today I was pained. (Headaches suck.)

Today I giggled. (My short hair makes for cute pigtails XD)
Today I wore my coat ALL DAY. (Just a cold-natured person.)
Today I answered useless Facebook questions. (Boredom.)
Today I poked a grasshopper's stomach. (Dissection.)

Today I plan to write. (Ashlyn's story.)
Today I plan to read. ("Intertwined" by Gena Showalter.)
Today I plan to watch Alias. (Sark <3)
Today I plan to go to bed early. (Four hours of sleep.)

Today I didn't make my bed. (Shh!!)
Today I didn't doodle in math. (I'm trying to try, LOL XD)
Today I didn't remember to print two copies of my school assignment. (Fail D:)
Today I didn't straighten my hair. (Too tired. And pigtails.)

Tomorrow I will do my best in school. (Because I should.)
Tomorrow I will go to dance. (Because I love it.)
Tomorrow I will text Cavender. ('Cuz I do.)
Tomorrow I will wash my clothes. ('Cuz I need to. Rly bad.)

~Kendra

Just T-Hair-ibble

I got a haircut yesterday. To explain to you how I feel, I'm going to use a quote from Simon of the "Mortal Instruments" trilogy:

"I don't like flat soda. I don't like crappy boy-band pop. I hate [my hair]. See the difference?"

I've regretted haircuts before, but never like this, never on the almost-eve of my sixteenth birthday. You know how my hair normally looks after I get it cut? I like it. I think it looks good. Well, I hate this. I hate it. Go read that quote again.

What the HECK was I thinking asking the haircut-lady to go shorter? If it ain't broke, don't freaking fix it, Kendra! Why-o-why!! I'm about to be sixteen, and I now look like I'm ten.

Ten.
TEN.

I really do.

Gosh, could this be any more exactly the opposite of what I want? I hate my hair. So much. I'm so upset >.<

It's completely my fault and everything, the lady did exactly what I asked her to. It's all my fault, and I look terrible.

I.

Look.

Ten.

*sob* Awwwwwwwwww >.<

Ellie, please call me next time I'm about to get a haircut and remind me not to go too short. We usually do that for each other, and I don't do it one time, and look at what happened? Goshhhhh.

Yeah, I know, it'll grow. It will. But not before Sunday. Not before I have pictures taken of my on my Sweet 16 looking like I should be in elementary school.

:(

Ugh. I am seriously quite depressed about this.

50 Word Friday: Bad Day

It might be funny.
It might be wise.
A comment about living,
Or someone’s demise.

It might be scary.
Or even something gross.
Maybe something personal
Or something quite morose.

My posts are typically long;
Your eyes soon float away.
So once a week for you,
There’s 50 WORD FRIDAY!
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

You know those days when school work won't die, your dad makes plans for you, you're forced to go out when you'd rather stay in, your hair looks like crap, and you’ve got a headache?

Well, it's been one of those days.

But, hey, at least I was PRODUCTIVE.

*grumbles*

Haircuts and Anti-Fanpires!

Thank you, Christopher Kolmorgan for following!! W00T!

Guess what, you guys? This coming Wednesday is my ONE YEAR ANNIVERSARY OF BLOGGING!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! :O Whoa! How did I not notice that earlier?? What should I do? You tell me! I'd love some ideas of what you'd like to see :)

So, today I got a hair cut :D Y'all know how I looked before...and here's how I looked after!
:D I love having a photographer-computer-savvy sister :) <3 href="http://thoughtsofashieldmaiden.blogspot.com/">Thoughts of a Shieldmaiden. Earwen does not hold a very high opinion of the series (although she hasn't read it yet). I'd like to say a little about what I think.

Some common complaints about the Twilight series are:
1. It portrays vampires as the "good guys".
2. It contains sexuality.
3. It encourages girls to go for the "bad boys".
4. It portrays effeminate guys as being hot.
5. It is completely unchristian.

The "Twilight" series is not an incredibly complex story when one tries to explain it briefly. The entire plot line can be summed up in one sentence: "It's about a girl who falls in love with a vampire."

Whoo hoo.

It's actually much more complex and intriguing when you get into it, though. The main character, Bella, and her vampire "boyfriend", Edward, have to fight the constant battle of their two worlds. Edward and his family are "vegetarians", meaning they do not drink the blood of humans, but animals only. However, the call of Bella's blood to Edward is uncannily strong, making for an interesting relationship.

The first accusation to examined, that vampires are portrayed as "good guys" does have some merit. Yes, the vampires ARE portrayed as the good guys. Some of them are.

Oh, you mean how there are good and bad people?

Yes.

There are good and bad vampires in the story, just as there are good and bad humans. Being a vampire does not immediate classify someone as being "evil" or the "bad guy". What you are doesn't make you good or evil, it's your choices. The "good" vampires make good choices. They make the best with what they have. They were turned into vampires against their wills, and are now struggling to be the best they can be under the circumstances. The "bad" vampires make bad choices. They embrace their blood lust instead of fighting it, and think of humans as nothing but snacks.

I've heard the idea of a "good vampire" compared to a "good homosexual". (This post is not about homosexuality. If you want to see my thoughts on that, go to Carpe Noctem. I am just speaking about this subject from a Christian point of view because that's where most of the complaints are coming from.)

That comparison does not computer at all. Homosexuals CHOOSE to be what they are; vampires are "born" that way. Calling all vampires "evil" is like calling all Americans selfish, all African-Americans rude, or all Asians smart, for that matter!

The second complaint about the Twilight series, that the books are full of sexuality, is not true. There are a few pages in the third book, "Eclipse" that have some suggestive behavior, but Edward quickly puts a stop to it. While Bella has no problem giving herself away, Edward has firm principles governing abstinence and makes it clear to Bella that if they were ever to have a physical relationship, they would have to get married FIRST.

Another commonly-made accusation is that the books encourage girls to go for the "bad boys". Edward is not a "bad boy". In fact, at some points he is so good that I turned away in disgust. (Bella did, too, lol!) As I said before, Edward refuses to sleep with Bella (a good thing, not a bad thing), upholds his principles, tries to be the best he can be under the circumstances, respects parental authorities, and tries to do what's best for Bella.

If there is a bad boy in the series at all, it is Jacob Black (my favorite, of course :D). Jacob helps Bella to deceive her father, aids her in dangerous activity, swears (mildly), is the Innuendo King, and tries to break up Bella and Edward.

I don't know about you, but Jacob definitely seems to err on the side of "bad boy" MUCH more than Edward.

Accusation #4: The Twilight books portray effeminate guys as hot. It doesn't, really. I mean, I guess I can see how Robert Pattinson looks girly, but I think the casting of Twilight was TERRIBLE anyway. Edward is the picture of masculinity if you read the books; it's why I fell in love with him the first time through the books. I mean...wow, honestly, he is not girly. Not at all.

The complaint that Twilight is completely unchristian comes from people who have not read the books. For the record, the Bible says nothing about vampires or werewolves. Twilight mentions God several times and all in a positive light. Edward and his family are Christians. Edward's father's father was a medieval priest. The values of good and evil, right and wrong are clearly mapped out through the book in a most Christian manner. I mean, even abstinence is there, y'all! Like I said, complaints of the books being unchristian clearly come from people who have not read the book, or who are determined not to like it.

And that's my rant for the day :) Maybe I'll publish this to Carpe Noctem later...

Thoughts, questions, opinions, arguments welcome, as always! Oh, and don't forget to vote on the serial poll, and don't forget to give me ideas for my ONE YEAR BLOGGING ANNIVERSARY!!

~Kendra

Who Am I?

Fact or Fiction?

Eating 2 poppy seed bagels can make you test positive for drugs.

Email. Comment. First correct gets an award. No Googling.
--------------------------
So, Followers Say is this Saturday! I'm really excited to see what people have to say. I'm thinking this is gonna be an anual thing, and I hope that it will grow every year.

School...I don't know what's wrong with me. Usually, I go through times when I "hate" school, but I never REALLY do. I feel like I'm kind of resenting school right now. It's getting in the way of all the other stuff I like to do. It seems like the assignments are all really tedious and stupid. I don't know.

I don't like myself very much lately. It's not that I'm usually in love with myself, but I'm usually pretty okay with how I am and getting to be more of who I want to be. Lately, I've not been liking the way my work ethic and thoughts are going, but I don't seem to take the iniciate to change them either. Everything just seems like of discouraging, like I'll never get anywhere I want to be with anything.

My posting style and content are going downhill, too. I used to post lighter, more fun things with interesting facts and real outlooks on things. I used to try to be real and post challenging things. I feel different now, but not good different. Different...darker, more conforming. I hate that. I really hate myself right now.

Don't freak out, I'm not suicidal or anything; I'm not one to go for the permanent solution to a temporary problem. I just don't know what to do to get myself back on track to...whatever it is I want.

I feel kind of lost, I guess. Remember my advice a few weeks ago? "Be sure you know who you are. If you don't, how can you expect others to?" Well, I really need to do that now. I feel like I'm being fake with everyone, but it's not really my fault because I'm not sure who I am anyway. I used to be really sure of who I was. I was KENDRA: smart, persistent, persuasive, and certainly destined to be a great writer and lawyer someday.

NOW what am I? I have no idea, and it bothers me.

Sorry. I don't mean to rant at you guys. You didn't sign up for this.

I guess I'm just feeling down-in-the-dumps. *shrug*

I have my headshot for the play today. I hate pictures like this. I don't mind regular pictures when you're just doing life and people are like "SMILE!" *flash* I hate pictures that you prepare for. I always end up having a bad hair day, or one of those times when my eyeliner won't do right. This picture is for the play, so all the people that I really care about what they think are gonna see it all over. If I look stupid, I'll look stupid for a long time.

-_-

I'm just going to stop now. I don't know who I am, so how can I expect you to?

What Kind of Guy?

Hey, welcome to Carpe Diem, JT Norlander! Thanks for following! If anyone didn't see my "announcment" about the Caption Contest at his blog, here's the link.
----------------------------
Question Day!

Okay, so, I thought about this one like all night last night, trying to think of a good answer. Justagirl4god asks:

"What type of guy do you find attractive?"

Prepare yourself for one of my infamous LOOOOONG-Probably-Could-Have-Been-Short answers XD

First, let me decide how I want to come at this. What TYPE of guy do I find attractive? That would imply a specific sort of stereotype that I naturally gravitate to. I'll answer the question that way first.

What TYPE of guy do I find attractive? I'm honestly not original or complex at first. If we're going on a shallow, superficial level, I will go ahead and admit that Jocks/Preps are the ones that catch my eye. There. I said it. I am guilty of following society's lead, too.

I have had crushes on people of ALLLLLL types though. Not kidding. Jock, prep, nerd, loner, tall, short, white, black, older than me, younger than me. Once I get to know people, my preferences are all over the place. But, if we're going at first glance or first impression, I guess Jock/Prep is unfortunately it.

Now, to answer the question differently. What type of guy PERSONALITY do I find attractive?

Now we get real. Top five personality qualities I find "attractive" (more or less in order):
1. Christian
2. Intelligent
3. Funny
4. Adventurous
5. Protective (I've been over this before. Not Edward Cullen, but looks out for me.)

One more way: What type of guy LOOKS do I find attractive?

I'd really rather not go into this, but, to answer the question all the way, it must be done ;)

Again, I am pretty diverse in my preferences. I will find the generic hottie attractive, but I think people are good-looking that my friends are all like, "KENDRA. Seriously??"

I've never really gone for the blonde surfer dude. I think they're cute and all, but sort of stereotypical. (Gosh, if anyone reading this is a blonde surfer dude, PLEASE don't be offended!!) BROWN-HAIRED surfer dudes on the other hand...XD Haha, just kidding. Er, okay, not really.

Black hair is cool. So extreme. But I'm really not...I don't know, picky. I'm not. ESPECIALLY about hair.

Eyes are VERY important to me. It doesn't matter what color they are, I just like eyes. I like different eyes for different reasons, and some I think are cooler than others. It usually has nothing to do with the color, though.

Height. Hmm. Well, considering I'm 5'8", tall guys have always been more on my radar, lol!

Celebrity crushes I've had based on appearance (in order of occurance):
Orlando Bloom (...how can you NOT think he's cute??)
Rollo Weeks (something about him...)
William Mosley (I love Peter.)
Hayden Christensen (Anakin <3)
Jesse McCartney (eyes of WOW)
Zac Efron (everything of WOW)
Joe Jonas (reminds me of Him.)
Kellan Lutz (I love Emmett.)

Currently, I think all of them except Joe Jonas are very cute. Joe I think is just average now. Eh.

*blink* Wow. The appearance section was the longest. Am I that shallow??

Long answer short: I am so hopelessly diverse in looks and type preference that it HONESTLY comes down to the personality. I am not trying to seem virtuous, it's just really the way it is for me.

Thanks for asking, justagirl4god!!
------------------------------
Today, Lizzy is thirteen (13!!) years old.

Dang. Wow. Awesome. Wow.

School is...absolutely great/fine, which probably means I forgot something HUGE.

Oh. Yeah.

Read "Pilgram's Progress" and write my own allegory. That might qualify as HUGE. *GROAN*

I will finish it tomorrow.

Speaking of procrastination, here are some awesome quotes for that:

"Procrastinators: Leaders of Tomorrow"
"OCD Procrastinators: Do it right, but do it tomorrow."
"If you wait until the last minute, then it only takes a minute."

I love those.

Okay. Sorry. Back to real stuff.

Uhm...the usual:

1. Writing:
- Mirror = nothing
- Desirae Mayes = nothing
- Gembira/Chinese story = something
- The W Chronicles = thoughts, no writing

2. Announcments:
- Vote on the poll
- Ask me questions for next week
- Follower's Say is in a week and a day if you want to participate

Thanks! Bye!

Yay!

Well, my haircut appointment was today. Five inches off and I got layers. Guess what?

I LOVE IT!

I couldn't have asked for anything better! It's perfect. I'm so glad! Now I'll have it done for driver's ed tomorrow. I'm definitely nervous...It isn't even the driving part! Well, only a little over fourteen hours of being fourteen. How perfect is that? I probably won't be able to post tomorrow until evening, or maybe not at all. Driver's ed is from 8 to 2, and then we're going to be doing family stuff for my birthday :) So, I guess I'll probably post Sunday. I'll try to put a picture of my hair up...but uploading is a problem :P lol!

Anyway, I'll let you know how driver's ed and my birthday go later!

Two Cancelations

Never mind. :( The hair cut lady cancled on me. She hurt her back. Darn it. Now I have to wait until Monday...

Oh, and guess what also got cancled? (This is good news to me.) DRIVER'S ED!! It got moved back a week! So I have one more Saturday of freedom! Oh, wait...DANG IT!!!!!!!! But that means my birthday party will have to be moved AGAIN! And even FARTHER away from my birthday!!!!! Gosh. Make up your minds, people.

HAIR CUT APPOINTMENT!!

Omg!! I'm getting my hair cut today, and I totally forgot about the appoinment until my mom told me a few minutes ago. Yikes!! I'm planning to get five inches off, get side bangs, and posisbly layers...Getting my hair cut is always a big thing for me, lol! I get so attached to my hair (uh, no pun intended...)! Right now, it's like six inches past my shoulders. If I cut it five, it'll be pretty much at my shoulders. And that's without the layers. What if it's super short after the layers?? What if I hate it? Yikes!!!!!!

Well, wish me luck...I'll let you know how it turns out. Maybe I can even post before and after pictures, lol! If I can figure out how to do that....

:)