Quotes and Pictures

How does England teach about the Revolutionary War? I've always been curious. Anyone know?

Quotes By People You May Have Heard Of:
271. "We confess our little faults to persuade people that we have no large ones."
- Francois de La Rochefoucauld
272. "Every generation imagines itself to be more intelligent than the one that went before it, and wiser than the one that comes after it."
- George Orwell
273. “If you have not done things worthy of being written about, at least write things worthy of being read.” –Giacomo Cassanova
274. “Suspicion always haunts the guilty mind.” Shakespeare
275. "The best liar is he who makes the smallest amount of lying go the longest way."
- Samuel Butler
276. "Anyone who can handle a needle convincingly can make us see a thread which is not there."
- E. H. Gombrich
277. "Charm is a way of getting the answer yes without asking a clear question."
- Albert Camus
278. "Never interrupt your enemy when he is making a mistake."
- Napoleon Bonaparte
279. “I made this letter longer than usual because I lack the time to make it short.” - Blaise Pascal
280. “If you think education is expensive, try Ignorance.”
- Andy McIntyre

Quotes By People You Probably Haven't Heard of:
281. “Food is just there to give your sauce a little texture.” – Mr. Leon
282. “Mineral makeup? Isn’t that like putting dirt on your face?” – my daddy
283. “He’s so old he remembers when Dr. Pepper was in medical school.” – also my daddy
284. (in regard to how long an essay has to be) “Follow the skirt rule: long enough to cover the subject but short enough to make it interesting.” – my mom :)
285. If you run when it gets slick, you’ll only fall through the ice. – Me
286. (talking about chemistry and the boiling point of substances) “Boiling water’s like being pregnant. You can’t be sort of pregnant, and water can’t only be sort of boiling.” – my mom again XD
287. “I did what my mom would call ‘spill water everywhere’, but I actually just got a little on the floor.” – Sam
288. (my youth leader’s 8-year-old daughter had just told her she probably wouldn’t win the lottery) “Probably not. In fact, I’m 600% more likely to be struck by lightning.” – my youth leader
289. “My quizzes are like tests. My tests are like exams. My exams are like Hell.” – a teacher at this private school near me
290. Let’s play Oscar the Grouch. You win. – Me XD

Pictures That Fascinate Me:

291.She's story material, is she not?

292. Eyes fascinate me.

293. I have no idea why this is so intriguing to me.

294. Meet Lila from my book "The Mirror."

295. I'm still not 100% sure what this is...

296. It's like another planet...

297. He's kinda cool. Not THAT cool, but I was running out of pictures XD

298. Very cool.

299. This is what your insides look like when you're excited and nervous.

300. Possibly one of my favorite pictures of all time. There is a story in this picture, I'm sure of it.

~Kendra

Food for Thought

"If you can learn a simple trick, Scout, you'll get along a lot better with all kinds of folks. You never really understand a person until you consider things from his point of view--until you climb into his skin and walk around in it." ~ Atticus Finch, "To Kill A Mocking Bird"

People talk about being judgmental a lot, but I'm starting to think it's one of those lessons you have to figure out for yourself. I can talk until I'm blue in the face about not judging, but you have to learn it for yourself.

Things that you swore never to do, say, think, feel, wear, or forget, you will. Don't be so quick to judge people for what they do. You don't know the half of it. You don't know what's going on with them. You don't know how they feel. Someday when you do, you might feel pretty silly for stereotyping them or writing them off.

Of course, there are boundaries to this. There are some things that are never okay, no matter what the situation. However, it may turn out that things you thought were black and white actually aren't.

Think about it.

~Kendra

P.S. Check out Levi's blog, With the Setting Sun. His writing style is cool, and he's got great thoughts.

Perfection vs. Perseverance

I have a confession to make:

I am a perfectionist.

What? You already knew that? It's painfully obvious? Oh. Okay. That's cool, too XD

Being a perfectionist has its pros and cons. Unfortunately, it has mostly cons. As humans, we're always going to fall short of perfection, and beating ourselves up about it isn't a good way to live.

Sure, when you're a perfectionist you are always (well, mostly XD) striving to be perfect and do your best. That's a good, right? Doing your best? Absolutely! God calls us to do our best. He wants us to use our minds and bodies and talents to the best of our ability to serve Him. If we don't use our gifts, we're like the servant in the parable who buries the money he's entrusted with. That's really poor stewardship of what God has given us. So, doing your best is good.

But then there comes a point where it's just too extreme. And that's where I am most of the time. Lots of times, I get to the point where my line of thinking is "If I can't be perfect, I won't do it at all."

You can imagine how many things I've passed up, decided not to go for, chickened out of, and otherwise refused to try, all because I was afraid of failing. That's when perfectionism goes too far: when it stops us from trying things altogether, simply because we might not excel right at first.

Like all opposites, "perfection" and "failure" go hand in hand. You can't really know one until you've experienced the other.

Making mistakes is going to happen. Failure is going to happen. Failure twice at same thing will probably happen. The real honor is not in never failing, but in trying until you do get it right. That's not perfectionism, that's perseverance, and that's really twice as good!

Next time you're hesitating to try something, remind yourself that it's okay to fail. Perfectionism is for the temporarily lucky, perseverance is for the strong at heart.

“The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena; whose face is marred by sweat and blood; who strives valiantly; who errs and comes short again and again because there is no effort without error and shortcoming; who knows the great enthusiasms, the great devotion, spends himself in a worthy cause; who at best knows in the end the triumph of high achievement; and who at worst, if he fails, at least fails while daring greatly, so that his place shall never be with those cold and timid souls who have never tasted victory or defeat.” ~ Theodore Roosevelt

Random Good Day and a Quote

Today was good :D

Hah, sorry, I'm getting repetitive. But these past three days have been really good :D I luv mah life right now. I'm quite happyyyyyyyy. I'm ridiculously happy.

*clears throat*

So, first, the Latin test results:

I GOT A 92!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I really think it's 'cause of all the praying. No lie. Because I got ridiculously lucky. I only studied ONE SENTENCE out of the suggested HUNDREDS. It was the one on the test O.o WooT XD

We dissected a frawg. His insides were colorful O.o We thought ours was really buff at first. He had a six pack. But then we got in there and took out, like, a TON of fat bodies (kewl, yellow fingery things XD). He was, like, sumo-frawg.

*is irritated at her use of "like" and the suffix "-y"*

I feel like a bubble-head right now.

*deletes the shallow sentences she had going*

Okay, if I can't say anything of substance, lemme leave you with a quote at least:

"Never interrupt your enemy when he is making a mistake."
- Napoleon Bonaparte

I really love this quote XD

~Kendra

P.S. I might be getting sick...>.< But I'm still really happy :D

Sweet 16 Days Until...

So, first, of course: yay, Rachel B! Thanks for being a follower! And thank you also for correct apostrophe usage (her blog is called "Books' Hidden Corner")! I hate it when people mess that up ;)

I also lost a follower. *sigh* Let's all have a moment of silence in remembrance of the time I ALMOST had 77 followers (haha, Pirates of the Caribbean). *moment of silence*

So, anyway :) Guess what I'm about to do?? Mrs. Martha (Matt and Katie's mom, my second mom) is coming to pick me and Lizzy up any second now and we're going to Matt's band concert thing. He plays the saxophone. Cavender should also be there, I think. So this should be fun :D

EDIT: It was. Matt did well, Cavender did awesome!! I never heard you play before, Cavender. Great job!

After the concert we went to McDonald's and then on the way home Matt fell asleep. *Aww* *clears throat* Sorry. I just love him and Katie like their my real little brother and sister. Something about seeing them or Lizzy sleeping just makes my heart all warm and fuzzy :) <3

1. "Isn't it funny that at Christmas something in you gets so lonely for...I don't know what exactly, but it's something that you don't mind so much not having at other times." - Kate L. Bosher.

2. "There's nothing as mean as giving a little child something useful for Christmas." - Kin Hubbard

3. "There has been only one Christmas - the rest are anniversaries." - W.J. Cameron

4."Christmas, children, is not a date. It is a state of mind." ~Mary Ellen Chase

5. "He who has not Christmas in his heart will never find it under a tree." - Roy L. Smith

6. "Oh for the good old days when people would stop Christmas shopping when they ran out of money." - Author Unknown

7. "The only blind person at Christmastime is he who has not Christmas in his heart." - Helen Keller

8. "Probably the reason we all go so haywire at Christmas time with the endless unrestrained and often silly buying of gifts is that we don't quite know how to put our love into words." - Harlan Miller

9. "I stopped believing in Santa Claus when I was six. Mother took me to see him in a department store and he asked for my autograph." - Shirley Temple

10. "What do you call people who are afraid of Santa Claus? Claustrophobic." - Unknown 11. "Let's be naughty and save Santa the trip." - Gary Allen

12. "There is no ideal Christmas; only the one Christmas you decide to make as a reflection of your values, desires, affections, traditions." - Bill McKibben

13. "Blessed is the season which engages the whole world in a conspiracy of love." - Hamilton Wright Mabi

14. "I never believed in Santa Claus because I knew no white man would be coming into my neighborhood after dark." - Dick Gregory

15. "Some businessmen are saying this could be the greatest Christmas ever. I always thought that the first one was." - Art Fettig

16. "What is Christmas? It is tenderness for the past, courage for the present, hope for the future. It is a fervent wish that every cup may overflow with blessings rich and eternal, and that every path may lead to peace." - Agnes M. Pharo

:)

Aw, this whole evening with Matt and Katie and Lizzy has me all sentimental :')

MERRY SIXTEEN-DAYS-UNTIL CHRISTMAS!

"Mirror" Excerpt

FIRST (even before some follower business): Thanks, Bethany, for sparking my imagination yesterday! Your quote ("I don't know if I'd give up my life for you, but I do know my life would be worth living without you.") helped defeat writer's block and inspired an interesting scene of my book! I never would have come up with the quote on my own. I hope the scene does the quote justice :) THANKYOUTHANKYOUTHANKYOU!

Second: W00T to Amanda and Sam for following! Thanks, y'all!

And now, the Bethany-Quote-Inspired scene...

"I don't know if I'd give up my life for you, but I do know my life wouldn't be worth living without you."

I stared at Luken with large, solemn eyes and tried not to feel the same way. He kept his distance, didn’t come closer at all. The four foot gap between us might as well have been a football field. His green eyes held my blue ones. He was gorgeous, he was clever, he was magical, he was an elf! His dry sense of humor rarely failed to put a smile on my face.

“What are you trying to say?” I asked. I tried to make my voice harsh and commanding, but it came out gentle.

Luken didn’t answer, just stared at me. I knew his feelings for me were strong, but if he wanted them reciprocated, he was going to have to swallow his pride and admit he loved a human.

“I…” he began, but seemed to choke on his own words. “I told you,” he finished impatiently. “It’s your turn to speak.”

Great; time for a heart to heart, one of the many things I’d come to hate over the past few months.

“I don’t know,” I whispered. I could barely hear the syllables, but I knew Luken’s elf ears would. The truth of the words must have resonated with his Elfsense, because he looked away without speaking.

“It’s Darren, is it not.” It was a statement, not a question.

I frowned. Was it? I couldn’t be sure. It might have been. Or maybe it was just that I didn’t feel safe with Luken? He was so difficult to understand, so difficult to know. Every time I thought I had him figured out, he would do something completely out of character and throw off my whole analysis. I’d only known Luken for a few months, too. Love didn’t happen in a few months, did it?

I was sure I loved Darren. 100% sure. But how did I love him? Friendly love? Brother-sister love? Romantic love?

“You overanalyze almost as bad as an elf,” Luken said dryly, still looking off into the distance. He suddenly brought his eyes to mine. “It was the second thing I liked about you.”

I swallowed hard. I knew what he wanted me to ask, and I wanted the answer so badly that I couldn’t cheat him of the satisfaction: “What was the first thing?”

An almost mischievous gleam crept into Luken’s eyes. That didn’t help the situation at all, it was Darren’s gleam, not Luken’s. “Your eyes.”

Well, that’s not cliché at all, I thought sourly. But at the same time, I felt a blush rush to my cheeks and my heart palpitate. “That’s funny,” I murmured, dropping the feature in question. “That’s the first thing I noticed about you. Your eyes were so big and green, I almost seemed to fall into them. They weren’t blue like all the other Dormians’, either. And they reminded me of Darr—"

I glanced up in time to see Luken’s green eyes storm.

Oops.

“You don’t have to be so jealous,” I hissed, suddenly angry. “One thing’s for sure: I could never love a boy who allows me only to think of him all day long!”

“I’m hardly a boy anymore,” Luken sniffed.

Well, if we’re going to be petty, let’s be petty. “Childish is as childish does,” I shot back. Luken smirked.

“I do hope you realize the irony of that statement.”

I blushed in irritation and embarrassment. “I do,” I said stiffly.

All at once the matter at hand seemed to come back to us and all the haughty humor left our faces. I looked back at the camp. The dying fire glowed orange against the black horizon. I could make out Darren’s sleeping profile in front of it. The warm feeling I got when I looked at him…that couldn’t just be cast aside for another, could it?

I turned back to Luken. He was staring off into the distance, a detached look on his face. The feeling I got when I looked at him…it was different, but that didn’t mean it wasn’t love. I felt tingly, excited, self-conscious, admiring. I wanted him to think well of me. I worshiped his mind, his sense of humor, his face.

“How much longer until we reach the Elven Realm?” I asked tiredly. “Days? Weeks? Not months, is it?”

Luken didn’t react beyond answering, “Weeks, for certain. Five, perhaps six.”

I gave a huff and scowled. Six weeks to think about this. Six weeks with nothing to do but walk between Darren and Luken all day and sleep across from them at night.

This world could definitely use some motor vehicles. Drop a couple of four-wheelers in here…we could cut days off our trip. I smiled a little and turned to go back to the camp.

“I’m going back to bed. Good night.”

“I love you.”

I felt like I’d run headlong into a brick wall. The words stopped my heart. Really. I didn’t feel it beating anymore. The words had come so unexpectedly. So…so something else, too.

“You…no you don’t,” I said uncertainly. He must be kidding. Did he really say that?? “Since when? Why? Why didn’t you say something earlier when we were actually talking about this? I...it…you…” I put my hand to my face. Stop babbling.

“I shouldn’t love you,” Luken said, looking back at me. His green eyes were as wide, open and desperate as I’d even seen them. Now he did cross the space between us until he was so close I had to tilt my head up to look at his face. “It doesn’t make any sense. It’s against all Elven tradition. You humans are so much weaker than we are, so much less intellectual.” Fury leapt into my eyes, but he went on. “But you’re different, Paige. You aren’t weak in mind. You’re strong, you’re intellectual, you’re clever. You’re beautiful.”

I was beautiful? To an Elf? To Luken, the height of masculine beauty? Surely he’d seen countless Elven ladies in his time. I couldn’t be as beautiful as them, could I? No, I couldn’t. Was he lying? Why would he? Luken wouldn’t lie about something so silly as this. He’d have no reason to. Luken always had reasons.

I started to back away, but Luken rested his hand on my shoulder, stopping me. A chill started at the base of my neck and tingled down to my toes. His eyes seemed larger than ever as they searched mine. His skin was pale, with that odd suggestion of green. His straight, angelic hair fell over his shoulders, framing his solid, masculine jaw. He was beautiful, how I’d always pictured as an angel. My eyes found his again and locked there. The greenness was almost overwhelming, blotting out all thought. The bright color reminded me appropriately of peacock feathers.

He looked so alive, and with his hand on my shoulder, I could feel that life pulsing into me as well.

I could feel it coming before it happened. He leaned toward me and I leaned toward him involuntarily, as if we were magnetized. The motion was slow, but steady. I knew what I was doing, and yet at the same time I wasn’t thinking at all. My mind had shut off and there was only feeling.

His mouth and mine connected gently. His lips moved over mine, mine trailed over his. I felt both serene and alive at once. I could almost feel his life flooding into me. His heartbeat was mine; we breathed as one.

The kiss escalated. I felt his hand behind my head, I put mine on his shoulder. It grew more intense. I couldn’t tell where my mouth was anymore. I’d lost myself in him. If my mind had been engaged I would have been afraid for sure. Time stopped and raced forward. We’d been together forever, we’d met only a second before.

I don’t know when it ended. I’d lost all conception of time.

When we pulled away, it took my mind a few seconds to awaken. When it did, I realized my senses were on overload. My mouth tingled, my eyes were wide, my were cheeks on fire, the back of my head seemed to throb where his hand had rested.

I stood there, staring and breathing audibly.We stood paralyzed for minutes until the fire died and left us alone in a pitch black world.

And that's what I wrote yesterday. Not amazing by ANY stretch of the imagination, but at least I wrote something. I don't know where it goes either. Somtimes I just get these scenes in my head and I have to write them down. I'm not 100% how to get here, and I don't know what happens next, but I wrote this.

Thoughts? Questions? Comments? I hope the end of the scene doesn't imply anything that we ALL know I'm NOT implying...what do you think?

Anything is appreciated, but critisism the most. I'll be flattered if you thought the scene was good, but what I MOST want to hear is how to make it BETTER.

Thanks, y'all :)


P.S. I also got invited to a Sweet 16 party for a girl who was in the play with me!! :O How nice is that? I'm so excited!

Advice Day!

Advice Day:

"Is all fair in love and war? Remember, you can't have a double standard." ~Kendra Logan :D
-------------------------
Well, school work dragged on today, but totally due to procrastination. I could have been done at 2instead of 4, but, hey, this is ME we're talking about.

No soccer practice tonight. We're going to have it Thursday night at the same time as another team so we can scrimmage. I have play practice tonight, though: 7-9:30. We're getting our schedules. It turns out I don't have to come to every practice. Yay! I'll know which ones I do need to come to when I get the schedule.

I'm going to try to get in some good writing today. Or, I was. Lizzy just called downstairs and told me that supper is in five minutes -.- Then play practice, then print out junk for school tomorrow, then bed. :( Will I ever get back to writing anything?? I hope so.

Friday will come sooner than we all think, and I still don't have a question to answer for Question Day...*hint hint* :)

Well, I just got the dinner call. I'll talk to you all later! Maybe tonight if something REALLY exciting happens at play practice!

Audition??

NAME DAY!! I'm actually going to do three names: Chandar, Vega, and Levant. Their meanings? Sun, falling star, and moon. Isn't that great? Sun, moon and star! If I decide to use the name Vega for my assassin girl, her brothers will be Chandar and Levant.

I remembered the big thing I wanted tot tell y'all! Remember when I said I was thinking about becoming an actress? And how I might want to do some plays at the community theater coming up? Well, I got a little card in the mail about the play Mulan! The auditions are on the 28th, and I think I'm going to go. I have to sing sixteen bars of a song, and then a short dance combo is going to be taught. My mom says I can sing, and I've been doing dance all my life, so I guess I'm going. I don't think I'm an *amazing* singer, my range isn't very good, but I can sure carry a tune.

I'm super excited. What should I sing? Yikes! Mulan!

I also have poison ivy :'( All over my left ankle. And now my face is itching and there is a bump under my nose. I'M ITCHING EVERYWHERE! AHHH!! *moan* I've had poison ivy before, all over my face. It is NOT FUN, let me tell you. My dad is pretty allergic, and sometimes when he gets poison ivy in one place, he'll break out in all the places he's ever had it. What if that happens to me? What if I get it all over again? WHAT IF IT'S STILL THERE FOR THE AUDITIONS??

Sorry. I freak out about this stuff. (In case you A: haven't figured that out yet or B: don't know me personally.)

So, I found out when soccer practice starts. This Saturday at 10am. *MOAN* I am so out of shape it isn't even FUNNY. I'm going to die. DIE, I TELL YOU. HOW CAN I GET IN SHAPE IN TWO DAYS??

Sorry, sorry. I'm in the freaking out mood today apparently.

Under my nose is REALLY itching...

Harrpy Potter is getting a little better. I don't hate him anymore, and I really, really love Draco Malfoy, just like I thought I would. Evil little cuss >:D

The W Chronicles is going alright, too. I wrote a little of the first series, Woods.

Kieran and Vega tied for the names for my assassin girl (series Wars). I'm setting up another polls just between those two names. Sorry if it seems like this is going on and on.

Picture Day won for the favorite with 6 votes, followed closely by Name Day (yay!) with 5. Quote Day came in next with 3 votes, then God Day at 2 and Challenge Day with 1. Looks like Word Day and Carpe Noctem Day are OUT! Fine by me! But, I do need two days to replace them. I have some ideas, but I'd really like to hear yours. Leave a comment if you would, or email me at livinglovinglaughinglearning@gmail.com as usual. There may be an award for best idea...

So, if you would, vote once more on the poll for the assassin girl's name. Vega (VAY-ga) or Kieran (kee-ERH-in)? And if you have any ideas for what to do in place of Word Day and Carpe Noctem Day, let me know!

Muchas gracias!
a href="http://www.mylivesignature.com" target="_blank">

P.S. I also wouldn't mind an occasional prayer about the audition? And the poison ivy...Lol :)

Change

I'm sorry I haven't posted in a few days! It's just been kind of busy, and I haven't felt like posting.

Today was fun! Daniel (14), Emily (12), and Caleb (10) came over to swim in the lake. Unfortuantely, it rained a lot, so at first we were trapped inside playing Monopoly (that lasted about ten minutes), and Break the Safe (we actually made it through the whole game). After lunch, we went down to the lake, and had LOTS of fun. We flipped the giant tube over, and played king of the hill a little. I barely played. I figure my chances of winning were slim and none since I can't even knock Matt ("little brother", age almost-13) off anymore. I did knock Caleb off once, though. Watching big-brother-little-brother interaction is always kind of hard for me, but I like it still. It just reminds me of how things used to be, and how things have changed.

It was just a lot of fun. I love hanging out with them.

Other than that, I've been keeping my room pretty clean (I know, I know, I marked THAT day on the calender), packing my new pink and charcoal backpack with school stuff, and reading "Beowulf", which I should have started earlier. Like, maybe seventh grade. It's amazing how much the English language has changed over the years.

The old English isn't too bad to read, not after Shakespeare last year, but the names are awful! I can't pronounce but three of them, and almost all of them begin with H! Haelfdene, Halga, Hrothgar, Heorogar, Heoro, the list go on and freakin' on! It's crazy! *moan* But I'm gettin' through it. Somehow.

"The W Chronicles" character sketches and outlines are going pretty well. I'm starting to really like Tyler (she's a girl, just so you know). She's kind of a cool character. I'm also trying not to start crushing on my own guy characters. *sigh* That tends to happen kind of a lot. Not really with Darren, surprisingly. He's more of a brother-feeling character to me. Paige is more of a daughter almost. The character (of my own) that I had the biggest crush on was this guy named Jayden. Man, he was awesome. I mean, the writing isn't anything amazing, I just really love his character. That hasn't changed over the years. I still fall for the same kind of character.

I'm listening to "Had a Bad Day", chipmunk version. Love it.

I'm also reading the first Harry Potter (have I said that before?). Honestly, so far, I don't even like it. I'm on chapter, like, three, but I just can't get into it. It's too cartoony and I can't stand Harry. Maybe it'll get better as I read on. It's weird, though, because this used to be the kind of thing I'd just eat up. Guess I've changed...

Now I'm watching Michael Jackson's Thriller video. The special effects are so good considering how old this thing is. Haha, I love the part where I flashes over to the theater, and everyone is cringing except Michael, who's eating popcorn and grinning. Lols :) And I love the part where he asks, "You were scared, weren't you?" and his girlfriends is like, "I wasn't that scared." And she walks off. And Michael kind of giggles and is like, "*hehe* You were scared..." Just watch it: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AtyJbIOZjS8&feature=related Too bad he changed and got all weird.

Omg, this made me cry this time. I don't even know why. Something seems different or something. The song "The Call" from the movie Prince Caspian? Do you know it? I don't know why, but this time, it felt really...I don't know. It just made me cry. And I don't usually cry anymore, so that was weird. Here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9CvaTrg8Frg

Anyway, um...I had so much to say, but now I can't remember any of it! Oh well.

OHHHHHHH, DUH! Today is Quote Day! And I need to do Picture Day and Word Day, too.

Quote Day: "But just because they can't feel it too, doesn't mean that you have to forget." a line in "The Call."

Picture Day:

What is this a picture of? My opinion? Change. Yours? Comment or email me.

Word Day: Change. Is it good or bad? Sometimes one, sometimes the other. The Call: "Just because everything's changing, doesn't mean it's never been this way before."

Lots to think about, guys. Listen to The Call. It's such an amazing song. The lyrics are in the description if you click "more info". I recommend it.

P.S. It looks like the names Kieran and Vega are winning for the name of my assassin girl, and Word Day and Carpe Noctem Day are going to be kicked out! Disagree? GO VOTE!

The W Chronicles

First: Thanks, Crescentise, for following!! You're a really cool person and I'm honored that you're decided to follow! YAAAAAAY!!

Today I had a giant burst of writing inspiration. Sort of. And it wasn't about "Mirror".

I've had this great idea for a while now, and today I've been fleshing it out more and more. It's really awesome. Well, at least while I'm sitting here all excited it *feels* awesome...And I'm going to tell you about it, too, if you SWEAR not to steal any of it? Promise? Okay, yay, thanks :) ;) :P

It's an idea for a giant series, a series within a series.

The whole thing is called "The W Chronicles", and within that are six mini series, each with four books in it. And all the titles have alliteration (Ex. Benny the Brown Bear Bought a Bike.) They also all corespond to a season. Each mini series has four books, one book for each season, so each series takes exactly a year. And the titles sort of match the seasons.

Each mini series focuses on a main character, and then in the last series of all, Worlds, all the characters from all the different worlds somehow meet together and have to do something that saves all the worlds. Make sense? It's still really sketchy. Some of the books don't even have names yet.

The whole thing is VERY systematic. Each series will all have colors, or directions, or slowly go from broad to narrow. It's hard to explain.

Okay, I'm just going to post it all and see if it makes better sense. But NO STEALING, COPYING, MIMICKING, BEING INSPIRED BY, OR GETTING AN IDEA LIKE THIS. It's not really amazing or anything, I just really want it not to be used before I get the chance to use it myself, you know?

Okay. Here:

The W Chronicles:

Woods:
1. The Forgotten Forest (Summertime)
2. The Golden Glade (Fall)
3. The White Wood (Wintertime)
4. The Teal Tree (Springtime)

Waters:
1. The Crimson Creek (Summertime)
2. The Brown Brook (Fall)
3. The Silver Stream (Wintertime)
4. The Rainbow River (Springtime)

Walls:
1. The Forbidden Fortress (Springtime)
2. The Traitor's Tower (Summertime)
3. The Rusty Room (Fall)
4. Death's Door (Wintertime)

Ways:
1. The Northerner's Name (Wintertime)
2. The Eastern Entrance (Springtime)
3. The Soutern Shadow(s) (Summertime)
4. The Western Waters (Fall)

Wars:
1. The Beginning Battle
2.
3.
4.

Worlds:
1.
2.
3.
4.

So???? What do you think? Do you like it? Will it work? Yes? No? Maybe so? Leave a comment or drop me an email (livinglovinglaughinglearning@gmail.com) if you have an oppinion or any ideas about what the unnamed books should be called.

I'm also thinking of switching out some of the specialty posts for other things. Be thinking about which specialty days you especially like and don't like and I'll put a post up soon to decide which ones stay and which ones go.

Quote Day: “It’s a job that’s never started that takes the longest to finish.” J.R.R. Tolkien

Better get started on The W Chronicles!

Carpe diem!

Butter Beans and Stuff

“Books have knowledge, knowledge is power, power corrupts, corruption is a crime, and crime doesn't pay..so if you keep reading, you'll go broke.”

Haha, a perfect example of the logical fallacy "the snowball". And it's the Quote of the Day, today being Wednesday.

STEVEN IS AWESOME!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! OMG 39 FOLLOWERS?????? THAT IS UNREAL! YAYAYAYAYAYAYAYAY!

*clears throat* Okay. Sorry. I'm done.

Today we went mission trip shopping at Goodwill. I went into the Men's section, grabbed the first three pairs of basketball shorts that looked like they might fit, tried them on, they fit, and was done in like six minutes, no lie. Lizzy spends an extra ten minutes and comes out looking like Miss. Gorgeous-And-Put-Together even though she's wearing men's clothing. *sigh* It's not fair.

We saw "Night at the Musuem 2" today, too. It was good. I liked the first one better personally, but everyone else in my family (as well as Matt) liked this second one more.

Lizzy and I went with a bunch of people from church to pick butter beans (lima beans) tonight. It was so fun! I think I would really like living on a farm, for a little while at least.

Besides that, not a whole lot is happening. I'm thinking of making a little sidebar gadget thing with links to posts about my Family, Friends, and School for people to click on if they want to. It must be kind of confusing for you guys when I talk names and stuff. First, though, I'll have to make the posts...

Okay, here's an idea. I'll make them, post them before this one, and then post this last so it still shows up at the top.

Why am I talking (typing?) to myself like this? Oh well. Bye. Carpe diem. Summer is coming to an end, people!!

"Stargirl" and Vacation Heads Up

Well, the temporary Jace obsession is fading fast, so there's good news for you ;) He's still awesome and everything, and the books are very good, but you don't have to worry about any more Jace pictures or quotes, I don't think.

Although, since this IS Quote Day, I'll probably post one of his quotes anyway, but that will be the end most likely.

I woke up at ten o'clock today. Ah, there's nothing like sleeping late, then looking out the window and seeing it's sunny, warm, and breezy outside. I ate two Pop-Tarts, finished reading a book called "Stargirl", and then got on here to resume my life as a computer nerd. We might be going to the lake later today, though, so I'll get out then :)

I just want to say a little about "Stargirl". It's written by Jerry Spinelli. (He's written other stuff, but the only other thing I've read, I think, is "Loser".) I really like "Stargirl". It's not one of my favorite books necessarily, but it's provocative and well-written, even if the style is a little odd. I'll post what it says on the back of the book:

"She was elusive. She was today. She was tomorrow. She was the faintest scent of a cactus flower, the flitter shadow of an elf owl. We did not know what to make of her. In our minds we tried to pin her to a corkboard like a butterfly, but the pin merely went through and away she flew."

Stargirl is a very interesting character, and the whole book is just like one eye-opening experience after another. It makes you think about things in a whole new way. It's a really strange book, but I would recommend it to anyone. It's relatively small, only 186 pages long. I could probably read it in a day, but it's pretty good reading.

I'm going on vacation tomorrow, to the beach! Yay! My grandpa lives really close to the beach and he works at a hotel. We're going to stay at the hotel and be with him some, too, because his brithday is the 10th.

I really like my grandpa. He's fun and always looks for the good things in life. He's funny, but not on purpose. He's terrible with directions, which makes for some hilarious stories. He's always so put-together. He wears nice business suits and seems like the kind of person you can ask things and depend on. Everyone likes him. He's easy to get along with, is considerate and kind, and a good worker. He's an awesome grandpa and I love him a lot.

I'll be gone until Tuesday, but my dad is bringing his laptop along and the hotel has WiFi, so I might be able to post. I don't know for sure. We'll see.

I haven't written "Mirror" in a little while. Hmm. I'm in another block. This time it's because I don't know where I'm going with this. I don't know what I want to happen for sure, or how to end it. I have several possible endings, all of them good, but I don't know which one to chose. Oh well; I guess I'll figure it out eventually, right? Hm.

Thanks for reading this jumble of odd thoughts! I hope your day is going well!

OH! I almost forgot! It's Quote Day! But I don't I'll do a Jace quote after all. I think I'll do a Stargirl quote:

"And...I see. I hear. But not with my eyes and ears. I'm not outside my world anymore, and I'm not really inside it either. The thing is, there's no dfference anymore between me and the universe. The boundary is gone. I am it and it is me. I am a stone, a cactus thorn. I am rain. I like that most of all, being rain."

Couldn't Help Myself

My favorite Jace quotes from "The Mortal Instruments" trilogy. Enjoy!

1. "Unfortunately, Lady of the Haven, my one true love remains myself, [but] I turn myself down occasionally, just to keep it interesting."

2. “I am a bad***, and I recognize that you, too, are a bad***."

3. "If you were half as funny as you think you are, you'd be twice as funny as you are now."

4. “...in fact, don't touch any of my weapons without my permission.”

5. “It wouldn't be my move. First the candy and flowers, then the apology letters, then the ravenous demon hordes. In that order.”

6. "Don't tell me. Simon's turned himself into an ocelot and you want me to do something about it before Isabelle makes him into a stole. Well, you'll have to wait till tomarrow. I'm out of commission.” He pointed at himself-he was wearing blue pajamas with a hole in the sleeve. “Look. Jammies.”

7. “The meek may inherit the earth, but at the moment it belongs to the conceited. Like me.”

8. "I have a high pain threshold. In fact, it's more of a large and tastefully decorated foyer than a threshold. But I do get easily bored."

9. "No. I'm just a very naughty boy. I do all sorts of bad things. I kick kittens. I make rude gestures at nuns."

10. “That does it. I’m going to get you a dictionary for Christmas this year.”

11. "I see. I'll just have them change demonology text books from ‘almost extinct' to 'not extinct enough for Alec. He prefers his monsters really, really extinct. Will that make you happy?"

12. "Yeah. He’s terrified I’ll tell everyone that he's always really wanted to be a ballerina.”

13. "'Ha Ha?' That's your comeback?"

14. "I loved that jacket!"

15. “No, we’ve been punching her repeatedly in the face. Why, do you think that won’t work?”

16. “I am a man and men do not consume pink beverages. Get thee gone, woman, and bring me something brown.”

17. “I don't want to be a man. I want to be an angst-ridden teenager who can't confront his own inner demons and takes it out verbally on other people instead."

Love it. Hope you did, too. I had to take out some of my favorites because they're...really hilarious, but kind of thing that could be blush-inducing. I don't feel like posting that sort of thing here, lol! And I apologize for this unseemly bout of teenage girlishness.

A Quick Run-Down, Food for Thought, and Another Fill-Out

Another fun day! VBS, talk to some girl about doing Classical next year, swim in her pool, come home, swim in the gorgeous, crystal-clear green lake, take a shower with my CD player blasting, eat pizza, read an article on names in Reader's Digest, catch up on blogs, and that's about it.

Today is QUOTE DAY, my current second favorite day (first place goes to names, of course).

Quote: "Anyone who can handle a needle convincingly can make us see a thread which is not there." - E. H. Gombrich

Isn't that awesome and profound? At the very least it's some food for thought. Who in your life is making you see a thread that isn't there?

LOTR vs. Narnia fill-out:

Gimli vs. Trumpkin?
Gimli

Gandalf vs. Professor Cornelius?
Gandalf

The White Witch vs. Saruman?
Saruman

Gandalf vs. Aslan?
Aslan

Aragorn vs. Aslan?
Aragorn

Narnia vs. Middle Earth?
Ooh, that's so hard!! Maybe Narnia, though...

Prince Caspian vs. Frodo?
Prince Caspian...no, Frodo.

Susan vs. Arwen?
Susan. Never liked Arwen. I don't really know why. She's growing on me, though.

Edmund vs. Merry?
Edmund

Lucy vs. Pippin?
Pippin, he's hilarious. But Lucy is awesome, too.

Peter vs. Haldir?
Peter!

The Dancing Lawn vs. Lothlorien?
Lothlorien

Centaurs vs. elves?
Elves!

Peter's sword vs. Anduril?
Anduril

Susan's magic bow and arrows vs. Legolas's bow of Galadrim?
Susan's magic bow and arrows

Wargs vs. Werewolves?
Werewolves

The Witch's castle vs. The Tower of Barad-dur?
Tough one...Barad-dur

Gryphons vs. Eagles?.
Psh, gryphons!

Uruk-hai vs. Telemarines?
Uruk-hai

Catapults vs. Oliphaunts?
Oliphaunts

Cair Paravel vs. Rivendell?
Rivendell

Do it if you want to, but I don't care. I just felt like doing it myself :)

Today has been great! Carpe diem!

Camp Overview: Day 1

*sigh*

Don't you hate it when you find out bad things about someone you looked up to? I just went through one of my friend's (sort of) pictures on Facebook and found out she isn't quite the girl I thought she was. I'm really sad :( I sort of looked up to her, I thought she was pretty cool, and now it turns out apparently our ideals aren't the same at all. What an awful feeling :(

I really don't feel like posting at all right now, but I need to post about camp or I never will, haha. 'Kay, here:

THURSDAY:
~~~~~~~~
- Got up at seven and finished packing.

- Brianna came to pick me up at 8:30.

- Went to the camp leader's house.

- He was old, but still pretty fun. His name was Arnie.

- We waited around at his house until everyone else showed up.

THE CAMPERS:
1. Me (9th grader) :D

2. Brianna (9th grader): The fun-loving, easy-going, nice girl who makes you feel special and comfortable even if you're a total dork.

3. Erica: The responsible college girl that came along as a chaperone. She was fun, but sometimes a little brusque. I don't think she liked me that much...

4. Jessica (11th grader): Possibly the funnest girl there (me and Brianna aside :D). She was really nice, really fun, had a great personality, and seemed genuinely interested in talking to us.

5. Jenny (9th grader): Jessica's little sister. She was fun, but a little quiet and sort of timid. She seemed nice enough though.

6. Kara (9th or 10th, I think...I'm not sure): She was fun and really pretty. I don't know why, but she was. Her eyes actually sparkled. Like, I've read that in books, but I didn't know what it would look like if someone's eyes really sparkled. It was weird. Her eyes were actually sparkling, but they sizzled and gleamed with fun sort of...hmm...

7. Haley (9th grader): Haley was gorgeous. I hope this doesn't sound mean, but I could tell immediately that she was a "rich girl". She wasn't snobby though. Just obviously from a more well-to-do environment. She was fun, but she stuck by Jenny pretty closely, so I didn't get to know her much.

8. Courtney (9th grader, I think): She was okay. She said she was the "crazy one", but honestly, I didn't see it.

9. Eddrinia (9th grader): She was nice, but...she was homeschooled and, well, she was much more like a "homeschooler" than me or my friends. She was really sweet and I love her to death, but she wouldn't sleep in the beds. She said she doesn't sleep in other peoples' beds. She also put on sunscreen every ten minutes, and THEN just laid there on the dock *covered up with her towel*. She did watch a movie with us, and though she didn't say why, I think it was because it was rated PG. Yeah. Anyway.

10. Cathy (10th grader?): Ah, Cathy. Couldn't stand her. Don't ask me why, I'm not even sure, but I really couldn't stand her! And the frustrating thing was, everyone else *LOVED HER!* She was loud, had to have her way, thought she was all that, thought she knew everything, and enjoyed snubbing and ignoring me whenever possible. Probably some of that is in my head, but a lot of it was real.

Back to the camp experience.

- We piled into Arnie's van and Erica's car and started off to go to the lake house.

- Stopped at the grocery store to get provisions. That was pretty fun. Ish.

- Drove for about forty-five minutes, then stopped and got Subway (yay!).

- Drove for probably another forty-five minutes until we got to the lake house.

- From the road (or really from the loooong driveway), I could tell that the house was small and not in the best condition, but it looked okay.

- We went inside. It was hot and small, but still okay. It was old, but it looked clean enough. At least the kitchen/dining room and the living room that we could see from the front door did. The house kind of had three floors. When you walked in, you were standing on the dividing line between the living room on your left, and the kitchen/dining room on your right. Dead ahead were maybe six stairs that led to an eight-foot-long hall way with three bedrooms and a bathroom. There were also maybe six stairs that led down to a small downstairs. Arnie told us that we girls got the upstairs, and he got the downstairs.

- We unloaded our stuff, and blew up the inflatable innertubes and stuff.

- We were hot and sweaty, but we went inside and got changed into swimsuit attire and headed down to the dock.

- Some people tubed, but I just rode in the boat. Some people tanned, and I tried, but I got sooooooo bored just lying there doing nothing.

- At around seven, we had dinner. It was hot dogs. They were okay. I didn't starve.

- Then we had Chapel Time. Wow. No offense, but it was *SO* boring!! I have a whole new appreciation for my youth group. All we did was read a Bible passage (OVER AND OVER, too), listen to Arnie talk about it in the most boring way possible, read a song while Arnie interrupted every line to explain it to us, then we listened to the song (always a really...not-very-contemporary song), then Arnie just talked about boring stuff that I already had heard at least a thousand times...Oh, and I forgot communion! *moan* Wow. It takes talent to make something so dull. He's just so repetitive! At least the communion bread was really good :D

- Erica, Brianna, Eddrinia and I watched "Casablanca" while the others did stuff outside in the dark. I never noticed how awesome the dialogue in that movie is. It's so good. I advise anyone to watch it. It's an old movie, has great dialogue, it's pretty funny, and it's a great love story.

- We went to bed around midnight. My bed didn't have sheets on it, which was kind of a downer, but I was so tired I didn't even care. I wasn't homesick at all either. Like, at all. I used to get really homesick, but lately I haven't really cared. There was no cell signal at the cabin, though, so it's a good thing I wasn't homesick--I couldn't have called home if I'd wanted to!

And that was day one. If you got this far, I'm proud of you. I won't post days 2 and 3 now, though, so don't worry. I'll do one tomorrow and one the next day, I guess.

Back to the present. I have to clean the bathroom because people are coming to stay at our house for the practicum. This practicum is relatively close to my house, so we don't have to travel this time! Yay! our own beds! :) But, other people will have to travel to get here, so we're being a host family. Two families (well, a mom and her daughter, and then a mom and two daughters) are staying at our house. That should be interesting.

I know I didn't post a God Thought today. I do have one, but this post is so long already that I think I'll just save it. Okay? Great :D Thanks for reading, carpe diem, and in the words of Angela the Herbalist, "avoid roasted cabbage, do not eat earwax, and look on the bright side of life!"




P.S. Which signature do you like better?

My Shallow Mind

Well, I got on the computer for like an hour and a half this morning, then spent the rest of it packing and taking a shower. I haven't had lunch yet. I'm just now getting hungry...

I had something really awesome to say, and I forgot it. Dang it.

Anyway, today is QUOTE DAY! I've missed these a lot lately. Okay. Quote:

"You can't cross a sea by merely staring into the water." - Rabindranath Tagore

Very true. I think a lot of times, I just stare into the water. I'm sort of a hesitant kind of person. I have to come up with all the reasons why I SHOULDN'T do something, and then counter all of them. I have to make sure that I really want to do something, that it's the best idea, etc. Unfortunately, I miss out on a lot of perfectly good, fun stuff because of that. I almost didn't go to the mini-camp thing, but then I thought, "Kendra, you never do anything. Like, ever. You're turning into a boring wall-flower and you need to get a life." So, I decided to go :D

I made a quiz on Facebook about myself. It's really hard, because some of the answers are almost ties, lol!

Blogger is still being stupid.

Uhm...I really wish I could remember what I was going to say. It was worth writing about, I remember that much. *sigh* My mind is so shallow. It must be all the computer time.

Which reminds me, I have to get off. I'm down to like twenty minutes of computer time left, and I haven't even written anything.

Shocker.

Anyway, I'm going to go have lunch and then finish packing. Maybe I'll call Ellie B. Although, she's at her cousin's so maybe that would be rude...whatever. I'm getting off. Talk to ya later!

CARPE TUUS (is that singular or plural?) DIEM!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
EDIT: Ohh, I just remembered that "carpe" is imperative, so the "you" is implied. DUH. So, forget the "tuus" anyway. Sorry. Okay, I'm really getting off now.

Saying Silly Things

Quote Day! And the day I'm leaving. I don't have long to post because I haven't finished cleaning the bathroom, so if my mom comes down and sees me taking a little break, that might not go over well ;)

Quote: “No man is exempt from saying silly things; the mischief is to say them deliberately.” –Michel de Montaigne

So true :)

So, seize the day, remember love is a verb, live out loud, be articulate and say silly things!

:D See you Sunday!

Cherishing Family

*does a happy dance* IT'S QUOTE DAY!! YAY! MY FAVORITE!

But even before THAT, I have news:

I DID SOME OF THE DRIVING PART FOR DRIVER'S ED TODAY!!! YAY! It was kind of fun, medium boring, and quite nerve-wracking. I messed up some, too, which was embarassing. Hopefully tomorrow will be better. Overall, not bad I don't think :)

Okay. Quote time.

"He who knows right will do right." --Socrates

I know I've talked about this before, though, so I won't go into detail. I just think it's cool. At first it makes no sense and you're like "nuh-uh", but then Socrates explains it and it makes perfect sense. Here's the link where I talk about it in detail(ish): http://puelladei.blogspot.com/2009/04/if-you-read-all-this-ill-give-you.html
---------------------
Well, the "family" is here again! With the dads gone to Jamaica, we have to help take and get Matt and Katie home from school. AAAND because my driving stuff is at their school, it all just works out. They're actually here right now. Lizzy and Katie are in Lizzy's room. I don't know what they're doing. Matt is flipping through channels and refusing to give up the remote. Which is fine because I'd rather post that rot my brain on the TV, MATTHEW. :) Just kidding.

Tomorrow the same thing will happen, only Katie has a million tests on Friday so I'll have to help her with that. Hmm.

Well, I don't have any more to say. Have a great day, and I'll probably continue doing the same! Carpe diem! Cherish your family. And remember, not all family is your own flesh and blood.

P.S. Could someone tell me who my latest follower is?? My computer is being stupid and won't load the Follower thing. Grr.

Best Book and Being Better

>:( >:( >:( >:( >:( >:(

That's how I feel right now. My computer is being unbelievably retarded. I've been trying to load the same page since--are you ready for this?--LAST NIGHT. I've been trying to get to the same thing since LAST NIGHT! I started trying at four in the afternoon, tried until six, ate dinner, came back, tried again until ten-thirty. Then I got up this morning, did math, then came back and tried for FOUR MORE HOURS. IT WON'T FREAKIN' LOAD!!!!!! I'm so mad I can't even BEGIN to explain how annoying this is!! AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!

Okay. Sorry. I actually have some really happy stuff to tell you! I FINISHED THE FINAL FARSALA BOOK LAST NIGHT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! AND IT WAS SO AMAZING!!!!!!!!! Oh my gosh! It was soooooo good! I actually cried because it was over. Yeah, I actually did that. But I was so sad that the books are over! I love the characters! They feel like friends. I thought I felt like that about other books, but this time the feeling of closeness with the characters is unbelievable. I feel like I know them, and now they've left. Their story is over, and I'll never know what happens after this. I love them!! *sigh*

Best books I've ever, ever read. Sorry, Inkheart, Eragon, Twilight, the Mortal Instruments trilogy, the Farsala trilogy surpasses all of you. Sure some things were sad, and some things were unexpected, but...wow. Just wow. Hilari Bell has to be one of the most brilliant writers ever. Seriously. I'm speechless. Amazing books, amazing ending, amazing characters, *sob* I'm gonna miss them so much! *soooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooob*

*wipes eyes* 'Kay. I'm done.

Oh. Guess what? That page just loaded. *blinks* Well...yay.

Aaaaaaand my week is back to being amazing :)

Tonight I get to play with the little kids! I'm so excited! Playing with them always reminds me of...better times. Times when I was the little kid and was being played with. Good times. I'm glad to be able to help these little kids have memories like that of their own.

It's sunny today! My garden is lookin' good. The seeds haven't sprouted yet, but the tomatoes and pepper plants look happy. They're still pretty small, but they look healthy so far. I've planted squash, zucchini, tomatoes, and peppers. Red peppers, I think. Lol, I can't remember for sure...but I'm pretty sure they're red.

Oh, whoops! Today is quote day! Alrighty :D Here's the quote of the week:

"That doesn't matter," said Jiaan. "What matters is that we have to be better than the Hrum. We have to be. Because if we're not, then it's all been for nothing. All the fighting, all the deaths. For nothing, unless we're better than they are. ...It's not about my father. It's not even about the Hrum. This is about our honor. We have to be better than they are, or it doesn't even matter whether we win or not."

That's a quote from, you guessed it, a book in the Farsala trilogy. I tried to pick a meaningful passage that wouldn't spoil anything in case any of you want to read the books (I HIGHLY recommend them).

Isn't that quote so true? If you're fighting for something, you have to want to be better than the people you're fighting. If you want to be in the popular crowd, you ought to want to bring about good changes, too. Same if you want to be the president. You can't run with the intention of being a worse president than the one before you. You have to be better. It's not about the old president. It's about you. It's about you being better.

*shrugs* I don't know. It just like that passage. And when you read it in context, it's even better.

:)

Carpe diem! And remember, be better :)

Tights and Tight Spots

Darn. I missed another day of posting. But I did post twice on Tuesday (was it Tuesday?), so I guess that makes up for it :)

Okay, so here's the quote for yesterday: “Suspicion always haunts the guilty mind.” Shakespeare

I agree. Whenever I'm guilty, I'm constantly afraid that so-and-so is going to "find me out". It's an awful feeling, don't you think?
-----------------------
Okay, today is...NAME DAY!! Simple, fun, I love it! :)

Today's name: Kendra.

Why not? Y'all should know what my name means. Pretty soon I'll probably start doing your names, so watch out ;)

Kendra means "fair one" or "fire sprung". Pretty awesome, huh? I feel okay with bragging about this name because I actually picked it. It's not my real name. Orrrrrrrr, it might be, and all the other names I use are fake...lol, I'm not saying one way or another. If I use one of my names for the Name of the Week thing, I'm going to pretend like I picked it whether or not I actually did.

Sorry. Unnecissarily confusing. Anyway...

That's what I always thought it meant. But just now when I double checked, I also found "greatest champion", "knowing", "chief hero", "keen power", "water baby" and "magical".

O.O

WOW!

I'm pretty sure "water baby" and "magical" are incorrect. I happen to know that the name Kenda, no "R", means that, so I think it's probably a mistake. But I might be wrong. It happens occasionally ;)
--------------------------
Lizzy's dance rehearsal was last night, as you know. I got to put make up on her. She's really gorgeous WITHOUT make up. It was like having a life-sized Barbie doll to dress up, lol! I actually did a good job on the make up. She looked like she was about sixteen, when she's actually twelve and a half. *shudders* THAT was weird.

**WARNING! LONG STORY COMING UP!**

The rehearsal went well, she looked beautiful, no one messed up, we went out to grab some Wendy's afterwards, and everything was going great. All we had to do then was run by Wal-Mart to get some tights for me to wear for MY rehearsal (which is tonight). I know I should have gotten the tights before then, but I just...didn't.

So anyway, we went to Wal-Mart to get my tights (suntan and pale pink). I had a mental picture of the tights display, but I had no idea where that place WAS. So Lizzy and I hunted all over the store while my dad got a hose bolt or something. We didn't find the dance tights (there's a big difference between "tights" and "dance tights", by the way).

Finally, I was like "Let's just ask someone." So Lizzy's all like "There's a guy! There's a guy!" I was really looking for a female worker since I didn't figure the guys would know, but I asked the guy anyway. He didn't really know. So finally we found a lady and asked her. She pointed us to the display without blinking. Halelujah!

We went to the display, located the right colors, and looked for my size.

No size 12-16. In pale pink OR suntan.

It's like nine-thirty at night, my dad has to get up early the next day, my mom is home from being out of town and waiting for us at home. DANG IT!!

Lizzy and I meet Daddy at the check-out empty handed. Daddy pays for the hose thingie and we speed over to Target.

"This is where Momma got my tights," Lizzy says as the two of us run into Target. "So I know they're here. Hope they have your size." I didn't say anything. We looked in the Women's department, but all I saw were regular tights and hose. So I go the dressing room area and ask the lady,

"Where are the dance tights?"

"We don't have dance tights."

*blink*

"Are you serious?"

Lady tried not to smile. "I'm serious."

"WELL. That really sucks. Thanks anyway."

Lizzy and I went back to the car. It's now after ten o'clock, and I was still tight-less. My rehearsal was the next day, and my tight size was no where to be found.

Reeeeeeeeeally not a good situation.

Daddy told me we could go to a different Wal-Mart in the morning. Hopefully they would have my size.

So this morning I woke up stressed, at breakfast stressed, got on the computer stressed, and did some math stressed. I was putting off the trip to the store for who-knows-what reason. I also really didn't want to tell my mom about the situation. She can get a little...tense about that kind of thing. Daddy and Lizzy seemed to think the same thing, because neither of them mentioned our little shopping frenzy either.

After I did some math (GAHH!), I decided to check my top draw again for tights. I checked a week ago, and they weren't there, but sudden random miracles have been known to happen to me.

So, I dug through years of dance costumes, panty hose, soccer jerseys, knee socks. Nothing. With a sigh, I started putting everything back.

That's when I saw them.

Neatly folded in the corner of the drawer was a pare of pale pink tights. Beside them, a pair of suntan.

Go figure.

:)

So now all that's left for this evening is to get excited and nervous, get dressed, and go! I'll let you know how it goes tomorrow. I hope I don't mess up. I know this is only the rehearsal, but I'm still excited! :) Talk to you later! Carpe diem!