Sunday, November 30, 2008

A bit of prose before bed

My hair still smells like roasted chestnuts. They weren't roasted over an open fire. It was actually a charcoal grill covered in tin foil. After the chestnuts were done, we huddled around the grill like the hobos in Annie and savored the smell and the heat.

My feet were so cold on the way home that I had trouble working the gas and the brake without wincing.

Michael Phelps was on 60 Minutes, but I had more important things to do than watch.

Like soak my feet in a warm tub

And do my homework

Which I'm still

Ironically

Doing.

Thursday, November 27, 2008

"Happy Thanksgiving back"

I've talked to a couple of people over the past few days about their Thanksgiving experiences. From what I gathered, many people...
a) Drive for hours to spend the holiday at someone else's house
b) Experience multiple fights between family members
c) Don't do anything at all.

I felt very sad for everyone who had to deal with any of the above things. You're all invited to my house for Thanksgiving dinner next year.

Here's how things go at the Gruntner house:
1. My mom's brother and his wife drive up from Wisconsin. They have 6 kids. One of them happens to be just a few months older than me, and one of them happens to have been born on the exact same day as my sister Amy. Needless to say, the foursome has a lot of fun together.
2. We always see a movie at some point during their visit. I can't remember what it was last year, but I do remember that we rented Home Alone a few years ago.
3. My Uncle Harold makes rolls. A ton of them. Us kids (sorry for the horrible grammar, but how else can I put it?) are usually hanging out outside or in the basement, but we make continual trips upstairs to snitch rolls.
4. We have these felt turkey napkin holders that Mom, Amy, and I made when Amy and I were really little and my Mom gotten a sudden (and fleeting) crafting streak. We also made pink rabbit napkin holders for Easter, but we realized a few years ago that they look suspiciously like Playboy bunnies. Our napkins go solo for Easter now.
5. All the cousins always camp out in the living room on the pullout couch and the floor. The annoying part about this setup is that when Mom and Aunt Sue wake up early to start cooking the blinding kitchen light wakes us up.
6. We (the foursome,) always get the card table to ourselves. We get little dishes of everything and lord it up with sparkling grape juice in wine glasses. Amy is teased, as usual.
7. There is always a game of touch football in the front yard. No matter what. Even if it's below zero and snowing (as it was a few years ago).
8. We always feel like we're going to explode after dinner. However, pie a few hours later is not something that is skipped.
9. We always go shopping on Black Friday. Hard core shopping, too. We wake up at four a.m., stumble out to the car, and head to the Mall of America. We arrive just as the stores are opening, and split up so the parents can shop for the kids and the kids for the parents. A few rides are crucial, also.
10. We always just have an amazing time together. No one in my family really fights or anything. We tease each other mercilessly, but that's what makes things fun. My extended family has so many inside jokes that a stranger looking in would be fairly bewildered.

Thanksgiving is not my absolute favorite holiday, but I think it's special because it's not about gifts or material things. It is probably the one holiday that is solely about spending time with family.
Happy Thanksgiving!!

Some things you should know about me:
1. I hate shopping. I just have no patience for it. Every so often I'll be in the mood, but very, very rarely.
2. Despite my name, I do not have a Christmas birthday. My birthday's in September.
3. I love to sing. I'm not good at it, but I do it around the house and in the car a lot.
4. Even at my age, I honestly love to sit on the floor and play Barbies with my little cousins. I think it's mainly that I like making up edge-of-your-seat dramas for the dolls to carry out. Will Ken leave Barbie for Stacey? Can Barbie own up to the fact that her gorgeous pink plastic car does not really drive?

Tuesday, November 25, 2008

The Twilight gush sequence

I just saw the movie Twilight a few hours ago. I actually liked it. I decided beforehand that I was going to try to keep the movie and the book seperate in my head-because they really are two completely different things. This way, I can keep my gorgeous mental image of Edward, AND enjoy Robert Pattinson at the same time.
For those who think Twilight the movie is corny: agreed. But I think the actors who played Edward and Bella did a great job-it was just the script that was the problem. Better writing would make this movie a lot better. I'm definitely looking forward to New Moon. Here's hoping they get a new game plan.

THINGS HOLLY LIKED ABOUT TWILIGHT THE MOVIE:
1. Carlisle is smoking hot!!!
2. When Bella first walks into the classroom and Edward is plugging his nose (that was really funny).
3. When Jessica is talking about Edward, and he smiles a little, like he was reading her mind and laughing at what she said (that was a fun moment).
4. Charlie. He just does a good job.
5. Pretty much all of the Cullens, though I wish they had given the rest of the family more of a role, for example, they didn't talk about Jasper's power at all.

THINGS HOLLY DIDN'T LIKE
1. Jacob. Eeeeww-his hair is disgusting
2. The way Edward talks-I know that he's British, and is probably trying to get his American accent straight, but he talks really slowly. I don't know if he was trying to get the 'turn of the century Edward' voice right, but it was just strange.
3. Bella's clumsy moments were not very believable.
4. Mike-he bugged me. But I guess he's supposed to.
5. The whole Bella-in-her-underwear makeout scene. That was unnecessary. That part would have worked fine if she had had pants on. It just made Edward seem sort of pervy-he happened to stumble in the window on the very night she decided to lounge around without pants on.

But honestly, I think that it's worth seeing. If you want to insult it and say it's not true to the book, then fine. You're probably right. But it's still a good movie in its own way-I'll definitely be buying it when it comes out on DVD.

P.S. The soundtrack is pretty good, too.

Sunday, November 16, 2008

In which a stranger named Kevin provides enlightenment

Last night was the University of Minnesota indoor marching band concert. It was amazing, of course. The band has such energy, and they just looked like they were having a blast doing Thriller, sword fighting, etc.
During intermission a group of us were standing in the aisle talking when all of the sudden this marching band member holding an alto sax comes up and starts talking to us. He said his name was Kevin, and he was asking us which grade we were all in. I said I was a senior, and he asked me where I was going to school next year. Now, up to that point I had not made an official decision about college. It was still completely up in the air. But I found my self answering "here (the U of M Twin Cities)." As soon as I said it, I kind of thought to myself, "wow. I think I really meant it."
So I don't know if I'll go to the U of M or not, but just saying it felt very right. I mean, I can picture myself on campus-studying in the library, riding my bike across the bridge, living in a dorm, etc. I guess we'll have to see what happens.

A few things you should know about me:
1. I am fairly pro at video games. I don't play them often, but when I do, watch out!
2. I know a lot about movies. Even if I haven't seen a particular movie, I can probably tell you who the starring actors are, what it's about, etc. When I'm in college, I plan on going to see practically EVERY good movie that comes out-just now I don't really have a chance to see many.
3. I'm a Ravenclaw (just took the quiz)

Thursday, November 13, 2008

Friday, November 7, 2008

All that blood and gore

Today was the school blood drive. Since I'm in NHS, I got to volunteer to set up and work the drive, but I also wanted to donate blood, so I signed up for that as well. I was really nervous about the donation part. I'm not a huge fan of needles or blood. Not scared to death of them, but not a huge fan. Anyways, right away they had me fill out forms, making sure I didn't have AIDS or malaria or a cold. Then they took me into this little partitioned-off area with a computer inside. There they recorded basic info.-birthday, address, etc.

And then...The nurse whipped out a lancet and JABBED me with it. It hurt really bad, too. Maybe because it was unexpected, maybe because she went down so far she hit bone, you never know. At that point I was about to cry, so luckily the nurse left me alone to fill out a few more forms. I had finished and was reciting state capitals to calm myself down when the other nurse (I don't know if they're really nurses-they may just be volunteers) came in (pretty sure he heard me say, "Alaska. Juneau," because he gave me a really strange look) to get me for the actually blood-harvesting part.

Surprisingly, it wasn't too bad. I was actually sickly fascinated with watching my own heart's blood flow through a tube into a little bag. I was also talking to the guy (nurse? Volunteer?) who was collecting my blood. He was really nice. When it was all over, I pretty much hopped off the cot-I was just so glad that it was over and I was alive.

I headed over to the snack table (they make you eat afterwards to get your blood sugar back up), still feeling chipper. Alex Walter was working the concession area, and he gave me a glass of water and told me I was supposed to drink the whole thing before eating anything. I had just sat down to drink it when all of the sudden it hit me. My head started spinning like crazy. It was like the two lobes of my brain were trying to seperate-I couldn't focus on anything. I remember that I told Alex to get a nurse, and then everything went black. Next thing I knew I was being helped onto a stretcher and wheeled over to another partitioned area. The nurse gave me a wet paper towel for my forehead and had me put my knees up and breathe into a paper bag (my first time).

I felt instantly better. Well enough, in fact, to start laughing. Hysterically. I don't know what was so funny, honestly. The whole situation-me fainting in the gym, being carted away like I was dying, breathing into a paper bag-just seemed so hilarious. I think the nurse thought I was losing my mind.

Anyway, after that little ordeal was over I got to go back to class, and then to work when school ended. Work was hard. I was so tired all of the sudden (evidently that can happen), that I was just kind of stumbling around.

So that was my big blood drive ordeal. Even though it actually turned out to be fairly traumatic for me, I think I'll do it again in the spring. After all, I don't know how many people I know who've had blood transfusions. I'll probably need one myself someday. If I can at least make a small difference, I think a little dizziness is worth it.

Tuesday, November 4, 2008

HOPE is a four letter word

A quote I heard on the news right after Obama was announced as the winner, "Tonight I am forever proud of my country." That's how I feel. I'm just very proud to be an American (cue in patriotic theme music).

These results are especially cool because I voted. For Obama. About three and a half hours ago. I remember back in fifth grade when I went to this tiny private school, my friend Mara figured out that for the 2008 election I would be the only one in the class old enough to vote. I remember feeling really special, but not really understanding what it meant to vote. It's just a very strange feeling to have an event predicted when you were eleven actually coming to pass.

Already on facebook the bashings have started. I'm not really surprised, but I just think it's so sad. You know, if McCain had won, I would have been disappointed, but I wouldn't have sat there and pouted about it and insulted him. I (hopefully) would have learned to respect him as the leader of my country and I would have prayed that he bring about the change America desperately needs.

Anyway, I guess that there are always Debbie Downers, and some of them will probably come around, or at least keep their negative crap to themselves. We can only hope.

Monday, November 3, 2008

Thriller

People are doing this on facebook, but I didn't really read what it was too carefully until I saw my friend Amelia's blog, and then I decided to do it on mine. I hope she doesn't mind.

Here's what you do (or what I'm about to do):
1. Put your ipod (or mp3) on shuffle
2. For each question, press 'next'
3. Write down the title of the song that appears as the answer to the question
4. No cheating, even if it's weird

Here we go......

1. IF SOMEONE SAYS "IS THIS OKAY" YOU SAY?
-You're the one (the Vogues)

2. WHAT WOULD BEST DESCRIBE YOUR PERSONALITY?
-Lady Madonna (the Beatles)

3. WHAT DO YOU LIKE IN A GUY/GIRL?
-Wait (the Beatles)

4. HOW DO YOU FEEL TODAY?
-Doctor Robert (wow, the Beatles keep showing up)

5. WHAT IS YOUR LIFE'S PURPOSE?
-When I'm Sixty-Four (aahhh! Beatles again! I mean, I love them, but this is getting old)

6. WHAT IS YOUR MOTTO?
-I Second That Emotion (Smokey Robinson)

7. WHAT DO YOUR FRIENDS THINK OF YOU?
-7 Things (Miley Cyrus-oh geez. Didn't want to admit I had this song...)

8. WHAT DO YOU THINK ABOUT VERY OFTEN?
-Extraordinary (Liz Phair)

9. WHAT IS 2+2?
-I Am The Walrus (Beatles)

10. WHAT DO YOU THINK OF YOUR BEST FRIEND?
-Love Grows (Where My Rosemary Goes) (Edison Lighthouse)

11. WHAT DO YOU THINK OF THE PERSON YOU LIKE?
-Why Can't I? (Liz Phair-this is very strange-songs I've never seen before on my ipod keep showing up)

12. WHAT IS YOUR LIFE STORY?
-Stand (Rascal Flatts)

13. WHAT DO YOU WANT TO BE WHEN YOU GROW UP?
-Come Together (Beatles)

14. WHAT DO YOU THINK WHEN YOU SEE THE PERSON YOU LIKE?
-Sweet Home Alabama (Lynyrd Skynyrd)

15. WHAT DO YOUR PARENTS THINK OF YOU?
-Ice Ice Baby (Vanilla Ice. wow. I hope not.)

16. WHAT WILL YOU DANCE TO AT YOUR WEDDING?
-La Vie En Rose (Louis Armstrong)

17. WHAT WILL THEY PLAY AT YOUR FUNERAL?
-Mr. Jones (Counting Crows)

18. WHAT IS YOUR HOBBY/INTEREST?
-Chasing Cars (Snow Patrol)

19. WHAT IS YOUR BIGGEST SECRET?
-What is Love

20. WHAT DO YOU THINK OF YOUR FRIENDS?
-Don't You (Forget About Me) (Simple Minds)

21. WHAT'S THE WORST THING THAT COULD HAPPEN?
-Colour My World (Chicago)

22. HOW WILL YOU DIE?
-Barbie Girl (Aqua)

23. WHAT IS THE ONE THING YOU REGRET?
-Cat's In The Cradle (Harry Chapin)

24. WHAT MAKES YOU LAUGH?
-Angel of Music (Phantom of the Opera)

25. WHAT MAKES YOU CRY?
-City of Blinding Lights (U2)

26. WILL YOU EVER GET MARRIED?
-Sunshine (Jonathan Edwards)

27. WHAT SCARES YOU THE MOST?
-All These Things That I've Done (The Killers)

28. DOES ANYONE LIKE YOU?
-A Spoonful of Sugar (Julie Andrews)

29. IF YOU COULD GO BACK IN TIME, WHAT WOULD YOU CHANGE?
-With A Little Help From My Friends (Beatles)

30. WHAT HURTS RIGHT NOW?
-Bootstraps' Bootstraps (Klaus Badelt)

31. WHAT WILL YOU POST THIS AS?
-Thriller (Michael Jackson)