Halloween is definitely one of my favorite holidays. Now that I'm older, and can't trick-or-treat, it's lost some of its thrill, but it's still really fun. I think the best part is being disguised, running around at night. Just the mystery of it all.
This year I'm going as Red Green from the Red Green Show. You know, red/green suspenders, plaid shirt, bucket hat. It should be pretty funny. I'm not sure if I have the guts to wear it to school, but if my sister Amy (who's going as batman), is willing to wear hers in public, I think I'll be too. We'll see.
Some things you should know about me:
1. I used to write poetry
2. I adore Geico commercials
3. I hit my own mailbox a few months ago (and left a huge scratch on my mother's van)
Wednesday, October 29, 2008
Tuesday, October 28, 2008
Ode to joy upon recieving inspiration
I've got it. At last, at last, I've got it.
It's not quite enough to want it.
It's work
And tears
And frustration
And prayer
Mom said, "Write from your heart."
I said, "How cheesy."
But then I thought for a long time
And I wrote from my heart
And it came out clear
At last, at last, it came out clear.
(In case you're wondering, all above frustration, tears, work, and prayer were brought on by the Voice of Democracy contest. What can I say?)
It's not quite enough to want it.
It's work
And tears
And frustration
And prayer
Mom said, "Write from your heart."
I said, "How cheesy."
But then I thought for a long time
And I wrote from my heart
And it came out clear
At last, at last, it came out clear.
(In case you're wondering, all above frustration, tears, work, and prayer were brought on by the Voice of Democracy contest. What can I say?)
Thursday, October 23, 2008
A car crash, the Hyatt Motel, and Al Capone (sounds like Chicago!)
Highlights from The Great Chicago Adventure:
1. Getting to know people better. It always seems like on trips you either a)bond with people, or b)start hating them. I mainly bonded, thankfully. Not only did I have some good times with my roommates (Becca and her hour-long, smite-inducing prayer), but I got to hang out with some people that I didn't know super well before. I also got an amazing book list from Amelia-thanks, Amelia!
2. Seeing the sights. The lovely view from the Sears Tower (the fog was lovely), Navy Pier, The American Girl Place, etc.
3. Northwestern University. Nice people, high standards, amazing marching band. But I want to go to school in Minnesota. I love it here.
4. The Crash. Picture this: A taxi hits the side of our bus, we keep driving, make a u-turn at a red light in the middle of an intersection and go back, only to find that the other bus hit a fire hydrant, the taxi driver has severe whiplash and doesn't speak English, and a fire truck, an ambulance, and a cop car have arrived. It was pretty funny.
Lowlights:
1. Being tired all the time from getting back at midnight and waking up at six every morning.
2. The huge lines at Six Flags.
3. Having to speed-read Wuthering Heights on the train ride back.
So that's pretty much the trip in a nutshell. In case I failed to make it clear, I had an amazing time. I honestly don't think a trip to California could have been any more fun.
Something you may not know about me:
1. I should be typing my Voice of Democracy essay right now.
1. Getting to know people better. It always seems like on trips you either a)bond with people, or b)start hating them. I mainly bonded, thankfully. Not only did I have some good times with my roommates (Becca and her hour-long, smite-inducing prayer), but I got to hang out with some people that I didn't know super well before. I also got an amazing book list from Amelia-thanks, Amelia!
2. Seeing the sights. The lovely view from the Sears Tower (the fog was lovely), Navy Pier, The American Girl Place, etc.
3. Northwestern University. Nice people, high standards, amazing marching band. But I want to go to school in Minnesota. I love it here.
4. The Crash. Picture this: A taxi hits the side of our bus, we keep driving, make a u-turn at a red light in the middle of an intersection and go back, only to find that the other bus hit a fire hydrant, the taxi driver has severe whiplash and doesn't speak English, and a fire truck, an ambulance, and a cop car have arrived. It was pretty funny.
Lowlights:
1. Being tired all the time from getting back at midnight and waking up at six every morning.
2. The huge lines at Six Flags.
3. Having to speed-read Wuthering Heights on the train ride back.
So that's pretty much the trip in a nutshell. In case I failed to make it clear, I had an amazing time. I honestly don't think a trip to California could have been any more fun.
Something you may not know about me:
1. I should be typing my Voice of Democracy essay right now.
Tuesday, October 14, 2008
Chisago goes to Chicago
1. We leave for our big marching band trip to Chicago tomorrow
2. At about 5 a.m.
3. Meaning we have to be at the school by 4:20 a.m.
4. Am not happy about this (the early morning part)
I'm very excited to go to Chicago. I've never actually been there. I've driven through it, but I don't think that counts, seeing as I was about ten and woozy from being in the car so long.
Sorry to cut it short, but I really need to take care of some homework stuff before I go to bed-the fewer textbooks I have to bring on the trip, the better.
Something you may not know about me:
1. I'm a night person.
2. At about 5 a.m.
3. Meaning we have to be at the school by 4:20 a.m.
4. Am not happy about this (the early morning part)
I'm very excited to go to Chicago. I've never actually been there. I've driven through it, but I don't think that counts, seeing as I was about ten and woozy from being in the car so long.
Sorry to cut it short, but I really need to take care of some homework stuff before I go to bed-the fewer textbooks I have to bring on the trip, the better.
Something you may not know about me:
1. I'm a night person.
Monday, October 13, 2008
If clumsiness took human form...it would look like me
I'm not exaggerating, either. I'm really that clumsy. It's especially bad at work, because I'm often stressed out and distracted, so I don't think about important motor-related manuevers, like walking.
Today alone I:
1. Dropped a bunch of quarters while making change at the register
2. Bumped my hip really hard on a corner of wall while delivering
3. Tripped over a crack on the sidewalk and almost fell on my face en route to the post office
It really gets annoying at times, actually.
New topic:
The phone just rang. I answered it, and this lady's voice said, "Is this gaytag?"
Seriously. How rude do you get? I've never understood prank calling. I've always thought that it's incredibly childish for people to disturb innocent strangers simply because they're at a sleepover, high on sugar, and need some low-input entertainment.
New topic:
I'm procrastinating on my homework right now-must get back to it.
Some things you may not (and may not want to) know about me:
1. My bookshelf is the only thing in my room that's neat. I can stand any amount of messiness for the rest of my room, but if my books get disorganized, I freak out.
2. I have a scar on my right hand from running an exacto-knife over it while cutting cardboard for D.I. sets.
3. I talk to my car.
Today alone I:
1. Dropped a bunch of quarters while making change at the register
2. Bumped my hip really hard on a corner of wall while delivering
3. Tripped over a crack on the sidewalk and almost fell on my face en route to the post office
It really gets annoying at times, actually.
New topic:
The phone just rang. I answered it, and this lady's voice said, "Is this gaytag?"
Seriously. How rude do you get? I've never understood prank calling. I've always thought that it's incredibly childish for people to disturb innocent strangers simply because they're at a sleepover, high on sugar, and need some low-input entertainment.
New topic:
I'm procrastinating on my homework right now-must get back to it.
Some things you may not (and may not want to) know about me:
1. My bookshelf is the only thing in my room that's neat. I can stand any amount of messiness for the rest of my room, but if my books get disorganized, I freak out.
2. I have a scar on my right hand from running an exacto-knife over it while cutting cardboard for D.I. sets.
3. I talk to my car.
Sunday, October 12, 2008
My creepy Romanov dream (and how I'm recovering from it)
So, as you may know (if you've been religiously following my blogs, as I'm sure you have been), I have a small obsession with the Romanov family. I just finished reading a great book about them (The Kitchen Boy, by Robert Alexander-read it!), so I guess I've just been thinking about their whole tragic situation for a couple of weeks.
Anyway, I had a dream last night about them. Actually, the dream took place this morning-for some reason I always dream in the morning, not at night.
THE DREAM (insert Twilight Zone theme here).........................
My whole family was vacationing in Russia. That, is, I'm assuming it was Russia. The closest I've been to Russia in real life is Italy, so the scenery of 'Russia' looked a lot like Italian scenery. So, we were in Russia staying at this really ritzy hotel. We were doing the traditional tourist-y stuff-going through museums, shopping, etc., when I happened to notice that right across the street from our hotel was the church where the Romanov family is buried. I was really excited about it, and so we all decided to go through the church and check it out. Inside the church was a huge statue of Rasputin squating by a stone fire. Behind the statue was a waist-high wall with kneelers in front of it. I walked up to the wall, and peered over it. Down a little ways was the tomb of the Romanovs. Each family member was depicted by a carving of their likeness (I assumed their remains were underneath the carvings). I was looking at the carving of Alexei, when all of the sudden its stone head turned and looked at me. I screamed and woke up.
Usually I can tell where my dreams are coming from and what they mean for the most part, but this one was really out there. It wasn't a nightmare, exactly, it was just kind of eerie.
So how am I recovering from my afore-described dream? Doing an immense amount of homework, of course! I'm also working on college apps. and making cookie dough for a school project (don't ask).
P.S. If you didn't understand some of the Romanov references:
i.e. Alexei, Rasputin, Russia, tragic situation, etc.,
please type 'Romanov' into Wikipedia and read about them. I assure you, at some point in your life you WILL look/feel stupid if you don't know at least a little about their story.
Things you may not know about me:
1. I bite my fingernails
2. I close my eyes in photographs constantly
3. My middle name is Lynn (it was initially going to be Anne, but my Aunt Lori pointed out that my initials would then spell HAG. My parents quickly made the switch, bless them.)
Anyway, I had a dream last night about them. Actually, the dream took place this morning-for some reason I always dream in the morning, not at night.
THE DREAM (insert Twilight Zone theme here).........................
My whole family was vacationing in Russia. That, is, I'm assuming it was Russia. The closest I've been to Russia in real life is Italy, so the scenery of 'Russia' looked a lot like Italian scenery. So, we were in Russia staying at this really ritzy hotel. We were doing the traditional tourist-y stuff-going through museums, shopping, etc., when I happened to notice that right across the street from our hotel was the church where the Romanov family is buried. I was really excited about it, and so we all decided to go through the church and check it out. Inside the church was a huge statue of Rasputin squating by a stone fire. Behind the statue was a waist-high wall with kneelers in front of it. I walked up to the wall, and peered over it. Down a little ways was the tomb of the Romanovs. Each family member was depicted by a carving of their likeness (I assumed their remains were underneath the carvings). I was looking at the carving of Alexei, when all of the sudden its stone head turned and looked at me. I screamed and woke up.
Usually I can tell where my dreams are coming from and what they mean for the most part, but this one was really out there. It wasn't a nightmare, exactly, it was just kind of eerie.
So how am I recovering from my afore-described dream? Doing an immense amount of homework, of course! I'm also working on college apps. and making cookie dough for a school project (don't ask).
P.S. If you didn't understand some of the Romanov references:
i.e. Alexei, Rasputin, Russia, tragic situation, etc.,
please type 'Romanov' into Wikipedia and read about them. I assure you, at some point in your life you WILL look/feel stupid if you don't know at least a little about their story.
Things you may not know about me:
1. I bite my fingernails
2. I close my eyes in photographs constantly
3. My middle name is Lynn (it was initially going to be Anne, but my Aunt Lori pointed out that my initials would then spell HAG. My parents quickly made the switch, bless them.)
Saturday, October 11, 2008
Maroon and gold forever
I've actually been planning my activities for today for at least a week-wake up decently early, then buckle down and do homework, pack for Chicago, and maybe relax a bit if there's time.
Fortunately, things didn't go according to plan, and I had a much better day than originally intended. I woke up at about 11 a.m (I'm always so tired on Saturdays-recovering from the school week, I guess), rolled out of bed, and was about to head to the living room in my pajamas when I spotted my aunt and uncle standing in the kitchen. I ran back to my room and got dressed before coming back out. FYI my pajamas are not that bad, I guess, but they do have Batman all over them.
My aunt and uncle and cousins were over to help us take our dock and boat lift out of the water, and to have lunch with us. It was a pretty fun afternoon. My cousin Rachel and I played her new Nintendo DS game-Mario Party-pretty sweet.
At around two in the afternoon everyone left, and my family dressed in our maroon and gold and headed for the cities. My dad went to school for two years at the U of M (before switching to the U of Wisconsin), so he gave me a little tour of the campus. He has wanted me to go there for a long time, and I've always just said, "We'll see, I want to look at other schools first," but when I was actually there on campus, I absolutely loved it. Not only was the campus beautiful, but it was just a really great atmosphere. I don't know if I'll go there for sure-but it seemed a better fit for me than the other schools I've looked at.
After the tour, we headed to Williams Arena to attend the Gopher/Penn State volleyball game. Penn State completely destroyed us, but it was still an enjoyable game. I was watching the pep band, and decided that the saxophones never appeared to be having any fun-it was the brass that was dancing and everything. If I go to the U of M, I'll definitely have to change that.
Some things you should know about me (the never-ending list)
1. I love anything to do with the Romanov family. Partly because their story is so tragic, partly because my own great-grandmother fled Russia during the revolution that brought about the deaths of the Romanovs-I guess I feel a connection to them or something.
2. I am a horrible dancer. Like, the worst in the world.
3. My room is retro-themed. Turquiouse walls, neon lights, posters of Elvis and the Beatles. I love it. I don't know what I'll do when I go off to college and have to live in a boring white dorm.
Fortunately, things didn't go according to plan, and I had a much better day than originally intended. I woke up at about 11 a.m (I'm always so tired on Saturdays-recovering from the school week, I guess), rolled out of bed, and was about to head to the living room in my pajamas when I spotted my aunt and uncle standing in the kitchen. I ran back to my room and got dressed before coming back out. FYI my pajamas are not that bad, I guess, but they do have Batman all over them.
My aunt and uncle and cousins were over to help us take our dock and boat lift out of the water, and to have lunch with us. It was a pretty fun afternoon. My cousin Rachel and I played her new Nintendo DS game-Mario Party-pretty sweet.
At around two in the afternoon everyone left, and my family dressed in our maroon and gold and headed for the cities. My dad went to school for two years at the U of M (before switching to the U of Wisconsin), so he gave me a little tour of the campus. He has wanted me to go there for a long time, and I've always just said, "We'll see, I want to look at other schools first," but when I was actually there on campus, I absolutely loved it. Not only was the campus beautiful, but it was just a really great atmosphere. I don't know if I'll go there for sure-but it seemed a better fit for me than the other schools I've looked at.
After the tour, we headed to Williams Arena to attend the Gopher/Penn State volleyball game. Penn State completely destroyed us, but it was still an enjoyable game. I was watching the pep band, and decided that the saxophones never appeared to be having any fun-it was the brass that was dancing and everything. If I go to the U of M, I'll definitely have to change that.
Some things you should know about me (the never-ending list)
1. I love anything to do with the Romanov family. Partly because their story is so tragic, partly because my own great-grandmother fled Russia during the revolution that brought about the deaths of the Romanovs-I guess I feel a connection to them or something.
2. I am a horrible dancer. Like, the worst in the world.
3. My room is retro-themed. Turquiouse walls, neon lights, posters of Elvis and the Beatles. I love it. I don't know what I'll do when I go off to college and have to live in a boring white dorm.
Sunday, October 5, 2008
My abiding love for Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid
If you haven't seen Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid, PLEASE go watch it! I realize that it's a western, and that some people have problems with westerns, but it's such a good movie. It combines four things I love very much:
1. Paul Newman
2. Robert Redford
3. Comedy
and
4. Strange, upbeat 60's music
It's especially relevent right now after the death of Paul Newman, who was such a great guy, and one of my favorite actors.
Holly's favorite actors (in no particular order):
1. Paul Newman
2. James McAvoy
3. Henry Fonda
4. Gregory Peck
5. Robert Redford
6. Heath Ledger
7. Can't think of any more, though I know I do have more favorites. That's the thing about lists-you have to make them gradually, or you won't remember things. Or maybe it's just my age catching up to me.
1. Paul Newman
2. Robert Redford
3. Comedy
and
4. Strange, upbeat 60's music
It's especially relevent right now after the death of Paul Newman, who was such a great guy, and one of my favorite actors.
Holly's favorite actors (in no particular order):
1. Paul Newman
2. James McAvoy
3. Henry Fonda
4. Gregory Peck
5. Robert Redford
6. Heath Ledger
7. Can't think of any more, though I know I do have more favorites. That's the thing about lists-you have to make them gradually, or you won't remember things. Or maybe it's just my age catching up to me.
Thursday, October 2, 2008
Frankenstein meets The Beach Boys
Two main things going on in my life right now:
1. Practice for the homecoming half-time marching band show (theme is Beach Boys)
and
2. Trying desperately to finish reading Frankenstein for Monday (I have about 92 pages left, so I'm pretty optimistic).
I don't have a lot to say tonight, except that I don't think I've ever been this busy in my entire life, but I'm not to the point yet where I'm too stressed to enjoy things-I'm definitely having fun. After, all, it's senior year. Shouldn't I be doing all the things I haven't gotten a chance to do in 9th, 10th, and 11th grade?
1. Practice for the homecoming half-time marching band show (theme is Beach Boys)
and
2. Trying desperately to finish reading Frankenstein for Monday (I have about 92 pages left, so I'm pretty optimistic).
I don't have a lot to say tonight, except that I don't think I've ever been this busy in my entire life, but I'm not to the point yet where I'm too stressed to enjoy things-I'm definitely having fun. After, all, it's senior year. Shouldn't I be doing all the things I haven't gotten a chance to do in 9th, 10th, and 11th grade?
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