Happy birthday to mee!

All riight!! I'm thirteen, I am I am! And I have pictures, too!

Okay, I need to tell a little story before I can show you the pictures. There was this huuge, beaauuutiful red pine right beside our driveway. My uncle and the builders of the house all wanted to chop it down, because they thought it was "annoying", and it would be easy to drive into. My mom fought to keep it in place... it really was gorgeous. After a bit of negotiating, and plain facts such as "it's my house, it's staying," the guys gave up, and we kept the tree.

So, we go on trips, we stay home, we walk in the park, we live our lives. Slowly, we're seeing all of these... these holes in the tree. A stupid woodpecker is trying to eat away our beloved tree!! So, our lovely tree began dying away at the beak of the woodpecker. Eventually, it's looking done-with, and pretty dead. We decide to saw it down...

After it was down and my dad sawed it into several different pieces (actually, I was recently informed that it wasn't my dad, but The-Picture-Shirt-Giver's (Karin's) husband, John!), we all decided they would be great to have as stools, and to paint! I have a bunch of pictures of us painting them. Yesterday was when I was painting, and I put the finishing on today.

My dad's:

Kyra's:

I don't have a direct picture of mine or my mom's yet, but we will soon. Alec kindly declined the offer of making one himself, but he said he's fine with us making one for him. I think we're going to do that tomorrow.

Okay, more birthday pictures!!

The fairy drawing Kyra made for me!

A bit closer

And of course, I didn't forget The Picture Shirt!!

I also got to watch Blades of Glory tonight, with everyone. And after that, the Star Wars Family Guy episode!! I hope everyone else had as good a day as mee.

Thirteen, Flirteen', and Thriveen'!

(To all those who haven't seen it/can't remember, that quote above is a joke on 13 Going on 30's "Thirty, Flirty, and Thriving"... and specifically to anyone who hasn't seen it, go watch it!)


Happy birthday to me (Cha-cha-cha) happy birthday to me, (Cha-cha-cha)

Happy birthday dear Abbiiii...

Happy birthday to me!

That's right, I'm officially a teen now! Who knows how old that makes my mind, now?? Maybe if we count in dog years, or cat years, or... parakeet years? (Let's not go with the parakeet thing... I don't think that would improve my own self-image by a whole lot...)

Well, anyway. I'll probably be making another birthday post today or tomorrow, with pictures!! Well, love you all! See ya!

La Picture Shirt

I have found that in all of my pictures, in all of the posts, that are visible on the first page right now, I am wearing the same shirt. All of them. Even the profile picture! And, coincidentally, I am also wearing it right now.

As it happens, this spectacular shirt was given to me by Karen Buxcel! Thanks to her, I can now strut around in my newly dubbed Picture Shirt. When I wear it, people just can't not take pictures of me. Ain't that just dandy? Thanks, Karen!!



And there it is! (You can even see the Blogger page where I'm typing this post out in the background!)

I could say I have no friends. I could say everyone shuns me and talks about me behind my back. But it would be a lie. It's an illusion! And it's Minnesota's fault. But it's truth, I'm lost here. Where we live, I have no friends. Where I am now, no one understands Unschooling.

I have friends, and I love them all. But they're somewhere else. "Small world," everyone always says. It isn't when you're all the way up here. Maybe if I was more willing to drive six to forty hours every time I have the urge to see a friend, then it wouldn't be so bad. Maybe if everyone lived a little closer, the world would seem smaller. Maybe if we didn't feel so rooted to Minnesota, to this house, everything would be better.

Maybe it's time for that change. I'm sick and tired of no one understanding. Of clique-y school girls not returning my sister's phone calls. Of School mothers who don't let their children spend more than 49 minutes at that weird home-schooler's place.

I think this is all we need. One decision. One final reason to put our foot down. We'll pick our stuff up and move. Buy an RV. Do something! Something other than hanging out here, in the smack-dab middle of No Where.

The Future As We Made It

This poem is mainly about the creation of the planet, and how we're slowing killing off what we were given.

The Future As We Made It

There's purple, there's green
There's faint, there's sheen
There's darkness, there's light
But in the end, it's all just black and white

The earth was created
The public all paraded
The ego was pronounced
The disagreements were announced

The evil was invented
True nature was prevented
So much for a peaceful park
The light became the dark

They can't just get along
In a place they all belong
They trash the world they love
It's a painful thread they wove

The trees died away
People started to pray
It was time for them to pay
When it stops, no one could say

Pity for them, this is how it came,
Pity for them, it's all going to shame
Pity for us, this is what they made
Pity for us, in one blatant shade

There's purple, there's green
There's faint, there's sheen
There's darkness, there's light
But in the end,
There has to be more than just black and white

Wowowow!

The title says it all! Okay, so last night I fell asleep watching Chocolat with mom, dad and Kyra (at least, until they booted me out sayin' they need sleep, haha), and when I woke up I finished it with Kyra (I was up early enough to say g'night to Alec, too!). So most of the day so far Sir Johnny Depp has been in my mind.




And when it's that hunk, whose mind isn't he on?

So, after drooling over him for half the day, I take my shower, and my mom reminds we have another movie that we need to watch... one that we got yesterday, by my awesome dad.







Thaat's right! We got it! So instead of Johnny Depp, I got to fantasize over another hunk (or both, y'know, I'm a girl... I can multi-ogle)







My dreamy-eyed Sir Guy of Gisborne!! Oh, and after watching the first episodes of Robin Hood, I'm reminded how terrible he is... after only three episodes, I've lost count of how many people he's murdered.

But when he's got eyes like that, that cute smile and pretty hair, and the tolerance to wear black leather in Hungary at 80 degrees... I forgive him.

All right, so...

♥ Johnny Depp ♥

♥ ♥ Richard Armitage ♥ ♥

♥ ♥ ♥ Robin Hood season one ♥ ♥ ♥


Life, my friends, is GOOD!

A Different Life - Poem

Well, here's another poem about another depressing subject about another person not satisfied with their life. I'm actually kind of embarrassed that I find inspiration in this sort of thing, I mean-- the life I lead is amazing! Filled with happiness and joy! Maybe, just maybe, I find inspiration in this unknown. I write about things I have never experienced, and thus I am curious to write about it?

Curiosity, fear, and inspiration of the unknown!

And without further ado...

A Different Life

Trapped, I'm trapped
Within the confinements of this maze
Solitude, no escape,
Sanity is becoming a haze

Overturning every rock
Every glance, I find a lock,
I'll search until I am long gone,
So no longer, I will be a pawn

I'm running through this endless tunnel,
It's getting smaller - harder - like a funnel
The darkness is slowly pressing in,
The silence is overwhelming; I hear the dropping of a pin

Passageways are left and right,
I doubt I will survive this night
I'm losing my whim, my will,
But I'm still sane enough not to kill

Madness is threatening,
Giving me a taste of freedom;
To leave this life,
To be redone.

The stars above should lead the way,
But they shift in place, secrets they will not relay
Should I beg? Worthy to plead?
I'm desperate enough to bleed

Take me out of this cold, brutal night,
Just take me away, I won't even fight
I want to be relieved, I want a new heart
A new cast and crew; given a different part

This Goddess is so unforgiving,
This is a life not worth living!
My haze of sanity is no more...
...I'm left with me, a soul that has tore

More cooking!

Uh-oh, what's Abbi up to now...? Judging from the mess she's left behind this time...




COOKIEESS!!


Yeah, unfortunately, when I was done putting these perfect scoops on the pan, I realized I forgot to put Crisco across it!! So, I had to pick 'em all up, and lay 'em across the counter...


...while I Crisco'd the darn pan.


And there it is!!


It's the damned Crisco!! Oh, how I loathe you so. It's almost as scary as those creepy eggplants!


And voila! Le finished project!


Beautiful. I have many more, but this is all that I had finished at the time. I have so many, I fill up almost two jars to the brim!


Enjoying the creation.



I made these cookies for those certain guests that're plannin' to show their faces here, around 6! Can't wait to see you guys, and Happy Birthday Hayden!!

My French Camp Experience (Part 3)

Wow, I'm on a writing spree, no?

French meals... amazing. Truly and utterly spectacular. A friend of mine (Sophie, the girl I have a picture with in Part 2) had been talking about what it was like at Italian camp. Apparently she didn't like the food very much... she kept mentioning how the more and more meals she ate there, the more she was missing ramen, chicken noodle soup, macaroni & cheese, and subway.

Quite the opposite for me, when I was there at French camp. The more French food I ate, the more difficult it would be for me to grasp the idea of returning to chicken noodle soup again, or store-bought baguettes.

I would miss all of the food I had there! La mousse des chocolat (chocolate mousse), le poulet (chicken), le porc (beef), la pommes de Français (French apples, pshyeah), la mousse des fraise (strawberry mousse), la fraise bonbon (strawberry bonbon; French candy)... I'll miss all of it, EXCEPT........

...le poisson. Le poisson est du poison!

Ah yes, the evil poisson. Le poisson est "fish" en Anglais. Yes, French fish is awful!! One of the most frequently used phrases at French camp (excluding "Merci," "salut," et cetera) would be "Je deteste le poisson!" I know I shouldn't laugh, but what was always funny for the bit more experienced French-a-iers, was hearing people say "J'ai suis deteste le poisson!" That would mean, instead of "I hate fish," "I have am hate fish." Heehee...

Meals were so long, too! I mean, that should only be expected at French camp, but really. Don't get me wrong, I'm not complaining, because I'm fine with it, but they're sometimes so long, I would have to go to the bathroom two times, while everyone's still eating! I guess it elongates the dinners when there are announcements afterwards, and such.

Oh! Speaking of announcements, I said I was going to explain the pin-thing on one of the parts. I might as well here.

Well, as one of the games that all of Lac du Bois plays, it's called "Mono mystérieux". About three Counselors (or 'monos') are chosen every day to be the "mystère" Counselor, in secret. (Mystère means "mystery," and mystérieux means "mysterious") Those "mystère" counselors would secretly watch around, and see who spoke a lot of French. At the end of the day, after dinner and during the evening announcements, we would all play a really cheesy game with a detective, trying reveal who the mystère monos were that day.

Once the detective found the mono, they would give hints about one person they thought spoke a lot of French, and eventually they would scream their name, and they would run up between the tables to get a little pin, that said that they spoke a lot of French! It was a real honor to get one of those pins; only a handful of the camp got them throughout two weeks.

I was one of them!! It's kind of funny, it happened to me on the very last day, and the exact way I had always imagined.

To be fancy at the last day, all of the tables had little pretty candles on them. One of our wilder and crazier friends was even more of a pyromaniac than I! (And that's sayin' somethin'!) The difference between she and I, is I have common sense and reasoning. She would light a napkin on fire to see what would happen, and all of the Counselors would have to run over here and put it out, then they'd scold her in French, and she'd say it was worth it.

Anyway. All of the candles were blown out, because we didn't trust her (Katia is her name) with the fires being lit. So to entertain ourselves, she and I were both digging candle wax out of the candle-holder, and rolling it into stuff! Snakes, little balls, squares, flat-things... I gotta say, it was pretty darn fun. She and I were giggling, and then trying to pick the wax that got stuck in our fingernails out, and working the dents out of our wax-creations, when suddenly I heard...

"Giséle!!"

I looked up, and had a really stupid "huh?" expression on my face, as the detective was scanning the rows of kids for where this Giséle-person was. I looked over at Jackie (a good friend of mine from my cabin) and asked her if they were talking about me... she replied "No, the other Giséle that has blonde hair, brown glasses, loves chocolate mousse, and is a first-year at the Language Villages. Now get up there!!"

Next think I knew I was walkin' up between the tables to get a little pin that said I spoke a lot of French, from my Lac du Bois dinner mama', Amiko! (I'll explain families later, too) And now I have a pin! Here's a picture of it:



It's the blue pin attached to the top; it's a bit blurry, but it says "Agent Secret {{star picture}} Spécialiste en français". Hee. :)


Well, let's see... what more do I have to say before I conclude this part 3? ...eehhh... nothin' is coming to mind. I hope this doesn't end up being a 10-part story. Oh well, doesn't matter that much if it does, anyway. It could be!

That's all for now. Bye-bye!

My French Camp Experience (Part 2)

I learned so many dances while at French camp! I don't know why, but I did. But if you're looking for something mind-boggling... why in the world did they teach an Indian song? Or Romanian?? We learned (and this is my favorite) the "Tanuk Tanuk Tun" dance! Otherwise known as the Male-Draenei dance, for those who play World of Warcraft. It is in fact, originated from India. Here's the video:



We also learned "Dragostea Din Tei", also known as "The Numa Numa" song, which is Romanian!! Oh well, I'm glad that we got a variety of different songs and dances. Obviously the majority of the dances were French. My favorite (and the most popular in general) French song/dance was "La Baloncé". I'm not sure if that's how it's spelt, but it's how it's pronounced.




Here's a picture of me doing it at the Closing Ceremony:




Unfortunately I don't have any pictures of any other dances. Kyra's planning on doing the Tanuk Tanuk Tun song at the Unschooling Conference Talent Show though, so if any Unschoolers (that are goin' to L&L) are wanting to see how it's done, check 'er out!

Moi et Morgane!

Left to right: Odessa, Giséle (moi), Fatou!

Segoléne (REALLY cool gal), me!

And last but not least, Sophie (a girl from my cabin) and me!

This is Paris, where we ate our meals, and I took French Poetry (not quite as cool as it sounds...) It's also the only place with fans and some-what-working air conditioners.



As far as the first and second Activités go, you're sorted into them two ways. Y'know how I said you have two Activités in a day? Well, the first one you choose at the beginning of each week. You're given a sheet of paper with eight different Activités, and you are given the choice of which one you want. The way you do this, is you write three preferences. The first you want to do you write "1," second "2," third "3". Pretty simple, so if you don't get the first one you want, you get the second or third. Whichever you are put into, that is Activité 1, which you go to after cleaning and singing (those two are after breakfast).

After the first week, you get to change your first Activité. You get a new sheet, with new and different Activités, and you're given three more preferences choices to spend.

Well as my first preference in my first week, I chose 1: Poetry, 2: Cooking, and 3: Filming. I got Poetry... which... wasn't fun. My advice to anyone who ends up going to Lac du Bois, make sure that your experience in French is more than .1, if you want to sign up for Poetry... it's not a great way to start your French-learning experience.

Oh, and I'll also point out. I explained Activité 1, but not 2. The second Activité of the day is completely random; one of the other seven that you didn't land on, that were originally on the list. So overall, you get to do everything! The first Activité is plainly so you get to do more of what you want.

Anyway. The second week was much better! I got a taste of Poetry, and I knew I didn't want it. I got new preferences! 1: Cooking (it looked so fun... unfortunately, EVERYONE wanted to do it, so it was a slim chance for everyone else) 2: Fencing (yes, fencing, with swords. How cool is that?) 3: Graffiti.

I figured, this would be cool. I wasn't desperate for cooking, or fencing, or Graffiti. So whatever I landed with would be good.

I got graffiti! The graffiti instructor's name is Anthony (pronounced "Ant'ony"). He was really nice to us all. I seemed to have a natural talent for graffiti-ing! I had already picked up my own style of disfigured-letters! The first how-many-classes, you're just drawing whatever word or name you want (a name can be anything obviously, but the word must be in French). This way, you are practicing your letter-disfigurements. It felt like downtime for me, because I was just drawing. It was great... an Activité without the normal pressure of... everything.

At the end of the second week, everyone submitted one of the artistries that they drew, and that would be made into a banner, which would be hung in Paris! Once all the drawings were chosen, everyone voted. Mine got chosen, hee!

And here is the finishing project:

I'm really proud of it.

Once again, I find that I have written away another hour, of another day! I'll close this off as the end of Part 2, and I'll write more later.

Au revoir!

My French Camp Experience (Part 1)

Okay, I know, I've been neglecting my blog. Well if you're expecting my first (or second, I guess, if you're including my Armitage one) post to be in French, you had better forget it! Geez, camp was... well, I would like to say it was hard, but only in a perspective.

It's hard if you're expecting to understand EVERYTHING that's going on around you. It's pretty easy if you smile and nod every time someone speaks to you in French. I hate it when people expect me to do that... I would see one of my friends listening to a mono (counselor) speaking to them in French, presumably explaining something to them. They were nodding and saying stuff like, "Okay," "yeah," "I get it," "thanks," "I'll try to do that," et cetera. Then she would walk back to us (me and other friends) and I ask her what that was all about? What was the counselor explaining? Her reply: "No clue. What's for lunch?"

I've always been one to non-stop attempt to understand what someone is sayin' to me. I'll keep guessing and guessing and guessing, until I get it! Sometimes I got the feeling that I was bugging some of the counselors when I didn't get it... I have the tendency to expect people to keep trying until I got it. A lot of people were nice that way, and they would continually help me as far as understanding goes, but some other people... "c'est bon, c'est bon," waving their hands dismissively if I didn't get it. "Decour? Decour. Salut!" Ugh.

Well, I'll explain my schedule (which everyone has taped on the back of their name tags): Oh but before I elaborate, let me point out, that this isn't an exact translation, only what I know it to be. Sometimes I'll know the literal translation (which I'll point out) but if I don't, you'll have to look it up in a French dictionary (I always had one on me at camp!):

8h00 Réveil - Wake up
8h30 Petit déjeuner - Literal translation: small lunch, AKA Breakfast
9h15 Nettoyage/Réunion de staff - Cleaning up/Meeting for the counselors
9h45 Chansons (à l'amphi) - Singing songs
10h15 Activité de loisir 1 - First activity!
11h15 Goûter - Snack
11h30 Grande Odyssée/Odyssée/Cours - You heard it! "Grande" Odyssée for t'weekers (two-weekers)
12h45 Présentation du repas - A little play that the counselors put on.
13h00 Déjeuner - Literal translation: Lunch!
13h50 Annonces du temps libre - Announcing what areas/activities will be available during free time
14h00 Sieste/courrier - Quiet-time for the t'weekers (where we take naps or write letters) and "courrier" for the monthers (for further explanation on "courrier," ask Scotty!)
15h00 Course magnifique/Cours électif - Leaning about the course magnifique for t'weekers, "cours électif" for monthers.
15h30 Pause pour les 2 semaines - Fifteen minute break!
15h45 Activité de loisir 2/Portfolio - Activity 2 for t'weekers, portfolio for monthers.
16h30 Temps libre - FREE TIME!! The ONLY time you can buy anything, too
17h30 Odyssée/Cours - Odyssée for t'weekers, and Cours for monthers.
18h20 Plaisirs d'amour - ...no clue. Sorry, I'm racking my brain and I cannot think of what I did at that time. The translation is "Pleasure of love" or "love pleasure"... and I know I didn't do anything sexual while at camp.
18h45 Présentation du repas - Another skit!
19h00 Dîner - Literal translation: Dinner!
20h00 Pause - A few announcements, and a handing out of awards to those who speak a lot of French (I'll go into deeper detail about that soon)
20h15 Veillée - An after-dinner activity with the whole camp
21h15 Feu de camp - Goin' back to le pavillon (cabin) to sleep

Wow, now that I look at it, my schedule is a lot longer than it is on my name tag.

Well I would like to point something out before I elaborate on anything else. It says that people wake up at 8:00AM? Well, I always woke up at 7:30AM to take a shower. Just gettin' that out of the way.

I have to ask. What in the world is wrong with the USA? WHY do we have "AM" and "PM"? Why do we go up to 12 twice, instead of 24 once? The rest of the world is doin' it! Yeah, the rest of the world also goes to school and listens to their elders and everything, I know... but changing from a more reasonable, sensible, and simple way of telling time to AM and PM just complicated everything, and made it harder for other people to understand the time if they were to go to another country. Thanks a lot, whoever thought that up.


I really didn't like the Activités, unfortunately. They were all really boring, and unlike Odyssée, they (the counselors) would babble in French, and expect everyone to understand. And when we didn't, they might get a little irritated, but just blow it off... then we'd play a really easy and boring game. Sometimes we'd even play it in English, for the Counselor's benefit (a few of the counselors don't speak English very well, as it turns out).

It's sad how, even here at Lac du Bois, where people are paying to get in, almost half of the kids still don't want to be here. They'd constantly be complaining about being there, and being away from their computer, and MySpace, and their iPod, and their dog, and their friends, and--... geez. I ask them "Why are you here?!" They reply, "My dad thought it would be cool if I could speak French," or "my aunt teaches French, and my mom wants me to speak it with her," et cetera. All of the sad "they wanted me to" stories.

Anyway. My favorite counselors were Odessa, Morgane, and Anaiis!! They're great, I love 'em so much. Morgane and Anaiis were my first Odyssée teachers. Unfortunately, as I mentioned before, some of those people who don't want to be here or learn French, or put any effort into learning it at all... a handful of those people were in my Odyssée class. (Odyssée classes were sorted by language experience and level.) A lot of the kids (if not all) didn't know French. Including me, of course, but my willingness to learn and endless effort came to my advantage. Sometimes, while everyone would be practicing how to say "salad" (with is "salade" by the way, big yippie there) one of the teachers would step away to explain grammar and speech with me! About separate stuff, not salads.

Most of the time we would be speaking of negations, and "which word is masculine, which is feminine?" It may sound kind of boring or simple, but I learned a lot from them, especially with the masculine and feminine. The nouns are always masculine or feminine, but some adjectives change, depending on which noun they're describing. Sometimes they're neutral! I found that really interesting, how nouns are the superior and reigning word, while the adjectives will change their spelling and pronunciation depending on which noun it is! Then my Odyssée class switched, and... well, I was used to the amazing classes, and the new ones were just as bad as the le Activité.


Okay, I've typed a lot so far today, so I think I'll cut it off as the End of Part 1. I'll tell more about it later! See ya!

The Armitage and I

My most recent obsession (Richard Armitage)



Star in Your Own JibJab! It's Free!

Richard Armitage plays Sir Guy of Gisborne, the "Sadistic Lieutenant", right-hand-man to the Sheriff of Nottingham in the popular BBC TV show Robin Hood. There's a better picture of him here:



Him and his sexy perma-scowl...

Oh, to everyone and anyone! I highly recommend the BBC Robin Hood; it's very, veery good... you can find it on Netflix here, and on IMDb here. The only warning is this: HIGHLY ADDICTIVE. Currently only the first season is available, and the second season is in the making. It'll be aired in Europe this October, but who knows when it'll come to the U.S., or even on video to rent...we (my family and I) will have to wait practically a YEAR until we're capable of seeing the second season. Oh, the horror!

And if you're a fan of romantic/drama period films, I very highly recommend another Richard Armitage movie: North and South. (Nextflix, and IMDb) And, you can watch it for FREE at Netflix Instant Watch! (No, I'm not advising or suggesting that you give away your email, your last name, your zip code, your address, your bank code, or your social security number. This is free.) You can find that link here. You can watch the WHOLE series (which is a little about three and a half hours) right here. Veeery good watch. I loved it. Richard is a bit more gentleman like in that movie, but tough and... well, kind've mean. But misunderstood, and sweet, and lovable, and sexy, and-- *swoons*

Okay, that's all I have to say for now.

Oh, and as you all may have guessed...

I'M BACK FROM FRENCH CAMP!!

I'll write more later. Bye!

Camp! French! French Camp!

Ooh-la-la! I am leaving to go to French Camp tomorrow!! Excited. Nervous. All new people, all new experiences, all new foods, all new games, all new words... for two weeks!! Eeeek. Scary... I've been pondering my "two week" decision for the last few days. Wouldn't one week be a bit better for a beginner, like moi? Ehh... It'll be okay. It'll be fun. I'll be okay. I'll have fun.

If I just keep telling myself that, everything'll be fiine...

*Twitchtwitch*

Some of my drawings

Here are a few pieces of my anime-type drawings (I've chosen my favorites). Nina is my most recent one.

Nina

Nameless Woman

Mimi

Graph

Okay. Time for some WoW talk. I'm gettin' low on money! Oh noes! What'll I do?! I ask Alec. "What do you think I could do to make some money on WoW?" He tells me that a lot of people farm (search around, hunt for) Primal Fire, and then sell it to make a profit.

Here's your WoW lesson for the day... when you kill an Elemental (type of monster) it has a chance of dropping its own element, in a Mote. A mote is an item. I can kill a bunch of Fire Elementals, with a chance of Mote of Fire's to drop (when you kill a monster, you can right-click their corpse to get stuff from 'em). Once you get ten Motes, you can right-click the motes, and turn them into one Primal Fire. That's what sells for a lot. Anyway, back to my story.

He tells me a lot of people farm for Primal Fires (well, Motes, then turn them into Primal Fires) and then sell them on the Auction House. (The Auction House is a... well, an Auction! It's run completely by other WoW players. If you find something when you're killing stuff, and you want to sell it, you can put it up for Auction. You can put a Buyout - which means that people can buy it instantly for that price - or you could put it up for people to bid on. Normally I put Buyout, 'cause that's easier and faster.)

He tells me Primal Fire sells for the most, currently. By the way, like in real life, the prices depend on how much other people put the items up for. Supply and Demand.

There are a buunch of Primal-whatevers that anyone can get. Primal Fire, Primal Water, Primal Air, Primal Earth, Primal Shadow, Primal Life, and Primal Mana. I think that's all. You can also get Primal Might, but that's another story.

Hmm. I wonder. Is it true that Primal Fire sells for the most? Let's look!

I check out the Auction House, by typing in the Search, "Primal Fire". (For all those wondering on the time frame, right now in the story, it's yesterday.) Currently, the Primal Fires are selling for 25 Gold! That's pretty good. I just need four of 'em to get 100 Gold. That's *really* good. But is it still as much as everything else? Hmmm.

I put in the Search "Primal Air". WHOA! Primal Air is selling for 28 Gold! Yes, not THAT much more than Primal Fire, but when you're selling a lot at a time, it adds up.

All right, 25 Gold for Fire, and 28 Gold for Air. I wonder...

I put in the Search "Primal Water". That's sellin' for 25 Gold, 50 Silver! (Okay, another WoW lesson. It takes one hundred Copper to become a Silver, and one hundred Silver to become a Gold. You can have all the gold ya want.) So in other words, that's half a gold more than Primal Fire.

And here Alec had said that Primal Fire sells for the most... psh... both Primal Air and Primal Water is selling for more. Big whoop.

And with that, I shall begin my scheming... if I could get a bunch of Primal Airs, and then sell them, I'd be rich before I know it! Perrrfeect.

Wait. It's 11PM. Bah, let's go to bed.

~Next Day~

I wake up at 9AM, and rush downstairs to check the prices on the Primal Air, Fire, and Water.

WHAAAT?! My jaw drops to the floor.

Primal Air dropped 7 Gold, Primal Water dropped 8 1/2 Gold, and Primal Fire-- Primal Fire dropped half a gold... bah. All of my plans! All the money is gone!! Who the hell would put all that stuff for so low, when they could have made SO MUCH MONEY?! Oi vey!

Time to go, I decide. I leave. I eat. I go back a few hours later.

Whoa! Prices shot up again! How did this happen so fast?! It's down. It's up. It's down. It's up. Supply and Demand, baby! It all sells for much much more when people are awake, compared to when they're asleep.

Since the prices were changing so quickly (and drastically!), I decided, I'll make a graph of it! Which seems to support itself more?

Here it is:



Here are the color codes:

Red = Fire
Green = Air
Blue = Water
[Number]g, means "[Number] Gold"

Primal Air and Fire seem to be doin' pretty good, while Water is only goin' downhill. Geez, this is so confusing. I guess I'll just have to get both! ;)

(P.S. This is graph of the last five hours)

Fever

Oh, I forgot to add, yesterday. When I was on the trip, I finished Harry Potter pretty quick, so on the trip back, I was Harry Potter-less! So, I began reading a book called Fever 1793, by Laurie Halse Anderson (Author of Speak). Truthfully, the only reason I picked up Fever, was because of the cover-book picture... it looked so creepy, that I needed to check it out. (You can see the picture if you click on the link in "Fever 1793"). I learned it's about the yellow fever in '93, that killed off thousands of people. Me, having been interested in the Black Plague that happened so many years ago, thought this would be a fascinating book to get.

It was! It was a really amazing book. Being this one of the first books I read that wasn't by Janet Evanovich, who favors comedy, it was really hard for me to deal with the death of one of my favorite characters. I recommend it to everyone.

It also perked up my interest in the Yellow Fever that took place way back when. It was said that if you had it, you would be an outcast to everyone. You would be thrown out of the house by your own family, out of fear that they would catch it as well. You wouldn't be allowed into other cities. People treated you like you were a stray dog. Few wanted to be near you at all. The disease would most likely kill you within a few days of catching it. Few lived. I'm only reading the case that had happened in Jamestown, though... Yellow Fever is known to still be around.

"In the US: The last epidemic of yellow fever in North America occurred in New Orleans in 1905 during which more than 3000 cases were met with 452 deaths."

"Internationally: Yellow fever transmission predominately occurs in areas of sub-Saharan Africa and South America 15° north and 10° south of the equator. It has never been documented in Asia. Yellow fever epidemics were dominant in Africa from 1986-1991, with close to 20,000 cases and 6000 deaths. This is considered to be grossly underestimated because of underreporting. These epidemics commonly include 30-1000 cases and have fatality ratios of 20-50%. In areas of West Africa, 200,000 endemic cases may occur annually. In South America, an annual mean of 100 cases has been reported for the last 25 years. These cases predominate from January to March among males aged 15- 45 years who work outdoors in agriculture and forestry. The last outbreak in the western hemisphere occurred in 1954 in Trinidad. Yellow fever's range continues to expand, now including areas in which it previously was believed to be eradicated (eg, eastern and southern African countries)."

Can you imagine living in one of those areas...? It's scary for me to think about.

"Mortality/Morbidity: Yellow fever ranges in severity from a self-limited infection to hemorrhagic fever that carries a 50% mortality rate. Fatality rates are higher in the young. Early appearance of jaundice (day 3) indicates a poor prognosis. Transaminase elevations reflect the degree of hepatic injury and are prognostic. Individuals who survive the toxic phase may experience renal failure. Convalescence with symptoms of weakness and fatigue may last up to 3 months."

"Pathophysiology: The pathophysiology of yellow fever infection was largely inferred from vaccine studies in rhesus monkeys using the attenuated 17D vaccine. After inoculation in rhesus monkeys, the virus replicated initially in local lymph nodes, followed by blood-borne spread and subsequent replication mostly occurring in regional lymph tissue, spleen, and bone marrow followed by the liver, lung, and adrenal glands.

The liver and kidneys demonstrate the greatest degree of pathologic changes. Hemorrhage and erosion of the gastric mucosa lead to hematemesis popularly known as "black vomit." Hepatocellular damage is characterized by lobular necrosis with the subsequent formation of Councilman bodies. Albuminuria and renal insufficiency evolve secondary to the prerenal component of yellow fever, ultimately leading to acute tubular necrosis with advanced disease. Fatty infiltration of the myocardium, including the conduction system, can lead to myocarditis and arrhythmias."

Again, it scares me to think about. As I read in Fever, it said that if you threw up this black blood, that was the sign of Yellow Fever, and you were shunned by the community. You were to tie yellow flags around your door, indicating you had a Yellow Fever patient inside. Doctors rarely felt they wanted to treat those with Yellow Fever, out of fear they may catch it themselves. Most still continued their jobs, if they hadn't already fleed the infested town.

I'm currently unsure as to when the date of the first Yellow Fever took place. In Fever 1793, it says that it happened fifty years ago, which would place it around 1740's. In a Yellow Fever article, I just read, it says "Yellow fever was first recognized in an outbreak occurring in the New World in 1648." But if that was the truth, it would make the book off by a hundred years. Seeing as this book has been published everywhere with the number "1793,"and the article only said it happened in 1648 once, I'm assuming the book is right. But then the author could have changed it a bit to better fit her book. I'm not sure which to trust, so you'll have to do a little history lesson yourself if you want to find out for sure.

Wow. Who would have thought fatal diseases would interest me so much? Oh well. Time to read up on Malaria!

Top 20 Most Broken Rules

I know several of you read my mom's blog, but even so, I found this just too hilarious to not post on my own.

A quick and quirky ‘Top 20′ list of the most common rules broken in the English Language.

1. Verbs has to agree with their subjects.
2. Prepositions are not words to end sentences with.
3. And don’t start a sentence with a conjuction.
4. It is wrong to ever split an infinitive.
5. Avoid cliches like the plague.
6. Also, always avoid annoying alliteration.
7. Be more or less specific.
8. Parenthetical remarks (however relevant) are (usually) unnecessary.
9. No sentence fragments.
10. Contractions aren’t necessary and shouldn’t be used.
11. One should never generalise.
12. Don’t use no double negatives.
13. Eschew ampersands & abbreviations, etc.
14. Eliminate commas, that are, not necessary.
15. Never use big words when a diminutive one would suffice.
16. Kill all exclamation marks!!!!
17. Use all words correctly, irregardless of how others use them.
18. Use the apostrophe in it’s proper place and omit it when its not needed.
19. Puns are for children, not groan readers.
20. Proofread carefully to see if you any words out.

Ohh, geez, this list cracks me up so much!! As I said before, I've been see as a Grammar Nazi (Along side Kelly ;) ) yet even I break many of these rules!

Harry Potter reading spree

I want to announce to everyone that I never read, but that would be a lie... counting the millions of key-written things I've read over the internet, seen in RPing. What with the WoW-inspired poems, WoW-inspired stories, and WoW-inspired RPing that has gone on for months on end, I read all the time. But if you're counting real, published books, I've only read about twenty. As I said in a past blog (which time I had been practically bursting at the seams because I wanted to go into my Harry Potter week so bad), I only really read on trips. That includes car trips, and plane trips, where I am left with nothing else to do. Such a habit changed as soon as I was on my trip in Washington D.C. with my mom, dad, Alec, Kyra, grandparents, uncle, and his two sons (read in my mom's blog (www.ourjoyfullife.blogspot.com) for further information on said trip). We had been watching TV when we saw they were interviewing J.K. Rowling on her new, and last Harry Potter book, which will be released this July. My mom convinced me to try reading them, because they're "very good reads!"

My god. I read through the first one so fast, and as soon as we got home, I got done with the second one in one read. Five hours straight. The third one I got done with just a few hours ago, and I plan on starting the fourth one soon. The more and more I read the books, the more and more I begin to dread and even hate the director of the Harry Potter MOVIES. I'll start naming the many errors they made in the movie. (P.S. These are some of my peeves... little details found in books, that they don't seem to bother adding in movies)

1. Dudley and Petunia Dursley are SUPPOSED to be BLONDE. Not brunette. Blonde. Other than that, I'd say they chose the actors quite well.


2. They don't even care to introduce Dudley's best friend (which would have been SIMPLE TO DO), Piers Polkiss. He's hanging out with Dudley at his birthday. Again, it would be easy for them to have just said "This is Dudley's friend, who is being invited to his birthday party." But no. They don't.


3. While watching the first and second movie (which I had seen before I read any of the books), Dumbledore was wise, and solemn. Always knowing what to do in whatever situation, in the most reasonable and practical fashion. I was furious when they had to hire a new actor (because the previous one died, rest his soul...), and this was one quirky! He was... weird! And careless! Once I began reading the real books, I found out something very strange...

...he was SUPPOSED to be that way! Here's a direct quote from the first book, Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone:

Albus Dumbledore had gotten to his feet. He was beaming at the students, his arms opened wide, as if nothing could have pleased him more than to see them all there.
"Welcome!" he said. "Welcome to a new year at Hogwarts! Before we begin our banquet, I would like to say a few words. And here they are: Nitwit! Blubber! Oddment! Tweak!
"Thank you!"
He sat back down. Everyone clapped and cheered. Harry didn't know whether to laugh or not.
"Is he -- a bit mad?" he asked Percy uncertainly.
"Mad?" said Percy airily. "He's a genius! Best wizard in the world! But he is a bit mad, yes. Potatoes, Harry?"

See? Quirky. And just to prove my point further, here's another quote.

Dumbledore gave his wand a little flick, as if he was trying to get a fly off the end, and a long golden ribbon flew out of it, which rose high above the tables and twisted itself, snakelike, into words.
"Everyone pick their favorite tune," said Dumbledore, "and off we go!"
And the school bellowed:

"Hogwarts, Hogwarts, Hoggy Warty Hogwarts,
Teach us something please,
Whether we be old and bald
Or young with scabby knees,
Our heads could do with filling
With some interesting stuff,
For now they're bare and full of air,
Dead flies and bits of fluff,
So teach us things worth knowing,
Bring back what we've forgot,
Just do your best, we'll do the rest,
And learn until our brains all rot."

"Ah, music," he said, wiping his eyes. "A magic beyond all we do here! And now, bedtime. Off you trot!"

I learned to love Dumbledore so much. He's great.


4. They don't have Lee Jordan (Fred and George Weasley's best friend) in the movie at all, except when he's commentating the Quidditch matches. He's a bigger part these books than the movie gives him credit for.


5. They hardly show the pompous and arrogance that's been leeching out into Percy in the movies! Being a Prefect and Head Boy has been getting to his head. The long and hard change that he's been going through in the books. Nothin' in the movies. Nada.


6. Hermione is more of a know-it-all than they let on in the movies.


7. Snape has a larger part in it all, too! They hardly show his back story in the movie. **NOTE, SLIGHT SPOILER COMING UP... skip if you haven't read the books, and want don't want the surprise spoiled by me**

They don't even mention why Snape loathes Harry so much in the movies... they say he was never on good terms with Harry's father, James, but they hardly go into detail when they say that Sirius had once played a trick on Snape, that nearly got him killed. If it weren't for James who saved his life, Snape might as well be dead!

**Tiny, insignificant spoiler over**


8. In the third MOVIE, when they left to see Hagrid in his hut to see how he's dealing with the Buckbeak incident, they go by daylight, and don't worry about the dementors at all. In the book, they enter by night, under the invisibility cloak! WHY did they change it that much? WHY couldn't they have just done it under cloak? Really, it wouldn't have been that hard for the director. It's as if he is doing this to intentionally aggrivate me.


9. In the third BOOK, they have an entire lawyer case for Hagrid when he was being sued for Buckbeak injuring Draco Malfoy. They go to court for it! Ron, Harry and Hermione all read up on the laws of Interesting Animals to find something that would help Hagrid out at the court date. Hagrid ends up losing the case, that's why they decided to behead Buckbeak. But in the movie, noo, it's just "You hurt Malfoy, so we're gonna cut off that hippogriff's head. Done deal." Oi! They left out that entire chunk! Ughhh.


I think I'm done rattling on for now, but only because it's pretty much the same thing over and over again, with other characters have been ignored by the director. Egh.

Oh! While reading the Harry Potter books, I was highly impressed with J.K. Rowling. I had spotted little to no spelling errors in the book, nor grammar errors! But I learned that no one is perfect. As I was reading further, a simple mistake shown clear to my eye. It was the very beginning of a chapter, the first word in the sentence. "Professorr McGonagall--"

Professerr? Professerrrr. Hah. Yes, I was already informed by mom that it could be the publisher's mistake, but it doesn't matter to me. All I know is that they made a mistake! Bwaha! No, I'm not evil, I just knew that it would be impossible for her to be impervious to the common mistake that is a spelling error. So nyeh.

That's all for now! Tee!


P.S. So far, I have only read up to the third book, so please don't make comments on this that may reveal anything that hasn't yet been said in these three books. Thanks muches!

More weird facts and habits!

I was tagged by Rue!

~~~Each player lists 8 facts/habits about themselves. The rules of the game are posted at the beginning before those facts/habits are listed. At the end of the post, the player then tags 8 people and posts their names, then goes to their blogs and leaves them a comment, letting them know that they have been tagged and asking them to read your blog.~~~


1. I have an obsession with my fingernails. I can't help it, I love them! They're so beautiful! When they get chipped, I often even it out with a file, hardly ever clipping them. When I do clip them, it's only because A) So many have broken off, and they're all difference sizes, B) They are way too long anyway, and have a creepy yellow tinge at the ends of them, or C) I feel abruptly dedicated to guitar/piano, and that it would be much easier for me to clip them than try to play with them. Yes, when I do clip them, they're never too short for my liking. I can still see the white of them, proving that they're successfully surpassing the skin that holds them to my fingertips. The last time one of my nails broke was while on my trip with my family (I'll be posting a blog about it later), and in Williamsburg. I cried when it happened; it broke into my skin. "It's a disaster!" I shouted between sobs, while other people could hardly keep a straight face, as their minds straying to Hurricane Katrina as I mention disasters. I can't blame them, my fingernails don't quite match up to hundreds to thousands dying. I was overreacting a bit... but I still love my nails too much to let them snap without a proper mourning session.

2. My feet are almost always purple. From my ankles down to my toes, purple. By my mom, I've been told this is unnatural! But, I mean, if my feet are doing it, it must be natural, right? I'm not dunking them in freezing water while she's not looking, and then pulling them out and showing them off, proclaiming they did it all by themselves. I sit at my computer, writing whatever (like right now, for instance), and my mom comes into the room, and tells me my feet are freezing! Purple in color! They've also turned out blazing red, in other circumstances. Mom says it's because of poor circulation in my feet, but I've come up with several theories as to why they do this. For instance; I believe that when I am cold, my feet sacrifice their own warmth for the rest of my body, thus causing them to have a purple, deathly appearance. And in the summer, my feet freely accept the heat from the rest of my body, causing them to be red! My feet are so brave, and selfless... I've been told this theory is complete ludicrous (telepathically or through body language, of course. I do not mingle with those of rude demeanor). I still hold my ground and will believe such, thank you very much!

3. If I happen to, perhaps, find myself staying up all night (more than likely Dev or Josh's fault, I assure you), once it has reached five AM, I have an unbearable urge to write. Whether it be a poem, or a story, I need to let it out. Normally this feeling disperses at around nine AM (if I've managed that long without passing out). It's odd, but that's when I have written most of my poems. Don't believe it? Look at the time of my past poem-posts, and tell me if the time they were written was between five and nine!

4. I often entertain myself with new things. Example: on WoW, killing things brutally cannot hold my interest as it does for Alec. To continue without getting bored, I'll often RP with my friends. Something new always seems to come up, as it does exploring life in the "real world"! If RPing has lost its original, flavorful luster, I'll make a new character. Just creating someone with new, unique features, and carrying their own individual background story will satisfy me. I'll make a name for them, decide if I want them to have a secret, dark past, or perhaps a lifelong goal. Maybe they're longing to venture out and explore the world, but are unable to because of their strict teachers which decides they must stay put and study harder on their Priestly courses, or feel less pity for the creatures they slay for their ruthless Warrior training. Anything will do! As I'm sure you have found, I have a writer's urge to come up with new ideas, and grow bored with the usual routine.

5. I only really read when I'm on trips. At least, I used to, while I'll get to later with another post. I would have never even read the beginning of my now-favorite book series (Stephanie Plum series, by Janet Evanovich) if my mom and dad wouldn't have declared we're heading up to Moorhead to visit some family members. I read several books while there, and when we got back, didn't pick up another one 'til we left once again. Terrible habit, terrible habit... thankfully I'm getting better with it, and have been reading much more frequently now that I've found another surge of inspiration. Once again, I'll get to that in a later post.

6. I'm random. It doesn't take a rocket scientist to find that one out, but since I'm running out of weird facts and habits, I decided to announce it here. Ask any of my friends, and they'll kindly assure you of this fact being true! I hold my head high, proud that I may carry such a title.

7. I have GIANT peeves over the TINIEST of things. For example: I've been given the title Spelling and Grammar Nazi, next to Kelly. Flattering and offensive, I know, but I concentrate more so on the flattering part. I correct people without thinking, when it comes to both spelling and their speech. I know I shouldn't, but I can't seem to help myself! Oh well. I'm sure people will love me anyway, or else they'll face my wra--... uhm. Nevermind. I'll talk more about my peeves in the post about Harry Potter.

8. I love cats. I love them with every inch of my being. Yet, I'm allergic! It's painful how much I long to cuddle and stroke and love those felines, and having the full knowledge that I'd have to suffer the consequences of a running nose, and itchy, blotchy, reddened, swollen eyes in return. Half of the time it's worth it, though.


All right, to all those who read through all of my weird facts and habits, I tip my virtual hat to you and shower you with applause! You have outdone yourself by staying this long, and I am flattered out of my wits! Since everyone has been tagged by now, I'm not even going to tag anyone. I also have more blog posts to write, so I'm too busy.

Bye-bye for however long it takes me to write my next post!

Gothic Paradise

Okay, so I admit to browsing Dev's MySpace page, and marveling at how pretty she is when she's all dolled up with her make-up. And I admit, I love putting on lipstick and eyeliner. And I ADMIT, I'm the one that suggested that she and I talk on Skype and use Webcam while we toy with a few products...

...but who would have thought this with be the result??











...okay, and I also admit, that I did deliberately do the eye-stare-thing like Ren. I am fully guilty of that charge.





On three: everyone say, "Satan"!