The Boy Who Lived...Come To Die...

So, here I am again. Small recap for the past few days...

Monday was normal. Got to watch It's Always Fair Weather, which was pretty good. The story itself was just okay, but the dancing...well, I do enjoy Gene Kelly's dancing. Kinda makes me want to roller skate (even though I suck at it), or better yet, put my foot through the handle of an old garbage can lid and dance around and makes lots of noise with it. Haha.

Then, Mom came home, and we had lunch, and then I went out to search for a new mouse for my laptop. So, I started at Office Depot, then went to Staples because I didn't see any silver ones at Office Depot and I wanted to compare the silver with the blue, and then I went back to Office Depot because 1) they were $7 more expensive at Staples, and 2) I decided I liked the blue better. So, I picked it up, and then went home.

Mom and I went to the pool for a few hours, and then came home, fixed dinner, ate, and watched tv. And then, I pretty much worked on the crossword and let Ella out for the remainder of the evening.

Today was pretty amazing, too. I got up, got ready, watered the plants, and then went downstairs and watched Three Little Words, which was pretty cool. And then, I had lunch, and messed around on the computer, and had a snack later on in the afternoon. And then, Mom came home, and we chilled for a little bit before heading out to the theater. We stopped at Walgreen's for candy, and then crossed the plaza to Carmike, and bought our tickets, and got our popcorn and drinks and all that.

The theater was busier than we thought. Not filled, but just enough people to really make it an audience. We normally go to see a movie after it's been out at least a week, at which point, the theater is pretty much empty. So, this was a nice change. Anyway, as for the previews, the only things that really looked interesting were Sherlock Holmes: A Game of Shadows, Captain America: The First Avenger, and possibly Hugo, depending on my mood. And then, finally, the movie started. Here's my review (well, really, I think I'm just going to pick it apart, piece by piece, so please skip the next few paragraphs if you have not seen the movie and do not want to be spoiled. Proceed ahead at your own risk. You have been warned.)

So, I thought it started off a bit slow, but I guess you needed it to get the dialogue from Griphook and Ollivander. As for Hermione-as-Bellatrix, it was good, but I expected more...something akin to a Bellatrix cackle or a bit of meanness, but I guess the whole thing was just to show that Hermione really wasn't able to get into character. Bellatrix's vault was neat, but I think it would have been a lot better, and especially, more suspenseful, if they had gone with the book version and had everything become red hot as it all multiplied. But, in the end, the dragon made up for it, as it was everything I expected a sun-deficient dragon to be, all faded and whatnot.

I don't know whether I liked the idea of Voldemort being able to feel the Horcruxes or not. It was different, that's for sure. I thought the conversation with Aberforth was choppy, and I think it could have been done better, had they chosen to feature the Ariana story a bit closer, but I suppose that would have added another layer, which might have confused some people. I thought the dialogue in the Room of Requirement about finding an item that Harry has no idea what it looks like or where it is was awkward, but still pretty funny. And Ron's reaction to Ginny only noticing Harry was priceless.

I really wanted to see more of McGonagall dueling with Snape; it felt too short for me, but I guess that really wasn't terribly important to the plot, as long as they showed Snape fleeing the grounds. I thought the CG animation of the statues was cool, and the spreading (and then subsequent destroying) of the protective charm was also really neat. (Okay, as everything is kinda a blur from here on out, some things may not be in the order as they appear in the movie.) Harry talking with Helena Ravenclaw felt drawn-out for some reason, but I did enjoy the Chamber of Secrets scene, because it wasn't featured at all in the book. But the kiss was totally in the wrong place! Although I guess the only reason for them all to go back to the Room of Requirement would have been just for that anyway, so I guess it's okay.

For whatever reason, I loved the mountains of junk in the Room of Requirement where Harry was looking for the diadem. But, it wasn't in a box in the book; the only reason Harry found it was because he could feel it/see it through Voldemort. I liked it better in the book when he figured it out himself. The fire was pretty cool, but again, I wish they would have stuck with the book in letting the fire destroy the diadem, but I guess that's minor.

I was actually extremely pissed that they decided to change the Shrieking Shack to the boat house (I really have no idea why that got to me, but it did). Terribly glad that they didn't show the whole "Nagini attacking the heck out of Snape"...I think the window shot was enough. The whole "You have your mother's eyes" thing was amazingly sad, and I think it was good that they added that line, because I think people would have been a bit confused as to why Snape wanted to look at Harry in his last moments. I really wish they would have focused more on the deaths of Lupin, Tonks, and Fred Weasley, as they were all important people to Harry. The minimal screen time made it feel like it wasn't such a great loss.

The Pensieve scenes were amazing, even though a lot of the memories from the book were left out. I think the message came across pretty well. I thought it was an interesting add-in to show Snape in the Potter house, cradling the lifeless body of Lily Potter in his arms and sobbing. The vulnerability really sorta shocked me, as I'd become so used to the emotionless version of Snape, as he's portrayed in all the other films. And, of course, the whole Patronus matter, and the "After all this time?" "Always" exchange, which I found very interesting since, during the movie, Harry hears that word from (at least...I'm not sure about any others) two people, Snape in the Pensieve scene, and Lily, when he has used the Resurrection Stone to bring back his parents, Sirius, and Remus.

Anyway, the Forbidden Forest scene was pretty much just as it was in the book, which was good. King's Cross...well, I didn't really know what to expect with that. I never really liked it in the book, so I guess I didn't particularly enjoy it in the movie. I think they should have explained more on the Patronus question (Lily's and Snape's both taking the form of a doe), for one, because if I hadn't known about the whole 'the shape of a Patronus can change if it's affected by a strong emotion', I would have felt it hinted at, what Mom feels would have been an interesting plot twist, that Snape was really Harry's father. Of course, the whole series has been about noting how Harry is the spitting image of James, but with Lily's eyes, so that wouldn't have worked anyway.

And then everything started veering away from the book. Trying to kill the snake was so drawn out, I felt I was going to die. Seriously, Harry tries to kill it, then Hermoine, then Ron, and finally, Neville finishes it off for good. I wish they had stuck with the whole 'Neville kills the snake, and then everyone floods the Great Hall' and the whole, ginormous battle thing, because I think that would have been better. I did enjoy Molly Weasley's "Not my daughter, you bitch!", but again, I think they could have spotlighted more on the battles. I thought Harry and Voldemort's tumble off the castle and subsequent flying around was rather ridiculous, and I think it really was only in there for the 3D effects, which were lost on those of us seeing the 2D version.

The final battle between Harry and Voldemort was disappointing, in my opinion. It lacked a certain something that it had in the book; I imagined them sort of keeping a distance between each other, moving in a circle in the Great Hall, with all the dialogue that had been in the book, especially the explanation of the Elder Wand's alliance, a sort of tension between them, with a great crowd of onlookers, but that never came to be. Also, I did not understand the change in the disposing of the Elder Wand, but again, I guess because they didn't focus on Harry's original wand being broken, there was no reason for him to fix it. I guess his decision to return the wand to Dumbledore's grave didn't have that finality to it that breaking the wand and chucking it off the bridge did.

The epilogue was cute; I thought it was neat that they aged all the actors using CGI instead of hiring other men and women to play Harry, Hermione, Ron, Ginny, Draco, etc. I think it was a really beautiful way of ending the movie, and ending the series as well. Ooh, this was a lot longer than I expected it to be...sorry if you had to read all that. I guess, overall, I'd say it was a good movie. A good movie, with some bad parts (which I guess they aren't technically bad if you aren't comparing it to the book) and some really good parts.

Anyway, that's all I got. Just going to go down and let Ella out, and then chill for the rest of the evening. Babysitting on Thursday, but that's about all I've got on the schedule for the next few days.

I Just Realized That I Can't Write Worth A Flip...

Today was, well, cool, I guess. I ended up going to the grocery store with Mom...we checked out, headed to the parking lot, and started oohing and aahing over the "Home Sweet Home School" bumper sticker on the car next to us. Haha.

Anyway, we came home, and put together the chicken cacciatore in the slow cooker, and then Mom and I went downstairs to watch The Divine Secrets of the Ya-Ya Sisterhood, which she had seen before, but I hadn't. It was a really cute movie, starring Sandra Bullock (of course, I'm a sucker for stories set in the south, and this one actually referenced some of the older characters going to Atlanta for the premiere of Gone With The Wind, which was cool), and it was quite a funny movie overall. And we got to see the Carolina Belle, the red bi-plane which we rode in while vacationing on Oak Island, in a pretty big part of the film.

So, then we just chilled for a while, and then we all had the chicken cacciatore for dinner, and we watched The Gremlins, which I thought was kinda weird, but still kinda cool. And I tried to take apart my mouse to get a better look at the microswitch, but after trying to pull the top off, I realized that there wasn't an open space under it as I thought there would be, and then, I couldn't get the top back on. So, I'm going out tomorrow after Mom gets home from work in search of a new mouse. The only bad thing is they discontinued the color I have (lime green), but the good thing is they're only about $18 to $20, instead of $30.

Nothing much else this evening, just letting Ella out, and blogging, obviously. Now, last night I did some more editing on that Harry Potter fanfiction I mentioned in my previous post. And again, in the light of day, it didn't seem nearly as great as I thought it was. But, here it is anyway, because well, I don't really know why. I always felt like, as much as the story is all about Harry, that if JK Rowling covered Fred's death as much as she did, then I think there should have been something on Lupin and Tonks.

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Remus. She had to find Remus. Nymphadora Tonks pushed past the crowds of students and professors preparing for battle inside the castle, and made her way to the main entrance of Hogwarts. Her eyes traveled over the grounds, desperately searching for any sign of her husband. There was nothing there, only a dark, thick cloud of dust and smoke. She could just barely make out the shapes of some of her fellow fighters beyond the haze, dueling with a handful of the Dark Lord’s men, jets of red and green light shooting through the air as they fought for control.

Her legs propelled her forward into a run, off through the debris that now littered the surrounding area. She fought as she ran, stunning more than a few Death Eaters, and disarming others. Her heart beat fast in her chest, her mind constantly working, as she futilely scanned the grounds for Remus. The last she had heard was that he was dueling with Dolohov somewhere on the grounds.

She kept herself moving, dodging spell after spell from the Death Eaters who were slowly taking control of the grounds, inch by inch, foot by foot. She ducked just in time as a green bolt shot over her head, cast by a Death Eater off to her right. She whirled around, yelling “Stupefy!” and the spell hit him square on the chest, knocking him out cold. A small, self-satisfied smile came to her face, but disappeared at the thought of her husband, somewhere in all this mess.

Taking off again, she cast another stunning spell at a Death Eater, this time missing her target by mere inches. She saw the ugly creature turn toward her, raising its wand to attack, and in defense, she raised hers. Even from this distance, she could see the look in its eyes, the look of a killer. She was only seconds away from firing a disarming spell at him, when a jet of red light hit the dark form from another direction, stunning him. The form of a man appeared out of the haze, and she found herself looking at the person she had so desperately wanted to find.

“Remus!”

He caught sight of her immediately, and started into a sprint, fending off attackers as he went. She cast off a stunning spell at another Death Eater just as Remus reached her. She expected him to take her in his arms, to kiss her and tell her she was terrific, but instead, she felt him take her hand, spin her, and lead her off in a sprint. She could barely breathe anymore, the dust and smoke stinging the inside of her throat as her lungs filled with the polluted air.

Remus still had her hand, and for a moment, it was the only thing that kept her going, knowing that she still had her husband by her side. The thought made her stronger, and she ran faster, her legs pounding into the ground with each step. She cast a stunning charm at the Death Eater blocking their path, spinning him out of their way before dropping to the ground. Then, Remus took the lead, pulling her away from the battle and behind a row of dense hedges along the outskirts of the garden. They slowed their pace, retreating behind a second row of the tall greenery, and came to a stop somewhere in the middle of it all.

Remus dropped her hand.

“What the hell are you doing?” he asked, his voice raspy from the smoke.

She looked up at him, slightly bewildered by this uncharacteristic reception. “What do you think I’m doing? I’m fighting, Remus!”

He waited a moment, then, changing his tone, he said, “Go home, Dora. It’s safer at your mother’s. Get out of here.”

“No,” she answered defiantly.

“Dora--”

“You know just as well as I do that I’m not bloody leaving! I’m a trained wizard! I shouldn’t be sitting at home, twiddling my thumbs, while my husband goes off to battle against the Dark Lord’s army by himself! This is one time you don’t get a say in this, Remus! I’m staying to fight!”

He nodded, hearing her tone. She wasn’t going to back down, no matter how long he tried. And at the moment, time wasn’t on their side. He looked down at her, still as lovely as ever, even with the layer of grime that now covered her clothes and skin, breathing heavily, her chest rising and falling as she collected her breath. Her eyes met his again, and she spoke.

“You have to promise me. If I should die…Promise me that no matter what, no matter how little you think of yourself, that you will never, ever, leave Teddy. Never leave our little boy.”

“Dora--”

“Promise me!”

He took her hand again, more softly this time, and looked straight into her dark eyes. “I promise.” He paused, becoming more aware of their close proximity to the battle raging on beyond the hedges, then turned back to her. He knew he needn’t ask her the same thing; he could see the answer in her eyes – she would never leave their son. “And if we both…?”

The word itself was not necessary; she understood. “My mother promised to raise and take care of him… And Harry, if he survives this mess, I have no doubt that he will be a wonderful godfather to Teddy.”

He nodded, then took her in his arms, embracing her. Her hands came around to rest on his back, and for a fleeting moment, they were back in her parents’ house, happy and safe. But, a loud scream nearby brought them back to the reality of it all, and they realized they had dallied too long.

She pulled away slightly, still lingering in his arms, and looked up at him. Their eyes met, and in an instant, she felt his lips on hers. She closed her eyes, trying to remember every second of it, for she knew this might be the last time they would ever be this close.

He pulled away, his hands moving to softly cup her face, and placed a light kiss on her forehead. “I love you,” he said, meeting her gaze once more.

“I love you, too.” A tear threatened to escape her eye, but she forced herself not to cry. Weakness was not an option; she had to be strong.

They pulled away from each other, their hands tightening on their wands as they heard the screams of another victim beyond the seclusion of the garden.

He took her hand, then asked, “Ready?”

She nodded, and he led them back through the hedges, and back toward the battle. As they reached the end of the path, she let go of his hand, steadied herself, and then continued on with the fight, Remus right by her side.

They were together when their lives both ended, and when their bodies, cold and still, were moved and placed next to each other in the Great Hall, they were finally together forever, and at peace.

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So, that's what I got. Not the best, I realize that. And probably very out of character and never likely to happen this way as well. I realized that I need to work on setting the scene, using the character's senses to paint a better picture of the surroundings, and about a thousand other things, but I wanted to at least finish it before I went to the movie, because I wanted to just go by the book version.

Okay, that's all I got for the night. Going to go chill out and then head to bed.

Posting Again For No Apparent Reason...

Before I start my blabbering, I wanted to take a moment to stress the importance of this day, in terms of classic films. Today marks the centennial of Ginger Rogers' birth. July 16, 1911 - April 25, 1995.

Okay, so really, yesterday was pretty lazy. The only thing of real interest was going to Target with Mom in the evening. And the fact that I was being followed by a cop car for the majority of the drive...I was so freaking scared. I have no idea why.

Um, today, was cool. I basically chilled out for the morning, had lunch, then just messed around on the computer until Mom, Quinn, and I went to Casanova's for coffee drinks. And then, we came home, chilled for a while, Mom made chocolate chip cookies, and then we picked up Wendy's for dinner. Mom and I watched The Fighter while we ate, which was pretty good. It was a refreshing, yet startling change to see Amy Adams in a gritty role like that, too. So, anyway, then I cleaned Ella's cage, and really just chilled for the rest of the evening, snacking on cookies and such.

One thing to note: I did not get any emails Friday or Saturday regarding babysitting, which was a treat. Not that I don't enjoy babysitting for this family, but the regular, short-notice emails are a real turn-off. I like to know kinda what I'm doing for the next day by the time I go to bed the night before, and to wake up in the morning, thinking my day is going to go a certain way, and then having it change because of one of those emails...it's a bit annoying. The other person I babysit for, my mom's co-worker, is exactly the opposite - she gives me at least a week's notice, and sometimes, she locks down dates almost a month in advance. Personally, I like her approach better.

On a completely different topic, I need a new mouse for my laptop. The one I've had since the beginning (so, over 3 years) is going berserk on me. It double-clicks when I single-click, won't latch on to the scroll bar as well, and is just an all-around pain in the butt to control now...except I'm not nuts about spending $30 for a new one, which seems to be the only real solution I can find (I spent a while on Google today, trying to figure the whole thing out...I think it has something to do with the microswitch or the plate that touches it wearing out over time). So, I'm getting increasingly frustrated each time I try to click to a different tab or program, and it closes it, or I try to open a folder in my favorites, and it opens, then closes right back up.

And last night, I did something I thought I would never do...I delved into Harry Potter fanfiction. I don't know what's gotten me so into it recently...maybe it's just because I'm starting to feel nostalgic about it all. So, I've recently been poking around on the Harry Potter section of fanfiction.net, and then last night, I found myself with an open Word document, and the words just came pouring out. And at that moment, sitting there at 1:00am, I thought I was a genius.

Then, I got up this morning, reread it, and realized it wasn't as good as I thought it was. I am no genius. The cool thing was, though, that it actually resembled a finished story (everything else I've taken a stab at writing has never been completed). Granted it's only a 1,000 word story, but it was all there, just maybe not as descriptive and interesting as I had imagined it. Maybe if I work on it a little more tonight, I can get up the courage to post it here, for posterity's sake at least.

I Didn't Realize I Liked The Harry Potter Franchise This Much...

Right, so I realized I missed one very important point in my last post... We all went to see Cars 2 for Quinn's birthday, and it was pretty darn cool. I loved seeing all the cities in animated form, especially the little bits of Rome and Paris, since I've been to both of those places. And all the characters, and the actors who voiced them...I sat there listening to Joe Mantegna, who's on Criminal Minds, and there was even a cameo voice appearance by Sig Hansen, one of the crab fisherman on Deadliest Catch, who voiced the crab-fishing boat at the beginning of the movie.

So, anyway, not much going on here other than that. I decided to take a week off from my movie-watching, just because I felt like it (and there really wasn't anything I felt like watching anyway). So, I grabbed Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows off the shelf Tuesday night, and started in on it. Mom reread it before me, but she started just before the Part 1 of the movie ended, so she really just read the material for Part 2. I started from the beginning, and I was actually surprised at how much more there was to the story than what was in the movie. I mean, all movies leave out stuff, but some of the things made a whole lot more sense because of the book.

So, I'm glad I read it. I have to admit that I did glance over the Wikipedia summary a few weeks prior, thinking that I wouldn't have the time, energy, etc. to read the book itself. But, I'm so glad I actually did get to read it. Mom and I had a lengthy discussion on how exactly Draco Malfoy became the master of the Elder Wand (he disarmed Dumbledore before Snape killed him on the Astronomy Tower in the sixth book), and why Harry, by taking Draco's normal wand, could suddenly become the new master of the Elder Wand. We had to admit, it was a stretch for JK Rowling to bring that one together, but whatever. Made for a better ending.

We also had a lengthy discussion on Snape, and just how much neither of us (or the characters in the book, for that matter) really knew about him until the very end, when Harry was able to look through the memories Snape had given him before his death. I'd known about his love for Lily from reading the Wikipedia summary, but to read through the memories...you feel so bad for Snape by the end of it all. And for his Patronus to still be a doe... "After all this time?" "Always." So sad...

Anyway, before I start into some long, drawn-out discussion about everything that happened in the book, let me stop it there. I cannot wait for the movie, though. Mom did something shocking, and said the three of us should go on Tuesday. Normally, we wait until at least a week after a movie's release before going to see it, because Mom (well, none of us, really) like the big crowds. But, I don't think any of us could wait that long. I'm really curious to see Snape's memories scene, because from what I've been looking at on Tumblr (you wouldn't believe how much you can pull up just from searching 'Harry Potter') that Alan Rickman's performance is quite good. I'm also curious to see the special effects work for the 'Battle of Hogwarts' scenes.

And if you know me, you know I find the weirdest/craziest things on the internet. So, let me preface this with an explanation. You know how you look something up on Wikipedia, and you end up clicking on a link inside that article, and then you click on another, which takes you deeper/farther away from your original article, but still technically linked? Well, here's me: Harry Potter; Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix; Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix characters; Severus Snape; Alan Rickman...and yes, I'm reading each page before I move on...and suddenly, there's this section about Alan Rickman being in a music video for a band called Texas, and I'm immediately searching for it on YouTube. (I have no idea why.)



And okay, so this video's, like, over ten years old, and pretty boring with the exception of the tango bit, but I'm sitting here simultaneously going, "WTF"/"OMG"/"SNAPE!" and laughing and trying to figure out why the heck I actually needed to look this video up.

Um, what else? Well, we got together with my grandmother last night. Had dinner together...just Chinese food, but we don't get it often, so it tasted awesome. I opened my fortune cookie to find an amazing fortune - the dream is within you - which I thought was very pretty. And it was really a normal night, other than that. I've got a couple of babysitting jobs coming up - one the 21st, and the other the 26th, for the same person, my mom's co-worker, who's having back surgery. So, I'll be making some money off of that, especially considering that I'll be babysitting for close to five hours each of the two days. And I'm dreading one of the usual Friday morning or Saturday morning emails from the other family I babysit for, asking if I can babysit 'tonight'. Tonight? Really? You can't give me more notice than that? So annoying, but I'm able to put up with it.

I've also been listening to Colbie Caillat's new album, All of You. I especially like Brighter Than the Sun, Before I Let You Go, Like Yesterday, and What If, which I heard in Letters to Juliet and loved. I still have yet to buy them from iTunes...that's one thing on my to-do list for the weekend. As well as clean my room, clean Ella's cage, get to the pool so I can get my tan back, etc. Okay, I'm signing off before I can come up with any more useless junk to write. Maybe this weekend, I'll get another post up.

I Just Read, Like, 200 Pages In One Sitting...

You know, I really should have been back on here sooner, but I got lazy, and didn't feel like it. So, quick recap, because I can...

So, basically, it's just been me chilling out, watching movies and a ton of Harry Potter. As in, our tv's been on ABC Family since Friday night. Because I forgot how awesome some of the Harry Potter movies are. And since I'm on movies...let me continue on that track. The remake of True Grit was pretty good. We rented it from Netflix, and I found it surprisingly funny for some reason - I think it was the dialogue. And this morning, I watched Tom Jones, which was a Best Picture winner from 1963...and it has to be one of the stupidest movies I've ever seen.

Anyway, other than that, we celebrated Quinn's birthday on Saturday night. We had some of the family over for pizza and cake and ice cream and all that, which was pretty fun. Quinn got a ton of money, and quite a few gifts, one of which was a Nintendo 3DS. He's already gone out and bought some of the games he asked for, but didn't get. And so, my little brother is now a teenager.

Um, other than that, I just finished reading Twisted, the newest Pretty Little Liars novel, and oh my gosh, it was amazing! Crazy intense, creepy, and yet very awesome. I am dying to read the next book...unfortunately, I'm sure I'll have to wait at least six months before it releases. And as much as I probably won't have time to, I kinda want to read the final Harry Potter book, since I never actually read it. I know the basic plot line, but I think it would be good to read it. We'll see if I have time. So, that's my life. Not much going on.

Busy Fourth of July Weekend In Buffalo...

Hey, I'm back! Yay! So, I definitely need a recap of the past weekend.

So, Friday morning went like this: I woke up at 4:30am, got ready, finished packing, loaded the car, said goodbye to Dad, and then we headed out. I think I slept maybe 45 minutes during the first part of the ride, and then we stopped at Shoney's in Summerville, WV (I think), and had breakfast. Then, we got back on the road, and drove for another stretch. I think we stopped for gas somewhere, but I can't remember exactly where.

And after listening to my mom's and my brother's iPods (the USB didn't work the way we thought it would...it only picked up on the mp3 songs I'd ripped from YouTube and stuff, not the stuff we bought on iTunes), we played the name game and some other stuff, and soon enough, we were in NY. The drive into Buffalo was pretty good, except for the traffic at the final toll booth. But, anyway, we got into Lancaster, and to my grandparent's house, and we said hello and cooked dinner and ate and talked. Then, we went over to my aunt & uncle's to visit for a few hours, and then we came back to my grandparent's house and went to bed.

On Saturday, we got up, got ready, and then had lunch with the family (grandparents, two sets of aunts & uncles, a ton of cousins, etc.) at Frank's, which is this little restaurant/bar where my grandmother and cousin work. And they have the best food. The onion rings are amazing, but what we really come for are the beef on wecks, which are basically roast beef sandwiches, but the roll is different. So, we had lunch, and then we went out for a few things for my cousin's graduation party. And then, we headed to my aunt's to help out with the last-minute prep things, and then went to my grandparent's house to change and then went to the party.

The party itself was fun. There were a ton of people around, from our family, the other graduate's family, their friends, etc. It was really fun. I mostly sat and talked with the family, but there were ping pong tables and basketball nets and games and stuff. Anyway, we talked and then had dinner, and then talked some more and had dessert. And then, we left because it was getting pretty late. We actually ended up back at my aunt & uncle's that night, watching tv and talking.

The next day (Sunday), we went over to my aunt & uncle's for breakfast, and we all talked and laughed and played around, and then we ended up at the mall with part of the group. They have so much more selection....more stores, and then stores themselves are larger. Shopper's paradise. but, we didn't really have enough time to do some real shopping. So, we rode home, and then we had dinner with my grandmother, uncle, and two of my cousins. Subs from Cassilos are so good, by the way. And then, we went to my aunt & uncle's for the evening to play some games and visit.

On Monday, we had a late breakfast with the family, and then Mom, Quinn, Aunt Wendy and I went back to the mall. We went into TJ Maxx first, and oh my goodness, I actually found shoes! You know how I can never find shoes that fit my tiny feet? Well, I found two. Here they are:

Then, we went to the mall, and my aunt bought a few things, and then I looked around at American Eagle, but didn't find anything that I was really crazy about. So, anyway, we went back to my aunt's for Fourth of July partying, and we played around in the yard (they have this really neat game called Kan Jam that you play with a Frisbee), and then had burgers and hot dogs for dinner, with all sorts of sides. And then, we played Bananagrams and had ice cream cake to celebrate my grandfather's 75th and my brother's 13th birthdays. And then, they each opened their gifts. And then, we all divided up to go see the fireworks.

Mom, Quinn, and I parked on a side street, and waited for my uncle at the corner. Then, we sat down a little ways down the main street, and a group of cousins came over to meet us. And then, another group of cousins and another one of my uncles came. So, at 10:00, the fireworks started, some from the bridge, and the others from the Public Works building, which were sitting right in front of. So, the view was amazing...they were right over our heads. And the grand finale was awesome, too.

So, we went back to my grandparent's house to pack, and then back over to my aunt & uncle's to sit by their firepit and then say our goodbyes. We drove my cousins back to my grandparent's house (they live there with their dad, aka my uncle...so it was a full house with us staying there as well), and everyone sort of went to bed at their own times. And I ended up watching Hoarders and The Twilight Zone and American Chopper with my cousin, AJ, until about 1:30 in the morning before I finally went to bed.

We got up at 5:30 the next morning (Tuesday), and got ready, and then said our goodbyes and ended up getting out at around 7:30. We drove for a while (I slept for about two hours), then stopped for snacks at a rest stop, and really just drove for a while longer. Then, we stopped in Summersville again, t his time for dinner at Applebee's. And this has nothing to do with the actual trip, but whoever purchases the decor for that Applebee's has the best taste...I was staring at the "Avenue of the Stars" on the opposite wall....pictures of Fred Astaire, Errol Flynn, posters of Clark Gable, Wizard of Oz pictures...I was very happy about that. I should pay more attention next time we go to the one in Winston.

Anyway, so we ate, then got back on the road, and drove the rest of the way back. We stopped at my aunt's to drop off the hot dogs (yes, hot dogs...there's brand called "Sahlens" up North that we all swear is better than any other hot dog on the market) and pepperoni we brought back for her. And then, we headed home. We greeted Dad when he came home, and then Mom and Quinn went out to pick up McDonald's, since we have, like, no real food in the refrigerator. And we watched some tv, and then Mom, Quinn, and I watched Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 1, which Mom and I had seen already, but we wanted to familiarize ourselves before we see the last installment in theaters this summer. And then, we pretty much went to bed.

Today, I got up, got ready, and started to watch a movie, but got distracted by the crazy guy in the GoodCents truck (apparently a Duke Power company) who rang the doorbell (I didn't answer it) and then proceeded to make his way into the backyard and mess with our AC unit. He left before I could go out and talk with him, but I did call Mom and Dad because I was seriously kinda freaked out. But, anyway, then I decided to stop watching the movie, and so I grabbed a couple handfuls of trail mix, and then went to Barnes & Noble. I had no trouble finding Twisted, the new Pretty Little Liars book that released yesterday. It was right in the new arrivals section, all pretty and nice.

So, then I proceeded to look around, because I had the time, and I browsed my way through the biography section and then took forever poking around in the DVD section. There were so many movies I wanted to buy. Each row I looked at had something. So, I took advantage of the "buy 2, get the 3rd free" deal,  and bought two I've seen and loved, and one I have never seen, but looks promising.

I mean, it should be good, right? Judy Garland, Hedy Lamarr, Lana Turner, and Jimmy Stewart in a movie musical? Well, if not, it was technically free, so whatever. It was either that, Shall We Dance (which I've seen and loved, but I felt like I was buying enough Fred & Ginger for one day), The Maltese Falcon (Humphrey Bogart film noir), or Captain Blood (Errol Flynn & Olivia de Havilland in what I like to think of as something like the first Pirates of the Caribbean movie), but I decided to be bold and try something new. (Notice all three movies were on sale? I really wanted some of the full price ones, It Happened One Night especially, but I refrained from purchasing them.)

Anyway, now I'm just waiting for Mom to call so I can pick her up from Enterprise. She took the car to work (hence me being able to go to Barnes & Noble), so we're going to meet at Enterprise so she can drop it off and still have a ride home. And other than that, I'll probably spend my evening watching tv, catching up on yesterday's Pretty Little Liars episode that I didn't get to see last night, and just chilling out. Oh, and maybe try and upload the camera software to my laptop, so I can post some of the trip pics.

Let's Say It With Firecrackers...

So, I've been busy, and haven't been able to post anything. And I have a feeling I won't have time to post anything more than just this today, so I'll post a full recap when I get back. Instead of a post, right now I'll give you one link (embedding disabled), because of it being Fourth of July and all. And because I really want to grab some popper things and do this (or run around singing "Here a Lee, there a Lee, everywhere a Lee, a Lee", but that's a different point entirely):

Let's Say It With Firecrackers
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HBf8rGtD1nY

Happy Independence Day to everyone! :)