Blog Changes

Yes, I changed the background...again. Because I'm very indecisive like that. But I think it fits the blog name better, so whatever. Let me know if the animation (the blinking stars) gets annoying or distracting or anything, cuz that was the only thing that I was concerned about when I changed it over.

I changed my icon/profile picture, too, although it's the same picture as before, just better colors, instead of that pinkish-purple monstrosity I had before. And I had one heck of a time choosing the new icon, too. Why? Well, let's just say that Picnik is my new obsession, and I spend way too much time on there making icons. Like these... [I think if you click on them, you can see them more clearly...]

Top row is Fred & Ginger, next row is Gone with the Wind. Third row is random ones from The Adventures of Robin Hood, Romeo & Juliet, A Streetcar Named Desire, Of Human Bondage, and It's Love I'm After. And a couple of Criminal Minds ones after that...

Yep, I have way too much time on my hands. The hardest ones are the black and white ones, cuz sometimes I just don't know what to do with them, but whatever. I was originally thinking of doing one for each movie I've seen, but then I realized how hard it would be to find pictures or screenshots of some of the very early ones, so it just became a sort of time-waster, but a fun time-waster in my opinion. Gives me something to do when I get bored, which is pretty much all the time. Haha.

Well, I think the pictures screwed up my formatting, cuz now I can't separate the paragraphs. Awesome. So, that's going to have to be it for the night. Maybe a new post tomorrow, though! :)

Life's A Beach...

I'm back! The beach was amazing! I don't think I've laughed that hard in a very long time. So, anyway, recap time, maybe a few stories, and definitely some pics. (Yes, I'm finally figuring out the pic thing...a shout-out to Aaron for encouraging me to put some photos up.)

So, first things first, a picture recap of my last blog post. First up, skydiving. Mom and Uncle Mark got out to the airport for their 9am appointments, watched the waiver videos, signed their papers, got lessons, and got suited up. This is their post-jump photo with their tandem instructors/jumpers.

I am totally going when I turn 18 (the minimum age). Mom said it doesn't even feel like your falling, so I'm definitely doing it. But anyway...

Parasailing. This is a picture of my cousin Katie and I getting our feet wet as they pulled us back in towards the boat.

I had originally thought that the difference in age (Katie's going into her sophomore year of college and Matt is a year and a half older than me) and the fact that we don't see each other that often would prevent me from really talking and having fun with them, but I was so wrong. We got along wonderfully, and had a great time.

Other than what I talked about in my previous post, we went shopping in Southport, hung out on the beach, and walked fifteen minutes along the beach to one of the turtle nests each night, which never did hatch while we were there. Oh well. And we worked super hard on the Vatican puzzle that Mom had brought with us, which we managed to finish the night before we had to leave.

Not really a group shot, since we're missing Mom and Poppie, but still...this one is more 'beachy' than the last day photo...

But anyway, the point is that I had a great time, and I wish we lived closer so that we could see them more often. Well, that's pretty much it for now, I guess. I've been working on this post for way too long now...haha. If you want to see more pictures, I've got quite a few posted on Facebook, so check them out if you have the time!

Beach Trip Post #1

Wow, I have a ton of stuff to talk about. The past few days have been very fun here on Oak Island with my family and relatives...here's some of what's been going on. Right now, I'm just posting my schedule; I'll add some of the actual stories and funny things probably when I get home.

- We left on Saturday, drove for a while, had lunch on the road, then finished the drive. When we got there, we checked into the house, and then hung around until dinner. We went to the Lucky Fisherman, which is the place we always go to for dinner when we get in, and had lots of seafood from the buffet. Then, we came home and walked the beach, and then went to bed.

- Mom and Uncle Mark went skydiving Sunday morning, and then we went out on the beach for the afternoon. We had barbecue chicken sandwiches and corn on the cob for dinner, and then we watched Angels and Demons on Netflix.

- On Monday, we went on the beach for the day, and then had shrimp for dinner, and then headed out to the mini golf course (well, it was just Quinn, Katie, her friend Katie, Matt, Poppie and I), and I came within one point of Katie and Poppie, who tied for first. Then, we came home and pretty much went to bed.

- Tuesday Uncle Mark, Matt, Quinn, Dad, Katie and I (with Mom as an observer) went parasailling, which was neat. Not very exciting, but neat. I went up with Katie, and we had a great time searching (but not seeing any) sea creatures from up in the air. Then, we came home and had lunch, and then went out on the beach for the afternoon. We had spaghetti and meatballs for dinner, and then we took a long, long walk to a sea turtle nest to see if there was anything going on, but it didn't hatch, so we ended up just spending a lot of time out in the sand that evening.

- Today, I got up late, and apparently, the water main on our block broke, because just as I was finishing up in the shower, the water cut off. But anyway, I got dressed and headed downstairs and had some breakfast and worked on the puzzle of the Vatican that we've had out for the past few days. Gramma and I went out to lunch, which was something she had been promising me since my birthday, and we went down to this little place by the pier called the Island Way Restaurant. I had a "Black and White Shrimp Sammy", which had blackened shrimp and parmesan cheese on a Kaiser roll, with chips and a sweet tea. It was awesomely good. We split a chocolate brownie a la mode, which was awesomely good as well, and then headed home. I ended up working on the puzzle some more with Matt, and am now just hanging out in the house until we either have dinner or until it cools down outside, because it is extremely hot.

So, that's what's been going on. I'm having a ton of fun, and it doesn't even feel like the trip's halfway over. I probably won't post again until I get home, but if I get the chance, I'll write something up later in the week.

Pre-Trip Post...Because I Feel Like It

Wow, this week went by way too fast...anyway, I'm awake right now, sitting in the kitchen, watching Mom bake chocolate chip cookies to take to the beach. So, I thought I'd give you guys a recap of what's been going on in my life. But because I don't have a lot of energy right now, this is going to be short, sweet, and to the point.

Really, we've been prepping for the trip the whole week. Lots of trips to the grocery store, the bookstore, Costco, Rite Aid, etc. getting stuff for the trip. The highlight of my week was going to the mall with Sylvia. I got a ton of new clothes, including the dress I'm wearing right now, which I got at American Eagle, and looks like denim, but it's really not. So, I got that along with a new skirt, a top, a pair of shorts, two camis, and a pair of sunglasses. And I really didn't spend a lot for the amount of stuff I got, which is always a plus.

So, on Thursday, my uncle Mark and my cousin Matt got into town, and we went out to dinner with them before dropping them off at my aunt's house to spend the night. Then, today, Mom and I ran a bunch of errands in the morning. We had wanted to get our nails done, but the nail salon was so crowded every time we passed by, that we just kinda gave up on it and painted each other's toenails instead.

Then, we went over to my aunt's for a cookout. We had a great time; Mom's co-worker and her family joined us, along with some of my aunt's neighbors and friends, and then my grandparents arrived with one of my cousins and her friend, and then we ate (hotdogs...yum!) and had dessert and watched people swim before heading home. Dad and Quinn stayed a while longer, while Mom and I went back to the house to get some stuff done. Mark and Matt came later, in order to spend the night at our house, which I think was Mark's request.

And I'm still up at this hour. I've got most of my stuff packed, with the exception of my toiletries, and I'll have plenty of time to get that ready in the morning, because we aren't leaving until 10:30 or so. I guess we'll get in around 3, and go out to dinner and such. Our house actually has wi-fi or something, so I'm taking my laptop with me, which means that I might update every few days. Which would be good because then I would avoid the usual post-trip, bazillion-word post summarizing each day of the trip in detail.

Um, that's really it right now. I am so exhausted. I'm technically running on 6 hours of sleep from last night, and I know I won't get a lot more than that tonight, so this should be interesting...

Where'd The Last Week Go?

Please excuse my absence from my blog...I have been extremely busy. And when I say 'extremely busy', I mean it. Here's a few of the more important things that I've been up to:

- On Saturday, we participated in a yard sale along with my mom's co-worker, which was pretty cool. We'd been prepping all week, getting stuff out, taking it over to their house, pricing it, etc, and then we got up super early on Saturday morning and went over to set up. Mom and I worked, while Dad helped finish a drywall fix at her co-worker's house. And by the end of the day, we had gotten rid of most of our stuff, and then we took the rest of it to Goodwill. And Mom gave me a percentage of the profit for helping out, so now I have some extra spending money!

- My aunt's pool is pretty much finished. They plastered earlier in the week, then had it filled, and we've already been swimming a few times. It is gorgeous. If Mom loads the pictures soon, I'll be sure to add them to my next post. They've nicknamed it the Rock Lagoon, and it really does live up to its name. It's just awesome.

Well, I was gonna do another bullet, but I can't think of anything else important. Haha.

Um, on the agenda for the week:

- I need to get over to the bookstore sometime to get some good books for the beach...I guess the date depends on Mom's schedule,

- Pretty Little Liars season finale on Tuesday,

- Mall with Sylvia on Wednesday,

- We still have to get the grocery store and Kostco and stuff to get some of the incidentals for the beach trip,

- And we have to clean the house for when my relatives come into town.

And that's all just between now and Thursday...so, I'm going to be pretty busy, but I'll make sure to post at least once more before we leave. So, that's really all for now...boring post, I know, but I really just don't have the energy for a decent post right now. Sorry. :)

You Lift My Feet Off The Ground, You Spin Me Around...

Yes, I'm back on here again. Because I'm basically stuck in the house due to this head cold, and I get bored really easily. And when I'm bored, I tend to be on the computer a lot...

Which leads to this: remember what I said yesterday (in my previous post) about that concept for another video? Well, I just finished it. Yep, whereas my "Forever on the Dancefloor" video took over a month to construct, I completed this one in twelve hours or so. Wanna see? (I know those of you not interested in classic films are probably like, "Oh my gosh, this is so annoying...why does she keep posting stuff like this?" but I'm posting anyway...sorry guys.)

This time I kept to one movie - Top Hat, although I'd rather have used Swing Time, but it wasn't readily available to me. (Top Hat had been uploaded to YouTube, while Swing Time had not.) And I think that's why it took so little time to put together...I only had the video from one movie to work from, so I wasn't flipping around looking for the right clip within all the dances from their ten films. So anyway, stripping away the mistaken identity theme of the plot of Top Hat, because that's really hard to convey through a video, you get this:

Not as exciting as the "Forever" video, but I think it fits nicely because Fred always seems to sweep Ginger off her feet, whether it be literally or figuratively. "Crazier" has been in my head for a while, since we rented The Hannah Montana Movie from Netflix, and when the song came on, all I could picture in my head was Fred and Ginger dancing. My first thought was to do a medley of some of their dances, but then I listened to the song a few times and realized that since the song tells a story, it would look better if I sort of told the story along with the music.

Again, a couple of tiny black flashes where they aren't supposed to be, but they're not as noticeable as the ones in the "Forever" video. I took the opportunity to use the 'fade' transition in this video, which I think works better here because the song is slower and not as pop/techno sounding. (You get what I'm trying to convey here, right?) I don't know how good the quality is, but with the small screen, it should be okay. My only other complaint/regret is that I didn't use much of the actual dancing from the "Cheek to Cheek" sequence; I just didn't have room for it. Had the song been another thirty seconds longer, then I could have added it in somewhere...but I think it's fine even without it.

And now I'm just starting to ramble like the last time I posted a Windows Movie Maker video...typical me.

Why This Week?

Oh, how I hate my life right now. Wanna know why? Well, my brother picked this week, of all the weeks out there, to catch a cold, and then pass it on to me tonight. So, that means that I'm not only sick, but I'm going to be missing Anita's birthday party on Saturday. So, life is just dandy. (Sorry for the real bummer mood/vibe going right now...it'll pass, I promise.)

Anyway, recap for the past few days. Well, the only thing of any importance is the movies I've watched. (You know, I really should just call this a movie review blog and stop writing all the other boring recap crap, but then I'd feel like I was missing something. But whatever.) So, back to movies...

At The Theater - Inception. Awesome movie. I thought it was so cool, the whole plot and the "dreams within dreams" stuff. And the cast was really good, too. Leonardo DiCaprio, Ellen Page, Joseph Gordon-Levitt, etc., etc. The cliffhanger ending was annoying though, but I kinda liked it because it made you think a little harder about the movie. And the actual going to the theater was kinda neat for me because Quinn was sick, and so I got to go with my mom and dad, almost as if I was an only child, which felt cool for those few hours. Not that I don't love my brother...

On Netflix - Percy Jackson & the Olympians: The Lightning Thief. I had seen 3/4 of it at Sylvia's a while back, and I had liked it, so we put it on the queue. And I loved it...very neat storyline. It had sorta the same story as Clash of the Titans, but as a modern-day, kids/teens version. And I kinda liked it better that way. More approachable, and more fun. I love the whole scene at the Lotus hotel in Vegas...just too funny. Quinn stuck around to watch it, even after saying that he probably wasn't going to like it, and when it had ended, he said he was wrong and that he actually thought it was pretty cool.

On the DVR - I've kinda accidentally been watching a lot of Humphrey Bogart films. After seeing Dark Passage, I watched Dark Victory, which starred Bogie and Bette Davis and George Brent and Ronald Reagan, which was very good. A very thought-provoking piece, as it dealt with one of the characters having only a few months to live, as the rest of the characters try to hide it from them, and being ready to face death when it comes, and so on and so forth. Very sad film, but a very good one as well.

The next one was Key Largo, which was the last of the Bogie-Bacall movies I had yet to see. This is definitely my least favorite of the four they made together, as the plot was just not up to snuff, and it seemed to drag on forever. But, it was still neat to watch...

And the one I most recently watched was The Two Mrs. Carrolls, which was...interesting. Bogart plays an artist who, every time he falls in love with another woman, slowly poisons his current wife with glasses of milk. Yes, that's the plot. It's technically more complicated than that, but I can't seem to find the right way to lay it out for you...you'll just have to trust me on this one.

Um, what else? Well, in it's absence, I've reconnected with my love of Criminal Minds. A&E runs marathons sometimes, and when we have nothing else to watch, most of the time, that's what goes on. I cannot wait until September when Season 6 premieres...they left us with a nice cliffhanger ending with the ever-creepy Tim Curry as the bad guy, and I'm anxious to find out what happens. In the meantime, I've been watching bloopers online and looking at the music videos that people have made with scenes from the series.

Ooh, speaking of music/tribute videos, I'm back on Windows Movie Maker...I've got a concept for another Astaire/Rogers video, but we'll see how it all plays out. WMM is so annoyingly tricky...it always freezes up on me, so we'll see how long my patience lasts on this one.

Okay, I've written enough, and I'm really tired right now...must be the cold getting to me. So, I bid you farewell for the time being...