Bold Nail Designs

I've been painting my nails a lot more often lately and experimenting with different things - I never knew you could do so much with just a few different shades of polish! One of my favorite nail trends that I've seen is the bold nail design trend.




"La Mode: Fashion Club at UW: Trend 2010: Nails." La Mode: Fashion Club at UW: Trend 2010: Nails. Web. 21 May 2012.


"A BRIT GREEK: Nuts for These Nails!" A BRIT GREEK: Nuts for These Nails! Web. 21 May 2012.

Although I love the nails above, being an amateur nail-painter I haven't been able to create any designs that cool yet. Here are my nails:

I used Wet 'N Wild nail polish from Walgreenes that was on sale. Although the nail polish is pretty cheap, it works pretty well as long as you put a clear coat over it to avoid chipping. I was just goofing off when I was playing with different designs with my nails, but if you're a little more serious about it, I'd suggest better, maybe more expensive nail polish for really cool effects. Walmart, Walgreenes, Target, and CVS Pharmacy all have a pretty good selection of nail polishes. So does Sally's Beauty Supply and the employees there are usually willing to offer advice about which nail polish works the best for which style. You can get nail polish pretty much anywhere.

I'd like to try bolder designs and brighter colors like in the picture above. The combination of the colors in the second picture down are reminiscent of the eighties to me and I love eighties stuff so I think that's the next nail style that I'm going to try to accomplish. My only advince to anyone who is looking to try out this style is to be patient. Make sure you have at least a couple hours of free time if you're going to try to do bold designs like the ones above. If you use multiple layers and color of nail polish and aren't patient while waiting for them to dry you could really screw up. I usually pop in a movie or watch a season of my favorite television show to occupy myself when I paint my nails. 

The Accent Nail Trend

I've recently spotted people sporting this nail trend: painting almost all of your fingernails one color and then painting one or two nails a different color as an accent. At first I wasn't sure how I felt about this odd trend but I've decided that it's really cute.

Emily Axel who claims to be a "polish-aholic" also blogged about this subject on her website, "The Mani-Maniac". Here is a link to her post:

http://themanimaniac.wordpress.com/2011/09/21/the-accent-nail-lets-discuss/

On her blog, she questions how much the accent nail should stick out compared to the others: whether it should be almost unnoticable at first glance or if you should go all out with it. I think if you're going to try the accent nail trend then you should go all out.


"Tagged:Celebs Nail Trends." NightFame With Style. Web. 16 May 2012.

Vanessa Hudgens was one of the first celebrities to rock this trend. I love her execution of the trend. I think it looks very fun and fashionable. If you're going to try out the accent nail, going for bold colors is a good idea but also using glitter on your accent nail is a must.

I think when I try this trend, I'll go with a somewhat plain color, like a light pink or a brown, then I'll paint the accent nail(s) to match the shirt I'm wearing or my purse and use glitter nail polish. The glitter really makes it pop and I also think it's really cute when the accent nail(s) matches an accessory,

While looking at this nail trend, I stumbled upon this very interesting webpage:

http://nightfame.com/style/tag/celebs-nail-trends/

It includes other celebrity nail trends and pictures. I'd suggest checking it out if this post interested you. My personal favorite trends are the accent nail trend and the bold design nails. The accent nail is great because you can do your own thing with the trend - if you'd like to keep it subtle, you can do that or you can go bold. It also gives you a chance to showcase a couple different shades of cute nail polish at the same time without looking trashy.

Putting it Blatantly

So, I’m guessing if you’re a high school student and if you’re a girl, you’ve probably been fantasizing about prom. I mean, how couldn’t you? Just think of all of the movies with all of the memorable prom scenes. Think of all of the hype – finding the perfect prom dress, the cutest heels, getting your hair and your nails done. Prom is something every senior looks forward too. I don’t know how my fellow seniors enjoyed prom, but I for one was let down.

Just to put it blatantly, prom sucked. It sucked so bad that I didn’t even attend post-prom. I didn’t even want to. All I wanted to do was to go home and lay down. Of course, this wasn’t any fault of the people who planned prom, I guess I just got my hopes up.

I expected prom night to be the one night of the year when everyone would act like ladies and gentleman. I mean, come on some girls spent six hundred dollars on their dresses and at least a hundred on their shoes just to kick off their shoes as soon as they arrive and start grinding? Prom was the same as any other high school dance. And I felt like the same outcast I have every day I’ve spent in high school and at every school function I’ve ever been to. Trust me, prom was nothing special.

But all of the odds were against me on prom night. My first day at my job was scheduled for the same day as prom. So before I left for prom, I had to work six hours at my new job. I’d also barely gotten any sleep the night before. On top of that, my boyfriend couldn’t go with me to prom. And even though I tried to go the single way, prom is really a thing for couples. It’s not very fun to go by yourself.

I think I’d gotten my hopes about prom by watching movies like Pretty in Pink. But even Molly Ringwalds character, Andie in the film didn’t stay at her prom very long. She ended up being reunited with her young love and leaving early. I guess that’s similar to what I did. My boyfriend picked me up early and I left with him.

I guess the moral of the story is to not get your hopes up for prom. If you set your hopes to high for anything, you’ll be upset because the actual event won’t be able to come close to how you’ve been imagining it. I’m not saying you shouldn’t attend your prom. You should definitely at least go for the experience. But don’t get your hopes up. I cannot stress this enough. Don’t expect that you’re going to be just like a princess and that you’re going to have an evening right out of a fairytale. Just go to have a good time, go for the experience. Maybe you’ll have a better time than I did.

Acronym Poem

My sophomore year I took a creative writing class with one of my favorite teachers in my school. The full year of the creative writing class consisted of three terms: one for fiction writing, one for play writing, and one for poetry writing. I took the full year of creative writing, though a lot of people just take one term of it. One of the first things we did in his class was write an acronym poem. He gave us strict directions to follow. It had to spell out our first name (or our full name if we were ambitious) and it had to include a few things. If I remember right, he wanted us to include a kind of fruit in our poem, an ocean, and a color...something like that. When I showed my poem to the class, he told me I should submit it to my schools literary magazine (but I never did). He liked the poem quite a bit.

I haven't tried writing much poetry since I took that class. I write song lyrics all of the time, but I never just sit and write just plain old poetry. Although, I'm not going to post the acronym poem I wrote for his class. I'll post the latest one that I've been working on.

I think acronym poems are a lot of fun. I usually like poems that don't rhyme, but sometime free verse stuff is a little too crazy for me. Acronym poems still have some order but don't have to rhyme. They're a lot of fun and pretty easy for anyone who wants to experiment with writing poetry.

My name is a unique statement of who I am, a stamp of my originality. A declaration of my love for being the only person I can be, me.

You might hear it without a second thought. Pass by it without a second glance. Maybe you don't hold the same reverence for your name as I do mine. Maybe you wonder how letters can represent a person. Just letters out of something as organized as the alphabet. You try to form the letters, the vowel, the sound with your lips. You try to grasp it, but they are still just letters to you. Just the same familiar combination of letters that have represented you your whole life. The same combination of letters that you're father yelled when he was angry with you, or your mother called in search of you, to tell you to come inside when you playing outside as a child and it started to rain. That's all your name is to you.

Nothing could make me feel worse for you, then your lack of identity. I hope you find it someday, some where in those letters and if not, create a new name. Create an identity for yourself. Pick the letters so carefully out of that wide alphabet splayed before you and create something that you will find can only define you.

Doing this, I hope will help you establish yourself, as I have established myself. I hope it will help you find pride in your identity. I hope when your name is called out in class or in the middle of a grocery store by an old friend, you will smile and you will be proud that your name belongs to you.

I can only hope that this will bring you the same personal fulfillment it has brought me and that will find a sense of belonging to just letter out of the alphabet. You'll find a love for something that you once found so trivial, you will find your mark, your stamp.



Single

I always pictured going to the prom with a date. Stopping to take pictures for my grandmother before we left for a romantic dinner, just the two of us. Then making our entrance together, dancing to a few slow songs and having a good time at the post prom party. I've been looking forward to prom since I was a freshman.

Alas, though no date. Sure I have a boyfriend right now, but we just started dating and it's a little late to sign him up for prom (besides he's a little bit older than me and I don't think he'd be interested in a high school dance). I'm going to be going to prom single. I've decided to go out to eat before with a group of friends. Sure, it's not the prom I pictured but I'm sure it will be a good time.

I bought a tie that matched the color in my dress. It's been sitting on my floor for weeks. I should mention that I did have a date to the prom. But I can almost guarentee you I wouldn't have had a good time with him. I found that one of the only reasons I was prolonging our dreadful relationship was to have a man on my arm when I walked onto the dance floor. That's an awful reason to stay in a relationship.

When I broke up with him, he begged for just one more chance. He said that he'd actually take me out on a real date for once and be a gentleman if I'd give him that last chance to be my date to the prom. I could've taken him up on his offer. But the whole time I would've been thinking about my new boyfriend and he would've been goggling all of the other girls at the prom. He probably would have wanted to go to his favorite restaurant before prom and still would've made me pay for my half. He'd probably have his mom drive us to dinner or take the bus - does that sound like a romantic night or a chance for redemption?

I apologize for my rant. That's a little off of the subject. I guess I'm sending a shout-out to anyone else who is going to the prom without a date: don't let it bring you down. I have a friend who is thinking about skipping prom just because she doesn't have a date. Prom is one of the last fun things we get to do before we graduate. Why would you want to skip that? It's part of the fun of senior year. Even if you don't have a date, you owe yourself a chance to go and at least check it out. Someday, if/when you have kids they may be going to their prom and ask you about yours. You might not think you'll feel any regret now but maybe you will then.

So go with a group of friends, maybe even throw a sleepover or something for the night of prom. Make it into your night. I placed way too much importance on having a guy to slow dance with or grand march with me. But what is really important is just having a good time. There is too much pressure on students to have dates to every dance, especially the prom.

Denim Jackets

One of the items that I think about every woman should have in their closet is a denim jacket. When some people think of denim jackets, they think about the denim on denim cowboy look. There are a lot of creative ways to wear a denim jacket.

One of my favorite ways that I have seen the classic denim jacket worn is with a sundress. Lighter colored denim jackets go really well with white and floral print sundresses. It’s a really cute look. I love it because you can pair it with just about anything and it can be such a laid back look. I’ve seen girls pair sundresses with denim jackets and flip-flops and although it looks effortless, it looks good. I’ve seen this look on a lot of mannequins in store windows at the mall.

Denim jackets aren’t only good with dresses though. You can easily pair a denim jacket with pants, but not just denim pants. I’ve seen girls wear dark wash denim jackets with plaid pants or even candy colored skinny jeans. Dark wash denim jackets add an extra edge to any outfit, I believe.

Denim jackets are also great to own because you can customize them so easily. I have a denim jacket that I covered with buttons a while ago. You can even sew patches on them too. If you enjoy creative stuff like I do, a denim jacket makes a really great project. You can easily find a denim jacket at a thrift store, then take it home and alter it however you like.

Personally, I really enjoy wearing my denim vest with the black dress I have and I enjoy wearing my dark wash denim jacket with my red sun dress. I barely ever wear jeans but I do wear denim quite a bit. Denim is good for so much more than just pants.

Denim jackets are great because they're so common. You can find them just about anywhere, whether it's at a department store, a little shop in the mall or your local Goodwill. I love denim jackets because they are so versatile. You can wear them with almost anything and customize them any way you like.

The Perfect Date

One of the most common themes of my friends’ conversations lately has been "the perfect date." This is probably because prom is right around the corner and we're all fantasizing about the big night. But I can't help but realize how girls can have such drastically different perceptions about "the perfect date."

For example, my sister said that her perfect date would consist of eating sushi and then watching Star Trek all night. This was after I told her that since this was hypothetical, she could have anything she wanted. I told her the cost of the date didn't matter and she still just wanted to eat cold fish and watch a dorky science fiction show.

Not all women imagine the perfect date as being taken for a night on the town in a limo. Personally, I could have fun just walking through the park or going to see a movie. Besides, I don't think it's the location that makes the date perfect but how well the date and I get along.

None the less though, I do imagine my perfect date just like my girlfriends do. It's always a little different in my head. I think of different scenarios. I'd like to go out to an open mike show at a comedy club or at a restaurant. One of the nicest dates I've ever been on, my date sang karaoke to me. I always think it's cool when people can be so fearless.

But ideally, my perfect date would probably be a midnight stroll in a garden or something. I know, it sounds romantic and silly. I think all of the perfect date scenarios sound a little silly though. I wonder sometimes if guys ever think about the perfect date. I know it sounds really goofy and they probably don't spend any time thinking about it at all.

I would hate to be a guy. Guys have to stress about creating the perfect date. It seems like a double standard to me. The girl expects to be treated like a princess, have the guy pay for the meal, pull her chair out, get the door for her...but does she treat her date like a king? Maybe there's a reason why guys don't fantasize about the perfect date. It may just be because they don't care that much though.

I'm even uncomfortable with a guy paying, so thinking of a guy kissing up to me the whole date would make me uncomfortable. I guess it doesn't make the other girls uncomfortable. But isn't it a little rude that we're fantasizing and holding guys up to these romantic expectations that they'll never be able to live up to? After all, shouldn't it be more about the connection with your date and less about how much he spends on a meal or if he forgets to open a door for you?

Great Ways to Meet New People

I know have a lot of friends who are uncomfortable in social situations, who struggle to come out of their shell. Here are some ways to come out of your shell and meet new people.

1.) If you have an interest, join a club!

This doesn't just include school. If you look, you'll find clubs for almost anything. There are crochet and knitting groups you can join, political groups, social groups...Google it! I even have a friend who has a video game group who frequently has parties. You'd be surprised by how many different groups may exist around you. If there is something you're passionate about, maybe you should consider making your own group.

I've heard a lot recently about Live Action Role Plays. Even if you're not sure how to participate, my friends say that it is a lot of fun and also a great way to meet new people. If you aren’t sure how to participate but are interested, usually people are more than happy to help you learn.

2.) Open Mike

This is another way to experiment socially. There's a frequent open-mike night at least on coffee shop in every town I've ever been too. If you like performing, maybe you could participate too. But just going to see the acts is a great way to socialize and enjoy the local talent.

3.) Try out new restaurants!

This one is an extension of the one above. Trying a new restaurant may be a good way to branch out, try some good food, and maybe even meet new people. Usually coffee shops work pretty well for socializing too.

4.) Reach out to friends of friends

One of the most frustrating things for me, when meeting new people is when I'm introduced to a friend of a friend and I really hit it off but don't ask for their number or try to get any closer to them. Friends of friends are great people to make friends with because you probably already have some things in common and know a little about each other through your mutual friend.

5.) Reach out to your neighbors!

I live in an apartment complex that has a handful of social events in the summer. I only recently moved in so I haven't had time to attend any of these events but I'm planning on attending the next one that pops up. A neighbor makes a great fun, if not for any other reason because you don't have to drive across town to see them.

Overall, the best thing you can do to meet people, I believe is to push the limits of your comfort zone. If you stay cooped up in your house all of the time of Facebook or playing video games you'll miss out on great opportunities to make lifelong friendships.

Being Young

If you're feeling depressed, insecure, and your partner is one of the contributing factors making you feel this way, it's time to move on.

This is a tip to all of the teenagers I know here at my high school and all of my friends who get stuck in unhealthy or unhappy relationships. It's not worth it. Being young doesn't mean you shouldn't be able to date and shouldn't have fun meeting different people and setting standards for what you'd want in a potential mate. But you shouldn't sacrifice your happiness just to be in relationship.

People are in such a rush to settle down, move in together, I just want to enjoy being young which is why I finally broke it off with my boyfriend of about two years. He proposed to me twice and was already talking about having kids and spending the rest of his life with me. It was too much. I never even got to enjoy being young and having fun with him. We always just sat around doing nothing. I never got to be taken out on a real date. He made me feel insecure and unimportant. It took me months to realize that I deserved better.

I believe the high school atmosphere pressures students quite a bit into feeling the need to have partners. It seems like there’s always a dance coming up or something. I have friends who aren’t even going to prom because they don’t have a date. And to be honest, that’s one of the reasons I was delaying breaking up with my boyfriend. I wanted the whole story-book romantic night – looking like a princess, going out to eat, slow dancing. But I’ve realized that I can have just as much fun with a group of friends. You don’t have to have a date to enjoy going to dances at school.

So, I dumped him and I'm surprised by how good I feel. There's this guy who has been taking me out on real dates. Who wants to spend time with me and doesn't treat being around me like a chore. Even my friends have noticed a change in me. People are saying I look a lot happier.

When you’re young, life should be about enjoying being young. It took me a while to figure this out because I was in such a rush to grow up. I hadn’t realized that in rushing to start my own life, I was settling for someone I was incredibly unhappy with and increasingly frustrated with. Now, I feel so much better. I feel free and I finally feel alive.

So if you feel stuck in a relationship that you’re unhappy with, don’t settle. Putting off the breakup for as long as possible will only make it worse. You’re young. Break it off, open your heart and I’m sure someone better will come along.

That's so Gay

Gay. It's a word that a lot of us use, but very few of us actually even know what it means.


While surfing the internet, I found quite a few definitions for it.


According to Dictionary.com, it could be any of five things:


1.) Homosexual
2.) Relating to homosexuals
3.) Being in a merry mood
4.)Showy or brightly colored
5.)Given to social or other pleasures


On the Meriam Webster Dictionary website, it had four different defintions, very similar to the definitons on Dictionary.com


1.) "Keenly alive or exuberant"
2.) Brightly colored
3.)Partaking in social pleasures
4.) Homosexual


Funny, I did not see in any of the definitions I looked at, gay offically defined as stupid. Gay is not a synonym for stupid. What a shocker.


But why do we continue to use it this way? Do you have any idea how many synonyms there are for stupid already? Let me give you a hint.


These are the synonyms I obtained from Synonym.com:


anserine, dopy, dopey, foolish, goosey, goosy, gooselike, jerky, blockheaded, boneheaded, duncical, duncish, fatheaded, loggerheaded, thick, thickheaded, thick-skulled, wooden-headed, cloddish, doltish, dense, dim, dull, dumb, obtuse, slowgaumless, gormless, lumpish, lumpen, unthinking, nitwitted, senseless, soft-witted, witless, weak, yokel-like.


And I'm sure there are thousands more. Look them up, I dare you.


I'm aware that words like lumpen and loggerheaded aren't quite as catchy as gay. I mean, come on, it's one syllabel! When you're insulting something or someone else for being stupid, you're not only using a word incorrectly but you're also too lazy to use more than a one syllabel word. I'd call you stupid, but I'd rather say lazy. I'm sure you have the capability that I have to look up synonyms on the internet and incorporate them into your vocabulary. I'm sure you're smart enough to know that gay is most definetely not a synonym for stupid, but you're too lazy to eliminate it from your vocubulary.


Not only does it make you sound unintellegent to use a word incorrectly, but it hurts people. I have many gay friends and even straight friends who have been offended by hearing it in the hallway. Treat others how you want to be treated. How would feel if catch phrases like, "That's so jock" or "that's so straight?" How would you feel if people were mocking a piece of you so nonchalantly that they have incorporated into not only their daily word bank but their hourly word bank.


I just don't understand why out of all of the words in the dictionary that are synonymous with stupid, people have to use a word that isn't intended to be used for that purpose.

"Gay." Dictionary.com. Dictionary.com. N.p.  n.d. 

Web. 25 Apr. 2012.

"Gay." Merriam-Webster. Merriam-Webster. N.p. n.d.

Web. 25 Apr. 2012.

"Synonyms for Stupid." Synonyms Thesaurus with Antonyms & Definitions. N.p.

Web. 25 Apr. 2012.

How to Take Advantage of a Sunny Day

In Iowa, we're finally starting to come out of the cold, awful winter and into spring. The temperature has been in the sixties this week. All of us want to take advantage of that perfect warm and sunny day and here are a handful of the best ways to do it.

1.) Fly a kite

I know it sounds a little silly, but you'd be surprized how many people I saw at the park the other day flying kites. It's a great way to enjoy being outdoors and is a lot of fun. Not only that, but it's a great way to spend quality time with someone. I used to love flying kites with my sister and my dad when I was very young.

2.) Take a walk

It sounds typical, but one of the things I enjoy the most on a nice day is taking a walk. It's even better if you live near an ice-cream shop. Having a place to walk to (whether it's a grocery store or a restaurant) makes it even better. I used to love walking up to the gas station and buying a candy bar and a can of pop on a nice day. Walking is not only a great way to enjoy the day but it's a great way to get exercise.

3.) Sit outside

It sounds simple, but one of the best things you can do on a nice day is just sit outside. When I lived at my old house, I used to sit out on the patio and read a book. Sometimes I'd sit on our swing and work on my homework on my laptop. You can do a lot of things outside, even chores. You can fold laundry outside. I always enjoyed husking corn outside.

4.) Go to a strip mall

I love shopping. I love going to the mall. And there is nothing better than shopping outside when the weather is nice. I went up to Iowa City recently and walked around the shops there. Find a place like Iowa City and plan to spend a few hours there. You get to enjoy being outside and also get to visit some interesting shops. It's a lot of fun.

5.) Eat Outside

Whether you go out on a the patio of a restaurant to eat your dinner or go on a good old-fashioned picnic, eating outside is a great way to spend a nice day. Who wants to be cooped up in a crowded restaurant on a nice day? Who wants to eat inside when its beautiful outside?

I'm sure there are a hundred other ways to take advantage of a nice day, but these are some of my favorites. I hope you enjoy the nice weather!

Wanderlust Review

Recently, I went to the movie theater. I very rarely go to the movie theater but I had a little extra money, some free time and thought that this movie I'd seen previews for looked funny.

I saw the movie, "Wanderlust" starring Jennifer Aniston and Paul Rudd. It was directed by David Wain. The movie follows a Manhattan couple, who lose their jobs and must leave New York to live with family. In this case, the family is George's (played by Paul Rudd) obnoxious older brother and his wife. On the way to his brothers house, the couple stumbles upon a bed and breakfast. The bed and breakfast turns out to be a rural commune called Elysium based around free love. George and his wife Linda (played by Jennifer Aniston) decide to stay there and have trouble adjusting to their new life.

Though the plot sounded funny enough, the movie was a huge let-down. It just didn't have the certain pizz-azz I was expecting it to. The movie seemed to drag on forever and the jokes were far and few between.

The other big problem I had with the movie was the nudity. It was a rated R film and I should've checked what it was rated R for before I saw the movie, in its defense. There's a scene where Elysium is having a meeting for nudist winemakers and all of the nudist winemakers go running from an out-of-control car. The scene was supposed to be funny, but was just disgusting. I didn't hear a single person in the theater laugh.

The other problem is the on-going theme of free love. Everyone who stays at Elysium must share their partner. George and Linda decide to stay and abide by this rule. Linda ends up embracing free love and has sex with one of the residents right away and George's heart is broken. This just weighed the movie down. I believe it was supposed to add some sort of drama to the movie, but it really just weighed it down.

If you're looking for a movie to watch this weekend, I don't recommend seeing Wanderlust. Overall, it was a dumb movie that dragged on and on. It's not worth your money.


http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1655460/

Awkward Embraces Review

I recently had the pleasure of stumbling upon a charming web show on YouTube. The show, "Awkward Embraces" chronicles the adventures of Jessica, Candis, and Lyndsey. Many of the episodes focus on Jessica who is a Sci-Fi nerd and always seems to have the worst of luck with guys. Her two best friends struggle to help her through her dating misadventures.

"Awkward Embraces" is a quirky and hilarious show. It's easy to admire and even see yourself in Jessica's character. She is a strong woman with a great sense of who she is. She openly talks about her love of science fiction such as her adoration for Star Wars and enjoys playing video games. Although she hits it off with a couple different guys in the series, she still seems to remain clueless about men and often seeks her friends' help.

The actress who plays the character of Jessica's name is Jessica Mills. She not only plays the protagonist, but she also writes and produces the show under her own production company called Project A.

So far, there have been an accumulative twenty-two episodes (there have been two seasons). Each episode is between five and ten minutes long. I never cease to be amazed by how each episode has enough time to play out an edgy, hilarious scenario in that limited amount of time.

Besides being able to watch the hilarious episodes on YouTube, the show also has its' own video blog, where the actors from the series read viewer submitted comedic (some even disastrous) dating stories. This part of the channel is almost as fun to watch as the series itself, though I’m still hoping that the third season will be uploaded soon because I’m very eager to watch it. I made it through all twenty-two of the episodes the first day I stumbled upon it. I just couldn’t stop watching it.

I recommend this show for anyone over the age of sixteen considering there is a lot of mature humor in the series. I recommend it to anyone who enjoys shows like the Big Bang Theory and Sex in the City, considering the show seems to be a mix of the two. I guarantee you will love the show. It’s hilarious to see the three main characters bounce off of each other. The chemistry between the actors makes the show even more delightful for the viewer. If you look up the show and give it a chance, I’m sure you’ll be as charmed as I am by it.

http://awkwardembraces.com/

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1833839/

"She's Not There: A Life in Two Genders" Review

I enjoy reading autobiographies and memoirs, so this book was a great fit for me. The author tells the story of her life as a female being stuck in the body of a male. She talks about her childhood, her family, even the gender reassignment surgery,

 I’ve met a handful of transgendered people in my life which I felt helped me to better understand the condition that the author, Jennifer Finney Boylan has. So the hardest part for me wasn’t relating to the main character as it may be for others. The hardest part for me was keeping track of what was going on in the story. In this book, it switches a handful of times from the present to the past and sometimes I got a little confused on what time the author was writing about.

The only book I’ve read that I can really compare She’s Not There to is Luna by Julie Anne Peters. Luna also tells the story of a transgendered male wanting to be female, although it is fiction. Luna is told from the point of view of the transgendered males sisters perspective. The sisters name is Reagan. Reagan is very protective of her transgendered brother in the book the point where she’s so busy taking care of him that she’s not even sure of her own identity.

Although the books chronicle the same condition, they are very different. Luna is seventeen in the book and at the end she leaves for her sexual reassignment surgery. Jennifer Finney Boylan is in her forties when she gets her sexual reassignment surgery. There is also the obvious difference that, She’s Not There is a first person narrative and Luna is told from the sisters point of view, although I’d love to read a nonfiction book about living with a transgendered person and watching their transformation, for example, a book from Jennifer Finney Boylan’s wife’s perspective or a book from one of his children’s perspective.  Boylan writes about his family in the book (he has a wife and two sons) but it would be interesting to really see his transition through their eyes.

I really enjoyed reading this book and I recommend it to anyone who is curious about being transgendered, any transgendered persons or anyone involved in the LGBT community. Being the president of my schools gay-straight alliance I’ve heard a lot about Transexuality and this taught me a lot more about it. I’d also recommend this book to anyone who enjoys autobiographies. It was very interesting.

The Mighty Boosh

On the IMDB website, the Mighty Boosh's genre is described with the words comedy, fantasy and musical, but it's pretty hard to explain this television show with so few words.

To start with, it's a British show that aired from 2003 - 2007. The first season of the show consisted of the two main characters, Vince Noir (played by Noel Fielding) and Howard Moon (played by Julian Barratt) working as Zoo Keepers for their overly eccentric boss, Bob Fossil (played by Rich Fulcher). They have various adventures in the first season ranging from the two main characters braving the arctic tundra and encountering the infamous Black Frost, even to Howard being mistaken for an ape and taken to monkey hell. Yeah, you read that right.

In the second and third season the main characters, Howard Moon and Vince Noir live with Naboo the Enigma and Bollo (who is a gorilla). In the second season, they all live in an apartment and in the third season, they help run Naboos shop and live above it. Many crazy adventures ensue in these seasons too. In the second season, the episodes range from Howard getting kidnapped by a hermaphrodite sea monster named Old Gregg, to the Howard and Vince passing out and having a nightmare about talking coconuts. The third season doesn't disappoint either. The episodes range from Vince swallowing a piece of a record and being possessed by a Jazz spirit and to the boys being robbed by a drug addicted talking fox.

So whether you are a fan of British television or are just looking for a quirky show to watch, I find this show extremely hilarious and entertaining. I would recommend it to just about anyone. Almost every episode features a song and a funky new character. A couple of my favorites include Old Gregg (the hermaphrodite sea monster I mentioned above) and Mr. Susan who lives in the mirror world and is in the episode entitled Bollo (it’s the episode about monkey hell I also mentioned earlier.)

It is hard to write about this show and really truly do it justice. You just need to check it out. I wouldn't recommend it to anyone under the age of thirteen because a handful of the episodes do feature some mature themes, but for any teenagers or adults looking for a new show to watch, this is great. I highly recommend it.

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0416394/

Traffic

I used to live in a neighborhood. I lived in it for a short time – maybe three years before we couldn’t afford to live in that house any longer and when I lived in that neighborhood, in that brown split foyer house with the salmon colored doors, I would walk up to the grocery store. I would have to walk down the hill, past the apartments we lived behind, and across the bridge to get to that grocery store.

On my way, I would never been able to resist the temptation to stop at the bridge and look down. I would stare at all of the cars that passed underneath me and wonder who the people were inside them. That woman in the red convertible - was she a free spirit? Where did she work? Did she have kids and a family back home? Did she have a home?

The man in the red truck – where was he going? Was he on the way to his job? Was he a hardworking man? Was he a man with a troubled past?

I'd get lost in the traffic below me. I felt different up there. I listened to the sounds of car horns honking and music blaring; I felt the vibrations of big semis going underneath the bridge. The wind whipped through my hair as I watch the small people below me in their toy cars. I wondered if God watched us like this, stationed high somewhere, just observing the people below.

I wondered if someday when I traveled beneath this bridge if someone would watch me. If someone would wonder about me. Where is she going? Is she going home? Does she have a home?

Eventually, I would have to stop wondering, I'd have to stop watching the scene below me. I would have to divert my eyes from the traffic and pull myself away from the bridge. I'd finally make my way to the grocery store, back across the bridge, past the apartments, and up the hill, back to the brown split foyer house with the salmon doors. My dad would stare at me strangely when I made my way back inside, as if wondering where I'd been for so long but he'd never ask. I wonder if he knew how I’d watched I’d been perched on top of the world and watched the people below me. I wonder if he knew how I’d spent my time playing God.

Grandma's Fridge

Cleaning my grandma's fridge is task I dread every month. Almost once every month, my grandma will call me over to help her with this. Let me tell you, it is awful. Smells emanate from containers with unknown substances inside. Some food even has mold growing on it. It's a frightening experience.

Just last night I was called upon to clean my grandmas fridge. I wanted to decline, but I love my grandma and I owe it to her. She's been like a mother to me. Even then, it's not something I look forward to.

So I sat at the floor of her white tiled kitchen and pulled things out of the fridge, working on one shelf at a time, as she sat in chair and set everything on the counter. Then, we went through each container. I cautiously opened each lid, almost afraid of what could be inside. Oh the smells I smelt yesterday!

Some of the stuff in her fridge was easy to identify, there was month old desert pizza, soup that had gone bad, but some of it was just plain terrifying! I'm almost beginning to think my grandma is taking part in strange experiments at her house. There could have been lizard brains in one of those containers! I'm not sure what a lizard brain smells like, but I know most of those containers did not smell pleasant.

It's hard for my grandmother to get around and even harder for her to reach a lot of things in her fridge (or even remember what's in her fridge) so I can't blame her for letting the food in her fridge go bad. And it's my job, as her grateful grandchild to help her with these tasks. But when I come over to her house to clean that fridge, gosh I just wish I didn't have a sense of smell.

I guess cleaning out the fridge, no matter how smelly it is, is worth the time I get to spend with my grandmother.

Years down the road, I’ll look back on this and realize I wouldn’t have traded that time in for anything, but right now, I’m dreading the next time I have to clean Grandma’s refrigerator.

One Night

This friday I'll performing in One Night. It's not neccessarily a large variety show like the talent show my highschool does later in the year. It's more of a concert. All of the music is live and there's usually a wide varity of music played. Last year, there was a band that did a Green Day cover, there was a band that played a tribute to the Beatles and also plenty of musicians who played originals.

Even though it's this upcoming friday, I'm not completely prepared. I'll be doing a couple of songs in the show, at most three songs. But that depends on how many people sign up for the show. I still don't have the songs picked out I want to do. I know I'll do at least one original (I just have to pick one that I've already written - it's just so hard to choose!) and one cover. I might learn how to play a new song. It doesn't take me very long to learn something new. I'm thinking about trying to do a cover of "Bad, Bad, Leroy Brown" by Jim Croce. It's one of my favorite musicians and that song is very upbeat and fun - the perfect song to play at a show like this.

The show will be in what we call, the Black Box . It's the school second auditorium. It's not as big and fancy as the actual auditorium, but it's a nice space to perform in. It's a black room where we place fold out chairs and a stage in front of it all. I actually like playing in it better than the auditorium. I peroformed in the actual auditorium last year for the talent show and it wasn't very fun. There was too much distance between myself and the audience. In the Black Box that distance is smaller. It may make others nervous, but it makes me more comfortable.

I'm not too nervous about getting up in front of people, the thing I'm most worried about is picking the right song(s) to play. This is my last year and my last chance to perform in One Night so I want to make the best out of it and do my absolute best.

My father also makes me nervous. Last year when he came to see me perform in One Night, he left halfway through the show and barely congratulated me or anything. When he came to see me at the Talent Show that year, he also made it clear that he was less than proud of me. When I told him about being in One Night again this year, he wasn't happy for me at all. He just lectured me about what I shouldn't play like he expects me fail. I'm surprized he's even coming to the show at all this year. I'd like to do a really great job at whatever songs I decide to play, so I can prove to him how good I really am. So, I can make him proud this time. But even if I don't, I'll be proud of myself. I'm learning how to be proud of myself, even when my mom's not here to see my perform and my father isn't happy to see me perform.

It takes a lot of preparation and a lot of practice, but if I work hard this week to learn a new song and work on an old one too, I think I'll be very satisfied with the product in the end. I'm a little nervous about making my father proud, but in the end it's about the show. It's about contributing something brilliant to the show and I'm just proud to be a part of it.

High School (Complex classification)

You see the cliques in those cheesy highschool movies and I think we all like to think that our high school isn't like that. I will say that those movies do grossly overexaggeratte the cliquies at my highschool but I won't deny that they do exist.

It's not as easy as just classifying my peers into groups like "preps", "jocks", and "geeks". It's more than that.

Let's start with the cheerleaders and the athletes. They don't hold as much distinction here as they do in the stupid movies, but trust me they don't go unnoticed. Of course the football players are the most pretigious where bowlers and golfers often go underappreciated. A handful of the cheerleaders I've met have an attitude problem, but most of them are friendly though they won't go out of their way to talk to me. They stay out of my way and I'm perfectly fine with that. There is also the dance team, but I don't hear too much about them.

There are the actors. This category includes the improv. team. They aren't looked at as nerds. It seems like many kids look up to the hilarious improvers. I'm sure the improvers are nice, but I've never really talked to any of them.

There are the members of the show choir groups. At the assemblies where they perform, they appear to go underappreciated. But in truth, many people enjoy watching them perform and respect them. You often notice them because they wear bright yellow jackets with buttons on them. Most of them are nice, though I've met a few snooty ones.

There are the smart kids who take all of the college level courses and get A's in all of them. They aren't really looked down upon in this school, to my knowledge. I envy them, I look up to them. I wish I had their dedication. I've met a few pretentious smart kids, but overall I have a few friends in this category and they are awesome.

I don't want to call this last category the "average" kids because I don't like to use words like "average" or "normal". But these kids are the ones who may be involved in a couple of extracurricular activites, get "average" grades but they don't do anything outstanding. They have friends, they're extremely friendly but they don't neccessarily stand out in a crowd. But that's definetely not a bad thing.

There's the trouble makers, though I don't know much about them. They hang out on the school campus skateboarding and get into fights with the supervisers when they try to kick them out. They argue with teachers and get sent to the hall. I saw a lot more kids like this in middle school, but I don't see as many here.

Then there's me. I don't know where I stand here. I guess I'm just here. I'm not an athlete or a cheerleader and I don't get average grades (my grades are probably considered a little less than average and I'm definetely not proud of that fact). I'm the president of my schools gay-straight alliance. There are a lot of people who know me at this school but I wouldn't neccesarily say I'm popular. I perform in talent shows but I'm not a part of the show choir or the dance team. I guess I'm just a part of this highschool. I'm just another piece to the puzzle. Another kid trying to be themselves when we're in a place where the easiest thing to do is to place everyone into groups - to classify them like they are soups cans on the shelf at a grocery store. Many of us run from it, but as far as we run or as much as we try to deny it, it's here. Here we all are just cans of soup at Walmart.

Valetta (First try at description!)

Valetta is what they call a Mackerel tabby because the patterns on her fur look like fish bones. She is almost all grey but the stripes that cover her are black. Her stomach and chest are a tan color. She has white fur around her mouth that makes it look like she just dipped her chin in a bowl of milk. Her nose is dark tan color and the same dark stripes that cover her body are also on her face. She looks like a little bob cat.

She has these piercing yellow eyes. When she looks at me I feel like she's looking into me. At night, when she's prowling around my room, the pupils of her eyes are so big that they almost consume the yellow in her eyes. During the day, her pupils are tiny little slits. They remind me of snake eyes.

Her fur is so soft, it feels like silk. The fur on her stomach is the most soft, though the pads on her feet are pink and very tough. Her tough is a light pink almost the color of bubble gum. It’s rough and it feels very similar to sandpaper when she licks my hand.

When she meows, she meows at the top of her lungs. Whether she’s begging for food or attention, she makes herself heard. Often at night, she’ll keep me up with her loud meowing or even worse, I’ll hear the sound of the things on my dresser crashing to the floor. Late at night, when I’m trying to sleep she likes to get up on my dresser and push everything off of it. She just sits there, and paws at what sits on my dresser, whether it’s a Cd or a necklace of mine, she paws at it with playful abandon until it comes crashing to the floor. She repeats this process until I lock eyes with her.

Sometimes she doesn’t even meow – she whines and she screams. So loudly, that I swear the people in the apartment next to ours must hear her. She does this when she’s away from me. She’ll paw at the door, she’ll cry until I come in and hold her. It’s similar to the sound of a baby crying or a scared defenseless little animal. When I come and get her, she calms down so rapidly, it’s almost like she’s melting in my hands. She rests her paws on my shoulder and I feel the warmth of the love of a pet and her purring reverberating in her throat.

How to be a Grandchild (Process Analysis)

When you knock on the door, you'll have to be patient. Trust me, they're home. But it will take a couple of minutes for my Grandpa to pull his eyes from the television screen to get up and open that door. When he finally does reach the door, it'll take a couple more minutes for him to actually open the door. He's had that door, that doorknob, that lock for quite a while and yet, still can't manage to remember how to open it.

When you finally enter the house, the smell of mothballs will hit you. It's a strong smell but the more time you spend in the house, the less you notice it, though you will notice, the old furniture, the new flat-screen television resting on top of the broken television from the sixties. You may chuckle at that sight, and my grandpa may ask you what you're laughing about.

You will find my grandmother in the kitchen. She may be baking banana bars or an apple pie. She'll probably look up and smile at you. Then ask you to get her something. Maybe it will be a glass of water, or the sugar canister. She will probably need help getting in the bathtub to wash her hair, or may need you to rub her feet. That's your job.

In the meantime, my grandpa may try to make idle conversation with you. He may or may not bring up his dead bug collection or show you the mouse skeleton he has in a jar. Just politely say no. He may still proceed to show you said dead mouse. If so, just kindly smile, glance at the jar and walk away.

When helping my grandmother in the bathtub, remember to get the big cooler from the kitchen. Set that cooler in the bathtub. She uses that cooler to lower herself into the bathtub. Run hot water for her, but not too hot. Once she gets in the bathtub, you may leave her alone. She can take it from there. She's stubborn and independent. She probably won't let you wash her hair or help her in the bathtub any further, though she may ask you to make her bed.

When making her bed, take off all of the blankets, including the turqoise electric blanket, but leave the mattress pad on the bed. Look in the nightstand, the one with the television sitting on top of it. In the bottom drawer, there should be mismatched pillow cases and sheets. When putting on the fitted sheet, you may scrape your knuckles on the left side of the bed by the wall. Getting that fitted sheet on is a task in itself. Then, when you put on the next sheet, tuck the end of it into the end of the bed and you may also tuck the sides in. Make sure it's straight. Make sure it's not too wrinkled. Then set the turquoise electric blanket on top of the sheets, then place the comforter on top. But make sure it's not crooked. Grandma may be getting older, but she can't stand it when that comforter is crooked. Finally throw the used sheets down the hamper in the bathroom.

When you help my grandma out of the bathtub, help her to hoist herself onto the big cooler. Once she's sitting on that, she can get one leg over the edge of the bathtub and bring herself to her feet. After you get her out of the bathtub, she'll probably ask you to make grandpa supper.

Take the leftovers out of the green tinted triangular containers in the fridge. Take a few spoonful’s of whatever leftovers are in the fridge, put them in the microwave for two minutes. In the meantime, boil water for grandpa’s instant coffee. To make the instant coffee, take a table spoon and open the glass container on the counter that’s shaped like a snowman. The instant coffee is in there. Make sure you get a level spoonful of that - Level! If it's not level, grandpa will complain that it is too strong. Dip the scoop in the sugar canister into the sugar. Get a full scoop, then shake it just a little. Then pour the remaining sugar in the grandpas coffee. Finally, proceed with the leftovers and the coffee and take them out into the living room where grandpa may or may not have fallen asleep with his mouth open on the couch.

At this point, my grandma will hug you and thank you. You may hug my grandpa, but he usually will not get up to hug you. You have officially survived a day with my grandparents. Remember to turn the light on outside of the house and close the door tightly behind you.

Iowa Stubborn

I'm so glad the caucus is over. I would be happier if Ron Paul would've came out on top. But third place is definitely not bad.

Whenever the Iowa Caucus time comes around, it seems like all eyes in the country are on Iowa. Maybe I'm over exaggerating. But it seems like hatred towards Iowa has been on the rise this time around. I could just be paying more attention to it, now that I'm finally old enough to participate in the caucus.

I'd just like to say for the record, that Iowa is not a state of rednecks and corn-fed idiots. I've grown up here and I can honestly say, I think it's one of the best places in America. And though I haven't traveled the world, I've traveled around quite a bit. I've been to New Mexico, Arizona, Nevada, California, Texas, Illinois and even to Mexico.

Now on to a smaller scale. Let's focus on my home town - Cedar Rapids, Iowa. Cedar Rapids is the kind of place where people will hold the door open for you. But it's not a town of over-polite sheltered hicks. We have our own attitude. We are our own people.

We have a Wal-Mart, a Target, two different malls, and tons of eating establishments. Cedar Rapids is Iowa's second biggest city. Sure it's not big and glamorous like the places I've seen in California but its home.

I've seen plenty of small towns in Iowa. There's much activity in many of the small towns that I've seen except for farms, family-owned restaurants, some second-hand clothing stores and a few churches. But the people that I've met that are from those small towns are wonderful. They aren't small minded people. They're sweet, bright people that have a love for the smaller things in life that some people in places like California may never possess.

Cedar Rapids is pretty different from the smaller towns is my mind. Not only because we have a bigger population but because we're on the brink of being considered an industrial city. I grew up right by the Quaker Oats factory. I remember waking up in the mornings to walk to Elementary school and getting a whiff of the sweet smells emanating from the factory. I miss those mornings.

In conclusion, I love this state and I love my city. I get tired of hearing people who have never come here and never experienced it in the way I have, complaining about the intellect of the people. We may not be the most culturally diverse state, but you tell me – what is? There’s not a perfect place to hold the first caucus.  I’m glad all of the caucus hubbub is over so I can live here in peace for another four years until the next one comes around. Thank God.

"Your Song"

There's a song that always makes me feel better no matter how down and out I am. It reminds me of the nights my dad and I used to spend singing together to oldies in the basement. It's a timeless classic, and a simple love song.

"Your Song" by Elton John. I used to thumb through my dad's CD's and cassette tapes just to listen to that song. My dad cannot tell you how many times his "One Night Only" CD went missing. "One Night Only" was a live recording of some of Elton John’s biggest hits. I'd fall asleep listening to it.

I always thought it was amazing how Elton John's music and Bernie Taupin's lyrics just jelled together. "Your Song" was the song that catapulted me into being the huge Elton John fan that I'm proud to be now.

I own at least thirty of Elton John's records. Even the original record that "Your Song" was on: his self-titled album. The cover of the album is a picture of the right side of his youthful face. The left side of his face falls into the shadow surrounding him. I've spent hours just listening, watching the record spin. The genre of the music on this record fell more into the folk music category than some of his later pop records and I loved that about it. Elton John is so versatile.

In 2010, I was lucky enough to see my idol live. We had tenth row on the floor seating. I remember how amazing I thought it was. I couldn't believe that I would only be ten rows away from the man himself. Elton John played for three hours straight, without an intermission. He played so many great songs and I mouthed the lyrics to every song right along with him.

He started the show with a personal favorite of mine, "Funeral For a Friend/Love Lies Bleeding." They were two songs combined into one track – the first track on his album, “Goodbye Yellow Brick Road”. “Funeral For a Friend” is solely instrumental. It’s a funeral rock song. I don’t know how else to describe it. “Love Lies Bleeding” is a lot more poppy. I believe it’s about a lover leaving because the man was to tied up in his band.

He played a lot of other great songs that night too like "Rocket Man", "Bennie and the Jets", "Goodbye Yellow Brick Road" and "Candle in the Wind". But he went out with a bang. He closed the show with the best song of all: "Your Song".