An Explanation

This is probably going to be one the hardest things I've written . . . mostly because it's about a huge decision I've made. 

So, as many of you know, I am a Sophomore at Concordia College. I am a Cobber and proud of it. I am majoring in Theatre and English Writing. I made the decision to go to college straight out of high school. I thought it would work and I'd be fine. 

Well, it isn't working. 

I'm not fine.

Let me say I am glad I went to Concordia. I'm proud of the fact I went to college, the first in my family. I like college, I'm glad I'm going, but I'm just worn out from going to school for thirteen years, then hopping into four more years of school. 

I'm worn out. 

I need a break. 

With that, I've decided I am going to take my Spring semester off. This effects me in a few ways. I will not be graduating in May of 2014 like I would if I did not take the semester off, however if those Mayans are right, we won't make it past 2012 anyway < rim shot >. I will, hopefully, be graduating instead in December of 2014.  I will also have to start paying off grants and loans and all that money I borrowed since I will no longer be a full time student (I think so anyway. I have to talk to the financial aid office about loan payback).

Now, I know several people who have taken time off and just sat around doing nothing. I'm not going to be one of those people. I've already submitted a bunch of applications to businesses around the F/M area (ten at the last count and I started applying on Friday) and I've also started requesting information on apartments in Fargo. It won't be anything fancy, just a studio apartment (which is kind of my ideal place of residence actually just not as small as the ones I'm looking at) because they're cheap. I'm hoping to have all of this settled and squared away before February, ideally sometime mid-January. So instead of being a full time student, I will be working full time, and in all honesty, I think would give me more time to focus on me. Which I haven't been able to do. 

Yes, I realize many, many, many other people did go to college right out of high school and it works for them. Kudos to you, I don't want to hear any lectures about that. It hasn't been working for me. It's my education, my future, my decision, so I just ask that no one tries to tell me I'm just being x, y, or z about whatever it is you may think about my decision. I'm open to any disagreements you may have about it, but please don't try to talk me out of it. I'm not the type of person who will do something for the approval of others. I'm doing this for me and not for anybody else. 

There is one thing I do ask for though and that's support. This was a really difficult decision to make and not one I made lightly. I've been thinking about it since this past summer when I considered taking Fall semester off. If you can't support and don't agree with me, then just respect my decision and don't think differently of me, I'm doing what's best for me. It's not like I'm dropping out and leaving school entirely.

There is also another thing concerning my education that I can think about during my semester away. Not long ago, I began looking at theatre conservatories and other schools with really good theatre programs. At first I was considering attending grad school at these places, however, I've ruled out grad school. At least for the time being. I don't intend to go after I graduate college. Anyway, looking at these schools planted them into my thoughts and these thoughts grew into more plausible ideas. And if you're intelligent, you've probably already deduced that I mean transfer. I haven't committed to anything, I've just been contemplating it, but I haven't had any real time to deeply think about it. I honestly don't know whether I will transfer or not, but I'm definitely going to have to think about it. 


In the long run, this semester away will help me refocus, recharge, and find what I've lost. All I need is time, and since I have time to do it, I'm doing it. This will also give me a chance to try my hand at doing the whole legitimate working actor thing. Once I'm settled and everything, I'll be exploring Fargo's drama scene and sticking my foot in the door. 

Wow, okay, that was a bit more rambling than I intended. I hope this explains things relatively well, and if not, just ask me. Most of you know how to get a hold of me.


Until next time, goodnight and sleep tight


SIDENOTE: Please excuse the odd formatting that pops up in some spots. I guess Blogspot is just too smart for me to try and fix.

The Dream

Greetings and salutations.


So, last night, I had the most ridiculous dream I've had in a while that I can remember. I was curious to see what the things in my dream meant, so that's what this post is about. 


In my dream, I was chilling in my room, at school. I was with some friends just doing whatever and my door was open because it just was. One of my friends walked by and I saw him and we talked for a while, nothing memorable. Now, the craziness starts. He left and I noticed that he was walking from one end of the hallway to the other, looking into my room every time he passed it. I was like, "Huh" and just kept on chilling. Suddenly, another of the dorms DA's (Dorm Advisor) walked into the doorway and I said "Hi" and turned back around. I heard a loud BANG. She had shot me. In the part of the back between the shoulder blades. Someone had the bright idea of just putting something over the wound till later (which never came by the way).  

Some time passed and I was with my grandparents eating a meal in a restaurant. Normal stuff. I still had the gauze tail hanging from my back. I went to the bathroom and came out to find my good friend Yeatsy chilling at the counter (it was a diner-esque type place) and I went up and started talking to her. After I was done eating, I decided to hang out Yeatsy, so I said goodbye to grandparents and Yeatsy and I ended up in a cab, which was driven by her aunt (or her mom, I can't recall which) and had her sister in the back seat. We started heading back to town when suddenly there was lava! We drove over a little bit of it. We kept going. We ended up driving through a huge lava flow (car went under and all that). We freaked out and kept on going. 

At some point, the lava turned into this mechanical looking goo type stuff . . . I can't even describe it . . . the point was stuff had gone super bizarre. We somehow ended up in space. I don't quite understand it. But we started flying past all of these weird space things. 

We started flying through some battles happening. The participants of these battles were aliens, I think they were the Borg from Star Trek (yes, I know some Star Trek stuff . . . and that's about it) and Batman. Yeah, Batman was there. In space. We flew overhead of this battle and saw Batman take out a few of his opponents. 

We kept soaring through space when I saw my dog. I don't know what she was doing there. Or how she was there, all I know is I had to rescue her from space. So I did just that. I rescued her. Eventually we ended up at this pet store. I really have no idea how I ended up there. We were unwinding from our crazy adventures in space. I was looking at the fish and I saw this gorgeous betta with giant flowing fins and I wanted it . . . and then I woke up. 


So, I looked as much of this stuff up as I could in a dream interpretation type thing and this is what I ended up with (courtesy of this website):

• Being shot represents a form of self-punishment that you may be unconsciously imposing on yourself. You may have done something that you are ashamed of or are not proud of .
• Bandages indicate your need to heal. You may be feeling emotionally wounded and are trying to cover/shield your hurt from others. 
• Seeing a naked back in your dream symbolizes secrets that you may have kept from others or aspects of yourself that you have kept hidden and shielded away. 
• Seeing your grandparents in your dream symbolize love, security, wisdom and protection.
• Seeing friends in your dream signify aspects of your personality that you have rejected, but are ready to incorporate and acknowledge. The relationships you have with those around you are important in learning about yourself. Alternatively, dreaming of a friend indicates positive news.
• Dreaming that you are in a cab indicates that you are being taken for a ride. Someone is taking advantage of you.
• Sitting in the backseat of a car suggests that you are no longer in control of your life. You may be feeling overpowered, dominated and being told what to do. You need to start taking back control of your life.
• Lava in your dream signifies violent anger which you have kept inside for a period of time.
• Dreaming that you are in space represents exploration and independent thinking. You are broadening your horizons and view. Alternatively, the dream may be a metaphor that you are "spacing out". You need to return your concentration back on your future and goals. Or the dream may be a pun on your need for more "space" in a relationship or situation. 
• Seeing spaceship in your dream symbolizes your creative mind. It denotes a spiritual journey into the unknown and signals self-development and self-awareness. Alternatively, the dream suggests that you need to take on a different perspective, no matter how bizarre or unusual it may be.
• Batman in your dream suggests that you need to utilize your wits and resources in order to help yourself or others. Perhaps your are not maximizing your full potential. You need to unleash the power from within. Stop looking for shortcuts to get you where you want. Alternatively, the dream implies that there is some wrongdoing that you need to rectify (I was amazed when they had an entry on Batman).
• Aliens in your dream signify that you are having difficulties adapting and adjusting to your new surroundings. You are feeling "alienated" and disconnected. You may also be having difficulties with how to handle or deal with a certain situation or person. On a psychological level, seeing aliens represent an encounter with an unfamiliar or neglected aspect of your own self.
• A dog in your dream symbolizes intuition, loyalty, generosity, protection, and fidelity. The dream suggests that your strong values and good intentions will enable you to go forward in the world and bring you success. The dream dog may also represent someone in your life who exhibits these qualities. Alternatively, to see a dog in your dream indicates a skill that you may have ignored or forgotten.
• A betta fish in your dream indicates that thoughts from your unconscious is close to emerging to the surface. You are ready to confront your repressed thoughts. If there are two betta fish in your dream, then it signifies conflicting issues that you are dealing with.

So . . . basically, I have some issues to work out. If you hold much stock to dream interpretation.

Sorry this post is incredibly long! I didn't plan it that way. Hopefully you'll read or at least skim through the dream and look at what my dream might have meant.

Until next time, goodnight and sleep tight

Honesty

Greetings and salutations!


I have been feeling very honest as of late. I feel like sharing some truths about myself. So here goes.


Truth #1: I'm not honest about myself. 
Okay, so that sounds really bad. Let me explain. I'll tell the truth, if it isn't about me. If something is up with me, I won't talk about it. Usually. Sometimes I just reach a point and just blow passive aggressiveness all over everybody. But if someone asks me if somethings wrong, I'll say something like "It's nothing," "I'm fine, don't worry about it," and other things of that nature. I won't go into details all the time about certain things because I'd rather keep them to myself. I'm sure that's a very vague answer, but that's the best way I can explain it. 


Truth #2: I swear. Like a sailor.
I'm not going to go around and swear in front of everybody. That's not appropriate. I refuse to swear in front of my family, mostly because my siblings are at that age (teenagers) where they'll see me doing things and try to do it themselves and use me as an excuse. My brother pulls that stunt enough already. I don't need him going over to his dad's house and swearing up a storm and blaming me for it. My sisters are starting to become more like that as well, mostly through my brother and by extension, me. I also refuse to swear on places like Facebook, Twitter, this blog, or anywhere the public can see it. It's called maintaining a (quasi) professional image. Try it sometime, kids. 


Truth #3: My majors are not up for debate.
I've had to justify my majors several times already over break. No one understood I wasn't majoring in Theatre for the money. I'm not naive enough to think I'll be making millions as an actor, unless I choose to pursue a film . . . which is still a long shot. I'm doing it to be happy. That's my justification of it. I'm sick of being told I need a back up and not having any support for my goals. I can honestly make plenty of money for myself to be happy and comfortable with life. I can also write, I will have an English Writing major, too. I could write for a high profile newspaper, magazine, whatever. It's not like I won't have a job. It will probably be in a restaurant (ha ha, Theeatre major jokes). There. End of story.


Truth #4: I'm sick of being looked at differently because of my sleeping habits.
I know I've already touched upon this a few times, but it's a persistent thing. I have tried just about everything to try and keep an earlier bedtime. It doesn't (see that contraction? It means not) stick. My sleep schedule is pretty consistent; sleeping anywhere between 2:30 and 3:30, awake between 11:00 and noon. Because for whatever reason, I have the hardest time waking up anytime before about seven hours of sleep. I feel miserable and incredibly drowsy all day, but I won't fall asleep anytime earlier. Every so often I'll fall into a regular sleep pattern, but it doesn't stay for very long. My sleep schedule works for me. Does it harm anybody else? No. I present a challenge to anyone. If you want to take it, contact me. 


Truth #5: I'm a pacifist. And a conscientious objector. 
I don't support violence. I don't support war. Pretty simple (I do support those who do choose to serve in war though. My grandfather was a Marine and in the Air Force and my uncle was in the Air Force, too).


Truth #6: I'll probably never be a dad.
It's not that I can't have them or that I don't like kids. I can and do. I just have a few things with my own father and all that fun stuff. I'd rather not risk something like that happening to a child I'd bring into the world. I'm not saying it will happen, I'd honestly feel better not trying and having to worry about that whole thing (Sidenote: I'm pretty sure I've mentioned the whole thing with my dad before. It's in here somewhere. Scavenger hunt time). I mean, how fair would it be to either me or the offspring I'd sire if it were to happen? It'd be really unfair to the kid, that's for sure. If I were to ever resolve the issues between the two of us, I'd probably reconsider the whole child thing. 


That's really I have for now. I will probably add more as I see fit, so be sure to keep an eye on this post. At least the corner of an eye. 


Until next time, goodnight and sleep tight

The Anniversary

Greetings and salutations!

This post is a very, very special post. Yes indeed. This time one year ago was when I wrote my very first post (which can be found here if you want to relive the glory that has been my blog).

My how times have changed.

I am now a Sophomore. I now have a room all to my self, aside from random creatures named Orwell and Bronte. They keep me company . . . as much company as two fish can provide. Faustus has left us for a better place in case any of you remember him. He passed (read: jumped from his bowl) at the end of second semester last spring. We were barely home a week when he went on to the big fishbowl in the sky. Bronte is a recent addition to my world. She too is a betta fish. I purchased her on a whim recently and I will probably leave her at home after break . . . like many other beasts my family has come into possession of over the years.

I am currently packing/cleaning/finishing up my first semester of Sophomore year here at Concordia. And wow, what a semester it's been. I have something planned which will talk about first semester and other such things. It's going to get really honest up in here, really fast (said as ethnically (read: black) as possible (is that P.C? Eh, who cares. I'm going with it).


Speaking of truths, I really only needed to post this special anniversary blog and didn't really have anything else planned for it. So, thank you, dear readers, how ever many there are of you. Thank you for reading and sticking with the random, inconsistent, nonsensical, ramblings of this night owl. I hope you'll continue reading and sticking with me for another glorious year of late nights.


Until next time, goodnight and sleep tight.

Sleep, Again

Greetings and salutations.


Alright kids. I've already posted a post about this subject . . . but things have changed and new twists have been added to the fun game that is my sleeping habits. I don't want to sound like a broken record about the whole sleeping disorder thing, but well, this is a space where I put some of my thoughts and sleep happens to be on my mind frequently. 


As previously mentioned in my first post about this particular subject, as found here if you need a refresher course, I mentioned Delayed Sleep Phase Syndrome. DSPS is a circadian rhythm disorder and like the name implies (context clues, kids), my sleep is delayed. What that means for me is I have trouble naturally falling asleep before two or three in the morning. It's basically impossible . . . unless I'm just exhausted or have been up all night without any sleep. When I wrote the first post, I wasn't specifically diagnosed with anything, it was all speculation and self-diagnosis, which I don't do often. After seeing a sleep doctor, who is wonderful and I really like her, I was given the diagnosis of DSPS. Which was a huge relief for me because I now have someone who specializes in sleep telling me there is something wrong.


Oh, and did I mention she also diagnosed me with psychophysiological insomnia? Because she did. 


From what my doctor has told me, psychophysiological insomnia is caused by high levels of stress and anxiety. My particular stress and anxiety came from my sleep, my attempts to force myself to sleep before I was ready to, my anxiety over my inability to fix and control my sleep, and my reactions to other people commenting on my sleeping habits . . . which were mostly critical (and brought on even more issues for me).


And what am I doing to accommodate my unusual sleeping schedule and school? Well, I have two classes each day and the classes don't start until after noon thirty. Which has worked out relatively okay. I mean, I've missed classes, but my professors know what's up and that it's somewhat out of my control. I'm also on a prescription sleep aid . . . not a sleeping pill. My doctor put me on trazodone, which is actually an anti-depressant, to induce drowsiness, which will help me fall asleep sooner. It's been okay so far, I haven't had any really adverse reactions to it. My jaw would be locked when I woke up and would pop when I tried to open past a certain point. That hurt. I told my doctor about this and she said that it was probably me clenching my jaw at night that caused the locking and that it was probably a side effect of the pill, since I've never had this problem before.


But the combination of the DSPS and insomnia is an interesting mix . . . I've noticed I've been falling asleep later than I normally would (which is already late for polite society). I've also fallen into a bizarre habit of crashing at like eight or nine in the evenings and waking up again at say, two or three in the morning, staying up till about eleven, crashing again, and waking up for class . . . this has been me for the past week. I blame Grease. But not really . . . kind of.

Speaking of the Fine Arts, during my initial meeting with my doctor, we were talking about what I was studying in school. When I mentioned I was a Theatre and English Writing double major, she was like "As much a night owl as you are, that's perfect for you." She meant perfect in the sense I wouldn't have to worry too much about the whole 9-5 shift nonsense. She also didn't say those exact words, I was getting to the essence of what she meant.

Anyway, that's all I really have to say about this at the time being. I'll keep the world updated with my sleep stuff as I have more to say about it. 


With that, goodnight and sleep tight.

Annoyed

Greetings and salutations.

So, recently, I've started thinking and those thoughts have been pretty . . . negative, for lack of a better word. More specifically, I've been thinking about people. And politics. And other things that involve people and their shining ignorance.

Now, I'm a pretty easy going person - live and let live and what not and I've never been incredibly vocal about these particular topics since people like to totally walk all over and ruin my train of thought. Plus, I get mildly anxious about trying to voice my thoughts on them. But, I really want to get my thoughts out on these ideas.

Bear with me, as I'll probably ramble a bit while trying to make my point.

Let's get started.

Republicans, more specifically Tea Partiers, really irritate me to no end. Here's my basic problem with them, elaborated with a handy dandy picture:

 

That. That right there is my biggest gripe with the Tea Party. That list could probably be extended by more knowledgeable individuals than myself, but that's a good start. 

Let's start with gay marriage. Why is the government involved in marriage anyway? Last time I checked, most people get married in a church, by a priest/minister/pastor/appropriate religious official. So, can someone please tell me why the government needs to be involved in something that belongs to God, who by the way, the Tea Party loves. Not saying I don't love the Big Guy upstairs, but religion doesn't matter to me in politics or whether someone can effectively lead me OR a country. 

As for the U.S. of A being a Christian nation, well, it certainly shouldn't be if it is one. Aren't we the land of the free? Isn't that why many people came to America? To escape religious persecution? To worship whatever deity they choose without fear of being hunted down and imprisoned (or whatever it is that happens)? You bet your sweet bippy they did! We were created as an equal nation and believe all men are created equal, that last bit is even in the Declaration of Independence. It's actually used pretty early on. It also mentions the right to the "Life, liberty, and the pursuit of Happiness" relatively soon after that bit about all men being created equally. So take that Tea Party.

But I'm getting slightly off the point. Let's talk about abortion next . . . which is tricky to do well. So, here goes. Abortion is wrong. Clearly. However (and this is a really BIG however), I believe that under extremely specific circumstances, abortion should be allowed. Those exceptions include life or death situations for the mother and only as a last resort, or if the fetus is so far gone because of some deformations and there is no saving it. I'm not saying we should ban abortion; I'm appreciative of Planned Parenthood and those types of clinics for existing so women can go to a safe place and safely have an abortion instead of in a back alley with a rusty wire hanger, if they so choose to do so. I know that sounds really contradictory and trust me, I'm super aware of that fact. It's a super bizarre combination of thoughts. But we shouldn't ban abortion because women would seek out other methods in desperation. [Phew!!!] Abortion is tricky and a super touchy subject.

As for pornography. Really, Tea Party? Really? Yes, I can understand the point you're trying to make, but come on. That's going a little too far. I don't have a particular stance on this one, but I suppose I'm opposed to the banning of pornography. It doesn't make a lick of sense to me why you would. Especially considering it's a massive industry and those Republicans are a huge fan of big business!!!

I could probably go on and on about my political stances on a huge variety of issues, but that would get boring and where's the fun in that?

Another thing that really annoys me in my life is people who have this undeserved sense of superiority. It's particularly annoying when it's a really huge sense of undeserved superiority and there's a group of people like that. Now, I like to joke about how awesome I am and how much better I am than so-and-so, but I don't really mean it. Not for a minute do I honestly believe I am better than anybody . . . except MSUM and Women's Studies majors . . . ah ha ha ha, see what I did there? But I know so many people who legitimately believe they are better than other people based off totally ridiculous things. For example: relationship status; majors; future career aspirations; their significant other's major and future wealth.

On a semi-unrelated note, I also know people who throw a huge fit when people knock their major. Let's be honest, I'm a Theatre major. I'm also an English Writing major. Two of the most subjective majors, which require you to be able to sell yourself and accept massive amounts of criticism and rejection before you even get anything. So, if I make a joke about your major, suck it up! Have a sense of humor about things. I have to go through years of rejections, while you get to sit pretty behind some desk or wear some lab coat being successful AND WORKING, almost right away. I know why I'm talking about majors and what not now - I wanted to slip in the fact that as a Theatre major, I'm looked down upon. And that annoys me. 

It all makes sense now.

Sorry if this has been a really misleading post. I am sincerely annoyed by all of the aforementioned things, people, and ideas. Before you leave, I do need to tell you I am not some close minded bigot. I am actually pretty open minded and just have a really specific stance on things. My moral compass tells me so. I hope you enjoyed reading my thoughts and took something away from it.

Till next time, sleep tight.

Hipsters

Oh, hey there.

So, I really doubt I'd ever in all seriousness write a post about this particular topic . . . however, recent occurrences and encounters have prompted me to do so.

First things first. What is a hipster? According to UrbanDictionary, a pretty unreliable source, a hipster is " a subculture of men and women typically in their 20's and 30's that value independent thinking, counter-culture, progressive politics, an appreciation of art and indie-rock, creativity, intelligence, and witty banter." Well, that seems pretty accurate, doesn't it? I have also come across the phrase "elitist hipster." I was curious as to what UrbanDictionary had to say about that. An elitist hipster is "[someone] who thinks they aren't hipsters, because they are educated, rich, spoiled, pretty, and of course, better than hipsters. However, they are nothing but useless . . .  hipsters"

More or less a hipster

Now, a few fun stories about a hipster who I've had several, usually frustrating, encounters with.

One of my female friends happens to have a hipster suitor . . . she is in a happily committed relationship. Said hipster is not happy about the relationship and has repeatedly tried to interfere. He of course, was thwarted. I don't know if I've ever mentioned the fun story about a conversation that was had about me and my friendship with the aforementioned female, hereby known as Ducky. Ducky and I are very close and have a unique friendship, which makes the hipster suitor jealous. Anyway, long story short, I was basically threatened, which I find really funny, by the way, and was called "very handsy."

Fast forward to a few weeks ago, as this was second semester, and we find ourselves at another story with the same hipster.  We had a poster sale here on campus and he more or less called people out for being "sheeple," (his word, not mine) and that people shouldn't buy certain posters for the sake of being cool; a Facebook comment battle ensued. Ducky's boyfriend, who shall be referred to as Scampers called the hipster out on being an elitist hipster. The hipster had a moment of passive aggressiveness* via Facebook where he was whining about being called an elitist hipster and was all "I'm going to change my lifestyle because people called me an elitist hipster douche. Blah blah, blah."

That's a really poor place to end my story, but it brings me to another point: being a hipster. No one aspires to be a hipster unless they really have a massive superiority complex and like looking down on people for their choices in music, literature, clothes, and so on. The hipster in this story is a self proclaimed hipster, which annoys everybody who isn't his friend .  . . actually, it probably annoys everybody. An analysis of his Facebook, done through creeping since I'm not his Facebook friend, reveals several things: the first of which is that he isn't actually a hipster. He's "trendy." Since when are hipsters trendy? Aren't hipsters supposed to go against social norms and rebuke anything "trendy?" Another thing that sticks out as non-hipster are his choices in literature, film, and books (ironic, isn't it). No self respecting hipster (. . . let that sit there for a minute . . .) would dare be found watching such classics as "V for Vendetta," "Zombieland," "Star Wars," and especially "Harry Potter."

Now we turn our focus to the writer of this blog - Me. I've already shared this story with my close friends, but now it's the internet's turn for this gem of a story (I promise, I'm not a broken record . . . I just want to share this with the world). I recently had to spend several hours in the theatre here on campus as part of my theatre class and for being a part of the cast of The Foreigner. As we were waiting for the last piles of sawdust to be swept up, several of us were standing around, just talking. Another of my female friends, whom I shall refer to as Lover. Lover made on an offhand comment about me being a hipster, a claim which I immediately refuted. Some random female, who is in my theatre class disputed my refusal to accept the label of hipster. She proceeded to ask my various questions. The following passage is as close to as what was actually said.

TG (Theatre Girl): Where are you?

M (Me): The theatre.

TG: What color are your shoe laces?

M: Blue (Sidenote: My Chucks were grey).

TG: What color is your shirt?

M: Orange? What does that have to do with anything?

TG: Who's your favorite band?

M: I don't know?

TG: Have I ever heard of them?

M: Maybe? I don't know?

TG: You're a hipster.

Then some other guy mentioned my beard . . . I have a beard, by the way. In short, it was a very interesting conversation.

Alright team, I'm having a very, very meta moment writing this blog: A) Because it's a blog; 2) I was called a hipster all of forty eight hours ago; and Purple) I just tried to deny the claims of being a hipster.

* I realize by only referring to people by code names is pretty passive aggressive, or maybe I'm totally missing or misinterpreting the definition. Either way, just go with it.

I've wasted enough of your time about hipsters. One more thing, if I do happen to be a hipster, it's not like I go out of my way to actually be a hipster. I come by certain things naturally . . . I enjoy certain types of music, books, and movies that not everyone will understand or know. It happens.

Anyway. I've said all I can really or want to say about this.

With that, goodnight and sleep tight.

Thirty Days, Three

Greetings and salutations. 

Without further ado, I present to you the gripping final installment of my Thirty Days. 

Day 21: Something you’re proud of -

What am I proud of? Plenty of things: Graduating high school, making it to college, not quitting something I loved when I really felt cheated and pushed aside, technically earning Honors at Graduation, but not receiving them (I'll post more about this toward the end of the post). I have plenty of things I'm proud of.

Day 22: What do you want your future to be like - 

I want my future to be happy (yeah, yeah), I want to be doing something I love, as in acting, writing, or traveling. Overall, I just want to have a future, because some days I worry I won't have one.

Day 23: Favorite Movies and TV Show -

Favorite Movies: Harry Potter 1-7 (PT 1 and 2), almost any Disney movie, Tim Burton films, Guillermo del Torro films, Pirates of the Caribbean, I like a bunch of movies.
Favorite TV Shows: I like the trashy dating shows on Game Show Network, such as Baggage, I'm also a Gleek, I definitely enjoy American Dad, and a few other shows . . . I didn't watch very much during the school year.

Day 24: Something you’ve learned -

Specifically this year? To breath. I've also learned procrastination sucks, family drama likes to well up when you come home for break. Oh, and my spirit animal is an owl. Throughout my life? How to listen and be there for someone, how to not give up (perseverance and all that), and that last names make or break somebody. 

Day 25: Something you are looking forward to -

At the moment, I'm looking forward to going back to school; I miss my friends and the school. Further ahead, I don't really know. I'm not particularly one to look incredibly far ahead. But I do look forward to earning my degrees, finding a career I love, traveling, and just exploring life.

Day 26: Your Dream Wedding - 

Um, well, let's see . . . I haven't necessarily thought about it - ever.

Day 27: Photo of your city town- 

This is the place I call home. It's small, but it's home. This is really all there is to it . . . just Main Street and the surrounding area. *BONUS FACT* All the street names in my town are in Danish with the English translations underneath.

Day 28: What stresses you out -

Failure, not being able to sleep, not being able to express myself, Day 22, family, friends, so on and so forth. I stress out often and it contributes to my inability to sleep at night (at normal hours), and that just stresses me out even more.

Day 29: Who is your hero - 

My heroes are the typical ones everyone expects everyone to have, mom, Jesus, other family members, friends, etc, etc. I also really admire authors who have contributed to the world in a positive way. 

Day 30: A picture of yourself this day and 5 good things that happened since you started the challenge - 

But not really

1. I have made the decision to change something about myself, positively. 

2. I have had tons of fun working with the daycare kids.

3. I have gotten a futon for my room!

4. My fish has gotten new digs: a new hiding rock, and new plants.

5. I have made it about halfway through my reading list. 

And that, readers, is my cheated Thirty Day Blog Challenge. I hope you enjoyed this, I did until I realized it involved making more lists within my list.

As promised, here is more explanation between Day 21 and the whole Honors thing. It doesn't necessarily paint me in the best light, but it happens.
So, during Graduation practice for the Class of 2010 (when I graduated), I was told I had Honors, meaning I would get the little ropey tassel thing to go over my stole. I was incredibly happy about that, it meant that my hard work had paid off. Now, we're at the actual ceremony and the graduates were preparing to walk and adding the stoles, tassels, and what not to our gowns. I arrived expecting to receive my golden Honor tassels, but that notion was put to a stop. Report cards had come out and I hadn't done as well as I could have (two B's of varying level). I had lost my Honors to two girls who had taken classes that weren't nearly as challenging as the ones I had taken my Senior year (read, they had taken art classes. ART CLASSES). Needless to say, I was ticked, and was ready to refuse to march and receive my diploma, but I was talked to by many members of my class (at least those who knew better) and acknowledged they knew I deserved the Honors over the other two girls. 

I admit, East Central wasn't the greatest school ever, but it had never wronged me as badly as it did when I had my Honors stripped from me at Graduation because two girls took art classes and the classes weren't weighted. I'm still bitter about that and I know I shouldn't be, but I am (I'm also suspicious because East Central is notorious for using the last name card).

Anyway, that's enough of that. I could go on and on about certain resentments at certain last names, but I won't. Until next time, sleep tight.

Thirty Days, Two

Greetings and salutations,


Previously on . . . Late Nights and Street Lights . . . you learned how I would reply to a series of semi-questions. Now, it is my privilege to present to you Part Two of this list, eleven through twenty: 


Day 11: A quote you love - 
That's a hard one . . . I'm a sucker for a good literary quote. One of my favorites though, comes from a certain bear. "Don't underestimate the value of Doing Nothing, of just going along, listening to all the things you can't hear, and not bothering." - Winnie the Pooh


Day 12: Something you don’t leave the house without - 
Easy; I never leave home without my cell phone (Droid Incredible), wallet, and generally my iPod (Nano, 4th Generation, in Green). I also never leave my house without clothes. 

Day 13: Goals - 

My goals? Well, I suppose I want to act professionally for a while (either in a major theatre city or over in Europe) and maybe be a published author, be it in newspaper, magazine, or a novel. I also want to travel, have a dog of my very own (not even kidding), and generally be a happy soul radiating positivity on the world. 

Day 14: A picture of you last year – how have you changed?

 

Physically? Just a few minor, cosmetic alterations (piercings, tattoo, hair not cracked up most of the time) Mentally? Tons. College does that. Also, I have completely different people in my pictures this year.


Day 15: Death row meal - 
While I tend not to think about my Death Row meal, for a multitude of reasons which I won't deal with here, I suppose my Death Row meal would probably be fruit . . . preferably of the citrus kind. Also, the juices of said citrus fruit.

Day 16: Your opinion about your body and how comfortable you are with it - 

So, as most people who know me know I'm pretty small. Overall, I'm pretty happy with my body, sure there aren't a few small things I wouldn't mind having smoothed out, but you know, that happens. No one is absolutely one-hundred percent happy (okay, there are probably plenty of people who are) with their bodies'.

Day 17: Put your iPod on shuffle, first 10 songs - 

1. Mumford and Sons - Thistle and Weeds 

2. Taylor Swift - Teardrops on My Guitar

3. Linkin Park - New Divide

4. White Lies - Strangers 

5. Mumford and Sons - Timshel

6. Adele - Don't You Remember

7. Sweeney Todd Movie Soundtrack - No Place Like London

8. The Bravery - Jack-O'-Lantern Man 

9. Muse - I Belong to You (Mon Coeur S'Ouvre a Ta Voix)

10. Flyleaf - Break Your Knees

Day 18: Something you miss - 

I miss being able to breath calmly and not worry about everything like I do now. No lie, it's like I have an anxiety disorder or something, it gets so bad.  I really do miss that. 

Day 19: Something you wish you were better at - 

Well, obviously sleeping. I'm also really bad about taking the advice I give to other people for myself. Which by extension includes every amount of advice on romance, emotional stuff, academic stuff, and so on, and so forth.

Day 20: Something you wonder “What if…?” about -

I wonder "What if" about various scenarios in my life, I'm pretty selfish when it comes to "What if" scenarios. Particularly family things, and what I'd be like if I was an only child or if didn't live in Minnesota or anything like that. Occasionally I go into the future and think about my family and myself then. As a theatre major/nerd (sort of) I tended to cast plays and musicals at my high school . . . in my head. 

And thus brings a conclusion to Part Two to my epic, three part saga (a la either Star Wars, although most people will ignore the second set of three). I hope you're enjoying this much insight into my head, reader, whoever you are.

Well, until next week, readers, sleep tight.

Thirty Days, One

Greetings and salutations.

In this post, I've decided to do something unoriginal, possibly informative, and hopefully makes for an interesting post. 


A little bit of background so that I can put the post into some context: I have this wonderful little thing called a StumbleUpon account. During my sleepless nights, I take to the internet and push the little Stumble button I have and it takes me to hundreds and hundreds of websites based upon my selected interests.

With that button, I found myself a little list and have decided to partake in a Thirty Day Blog Challenge, a la the Facebook Thirty Day Challenge. But, instead of thirty separate blog posts, I've split the list into the three posts worth of ten off the list. As such, these will probably be among my longer posts, if not the longest.

Without further ado, I present to you Part One of Three of the Thirty Day Blog Challenge.

Day 1: Introduce, recent picture of yourself, 15 interesting facts -

My name is Andrew, and I have a blog, which you're reading.

1. I am the oldest of four children.

2. I can cross my eyes, wiggle my ears, and wiggle my nose

3. At the same time.

4. I have a birthmark similar in shape to a stegosaurus or a fist.

5. I was born in an Air Force base hospital.

6. I am a connoisseur of oranges and orange juice.

7. I wear many bracelets . . . I feel naked without them. 

8. My knees pop often when I bend them to sit down.

9. I frequently have feet that are, as my mother eloquently puts it, "icebergs."

10. My main shoe of choice are Converse.

11. As much as I love to travel, I've never left the States. 

12. My shoulder pops when I move it a certain way.

13. I have both of my ears pierced. 

14. I will only let certain people cut my hair.

15. I'm bad about blogging, I almost don't know why I have one sometimes.

Day 2: Nicknames -

Andy, Andy-rew, J.C, Musical Hog, Rudd, and Pooh Bear. Four are from friends, two are from family. I think you can figure out which is which.

Day 3: Your first love -

In all honesty, I don't think I've had a first actual love. I'm kind of broken like that.

Day 4: Your parents -

Well, my mom is pretty fantastic. I don't really know what all to say about her that I haven't said before. It's back a few posts, somewhere. As for my dad, well, good question. 

Day 5: What song inspires you -

It's Arise by Flyleaf. I'm inspired by it so much, I went and had some song lyrics tattooed on my ribs. Really, any song by Flyleaf inspires me.

Day 6: Pet peeves -
The word "dude."

Day 7: What makes you happy - 

Music, friends, books, sleep, orange juice, family, and Baby Jesus. All in no particular order. 

Day 8: A place you’ve traveled to and where else you want to travel -

I've been to Chicago, New Orleans, Florida (twice), and various states stopping for food and bathroom breaks, because I count those since I've spent a good amount of time there. I know that isn't much, but that's not bad considering I'm from a single income, family of five, from a very poor county in Minnesota. I want to travel through Europe, like backpacking and the like. I would also like to visit every state in the Union and maybe pilfer a license plate from each one. 

Day 9: A favorite picture of your best friend - 

This one isn't entirely fair; I have many friends who I'd consider to be my "best friend." So, I'll see what I can manage.   

Day 10: Something you’re afraid of - 

Failure, letting people down, my future (sometimes), and I'd post a picture, but I absolutely refuse to Google this because I'm that afraid of it and I don't want a constant reminder of it on my blog. The un-Google-able image for me is the Crypt Keeper from Tales From the Crypt (For the record, I get nervous just thinking about it, let alone typing it). One of those long seated fears from my childhood that I can't seem to shake. Google it yourself if you want to see for yourself, I'll wait. 

And that brings an end to Part One of my Thirty Day Blog Challenge. Technically, I'm cheating, but I really don't want thirty posts dedicated to just this. It also forces me to work my way back onto the schedule of a weekly post . . . since I haven't been doing it regularly for the past three months. 

Till next time, sleep tight.

Books

Oh, hey there readers.

So, as I have been on summer break, I have had an inordinate amount of time to do whatever I wish. During the year, I had less than a proper amount of time to read as much as I normally do. 

This post is also a mildly brief summary of my summer . . . it mostly involves sleep.  Mostly

 

 

At odd hours, like 3 AM to like 12 PM or variations thereof . . . even with attempts to fix my internal clock. Anyway, back to my point about my reading habits. I spent most of the month of May doing the above (see: the picture) and as such, didn't read AS much or as often. June was when I started reading more and looking for more books to read, and boy did I find myself some good books, at least in my own opinion. 

After hearing such wonderful things about The Hunger Games series, I decided to pick it up and see if it was everything everyone said it was. Oh my Jesus. They (there are three books in the series) were fantastic reads and I couldn't put them down. 

Unfortunately, I had about a week and a half between each book; I didn't want to spend all that money on a series I might not have liked. In between each book, I decided to read something else, one book was part of a series and the other was a one-off. I started the Harry Potter series, again, and then picked up a brilliant little book, Th1rteen R3asons Why (Thirteen Reasons Why); it was . . . very moving. 

I thought it was a fantastic concept for a book, and after reading the questions to the author at the end of the book, it made so much sense and I thought it made the book even better, knowing he put the thought into why he wrote it the way he did. 

I know that eleven books isn't much, especially considering the way I read, but I've shifted my attentions to other things . . . my priorities shifted as did my attention span. I did the whole reading thing, but it's difficult for me to do so when I have no real place to go that's nearby and quiet so I can spend hour upon hour reading in peace. I also have responsibilities around the homestead that increase as my siblings disappear for the two weeks that they do. 

On the other hand, I have a list of books that I'm working my way through, slowly but surely. I think I'm reading through six books (I don't have an exact number), and one of them is the start of the series, of which I have the first three, and then I'm thinking of rereading another series that I have at home, so there's another seven right there. Long story short, I won't be at a loss for books anytime soon.

That's all I really have in the meantime that's related to the title of the post. 

In unrelated news, I have had my flesh tattooed, 

 

 my other ear punctured, 

I have a sweet job, 

and I have an awesome bike. 

Back to the original topic, I may or may not decide to write up summaries or reviews of the books I've read or something. It's another one of the decisions I'll flounder around on.

Well, with that, I suppose that's all I've got. 

Until next time, sleep tight.