2009 [Part 4]

Wow. I timed this perfectly, didn't I? I started my 2009 series on Sunday, and wrote one everyday, but didn't have time yesterday, and here I am, on New Year's Eve. Last one.

It's time for the countdown of my favorite moments of this year. These are always so, so hard.

15. Being the graphics person for my youth group for one day--pastor Lee asked me to make some graphics for our youth group. I only came in for one day, and I wasn't asked to do it again, but I felt real important for a while. Heh. Now we have a new graphics person, but that's ok.

14. Eating at five guys for the 2nd-11th time--yeah I'm not kidding. 11th. I keep the menus every time so I have proof. I ate there 10 times this year. Crazy. It's just so. GOOD.

13. Seeing Relient K--that was so cool. They've been in my top 2 favorite bands going on 4 years now. So much talent. I hope they keep on.

12. Finishing my switchfoot cross stitching project--That was alot of hard work and I plan on giving it to them one day. Each time I've met them [only twice haha] I've given them something. I like giving back. They DEFINITELY deserve it.

11. The initiation at cross country camp--I can't explain, but it was very interesting.

10. The day when I ran 6 miles at practice--It was cold and wet. And I overachieved for the first time that season. I had a really hard time this season, so I'm hoping next year I'll be really good. I just have to work hard.

9. When Jon @replied me on twitter--actually he #replied me, but close enough. Hehehh.

8. The first time I webcammed Pin before she had one--that dust remover spray stuff. That was SO FUNNY.

7. Meeting Jon for the first time at the Fiction Family show--it was so great to finally meet one of my heroes. It was really cool that he wore my fedora at that show too. Jon is such a nice guy. So down to earth. It's so easy to talk to him. I'll remember that night forever.

6. Meeting Sare--my school always has an 8th grade trip to Washington DC and Sare happens to live within driving distance [we drove too, but 8 hours isn't technically legit "driving distance"] and we set it all up and met outside of that big church place. For some reason I can't remember what it's called. Anyway, it was so awesome meeting her after all the letters and stuff!!

5. Playing guitar at the highschool retreat--it was almost like a tour. hahaha. we were there for 3 days I think, and we played a couple songs every night, and practiced in the afternoons. When we were in the "green room" everyone clapped slowly and got faster and faster like some people do at concerts. It was awesome. :D My fingers got very very calloused that week. It was great.

4. Hanging with Dylan, Anna, and Cecelia and the switchfoot show--it was really cool! It's the first show I've ever experienced with boardies. It's like a no worries thing. I can't wait til that happens again.

3. Jumping on the trampoline with Alex--that was GREAT. We're crazy. It was raining--POURING actually-- and 9:30pm-11:00pm [I think] and we were in our swimsuits. Weirdest, most random thing I have ever done, hands down. It was so much fun. HAHAH.

2. My first switchfoot show complete with aftershow and first time meeting all the guys--no explaining needed.

1. Fishing with Blake, Madeline, and Avery at the highschool retreat--I'll NEVER forget that day. None of them even read my blog but that's okay. But that was the greatest. Impromptu fishing trips are the best, even though we didn't catch anything but grass. "Nyeh!"

Well that just about wraps it up. There were millions of moments in 2009, so narrowing it down to 15 is very difficult. Anyway, to sum up this year, I think it was at least a little better than '08. At the end of my 2008 post I said

Reading all these great things from 2008, you would think it was an incredible year. Well, for me it was pretty good, but not the best. I believe 2009 will be better, and I'll make it better. 2008 for me was filled with too much heartbreak, too many letdowns, too many emotions, too much pain. I've slowly learned to get a hold of myself and learn to deal with things, though. 2008 has made me a stronger person. I will never forget all the things that God used to prepare me for the future, and though they seemed harsh and unfair at the time, I thank Him for them nonetheless.

 
So this year included a bit of heartbreak, a bit of pain, but unlike last year I didn't let those become the top 2 ingredients of this year. You know how on ingredient labels the first 2 ingredients are the ones used most in the food? Yeah. The top ingredient for me this year was hope. Hope during the pain and heartbreak, hope for a better tomorrow, for a better week, for a better me. I think I did become a better Lee. I tried not to let others define me. God is becoming the center of my life like He intended. I'm starting to let Him. It's hard to step out of the spotlight of your own life, but I'm learning that it's the for the best. I hope that 2010 is better because I've learned so many lessons this year that I can use to help myself and others next year. Have a great new year, everyone!

2009 [Part 3]

I have a friend named Nova. Lizabeth is also her name. I have her last peter pan stamp. Anyway, she's also doing a 2009 end-of-year post, and she did it by the month. I think I'll do that too. Just the highlights and/or major events of each one.

• January- I got my phone during this month. Also, Sare surprised me by mailing me the Fiction Family CD--well I knew she was sending me that, but the surprise was that she got her insert signed by sean and jon at the show she went to and she switched it with mine and gave me the signed one! I was like WOW. HAHA. It was amazing :D. I remember I was on my way to somewhere but I forget where. That's the disadvantage of doing these things at the end of the year because I forget stuff. I have to start writing blog entries with highlights at the end of every month.

• February- Hmmm... I have no recollection of february at ALL. Sorry. Wait I think I got my drastic haircut then. Yeah I think so. Then there was a mouse in Mr. Brown's class that day too. I think that was in February. hahah.

• March- Well it was my birthday that month. And that's when it snowed and made our power go out for 3 days. hah. I think we also went on our DC trip this month. Yeah I think it was either the last week of March or first week of April, which means I also met SARE this month! Jej!!

• April- OOH. That was the month where I made a REALLY STUPID mistake that I STILL kick myself for to this very day. Besides that I don't remember anything.

• May- This is when I had this awful pain in my side and spent all day at the doctor/hospital as they tried to figure out what it was, then everyone prayed for me while I was there, then it went away. God has shown me that He really is the Great Physician several times.

• June- Fiction Family show. Jon wore my fedora. I met him. I met Dylan. I met Susie. Probably the best night of my life. Well, one of them. Then the next day I experienced my first PCD. It was terrible. But I haven't had PCD since. Weird. Also this was the month of Pin webcamming.

• July- I met a very awesome guy whose very presence made my summer really great. I never really talked to him, but that's okay. This was also the month when I made the Oh! Gravity fedora and Jon reposted it. Teehee.

• August- Switchfoot show. My first time seeing and meeting them. IT WAS GREAT. Then I got to attend the aftershow!! I met Anna on the way there! And I didn't even have PCD the next day. It also marked my first day of highschool. BLEHHH.

• September- I got pink eye during this month. Hmm. What else? Oh yeah, I ate 4 enchiladas in one sitting at a mexican restaurant. I'm surprised I didn't puke. And I think our band's first performance was this month. It had to be. And the highschool retreat was this month too. Fun times.

• October- I got to see Relient K even though I was sick, which made the experience bittersweet. I also didn't get to stay for the whole thing. Oh well. Relient K's Forget and Not Slow Down also came out in October. Unfortunately I put off buying it. Heh. But I do have it now :). That's all I remember from October, sadly.

• November- Hello Hurricane! I was thrilled because I got mine 3 days early, as did most people. Not AmyLynne though. HAHAHA. Sorry. What else happened in November? Thanksgiving was nice. I hardly remember that day, though. Heh. Ifail.

• December- Switchfoot show #2. Met Dylan again, met Cecelia, met Anna again, and met this guy named Tyler. His band needs a new guitarist, but I live nowhere near them. Bummer. Also, the first time I puked this year. And Christmas. And my first highschool exams. I sink zat eez all!

Dude. I didn't plan for that to be that long. Oops. Oh well. HEHEH. I hope you liked it. I'll list 10-20 best moments in tomorrow's post.

"I Don't Like 'Em. Nope. No I Don't."

You win points if you know where the quote came from.

Anyway, this is my 3rd blog post of the day. If you missed the other two, feel free to scroll down, and if
they're not there, click the header, it'll refresh, then scroll down.

I feel like ranting expressing my opinion.

So. Relationships at this age and younger. Actually, let me correct myself. Relationships at this age and younger when you're not mature enough to know what a relationship entails. Okay. Yes... OH MY GOODNESS. I was watching the Suite Life on Deck, yes, I was watching that, and that Bailey girl was like FREAKING OUT at Cody because these other girls were flirting with him. And in another episode when she demanded that he tell her what he was doing, he told her and she was like YOU'RELYINGZOMGI'MNEVERTALKINGTOYOUAGAIN. Good GRIEF. These stupid young relationships bring out the worst in people, in my opinion. It causes you to miss someone if you don't see them after an hour, it causes unnecessary jealousy, it causes tempers to rise, it causes premature romantic feelings, all kinds of junk. I don't like it. But to each his own.

Dear Old Friend:

     Ehhhh. I know I'm interrupting my 2009 thing, but it's okay.
     I know that the person I'm talking about isn't reading this, but if you are, you'll definitely know it's you.
     I miss you so much I can't even stand it. I don't wanna text you or anything because I tried that and the conversation just dies and I don't wanna be annoying.
     I already sent you this in a letter but I MISS YOU SO MUCH. I miss everything. All the IMs, all the inside jokes, even the awkward phone call where I didn't know what to say and I was afraid that I'd be really boring.
     I don't even know what happened. I guess I was too boring for you. But it's so weird how friendships just end without a fight, without a disowning conversation, nothing. I just read a bunch of your old blog posts and I miss the fun person you used to be. You might still be that fun person, but I never see you anymore. I don't know what to do.
    This is pointless but I wanted you to know I'll always love you no matter what.
     I guess I can't be selfish. You go out into the world and live, but please be careful. I don't want to see you hurt. I can't take it. I can barely look back on our friendship without shedding a tear, so if you get hurt I think I might just die.
     I'm gonna be in your state next summer and I'm really hoping you'll be at the "big event" because I still wanted to meet you like we always planned. Although I do know exactly where you live and I could come find you, that would be horribly awful and you might not like that.
     You're an amazing strong-willed girl, and I know without a doubt that you can go out there and be something big. I hate that I'm no longer a part of your life, but in some ways you're still a part of mine. I just hope that this isn't the last I see or hear of you.
     I want everything to be like it was when we were such good friends, or so I thought. Whenever I'm friends with older people I wonder whether or not they really want to be my friend, or if I'm just some stupid kid who annoys them, and I really felt like you really wanted to be my friend. I don't know. I wish you the best, though.
     Once again, I love you.

2009 [Part 2]

I guess I'll do what I did in my 2008 blog by listing things that made this year great. Fortunately, blogger is so much better than myspace blogs, so I can actually have bullets in my list! Hah.

• Boardies. Meeting them, writing letters to them, reading blogs, keeping contact on facebook. You guys are my friends, not just random people. I'm pretty sure switchfoot fans are the only ones who are this close.
• Cross country was pretty nice this year also. I had a pretty hard time at first, even though this is my 3rd year, but I didn't give up even though I really wanted to at some times. But we won our state championship again, so... awesome!
• Music. Guitar and piano. It's nice to be able to figure out songs without the help of tabs or sheet music. I feel like God gave me that talent. Also, several great songs and albums have come out this year that I've loved :D. And being in my first band is awesome.
• Switchfoot. They've come really far just in 2009, and they just amaze me so much. They're the best band you could ever imagine. Seeing them live is such a great experience!
• Friends. Unfortunately I've lost a few. It's a weird thing. Maybe it just happens to me. I guess people just lose interest in me. Hah. I don't blame 'em. But to the people who still talk to me, thank you. You've kept me going strong throughout the year. You truly can't live without friends.
• Confidence/self esteem. I think that this year I've become more confident in who I am. I think God has shown me that I'm HIS child and I don't need to prove anything to anyone. I don't have to try to be something I'm not. I don't have to lie to get people to like me, and if they don't, then who cares? People aren't my god. If God's pleased with me, then that's all that should matter.

I think that's it. Tomorrow the 10, maybe 20, maybe 13 [heh ;)] best moments of 2009 will be coming.

See ya.

2009 [Part 1]

Ah. It's now time for my end-of-year blog post. I would normally write this on the last day of the year, December 31st, but I guess I'll divide it up between the days in this week because these tend to get lengthy and I tend to procrastinate. For today's I'm going to repost last year's end-of-year blog post.

2008

I feel like writing a blog today, so that is what I shall do. I'm writing this one about 2008. 2008 as a whole, what made it a great year, and I'm picking out the 10-20 best moments.

What made 2008 a great year:


-8th Grade. It's amazing. It just feels so laid back compared to every other school year. My class is so small, we've just become so close.

-New friends. Matt, Devin, Jordan, Andie, other Jordan, Rachel, Taylor, and more. I love making new friends. You've made this year great.


-Old friends. Kristin, Alex, Marla, Ann Louise, Chelsea, Ivey, Jamie, Hayley...just to name a few. Great bunch of friends. I love you guys.


-LOBH. The best site. Ever. I've made a ton of new friends there too. Krista, Sare, Jeanna, Dylan, Claire, Gabby, Nova, Elizabeth, Mellie, Mike, wayyyy more. It's really connected me to Switchfoot and to other people THROUGH Switchfoot.


-Guitar. I've gotten very far in my guitar lessons, and performing is so much fun! I love it more than ever.


-Switchfoot & Co. Spring, Summer, The best Yet, Limbs and Branches, Webcam, This is Home, Fiction Family, The Bro-Am, When she's Near, Guitar Screaming, everything. The best band ever has made this a great year.


-Cross Country. It was not a good season for me, but that's not why I chose it for this. Last season was a little better, but I was borderline anti-social. This year I bonded with the team way more. Even though I got hurt and didn't beat my best time or get to run at state, the friends I made that supported me made it all worthwhile. [is that how you spell that?]


Best moments:


10. I ate at 5 Guys for the first time. It was the most amazing burger. Ever.


9. I was part of the huge Twilight thing, but better yet I didn't become obsessed, and once I read the books [some of them twice] I got over it and moved on.


8. Hah. Clemson beat Carolina this year. That's always good. Dabo is growing on me.


7. The day we only had 8 or 9 people in our class. That day we became incredibly close.


6. State. I don't really like remembering that day because I didn't run, but our varsity girls won another one. It was still a good day.


5. The webcam concert. Switchfoot had a concert in Muskegon, MI, and broadcasted it on the webcam. I counted that as my first official Switchfoot concert.


4. Jon merchandise. I bought that tote bag. 97. Made by Jon and his friends and family. That's probably the most special thing I own.


3. Cross Country camp. The friendships with Matt and Devin began during that trip. It was so much fun. Also the first time I ran 8 miles. I also almost died from choking on tea.


2. Joining LOBH. I met all of these great people there who love Switchfoot as much as I do. I never have to tone down the Switchfoot speak there. They understand.


1. There's a tie for this. Sare and Krista. Sare has been such an incredible friend. The moment that is tied for number 1 is The Fingerless Gloves. Sare knits, and I asked her to make a custom order. I bought my gloves from her store, and she sent them to me, along with a 6 (or more) page letter. That was incredibly special, and also my first non-internet contact with a boardie. Krista has been a great LOBH friend too. We have become so close. At least I think so. The great moment was when we came up with our family-friend word. Instead of kin, we came up with 'pin'. I love both of them so much.


2008 as a whole:


Reading all these great things from 2008, you would think it was an incredible year. Well, for me it was pretty good, but not the best. I believe 2009 will be better, and I'll make it better. 2008 for me was filled with too much heartbreak, too many letdowns, too many emotions, too much pain. I've slowly learned to get a hold of myself and learn to deal with things, though. 2008 has made me a stronger person. I will never forget all the things that God used to prepare me for the future, and though they seemed harsh and unfair at the time, I thank Him for them nonetheless.


So to end this blog, I would like to say Happy New Year. May it be much better than last year. Make and break your resolutions if you must, but never forget that the year can only be as good as you make it.

VEGAN (part 2)

I hope everyone had a wonderful Christmas! You should listen to "Boxing Day" by Relient K. It sums up all the feelings of today.

So a morning spent in the bathroom puking has further convinced me to indulge in the life of healthy eating. I ate so MUCH yesterday, and like at MIDNIGHT I was really full but I ate candy anyway. Stupid me. I think I'll start the healthiness today. Yeah.

Anyway, I'm thrilled that I have FANSD now. I haven't had the chance to listen to it on my ipod yet, but I'm looking forward to it. Listening to stuff on my ipod=win because you hear EVERYTHING. Every sound; all the special stuff you don't notice when you're listening to it on your computer. It's great!

Today will most likely be spent on the couch with a book and maybe some tv. And no sudden moves to keep the nausea away. The whole time I was puking I kept thinking about Jon Foreman. I know that's really weird, but I remember a few weeks ago he was really sick so I decided that if he's still alive, I can make it too. It's weird how you think of the strangest stuff. I was thinking about how many people could be in the same position I was in at that very moment. And I decided that if I ever was a stand up comic my first joke would be this one that I made up between sicknesses. "Man I feel really sorry for toilets. They take so much crap." Interesting. My mind goes askew [another favorite word, Renae ;)] whenever I'm sick. I always have the weirdest, most annoying dreams. I'm always half-awake during them too. And I can't make myself wake up. It's awful. Has that ever happened to you?

Well I hope no one over ate like I did, and let that be a lesson to each and every one of ya. Happy Boxing Day.

FINALLY

HAHAHA. Remember all those "I'll buy FANSD *someday*" promises? Well I FINALLY have it. YAY. My mother bought it for me and gave it to me tonight for a Christmas present! SQUEE.

Isn't it lovely? Heh. I'm listening to it now.

Anyway, kids, remember that Christmas isn't about presents, food, shopping, or even "the christmas spirit!!!!@$#%!41ZOMGidhfiwjhuiwo" It's about JESUS' BIRTH. YEAH REMEMBER HIM?? THE REASON YOU'RE ALIVE? Yeah, Him.

Happy Christmas to all, and to all a good night.

The Duggars. are Awesome.

I have much to learn. Much. Things like "love is patient." And feeling sorry for yourself is not what God wants me to do.

On another note, I wanna be like the Duggars. Now right now you probably have one of three reactions.
1. You know the Duggars, so your reaction is--are you NUTS?
2. You have no clue who the Duggars are, so you're waiting for an explanation.
3. You know who the Duggars are and you've actually thought it through and agree with me.

So go ahead and decide which of the three you are, I don't mind. And I'll proceed to tell you why I want to be like the Duggars. Not the 18 kids thing, because I think I'd die. Not the long skirts/no pants/no shorts only thing either. You may have seen the episode where Josh and Anna get engaged and maybe you've also seen the one where they get married. They didn't date. They courted. And I know that sounds retarded or old fashioned or weird to you, but it's not as extreme as it seems. I've also been reading this book called "I Kissed Dating Goodbye." It's not as extreme as *it* seems either. They've both shown me alot about dating and stuff and they made me decide that I definitely wanna try to guard my heart. And save my first kiss for the altar. I've been debating about that, but the episode where Josh and Anna get married really confirmed my decision. They are one of the most in love couples I have ever seen. They saved every ounce of themselves for that day. It was so beautiful! Ahh. I hope I can hold up. I also hope I don't stay single my whole life. I can see that happening. It doesn't seem very fun. Oh well. I trust that God knows best so I shall see!

Yep.

Yes, new layout. It's classy, eh? I added a new thing at the bottom. It's photo credits. I know this isn't a major website, and I won't get into any real trouble, but hey, if these photos are yours, and you don't want me using them, that's cool. I'll take 'em off.

The header. Ahh the header. It represents me moving on. From various things. Various people, various experiences, blah blah you name it. If you look closely, you'll see a ton of lines from Relient K's "Forget and Not Slow Down" album, with "THIS IS THE END" between each one, as "if you want it" finishes off the banner. All enclosed within my two instruments. I really liked making this one. Tell me what you think!

I'm so Far Behind

I think I'm falling back into that state of lull. I don't know the exact definition of "lull" but that's the word that's in my head. I'll look it up.

"a temporary calm, quiet, or stillness. a soothing sound. a pacified or stupefied condition." Okay. Wrong word. I'll go find the right word.

Desolation. That's a good one. "an act or instance of desolating. the state of being desolated. devastation; ruin. depopulation. dreariness; barrenness. deprivation of companionship; loneliness. sorrow; grief; woe. a desolate place."  Maybe not as extreme as its definition makes it sound. But this happens to me all the time. I have a chunk of 3 weeks to maybe 2 months of just content, happy, woo, joyful blah blah time, then I slip into desolation. I don't know if I imagine it, or if it really happens, but it feels like all the good stuff in my life is outweighed by the bad, and this empty feeling just takes over.

Does anyone else ever experience this? What do you suggest, then?




definitions from Dictionary.com.

Everything Makes Sense When You're With Me

Today I was listening to Relient K's "Forget and Not Slow Down" album. [I still don't own it, unfortunately, but I will buy it someday.] The majority of the tracks have to do with the breakup, as I've mentioned before, but some of them, like "Savannah" and "Candlelight", seem to have been written during the good times. I think that maybe those are the saddest of all. When I hear Matt sing "Baby, I spent my life wondering when I'd find you, I searched for all these years and now you're right here. I need you to know that everything makes sense when you're with me." It makes me feel so awful that things turned out like they did. I can't even imagine how it would feel to think you've finally found the one you're meant to be with, your other half, and then they break off the engagement, and that's that. I'm sure it's indescribable.

On another note, here is my friend Lisa [Olesia]'s blog. It's full of some great GREAT stuff, so I suggest you check it out.

Alrighty. Bye.

VEGAN.

HAHAHAH. I love that word. Pin said it one time when we were talking about vegetarians and such. It made me laugh really hard. I think I should eat healthier. Because I think I'm one of the most unhealthy eaters ever. I say this as I have a stack of 6 oreos sitting in front of me. *eats one* This is going to be WAY harder than it sounds. Good thing I'm a runner though. If I wasn't, I'd be REALLY fat. Anyway, I think I might wait until after Christmas to start my venture into the world of health. Because holiday food is always so GOOD. Yeah. So I thought I'd let you know.

Today I played real drums for the first time. Much more satisfying than those stupid fake ones where you hit a black pad thing. I'm not that good at playing drums, but no one complained so I think I was alright. I kind of want a drum set now. But they're too loud. That's one instrument that I fear I'll never be *really* good at playing.

Okay that is all. I hadn't posted in like 4 days so I wanted you all to know I was still alive. Bye.

The Art of the Inside Joke

Ah. Inside jokes. These make a real hypocrite out of me sometimes. I'm a part of so many, yet I get so mad at other people who make their inside jokes so public. What is it about inside jokes? I think they make us feel more included. They make us feel special because we exclude others. That's not cool. Really folks. If it's such an inside joke, don't post it on your facebook status. People will ask about it, then you'll reply, "inside joke!" thus making that person angry. So stop it, please. If you explain your inside joke, that's good. I've started doing that. It feels good when people are nice enough to explain their inside joke to you. Although it's not "inside" anymore, that's the POINT. We need to get away from this independent attitude and start being there for eachother.

That's my preachy/annoying blog post of the day. Bye.

z0MG gUyZZZ.

My head hurts just from writing that. I apologize.

Anyway, I somehow figured out how to log into my blog on this laptop. Isn't that exciting! I wasn't able to before, which really annoyed me. You probably don't care.

I wrote a corny song/poem the other night. I started out writing it for one person, then by the end I decided it pretty much describes everyone in my life who makes me happy or has made me happy at least one time. If you're reading this, then you definitely make me happy.

So here's to you, bringers of joy.

You're the sweet red cherry right on top
You're the laughing gas before the shot

You're the finish line at the end of the race
You're the gold medal when I win first place

You're the quiet oasis in the middle of the desert
You're the spongebob bandaid for when I get hurt

You're the ice cold water when I'm dying of thirst
You're the bright blue balloon that will never burst

You're the calm before the inevitable storm
You're the radiant sun that keeps all of me warm

You're the neverending song running through my head
You're the brand of butter that's easy to spread

You're the movie I love to watch over and over
You're harder to find than a 4-leaf clover

You're the spot of color in the midst of all the gray
You're the bold, brave hero that saves the day

Yet all these corny metaphors still aren't enough
Words can't express how much you are loved.

"It's Nonsensical, Yes it Is"

     Ah, Black Friday. The day where thousands of Americans who are most likely already in debt spend tons of money on stuff they do not need, just because it's on sale. Sale means nothing, because you're just gonna buy more stuff, right? Right. Don't kid yourself.
     This year I choose not to go shopping. My mom might go, and I might go with her, just so I don't lay around the house like a lazy person [I need to walk off all that food from yesterday anyway]. Now, you know, I, being a girl, have the natural instinct to WANT to shop. And to be perfectly honest, I do! But you just have to fight. You know how it's our nature to sin, too? I have to fight that also. I'm sorry I have to do this, but here's an example from Twilight: the vampires obviously are predators. They are "programmed" to kill humans, right? Well the Cullens fight that instinct. That's what we should do.
     It also amazes me how people have such a hard time waking up at 6 for school or church, but they have no problem at all waking up at 4 to shop. Bah. I feel like the Grinch.
     Now I'm not saying "DON'T SHOP, YOU HEATHEN!" No, no, no. I'm saying that should go shopping, because if you need something, it's most likely on sale today. but before you put each item in your cart, ask yourself, "do I really, REALLY need this?" You'll be surprised at what you put back.
     Alright. have a nice day.


You've been having trouble staying asleep
You been waking up at 4:12
You roll the voices over in your head
Then you try to put them neatly on the shelf
You watch the sun rise
You saw the darkness had no choice before the dawn
With your own eyes
And then you broke out laughing from a yawn

You said,
"I'm so sorry I've been so down.
I started doubting things could ever turn around.
And I began to believe that all we are is material.
It's nonsensical."

So you walk outside and everything's new
You're looking at the world with new eyes.
As if you'd never seen a sky before that's blue
As if you've never seen the sky in your whole life
And then the phone rings
As it turns out you're already late
And now you're wondering
Was peace just a temporary state?

You're waiting tables and parking cars
You've been selling cell phones at the shopping mall
And you began to believe that all you are is material
It's nonsensical

I still can't believe that all we are
And that all of are dreams are nothing more than material

Souls aren't built of stone,
Sticks and bones


[lyrics provided by metrolyrics.com]

"wait so who is this justin bieber chick?"

Bahahahaha. That's what Mr. Andy Barron tweeted yesterday. It made. my. day. HAHA. Really, that's what I was asking at the end of the summer when I got back to school and I heard his name every couple of minutes.
     Apparently he's this singer who's like 15 who sounds like he's 11 or 12? Yeah. I guess so. And a large percentage of girls from age 11 probably to 16 are OBSESSED with him. I think the Jonas fangirls have moved on to the Bieber. I feel kinda bad for the Jonas Brothers. They've died down just like every disney music prodigy has. How sad.
      Anyway, I saw a commercial with the Justin kid in it, and I'm guessing it was snippets of his music videos, and he was all close and junk to these two different girls. And I was like---HOW could you watch this guy be all cozied up with these girls on tv and still be in "LOVE" with him?!
     It just doesn't make sense to me! How can people be married to actors/actresses? Seeing them on tv and in movies kissing [and more...] other people? I just don't get it.

Crazy.

DUDE. Happiness. I am HAPPY. I haven't been this happy in a long while. Since August, maybe. Switchfoot can't fill all the holes, but they filled one with the upcoming show. Recently another hole was filled. This is GREAT. I'm sorry for being vague. But yeah. I'm a smiley person as of late. There's only a couple more holes left, but that's okay. I don't think God would mind filling a few more than He already has. :).

Tomorrow I am seeing New Moon. Now I'm not one of those freakishly obsessive people. I am a fan, not a askjhfiaoehtIHNIAOISUBUUusudjiaoOMG superfan. Ok? Ok. I've only seen Twilight one time. Other people? like 80. Not healthy. Depending upon the quality of New Moon, I may or may not watch it again. That's enough Twilight talk for one night.

Awwwlright. I'm done. I don't have the attention span to write a very long post, as I have exhibited in past posts. I've posted a bunch lately, though. Have you read them? No. You're not even reading now, are you? Or ARE you? O_o? Or am I typing to no one? Myself. Yes? Hi self. Oh, hello. I think I'm going insane! Oh, are you now? Yes. Well then I think maybe you should stop now. Good idea, self.

*cough*

bye...

Be There in the Morning

Heh. I am listening to Michael Jackson's "Got to be There" from when he was 11. How precious.

Today went by fast. I'm glad it did. It had the potential to be a bad day, but I didn't let it. I'm slowly learning that--in the words of Hannah Montana--"life's what you make it." It really is. You can be an optimist or a pessimist. I choose optimism. I've only recently discovered this power over my life, but I'm learning. And I'm excited about it! So between me and God, I think we'll make this life pretty awesome. I'm hoping.

I feel like playing guitar right about now. I'll go do that now. Bye!

I'll Open all the Windows

Hello, folks.

I think I was right about this week. I hope so. Because yesterday was a pretty good day also. I don't have alot to type today. Plus I don't have alot of time either. ok bye.

Non-Fail Week

Yesterday marked the beginning of non-fail week. It was a pretty awesome day. So hopefully this week will indeed be a non-fail one like I predicted. I'll keep you posted.

The Scene and Herd - Relient K

So here it is it's just me
A different drummer but the same old beat
It seems like everything is going to be just fine
Cause I'm having a good time

As long as I'm staying true to myself
Then out isn't something I can sell
And I can sleep at night without your help it's fine
Cause I'm having a good time

The scene and herd
Seem to make it all just a little bit worse
And I don't wanna go down that road
Oh no no no
The scene and herd
I'll be the first to tell you I'm worse
But I don't wanna go
Down that road
Oh no

And odds are that you probably
Magically got this song for free
And I'm not sure if it bothers me it seems fine
Cause I'm having a good time
And if the path I take to validate
Everything I do means everything I create
Is knocking on the door of everything I hate I'll decline
Cause I'm having a good time

Well everyone's got something on their mind
And this is my thought at the present time
I say what I want might not be what you want to hear

Oh

The scene and herd
Block out the sun like a flock of birds
And I don't wanna go
I don't wanna go

Maybe, Just Maybe.

I am writing another post. 2 in one day. Cool. I have an awful headache. And I don't know why. Ow ow ow. EEEK. I don't like headaches. Who does?

I'm currently sitting here wondering why a bunch of my friends always hang out on the weekends, yet I'm never invited. :/. You know that sinking feeling of being left out? Yeah, I feel that a lot. Maybe I'm just not "cool" or whatever. What's wrong with me? Bleh. I fail. I guess because it's still week of fails. Tomorrow needs to come fast, because I think it would be considered a new week. Yeah. Sunday. Ok. Well I don't know what to say anymore. I like blogging. I like people to identify with what I'm feeling. But most people have friends that they are probably hanging out with now. Hm. I still don't know what's wrong with me. Sometimes I just wanna move away and start over and see if I could possibly be more outgoing, then possibly I'd get invited to hang out with friends. Just maybe.

Suprise.

"Suprise" by Jars of Clay is what I am currently listening to. It's a pretty song that makes me feel depressed for no good reason. Hah. Okay. Today's race went well! I ran my best time of the year. Too bad that wasn't a real cross country race. heh.

Today I put stickers everywhere to promote Switchfoot. I don't think it's legal to randomly stick stickers everywhere, so I just didn't peel them off. I set them on random tables at a college. Here's a picture because visual aides equal win.

Yes. The reason there is a napkin holder in the shot is because they have a cool cafe there in the student center. Cool, huh? I wanna go there.













In other news... uhhhh there is none. OOH there's a new ICarly tonight. Looking forward to it. And Lizabeth and I are fails. I think that's all. Adios.

Looking at the World Through New Eyes

Today I was running, and I decided to run easy today because I have a race [sort of] Saturday, and I did something that I don't think I've ever done. I looked around at everything while I was running. Usually I stare at the ground, but today I looked at the trees and the sky and houses and everything. It was cool. How many of us, when we're in the car, text? Just text then when the car stops, get out. When was the last time you really saw the world? Look past your phone for just a few minutes while you're in the car and tell me, what do you see? Life, right? Yes. Life.

Topic changeeee. Heheh. It seems as if my graphics have lost their popularity. Oh well. I still love making them. Here's some that I haven't posted.
Hello Hurricane promo banner I made for the LOBH contest:


Cure for Pain banner I'm fairly proud of:


Let it All Out banner:


Always banner:


OK. bye friends.

A Little More Than Useless

Do you ever feel inadequate? Like your best can never be good enough? I struggle with that. I don't feel like elaborating, plus it's not important anyway.

HAPPY THING. I bought switchfoot tickets yesterday shortly after I wrote that review! STOKED for the show. yayyyyyyyyyy.

Also, new Project Rewrite150 post. It's slowly coming along, I think. Tell me what you think.

Hmm. What else? Oh yeah. I think that piknic or picnik or how is that thing spelled? Anyway, I think that it has given people with no photo editing experience the ability to edit their pictures to a pulp and think it looks good. I mean seriously. I know I sound snotty, but it's true! I've seen several of my friends on facebook with albums full of edited pictures and it's a tad scary. hah. I like paint.net. *hugs pdn* it's so complicated at times that I feel like a nerd for knowing how to do stuff on there. And that's the way it should be.

Goodbye and God bless.

Super Short Hello Hurricane Review, so Short, You Might Actually Read It

Hello. I just listened to Hello Hurricane for the first time. So right now I'm posting a review of it, but only what *really* stood out to me, so I won't listen to it while I'm writing this.

1. Needle and Haystack Life- the beginning was great. it's was like drew was gathering all the sounds for the entire album and drawing them in. excellent opener.

2. Mess of Me- great, as always. jon's vocals are just so spot on, especially in the bridge.

3. Your Love is a Song- WOW. I had never heard any of this song before, but it was PERFECT. the lyrics, the way it flowed. one of the most magnificent songs I have ever heard.

4. The Sound- all the energy in this song is unreal! drew's guitar solo is sick. and I love when the music just STOPS at certain points in the song. fabulous song.

5. Enough to Let Me Go- this song is such a pretty song. it makes me wanna cry. the vocals in this song are great too.

6. Free- woahh. before, all I had heard of this was the acoustic version they did at that radio station in charlotte. [I was gonna go to that, but school...anyway...] This BLEW ME AWAY. It was so vibrant. an anthem. it's definitely the strongest song on this record. it made me wanna jump up and pump my fists or something. hahah. when it was over I remember thinking "this song HAS to be on the radio!!"

7. Hello Hurricane- I really liked this one. it also flowed really well. it has a wonderful message too. it kept making me think of the katrina victims. "there's nothing left for you to take away."

8. Always- oh wow. I love it. it gave me chills from the start. my favorite part is definitely the bridge. the "ah ooh, ooh ooh" part. I closed my eyes, and imagined diving into the ocean and coming back up. great great great song.

9. Bullet Soul- I remember that this was one of my least favorites that I heard live recordings of, but I really enjoyed the album version. the music is great, and this song has a lot of energy.

10. Yet- Ah, yet. I remember being in LOVE with the live version I have. I still am. it's still my favorite song. and I was sure it would be my favorite on the album. But it really wasn't. it was still beautiful, but I was expecting something BIG to happen after the bridge, but it never did. maybe it'll grow on me.

11. Sing it Out- the beginning of this song sounds like the screechy, haunting music they always play when they show footage from Auschwitz. the song, though, isn't as haunting. it's lovely, but I don't remember how it goes anymore. I remember the words, but not the melody. that's okay. I'll listen to it again soon.

12. Red Eyes- I love the picture this song painted from the start. the chorus was great!! and the end was so cool. it reminded me of the end of "Dance on Our Graves" by paper route. excellent.

Thoughts on the Album as a Whole- What really stood out to me throughout the album was the distortion on drew's guitar. Also, I heard a lot more Tim. There was a whole lot more harmony than in any of their other albums, but harmony is one of my favorite things, especially 3-part, so that was wonderful for me. Overall, this album is probably the best they've done, and I can't wait to see and hear all it went through to become what we now know as Hello Hurricane.

Fo' REAL?

Heh. Hi. So the fun little research thing. I counted how many times I heard the expression "fo' REAL?" today. 10. I'll conduct this experiment again tomorrow. See, last year, the phrase was "REALLY?" And it got on my NERVES when people said that. Now everyone says "fo' REAL?" gahh. I don't say that though. Because that would make me a hypocrite. Yeah. And I recorded a video of me saying those just to show you what I was talking about but I'd have to upload it to youtube first and I don't feel like it. Hahah. Ok that's it. I hope I'm not so boring that everyone stopped reading. Oops.

Come on Eileen!

I'm listening to Come on Eileen right now. It's so fascinating how this was a number one hit back in the 80's. It *is* catchy. But that's what people say about "I Kissed a Girl" and I refuse to listen to that song because I don't want any of that junk to be constantly flowing through my head.

Anyway, Switchfoot's new video for Mess of Me came out today! WATCH IT! And if you have twitter/myspace/facebook/a blog/whatever, REPOST this!!


Another thing. If I remember tomorrow I'm going to do a research type thing. It'll be interesting. I'll post results tomorrow, once again, if I remember. Hey, I forget things easily. Well I think that's it. Bye and WATCH THE VIDEO.

I'm Not Going Back. Made Up My Mind. It's All Behind.

Heyyyy.
Hmm. I don't even know what to start with. I guess yesterday? Yeah I guess. Yesterday was fun. I attended a concert. Good Tomorrow. [their site] They're not big yet, but they will be, I assure you. I saw them play a couple years ago too. Love them. I talked to the drummer afterward. I told him I'd bring a megaphone to the next show and he said he'd give me a free t-shirt if I did. I have to look into purchasing one soon.

I learned something the other day that I think I already knew. I think this was in an episode of the Suite Life of Zack and Cody. Heh. Anyway. It's that if you care for someone and pray for them, what God has in mind as best for them might not be what feels right for you. Did that make sense? I'll try to word it differently. Like they did in the Suite Life. When you love someone, you have to think of them before yourself. Something like that. I'm slowly learning to let go and stop being selfish. It's hard. Hard as anything. But I'm trying.

And I STILL need to get FANSD. Darn me. I'll try to pick it up this week.

EW I hate fall back. Because it gets dark at like 5:00. How lame. Blech. But Christmas is coming, and Hello Hurricane is coming sooner. YAY.

BYE.

Catch Sight of the Sun

Hello hello hellooooo.
Soooo. My lip is completely better! AND the Asheville show on December 4th is LEGIT and I can go as long as I buy the tickets, plus my dad needs 2 days to think about it. heh! I remember how upset I was when he said I couldn't go to the charlotte show because it was a Thursday. I feel so spoiled now because everything's working out. Do you ever feel that way? Don't answer that. Not that you would anyway.

Tomorrow is my first time performing with my new guitar. I'm excited! It sounds beautiful when it's plugged in.

And there are 2 new hello hurricane reviews up today!! I didn't read the "Your Love is a Song" one because I haven't heard  it yet, but if you want, go for it! There's a review for "The Sound" also, which I read. I'm so pumped for this album!

LOBH
WA!

I think that's it for today. I'm about to head to church. Biya.

Hello Hurricane Reviews

Remember what I said yesterday about the whole hello hurricane thing? Well this is more tolerable. heheh. Job and Jeanna have begun to review the album. So I think you should check it out. Although I don't think I'm going to read the reviews for the songs I haven't heard yet. The only songs I've heard are:

Needle and Haystack Life [just live, and I've heard part of the album version from the DF video]
Hello Hurricane*
Mess of Me
The Sound*
Free*
Bullet Soul*
Always Yours*
Yet*

I believe that's it. So I haven't heard one measure of any of the other songs, and I don't plan to until November 10th! Now here's where you can read the reviews.

We're Awakening

Land of Broken Hearts

Alright. Bye guys!

Away from the Specific

I apologize for my last post. Not all children are like that. Just a select few. I still don't know if I want kids, though. hahah. You know what I do want? Hello Hurricane. It comes out in 2 weeks. If I can just grit my teeth through hearing all these people TALKING about the album because they've already HEARD it [seriously guys, let's not advertise it to the world by talking about it constantly on twitter. not that I'm annoyed or anything], I'll be okay. I'll be glad, though, that I didn't hear it before it came out once it comes out. I think I'm done. I'm sorry about the short post. But I can't think of anything else. Goodbye!

CHILDREN!

I don't know why anyone would WANT to have children. I don't know. I do. not. know. They're loud and you can't take your eye off of them for one second because they grab stuff out of the TRASHCAN and put it in their MOUTH. AH. Maybe when I'm older I might think differently, but for now, no way. Blahhh.

Sorry about that. In other news, my life has taken a turn for the better. heh. So. Switchfoot is supposedly playing at the Orange Peel on december FOURTH which is a FRIDAY. But the show isn't on switchfoot's site and it's 16+ so I have to verify. I think that 16+ shows are ok if a parent comes with you. I think. I hope. Because I really don't want to miss this tour. And I would be freaking DEVASTATED if this show didn't work out because I've already been dissappointed twice this tour. 1st, they had no dates near me. 2nd, once they added a date near me I found out I couldn't GO, and the third spot is open, so hopefully it'll be filled with HAPPINESS. 

The second good thing is that my lip is almost better! Yayyyy.

And the third thing is that clemson won today. I still can't believe it. heh. Ok I think that shall be all for today. Bye!

It's Not the End of the World

Hello. So a series of unfortunate events has taken place in my whiny little life recently. First, the inside of my upper lip is like...chapped or something. It hurts so bad. grr. Second, we're not allowed to eat in front of the tv anymore, so my snack intake has been completely demolished as of late. Not that eating is fun anymore, thanks to my randomly pained lip. And third, the worst of all, I can't go see switchfoot on december 3rd. HGIAJIOAJEWIOJ. This is the hello hurricane tour. The one that I've been looking forward to since the Music Builds Tour that I didn't get to go to. I don't think that the album was called Hello Hurricane yet back then but still I was looking forward to the "new album tour" as I called it. This is like a once in a lifetime type thing, really. Until vice verses comes out, I suppose. But GAH. Stupid SCHOOL. I guess my next switchfoot show will be one of those lame ones where they don't play very long. Or the bro-am which is still 8 months away. If I even get to go to it. Oh well. I just have to quit being such a baby and feeling sorry for myself. I do that too much.

A FORTUNATE event happened today though. I got a new guitar. An electric acoustic. It's nice. And we got a good deal on it. I'm paying for half, and the other half is my christmas present. Heh. So now I don't have to stand in front of a stupid microphone to play. I have freedom! Freeeeddommmm. Sorry.

I need to still upload videos from the RK show. But I don't feel like it. So bye. And I guess I'm stopping the QOTM thing too. Maybe I should just get rid of the comment thing altogether. I don't know. I'll deal with it later. Bye again.

Don't Forget that Yes is Yes and No is No

Ok. I am in love with "This is the End (If you Want It)" by Relient K from their new album Forget and Not Slow Down. It makes me cry. When his voice just gives out it rips my heart out because I'm sure that the whole breakup thing was extremely painful. The whole album communicates it. It almost makes me feel like I'm listening in on something that's between Matt and Shannon. But there I go again, invading people's personal lives.

Anyway, new layout. I used 4 of susie's LOVELY pictures. She takes amazing photos, folks. And the song is "Part of It" by Relient K. Good song.

Sorry. I'm BEAT. Because I just spent a bunch of time on the new layout. I'll post some more tomorrow. Bye guys.

Doo Doop Doo-Doo-Doo DOOP Doo-Doo. Doo DOOP Doot DOO-DOO.

If you couldn't figure out what I was saying in the title, it's just the first measure or so of Tim's bass riff in "This is Your Life." I couldn't think of what to name this post, so I thought I'd like to put in a line from a song, and this was what popped into my head. Yay. I hope you found that amusing. And if you laughed at the fact that it said "doo doo" I love you. You're my new best friend. Let's go play in the mud together.

Today I decided that I was tired of this layout. So I think I might change it. I get bored with layouts really fast, and I never really liked this one. I'll change the colors of the background and text and stuff first to see if that'll fix it, and then I'll go from there. heh.

Tomorrow will be EXCITING because I'm going to the CLEMSON GAME. Woohoo. My first clemson game. YAY. I'll take pictures. Me and my big #6 jersey that I've had since 4th grade. Yes. And it's still huge on me so imagine how big it was then. heeehee.

I also decided today that I'm gonna stop announcing new posts on twitter because no one reads this anyway. But I don't care. Don't come rushing in saying "I read it" and all that. I know that the "regulars" read this. I love you guys ^_^.

And that's today's post. I don't have a QOTM so we'll just say the moment from the last QOTM is a very long moment. You can still answer that one. Bye.

Relient K Show and Miley's Twitter Rap.

Would you like to hear about my slightly awful yet magnificent show experience from last night? If not, just skip down to the second half of this post. haha. Ok here we go.

PART 1- Relient K Show Recap

Well yesterday I started feeling kind of sick at school. This type of thing happens to me every year. I get cold chills and my throat hurts and food tastes weird. It just had to happen yesterday. I just didn't mention it to anyone because that probably would've caused me to completely miss the show. ahaha. Anyway, we get to the venue and there's all these teenagers hanging out, most of them in plaid. I wore plaid too. It was weird. Hahah. We waited for about 30 minutes and they decided to open the doors early! Woohoo! So we went in and a large man marked an X on each of my hands so I couldn't drink. heheh. Then we bought tickets, which turned out to be stamps on our hands, then we got a nice spot up close to the stage. Here was the view, without zoom on my camera.

yeah I know. We were really close. But after standing there for another 30 minutes my sickness made me feel...well...sick. I was getting lightheaded and I needed to sit down so we went up to the balcony. I sat on the floor of it for ANOTHER 30 minutes to an hour, I forget, then Barcelona came out. I liked them! They were quite talented.

Then after their set I sat down again. I texted Amylynne and Alex for a little bit then Copeland came out. I've never heard any of their music, but it kind of all sounded the same to me.

Then I started feeling bad again so I sat back down. I felt like such a retard just sitting there, but I couldn't help it. hah. They played for far too long [sorry] then finally they set up for RK. YAY. Here's the setlist of what I stayed for. I couldn't stay for the whole thing because it was like 10 til 11 when they STARTED and my dad had to work today so we needed to get home.

Gilligan's Island Three Hour Tour Intro [a recording I believe]
The One I'm Waiting For
Be My Escape
Forget and Not Slow Down
Forward Motion
Falling Out
Mood Rings
The Office Theme [they even put words to the beginning. ahah. then matt said something about they've played that way too many times.]
Therapy
Which to Bury, Us or the Hatchet?
Let it All Out <3 [the guy from copeland came out to sing the second verse]

So I loved it. GREAT setlist. GREAT. I wish I could've stayed for the whole thing, but you can't always get what you want, right? Heh. Let it All Out is definitely on my top 5 favorite song list so I'm fairly glad I ended with that. Well I'll post more pictures and a couple of videos tomorrow!

PART 2- Miley's Twitter Rap

so uh Miley decided to post a video, a RAP video, no less, of why she deleted her twitter. And aside from the whole in-your-face aspect and the unnecessary shaking of bottoms, I agree. hahaha. here's the video.



So yeah. QOTM. What are some of your favorite songs? Some of mine: Yet -switchfoot, The Cure for Pain -jon foreman, Let it All Out -relient k, Good Intentions -paper route, and Never Let Me Go -family force 5.

Alright. I'm pretty sure this is my longest post ever. HAHA. deddieihekaehtijah that's all folks!

Wanted Dead or Alive

Ah. I forgot about the encouraging thing this week. But there's still one school day left. I'll see what I can do.

Today our yet-to-be-named band played in front of 500 or so people. It was fun. We only played one song though. Ahah.

Speaking of music, I'm seeing Relient K tomorrow! YAYYYY. YAY YAY YAYAYAY.

Now ready to hear something that enrages me? The movie The Wizard of Oz. Those ruby slippers, there are like 7 pairs in the world or something and they're worth $1.5 million per pair. They let Oprah touch them. But to get the shoes there they had a special plane and a special box for them. My reaction to that was "WHAT?! There are people without HOMES and you're telling me there was a private jet for a pair of SHOES?" I mean what is UP with this world?

And on the show Full House they paid the Olsen twins like 4897289758 dollars per episode when they were still babies and they only said like 3 WORDS. The darn list just keeps on going. I mean today all these mindless people on twitter are freaking out because Miley deleted her twitter account! Heck, I'd do the same thing if I didn't want to see switchfoot's updates! I just hate that people are losing sight of what's important in life. I think that some people haven't yet realized that their life's going to be over one day. It's just really sad. But I guess everyone figures it out at one time. It took me 14 years to figure it out. And I'm still learning.

Ok. QOTM time. I know these can be random, but today in english we were talking about dying because someone died in a story we read, and I started singing "and I'm wanted, WANTEDDDD dead or alive!!" Then I reminded myself that I only know the chorus of that song, so I decided I'd buy it on itunes today. It's downloading as we speak. You know what's really annoying? Songs are $1.29 now. That's LAME. Anyway, what was the last song you bought on itunes? How many times have you listened to it? 

Ok peace out. I'll post something this weekend!

Does it Seem Fair?

Hey. Yesterday I was in the car writing to my friend AmyLynne. I'm not sure why, but a thought popped into my head. And here's what I wrote in the letter. [Sorry AmyLynne, if you're reading this, you'll see this twice. hah.]

"So some stuff seems pointless when you look at the big picture, right? Like-why do we waste our time watching sports or watching amything for that matter? I mean I LOVE watching baseball, basketball, and football, but isn't it ridiculous that these people are being paid millions of dollars for throwing balls and running around when halfway around the world there are entire countries poorer than a single one of those guys?"

Yeah. Doesn't that seem pretty unfair? Is there a way to fix this? I'm not sure. But I think that this life is too short to be spending money on huge houses and several cars when there are people who don't even have a place to call home. I was texting my friend Krista yesterday and she said something along the lines of "you give me so much hope...you are a gift from God." I'm not putting this up here to be all boastful or anything, it's to say that we're ALL gifts from God. He put us here to encourage each other. To lift each other up. Wow, right? I definitely need to work on that. Big. Time. I'm so quick to criticize and tell people how messed up they are. Instead I should be blessing them. Try to work on that this week. See what happens. I'll tell you about my week too.

Okay. QOTM time. I know everyone loves music, right? I hope you do! What's your favorite band, favorite song, and favorite album? Me: Band: Switchfoot. Song: Yet -switchfoot. Album: hmmm. Learning to Breathe -switchfoot. Although MMHMM by Relient K is a close second. Yeah, I'm all about the Switchfoot. I'm interested to hear your answers.

Hello October. Hello Hurricane ALMOST.

SO OMG. Today Switchfoot released some previews of the new album for FOTF. I decided that I won't listen to it. I don't wanna spoil the new album! I understand listening to Mess of Me because it's going to be all over the radio in a matter of days ANYWAY but I want the album as a whole to be fresh. Yes. I remember being so freaking JEALOUS of the people who got to hear the album early, but now I'm glad I didn't get to hear it. glad I tell you.

Today I got to play guitar in chapel! They didn't replace me! Eeheheh. yay. But there were no words on the screen so it was depressing to look out and see people just talking and stuff. :(. It's all good though. Next week will be better, hopefully. I felt like Drew up there with my glasses on. [I can't wear my contacts until my eye turns un-pink. hah.] Ick. I hate glasses though. Contacts are so much better for me. I hate how when I look up, everything's blurry, but with contacts, it's like I have 20/20 vision. Pah. I just can't wait until Saturday when I get to wear them again.

Hmm. What else can I talk about? Oh I guess I shall go ahead with the Question of the Moment. Or QOTM for short. AHAHA reminds me of Jeanna. the almighty QOMT. Bwah. And for the record, I *did* notice that the first QOTM wasn't actually a question. Fail. HAHA. Anyway. Today we watched the Sound of Music. That is a classic indeed. What are some of your favorite classic movies? The latest year they can be from is 1999, ok? So High School Musical is unacceptable. Some of my favorites are The Sound of Music, the Wizard of OZ, Chitty Chitty Bang Bang, Grease, and Mary Poppins. There are a ton more that I forgot. Anyway, go to it!

P.S. new PRW150 post. please check it out. please do. I went to so much trouble for it. really I did. Click on the Project Rewrite 150 banner over there to see.

No Cover!

Ahahah. I have decided today that I am not a very good singer. I tried, I tried. But I just don't like it. So no covers will be coming out of the mouth of Lee until further notice.

For the record, my eye is feeling much MUCH better. I could've totally gone to school today. PAH. Because it's only a LITTLE red. and it feels normal. Grr. Which reminds me, I have to email my teachers and get assignments. *cringes* I hate missing school because it's hard to catch up. Wahhhh.

I've decided to start a new thing on here. Question of the Moment. I'll ask some question at the end and you ANSWER in a comment or on the tags. Ready? Ok!

Name some people who can almost always make you laugh. Always. Here's some of mine: Basicly any switchfoot or relient k band member, My boardie friends [various elizabeths, [including NOVA] katies, sarahs, and more], Chelsea, Andie, Zach, Jenson, Ellason, Blake, Duff from Ace of Cakes [he has the best laugh], Sam's character from ICarly, and SPONGEBOB, and many more. heheh. your turn.

Oh My. Pink eye.

Darnnnnn it. I have pink eye. Lame. LAMELAMELAMELAMELAME because I'm not even allowed to go to school tomorrow because of it. It's not even that bad. But BLAH because we have band practice tomorrow and I can't GO and I might not be able to play in chapel because of it. rahhh. And I missed my cross country meet today because of it. Darn that disease. Or whatever it is. Disease, yeah. I guess. I couldn't even go to the doctor because there's so much flu going around that I'll probably catch it. The doctor people like refused to let me come in. AHAH. But we described my eye to them on the phone and they said it was pink eye so my dad just has to get medicine from eckerds. or rite aid. That's so retarded. I always call it eckerds anyway. hahaha.

And you needed to know that becaauuuussseeee... I don't know! But I like blogging. It's fun. Heheheh.

Tomorrow will be very boring because I'll be stuck at home probably doing nothing. So I might cover Relient K's "Overthinking." Because that's the song I want to cover next. I just don't know if I want to cover it tomorrow. We'll see. Oh by the way. You should pre-order their album. Go to relientk.com. I haven't pre-ordered it yet, but I will. Because they're just that awesome. I'm possibly seeing them for the first time next FRIDAY. coooool. maybe though. My dad has to try to get off work. ok bye folks. Pray I get better tomorrow so I can come back to school Thursday to watch someone else take my place as acoustic guitarist. *sobs*

Get Back in Touch.

So. You can see that there's a new layout. I worked for a good while making the header. Sure you'll oooh and ahhh or booo and bahhh. Whatever. But then you'll go your merry way and forget about it. And some people participate in these crazy eating contests. Eating 6 pound burgers. Some people spend their lives running marathons. Some people enter cake contests, decorating cakes for 8 hours. Some people write songs about cotton. "The touch, the feel, the fabric of our lives." The list is ENDLESS. What is my point, you ask? Well. I'll answer your question with another question. Why are we here? To see how many hotdogs, or in my case, enchiladas, we can eat? To see how many concerts we can go to before we die? No. I'm pretty sure it's to glorify God. Am I wrong? I just feel like everyone has lost touch with our purpose. I'd like to try to get back, if that's alright with you. But I really can't do anything by myself. Think about that. Eheh. Alright. Bye.

The Awesome and the Awful.

Wow. I just got back from the highschool retreat. I'll tell some wonderful stories later. But I just wanna start with something.

I gritted my teeth through alot of it. Really. Because around the clock people were complaining and stuff. I admit, the rooms were less than appealing, but how can you possibly complain for 3 days? Ahah. And I laughed when most of the girls in my room said that they cried at least once during the trip. But now I'm the one about to cry. Why? Hmm. I'm not even sure. Probably some built up anger from the trip. Definitely because Switchfoot has 3 CA dates and 3 Texas dates and NONE within 4 hours of me. Also because I'm not going to Florida for a cross country meet. It was my decision to not go. But now Coach is telling me why I *should* go and it's tearing me up. I love my teammates and all, but I don't want to stay in Florida without my family. It hurt when they said they weren't coming, so I guess I just wanted to stay here. Also because it seems that no one reads my blog anymore. So those few things sound ridiculous, right? I bet you're thinking "wow. what a loser. Why is she being such a pansy about this stuff?" I'm asking myself the same question. Darn me and my emotions. I feel better now though. Sort of.

And now the highlights of the retreat.

1. WORSHIP. Amazing. My absolute favorite part of the whole thing. Every night we'd have a little worship service in the chapel there. This guy named Matt Orth spoke. He was incredible. Funny guy. Heh. And of course the worship team led worship every night. That was a BLAST. Fun timesssss. We still are un-named. People are starting to submit names though. I'll tell you once we have one. My fingers are still killing me though. ahaha. We practiced for an hour twice a day PLUS the actual service so yeah. Alot of guitar playing there.
2. The ropes course. Yeah. I can't even believe I did that. So much fun.
3. Hanging out. I love my 9th grade friends. We had a ton of fun.

If any of you have a blog, you know how it feels to lose your zeal for finishing a post? That's what's happening now. I'll possibly finish this later.

Please. If you read this. Comment. or post on the tags. Because if no one reads this I'll just stop. ahaha. I can just purchase one of those girly diaries and write in there.

Music+Running+Food

[Hey Weezy. If you are reading this.]

Weezy recently informed me that he read my blog one time. That is awesome.

Yes. Anyway. Musiccc. Have I ever told you that I've always wanted to be in a band? Well I'm sort of in one now. I play guitar for our school's chapel praise/worship team. Yesterday was my first time playing at the actual service. So my first "crowd" was our school's 7-12th grade. Which is like 200 people. hahaha. It was fun! So this is good experience. When I'm older and in a band and I tour the world, I'll remember that day. And I played a Taylor, which makes it better. Thanks, Philly. It's his. Because my acoustic is not capable of being amplified. Boo.

Yesterday I ran a race. Nothing new. I've run at LEAST 50 races in my lifetime. But after the race was the best part. We went to El Mexicano and, see, I ALWAYS order a cheese quesadilla with beans and rice EVERY time we eat at a Mexican restaurant. No matter WHAT restaurant it is. But I ordered something different for the first time ever. It was called "Enchilada Supreme." It came with 4 different enchiladas. Beef, bean, chicken, and cheese. I ate ALL of them. ALL. The cheese one was the best. Although I accidentally dropped it on my lap. But it still tasted fine.

I wanna try to stay in good shape even during the off-season so that I can be proud of eating large amounts of food. Because if I don't run, I'll get fat and then I won't be very happy.

I think that's all I shall post for today. Goodbye!

Project Rewrite150 Has Arrived

Eheh! I finally got started on it.
Have a look, won't you?

Click!

Always

I made a new wallpaper today! I think I'll start showcasing my graphics here. Hmm. Maybe.
[Click for full version]

Original photo: http://www.flickr.com/photos/susieq3c/3900561781/in/set-72157622297854452/
I'll possibly post more later! See yas.

Crazy Early Morning Post

Well, not that crazy. I'm usually up at this time because of school. Anyway, last night I had a crazy revelation-type thing. Actually, I've been having thoughts like these for a lonnng time, but last night was like the peak.
THIS IS LIFE PEOPLE.
I know, especially if you're a Switchfoot fam, that you've heard this time and time again. "This is your life" and other statements similar to that. But if you're like me, you just close your eyes and nod your head, but the statement just flies over your head. Last night I realized that this *is* life and guess what. After this, there's eternity. Remember? Yeah. This life could end at ANY time, and goodness. I feel like I've pretty much wasted 14 1/2 years of mine. I haven't done anything for Christ, have I? I'm still working on that, so any encouragement would be greatly appreciated.
Thanks for reading.

AHHH.

AHHH. YEAH. WATCH THIS.
and rate and comment if possible!
EEP. It has footage from my show! :)
Also, if you blog, repost this video. We need people to see it.

Tutorial Time.

Hello all. I will now post a tutorial requested by my friends Elizabeth [Nova] and Amy.

How to Install Non-Lame Smilies to Your Cbox
[Sorry the screen caps are sort of small and hard to see, but if you click them, a bigger image will pop up for you.]


First, log in to your cbox.


Then, click "options", then "smilies."


There will be a list of all the smilies installed in your cbox, including URLs for the images and the codes that you use to actually *see* the smiley.


Open up LOBH [boards.landofbrokenhearts.org] or any message boards you are a member of in a new tab or window, go to the boards, and click either "quick reply" or "add reply" on any topic and click the smiley pop up window.


Let's say we want to install the ninja. Of course you do, because it's AWESOME. Right click the little ninja, and click "properties." [If you have a mac, then this might be different for you. Sorry :/]


Select the "address" [URL] and copy it.


Head back to your list of lame cbox smilies and scroll down to the bottom of the list. There should be a blank row, but if there's not, click "new row."


Then paste the URL into the correct blank, and fill in ":ph43r:" or whatever you want the shortcut to be in the blank for the code, click save, and there's your new smiley.

I hope that explained it okay. Because usually I'm horrible at explaining things. Visuals usually help me, though. I hope it helped you! :) I'll blog more SOMETIME about non-smiley items.

Nova=Win.

Why does Nova=win? Well she posted this in her blog a couple weeks ago.

Today I had a realization, Facebook is just like wearing a bikini, except it's on the Internet. What do I mean by this? I shall explain. You see, when wearing a bikini, you cover up your most private things and expose everything else at the same time. Facebook is the same way. You tell everyone you're friends with what you're thinking and doing 24 hours a day. How is there any privacy like that? But you still keep your most private information the way it should be, private. It's pretty weird when you think about it. Those random people who go to your school don't need to know what you just ate, where you take your showers, or how you feel about America's Next Top Model. They don't need to see pictures of you on your winter vacation.

It's exactly why I stopped tweeting/facebooking so much. I couldn't have said it better. I used to tweet like 495849207532 times a day. But I came to the realization that no one CARES. Hah. I still like to tweet every once in a while though, if it's something worth mentioning.

ANYWAY. Mess of Me! Heh. I'm sure you know about how Switchfoot's spreading their new single throughout the world. If you haven't, then go to landofbrokenhearts.org and find the mess of me page. I recently got to hide a copy! I'm fairly sure someone has already gotten it, but anyway, it's at the Sonic at hillcrest on the little carousel thing. hahaha. I'm so glad I got to be a part of this. I'll remember this forever probably.

I have stuff to do today, so I'll leave you with this video that I made for my friend amylynne. Oh, and I'll blog all about the switchfoot show sometime too. Tomorrow maybe. HEHEH. I'm a terrible procrastinator, just in case you didn't have that figured out yet. ok here's the video. adios, amigo-gos.

Fake Your Own Death

I've been obsessed with this song lately. So here is my first ever cover. What a great song to cover, right? I want feedback on this, so please comment on youtube and tell me what you think, and if you don't have a youtube, comment on here :)

Here's the description as I put on youtube:
Heheheh. My first cover. How marvelous. The reason it fades/cuts in and out at the beginning of the song is that I messed up at the beginning the first time, so I started over. Hah. But I liked my little babbling intro so I kept that.
And I promise the second verse is better than the first. Just bear with me. I hope you liiiiked it.

Best of Luck

Ello, all. I said I'd talk alllll about the switchfoot show, but guess what! I wrote everything down on a piece of PAPER. actually right now it's like 3 pages long, and I'm not quite done. I'm sending copies to some of my regular letter-recievers because I know they want to hear all about it, so once I'm done writing it, I'll scan it and post it here for all your round little faces to read. ok? cool.

Now. Best of Luck. By Nickel Creek. It's down on my music player. Find it and listen to it. Love, right? I love Sara's voice so much. Beautiful!

Still on the track of music, this week I've been listening to an awful lot of Paper Route. Check out their myspace. I believe their myspace is myspace.com/paperroute. Type that in and see what happens.

Another musical thing: SWITCHFOOT'S HELLO HURRICANE. AHHH. pre-order is rumored to start tomorrow, and guess whattttt. I think I can actually afford the deluxe collector's edition because it doesn't include vinyl! I don't have a record player, so why would I need vinyl anyway? Heheh. So get your fingers ready and head over to switchfoot.com and click on "store" and see if it's up for pre-order!

Last musical thing: Relient K's Forget and Not Slow Down. They have an AMAZING deal for their pre-order. Sadly, I can't afford BOTH HH and FANSD, so I'll have to wait on the latter. But if you have enough money, get BOTH. RK's is so great because you get the cd, a poster, a t-shirt, and a whole freaking YEAR of fanclub membership, complete with a VIP pass, very much like switchfoot's Friends of the Foot. all for 32 BUCKS. goodness! that's an amazing deal! If I can't support them directly, then I'll sure direct you fine folks to support them until I can! I believe the web address for that is http://relientk.skyroo.com/se/view/music/index.html. copy/paste that into your browser. also, there are cheaper, less awesome alternatives to purchasing that album.(: I'll eventually buy it, I assure you. After all, they *were* my very first favorite band, and the reason I'm so into switchfoot.

Alrighty. I'm still holding off on details from Project Rewrite150. muahaha.

I leave you with this video that I so graciously recorded. Actually my sister did, but I was next to her and I also uploaded it so hah.