Behold the Epic of the Pocket Emo!!

Sorry for the totally random, sporadic and generally useless posts lately.  >.>

NaNoWriMo Ate My Soul

"Covert Affairs" Season 1 Finale

 For those of you who haven't seen the season finale or don't watch Covert Affairs but plan to, SPOILER ALERT.

Oh.

My.

Dear.

Lord.

All right, before I spazz, Auggie was especially sweet these two episodes.  Love him.  But on to...

...BEN CAN'T DIE.  Okay, when it showed Ben as a double agent, I teared up.   When Annie was in between him and Jay, I was muttering random things.  I can't believe he used that line:  "The truth is complicated."  That's the same line from the note!!  When the shooting and fighting began, I was yelling and screaming (so high that no sound really came out) into the pillow I'd smartly grabbed prior to nine o'clock.  And I was sobbing; I really started crying when Ben got attacked, and when he was so close to being killed, and then the shot-- 

I can't think about it.  I'll do the Scarlett thing:  "I'll think about it tomorrow."  ...Yeah, that's not going to happen.  I'll be thinking about it all night.  I'm still in shock over a number of things.  My lord...

That 9-10pm episode wasn't exceptionally emotional; but the finale...holy crow.  I was sobbing.  I'm still crying a little.  And when I found out that the series Season 2 started up next summer... I just about broke something.  Literally.  I threw pillows and stomped around my basement.  It was like someone close to me had just gotten shot and I wouldn't know what would happen for several months.  The promo that revealed the Season 2 start-up didn't help:  "She joined the CIA...because of him.  They recruited her...because of him.  Now can she prepare for a life--" Annie:  "Ben!" *dramatic pause*  "--without him?"  Or something along those lines...no pun intended.

I was pacing and having a tantrum for about...well, fifteen minutes.  I still can't believe it.  And it's grossly unfair, you know, because "White Collar" ended only last week and starts up again in January; "Royal Pains" starts again in January; "Burn Notice" and "Psych" start up again in November; but "Covert Affairs?"  NEXT.  SUMMER.

To the website:  reruns for the *somewhat painful* win.

~Cara

KLIKWERK AND THE WORLD'S HARDEST GAME

New games from http://www.addictinggames.com/ ! 

First off, Klikwerk is epic fun!  http://www.addictinggames.com/klikwerk-game.html Do exactly what it tells you to do:  point, click, drag, drop, or space.  Helpful hint:  You don't have to be over where it says "space," just hit the spacebar.  It's really simplistic but highly addicting. 

Then there's The World's Hardest Game.  http://www.addictinggames.com/theworldshardestgame.html It truly is.  I will bet you my cat, my books, and my rock collection that it is the hardest game you will ever play.  Use the arrow keys to move your red block from one green square to the other green square.  Collect the yellow circles but don't hit the blue ones or you will die.  And trust me, you WILL DIE. 

...A LOT.

I can't get past the first level.  And the funny thing is, it doesn't do "game over, start again" whenever you die.  No, it just restarts the level and records the death.  For those of you who've played Fire Emblem 10, it's like the death count just before the Emblem unleashes Ashera and whatnot.  But basically yOHMIGOSH THAT THING'S THE SIZE OF A CAT!!!!!!!!!!;f ai;8qailej;;b\qrtgi 2;2'q4puig2kfcws;fh,

-brick'd-

Freaking...Harrison (don't ask if you don't know)...cockroaches...  I'm going to sue the bug man.  Yeah, our pest control guy?  HE DOESN'T GET 'ER DONE.  o.eee

*arms self with shoe*  Next time... Hehehe....

Ahem.  Anyway...

So yeah, try those games out.  ^^;  Also, http://www.armorgames.com has some awesome games as well!  Come to think of it, I actually prefer it over AddictingGames...  >>

~Cara

"Did I really just relate myself to a burrito?  That hunts vampires?"  ~CF:V

OMIGOSH.

AUGGIE JUST SAID "EPIC FAIL".  THIS HAS OFFICIALLY BOTH MADE MY DAY/WEEK/LIFE AND HAS GIVEN ME A NEW GIDDINESS IN USING THE TERM.  :D

Also, he just had a Maximum Ride manga Iggy moment:  "DUDE.  A blind guy works here.  Don't rearrange the furniture!"

Have I mentioned I LOVE August Anderson?!  

~Cara

Things to Do While Waiting for A Website to Stop Spazzing

I love networks that post their full episodes online.  It's usually HD now, it's awesome, you can pause and rewind as you wish, watch again and again on your own time, and it's legal.  Kinda like TiVo.  But unlike TiVo, the vid-viewing offered by USA Network is free.  Please and thank you!

So I love "Covert Affairs" more than life itself.  It's the first TV show I've ever "followed," as in watch each new episode like it's a religion.  So every night, without fail, I turn on channel 43 at 10:00pm and watch the latest installment.  I come for Annie's story and the fast-paced action, but I stay for the romance and Auggie's witticisms and character development.  Auggie.  Is.  WIN.  August Anderson.  <3 <3 <3 <3 Anyway.  I was totally swamped last night, what with Mockingjay FINALLY coming out yesterday, show choir auditions, and homework.  So I missed last night's episode--which included a shirtless Auggie that I'd been dying to see forEVAH.  o.e  But this brings us back to USA Network's online viewer.  *Hallelujah Chorus*  So, just after I was done drooling over Auggie without a shirt (I'm not ashamed to say I replayed that bit about five times initially), the connection wonked out and the vid stoped playing.  Despite frantic refreshing, x-ing out and reopening, it's not working.  Which is HIGHLY freaky seeing as how the main problem in this episode is a hacker that is getting into the sattelites and caused all phones, cable, cell phones, stoplights, etc. to shut down for about 15 minutes.  >.> 

Yeah.

BUT.  I have my blog while I wait (I should be doing homework, but I have time, and Auggie comes before Honors World History.  It's just a simple fact of life).  So, here is my mental (now written) list of Things to Do While Waiting for A Website to Stop Spazzing:

1.) Sudoku

2.) Homework

3.) Transformice (see previous post)

4.) Read

5.) Make a list

6.) Make a blog post

7.) Make a blog post involving a list

8.) Write story

9.) Edit friend's story

10.) Read friend's story

11.) Make sure Lark and company aren't minioning each other too horribly (long story pertaining to TFM, don't ask if you don't know)

12.) Call a friend

13.) Draw

...

14.) Check the video again  <--ITEM OF CHOICE

*checks*

Still dysfunctional.  But working.  *crosses fingers*

~Cara

Transformice!

We all live in a yellow submarine...

...we hate the stupid thing...

...we want to paint it green...

Hey, guys!  Cara here. (Obviously; who else would it be?)  If you haven't heard of the new trend that's squeaking the nation, then you haven't heard of Tranformice!  Commonly abbreviated TFM, Tranformice is an epically good time in which you are a small mouse that must get the cheese and return to the mouse hole before time runs out!  Chat with people from all over the world in a mad scramble to get the cheese.  The stages are random and change automatically, either when time runs out, all the mice have died (by falling off the stage or being rocketed off of it), or all the mice have gotten the cheese and returned to the mouse hole.  Points are awarded to mice who successfully get the cheese and return to the mouse hole.  Shamans, which are picked at random and change each stage, are special mice with feather headdresses and blue swirling tattoos that can conjure up items to help their squeaky followers to and from the cheese!  Shamans must be the last to enter the mouse hole; only after all their disciples have entered can they follow them in.  When you get enough points, you unlock a new title.  Oh, and don't forget about rooms:  type /room roomname (for example) to get into or create a private room only accessible to those you give the room code to!  Very useful if you don't like the squeaky, chaotic cacophony of the main rooms on each server.  http://www.transformice.com/  So what are you waiting for?  Join the cheese-crazed fun!

Squeak you there!

~Cara

State of the Union--Numero Dos

High school, man!  It's crazy stuff.  Big Honors World History test tomorrow; I've been studying like nuts.  Also, there's this pretty awesome junior that looks like what I imagine a 16-year-old Fang would.  :D  I'm in drama club and chorus.  Wish me luck on the former; auditions are Wednesday after school!!

My boyfriend broke up with me a few weeks ago.  :P  But, I'm okay with it.  I mean it, I am.  Now I can ogle and flirt and not be guilty...not that I ogled and flirted while I was going out with him or anything... >.> 

Already working on my Halloween costume.  I'm going to be Max from Maximum Ride, wings and all.  It's going to be epical--I'll post pictures when the time comes.  Meanwhile, wish me luck on building the wings--it's going to be intense (like camping)!!

In the meantime, keep flying, guys.

~Cara

Θρεη υρ γσυr ώıηgς αηd ƒℓγ

Θυr ƒεατhεrς τσυch τhε ςταrς

βεhσℓδ τhε ωσηδεrς σƒ τhε ώσrℓδ

Whεη αℓℓ τhε ςκγ ις συrς

The International Library of Moi

Hey, guys! 

I have read probably a total of two non-fiction books in the past three years, at least one of which was required.  So, to say the least, I'm a big-time fiction reader.  Mainly, I read teen fiction--primarily in the paranormal dabblings, with the occasional adult-style mystery like Stephanie Plum or the Spellman Files.  It also turns out that, more often than not, the books I read are in a series.  For the heck of it, here's my...

Book Break-Down:

Total number of visible books currently in my room (CIMR):  207

Total number of unread books CIMR:  9

Total number of books currently loaned out:  4

Total number of reference books CIMR:  25

Total number of non-reference nonfiction books CIMR:  7 (4 of which are complete or partial memoirs)

Total number of certified classic books CIMR:  5

Total number of paranormal teen fiction books CIMR:  94

Total number of magazines and comic books (separate from the book count) CIMR:  15

You get the gist.  And while a similar list of books is on the "books" tab of this site, I'm in a listing mood, and will attempt to compile an incomplete index of series that are sitting on my bookshelves, in no particular order (asterisked entries are series to which there are books out that I do not own yet; I apologize for any incorrect series names; series with an ~ are unfinished as of this posting;I neither own nor claim any rights to these books, their merchandise or characters, etc., though God only knows how much I wish I did):

~The Gone series, Michael Grant

The Twilight Saga, Stephenie Meyer

~The House of Night series, P.C. and Kristin Cast

The Abhorsen Chronicles, Garth Nix

*~The Vampire Diaries, L.J. Smith

*~The Graceling series, Kristin Cashore

Peeps and The Last Days, Scott Westerfeld

The Midnighters trilogy, Scott Westerfeld

The Uglies trilogy and Extras, Scott Westerfeld

*~The Gallagher Girls series, Ally Carter

~The Darkest Powers series, Kelly Armstrong

~The Skinned series, Robin Wasserman

*The Wicked Lovely series, Melissa Marr

~The Maximum Ride series, James Patterson

~The Mortal Instruments Series/Trilogy (not including new prequel series), Cassandra Clare

~The Hunger Games trilogy, Suzanne Collins

The Den of Shadows series, Amelia Atwater-Rhodes

The Kiesha'ra series, Amelia Atwater-Rhodes

~The Vampire Academy series, Rachelle Mead

~The Evernight series, Claudia Gray

~The Wake trilogy, Lisa McMann

*~The Wings series, Aprilynne Pike

*~The Blade series, Tim Bowler

The Harry Potter series, J.K. Rowling

*?The Mrs. Murphy Mystery series, Rita Mae and Sneaky Pie Brown

*~The Stephanie Plum series, Janet Evanovich

*The Spellman Files, Lisa Lutz

*?The Blue is for Nightmares series, Laurie Faria-Stolarz

*~The Warriors series, Erin Hunter

The Sight and Fell, David Clement-Davies

The Magic in Manhattan series, Sarah Mlynowski

*The Princess Diaries, Meg Cabot

(And then I pray that this will be a series, so I'll add it here) Raised by Wolves, Jennifer Lynn Barnes

And I mean, I get so, so attached to compelling characters, fictional more than not.  I've cried while reading the Twilight Saga, the Vampire Academy series (sobbed), the House of Night series, the Maximum Ride series (sobbed), and--in the only instance where I have cried while reading non-fiction--Three Weeks with My Brother.  Those are the few instances I can name off the top of my head.  Other fictional-induced outbursts have occurred while playing Okami (sobbed) and Fire Emblem:  Radiant Dawn (sobbed); while watching Van Helsing (sobbed), Remember Me (sobbed), New Moon, The Lion King (sobbed), and Anastasia.  Particularly with book series, I talk about the characters like real people--because to me, they are.  I yell at them while reading, I laugh at and with them, and as I mentioned before, sometimes I cry with them.  I want what they want, need what they need--and if I don't, I have a heck of a hard time convincing them that they don't, either.  Really, it's the least I can do--they do me the honor of taking me with them on their adventures, and I in turn make sure their adventures live on. 

Okay, so maybe reading all that fiction has messed with my brain some.  At least, that's what my family and friends have jokingly told me on a number of instances.  But you know what?  That's fine with me.  Because my books are my worlds.  They are my world.  My reading, my writing--my fiction--isn't fiction to me.  It's real.  I'm always reading, always writing, always dreaming and thinking and imagining.  And sometimes, I'm wanting, too.  Wanting with all my heart to have wings like Max and the flock.  Wanting with all my heart to be a spellcaster or a shape-shifter, be it in the style of Twilight, Raised by Wolves or the Kiesha'ra.  Wanting with all my heart to be a warrior, a hero, or a princess from another time.  Wanting with all my heart to be a vampire hunter like Lucas, or a vampire protector like Rose.  Wanting with all my heart to be something more than human, or at least a human with powers, like Bryn.  Wanting to be something more than just me.  And don't get me wrong, I'm not one of those psycho people with no grip on reality.  I love my life.  I love school, my friends and family, learning, music, and fencing.  But sometimes, all I want is for the fiction to not be fiction anymore.  For it to happen to me.  For me, for my life, to be something more.  My books and my writing help me with that. 

And you know what else?  If I can't be something More in the paranormal sense, I'm going to be something More in a more human way.  I'm going to be a published author someday--yes, teen paranormal fiction.  And I'm going to make a difference--somehow, somewhere.  You mark my words.  And if any of you out there can relate to anything I've said or am saying here, speak up and spread the word!  Because if we are all working together to find something or to make something happen, we can and we will!  I'm not looking for fame and fortune.  I'm looking for people that can relate to what I say here.  So keep reading, keep believing, keep being, and keep flying.  But most of all, don't you dare let anyone tell you that the sky's the limit when there are footprints on the moon.

Peace out,

~Cara

State of the Union

Hey, guys!  Back from camp, but updates later, I promise.  I'm just here to post a banner for High Ridge Pack.  Here you go, Shade!

Text:

High Ridge Pack

You're playing with the big dogs now.

~Cara

"No one cares about the swimming abilities of Kay's family!!" ...With the Possible Exception of the Lifeguard

Hello, readers!

Sorry for the recent AWOL-ness.  Don't feel bad; I've been doing it to everyone. xD  With my going off to camp on Friday and staying there for a MONTH--consider it acclimation to going thirty long days without a single post from yours truly.  Yes, I know, it's very sad.  Make sure you guys feed the fish for me, all right?

I really do apologize for the brief posts, and the fact that they are few-and-far-between.  I've been staying up late (shh!  Don't tell the parents) and sleeping in until 10:30 or 11:00 every morning.  Around 1:00 or 2:00pm I head to the pool, and stay there anywhere from one to five hours.  After that, I return and use my extra time to check my e-mail and prowl the interwebs and Microsoft Word.  That time is generally interspersed with dinner, chores, et cetera.  After the computer goes off at 10:00pm (or thereabouts), I gather my book of word puzzles, my drawing equipment, my iPod, and my book and pencil, and retreat downstairs to do various things.  Which I secretly continue doing well after my bedtime, except I have to use stealth and a flashlight.

But still.

And now that I have bored you all with a less-than-exhaustive look into my life (which is highly average as of late, and that fact irks me greatly), I fear that I will leave.

Keep flying, guys!

~Cara

P.S.  If you start screaming at ceratin FE9 and FE10 characters to do an "UP AND AWAY, YOU IDIOT!!!" then you know that you are truly obsessed with Maximum Ride.  Credit to Caroline for this revelation.

"You could lock the Gasman into a padded cell with some dental floss and a bowl of Jell-O, and he will find a way to make something explode."

"You're a devious little pyro, aren't you?"

"I choose you....Max."

"Avian-Americans."

"I wish life was perfect and love was easy."

"Did we need a dog?  No.  Could we feed a dog?  No.  We were six mutant bird kids on the run.  Could we afford to take care of a dog?  Wait for it--NO!"

"'Did you leave the flamethrowers lying around again?'  'I always forget.'"

"Let's see Dr. Amazing do THAT."

"And then Dr. Wonderful flicked her--yes, RED--hair over her shoulder..."

"Beware of Mr. Chu.  And maybe Brigid."

"'Where's Angel?'  And if that phrase doesn't instill terror into your heart by now, you haven't been paying attention."

""I'm just a kid!' I shrieked.  'I can't get married!'  'You could in New Hampshire.'  'No one's getting married!  Not in New Hampshire or anywhere else.  Not in a box, not with a fox!  Now go to sleep before I kill you!!'  Yeah.  Like I got any sleep after THAT."

And I could go on and on with the (approximate) MaxRide quotes, but I'll spare you.

Peace.

Whoo!

Yipes!

Hey, all.  Sorry for the lack of updates; I had running camp!  My high school's XC team is beast.

Anyway, I leave for camp in a couple weeks; that is going to be epical.  But don't get me started about my school board again...ugh. 

Well, not much else to say.  Sorry for the minimal contact; I've got a lot going on, but not anything I feel like posting here. xD  I know, lame, right?  Sorry, but that's how it is.  :P

~Cara

Invisible Day!

Happy Invisible Day, all!  Also, my boyfriend and I have been going out for three months today.  Life is good.

Running camp starts tomorrow. *sarcastic joy* 

Okay, I'm pissed at my county school board.  Because of their jacked up schedule, I'm missing Lakeside at my summer camp, and I'm missing the release of Eclipse the Movie.  -.- *simmers*  However, I've already ranted about this multiple times to anyone who will listen--and even some who won't--so I'll spare the rest of you.  Count your blessings.

Not much else to say here, really.  Okami fans, take this quiz:  http://www.theotaku.com/quizzes/view/2019/what_okami_character_are_you%3F  It's pretty fun; I took it four times because I couldn't decide on some answers for some questions and decided to try them all out; I got Oki twice and Ammy twice.  *non-sarcastic joy*

Again, happy Invisible Day!  And to celebrate... (Turn head sideways...NOW!)

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THE NINJAS ATTACK.

~Cara

BP Oil Spill

Enough is enough!

It is disgusting.  Despicable. 

This oil spill has gone on long enough.  BP failed by allowing this to happen in the first place--and their attempts to stem the flow of oil have all failed as well.  If this trend continues, this leak could go on for a year or more.  Join the cause:  here's a post from deviantART member Yuumei's journal:

I’m sure most of you know about BP’s (British Petroleum) Gulf of Mexico oil spill (aka Deepwater Horizon oil spill) by now. The offshore oil drilling rig exploded on April 20th, well over a month ago, and yet it is still spilling at around 800,000 to 4,200,000 US gallons of crude oil every day. What's even more shocking is the amount of corruption that led to the spill and delay in clean up.


The current situation raises many questions:

*How this happen?
There are many causes and finger pointing, but the most important issue is that BP did not know what they were doing and were not prepared for disaster. Most of the construction plans were not safe and should not have been approved by MMS (Mineral Management Service that’s part of US Department of interior) but the MMS officials were too busy looking at porn and tripping on Meth to do a proper job. The MMS officials were appointed by the Bush administration due to business ties with the oil industry; they have now been disbanded by the Obama administration.



*Why is oil still spilling after 40 days and when will it stop?

Three days after the explosion, they still believed no oil was spilled at all. BP’s slow reaction to realizing the spill is the least of the problem. After finding out about it, BP lied about the amount that’s leaking until the government ordered BP to post all data of the spill online live at their site. [link] . BP also thought that no oil would reach land so they took their sweet time. Every measure they’ve tried has failed and now they’re trying “Top Kill” to pump whatever they have (like cement, golf balls, and tires) into the spill site in hopes of blocking it. BP has learned nothing since the 1979 oil spill in the same gulf, they tried the same techniques back then but didn't work for 9 months until they finished building a relief well [link] . We have no idea if "Top Kill" will work (since it didn't work in 1979) or how long oil will continue to spill.  New edit as of Saturday May 29th, "Top Kill" has failed to work as predicted. Bp is going to try to capture some of the spilling oil, but predicts that they won't be able to stop the leak until they finish drilling a relief well at least 2-3 months from now. That's right, the oil is going to spill until August or more. Way to FAIL, BP.



*How large is the environmental and economic damage?

This is the largest offshore oil spill in American history. Not only is BP not doing enough to stop the spill, they chose to use Corexit 95, a highly toxic skin burning chemical banned in the UK, as the oil dispersant. Now, not only are there deadly oil floating around, but also over 60,000 gallons in toxic plumes of burning chemicals as well (see video [link] ) On May 19th, the NEPA ordered BP to find a less toxic dispersant within 24 hours but BP ignored them and continued to use Corexit. BP chose to use Coretix not because it's effective (it's not, there are plenty of better chemicals to use) they chose it because they had a business deal with the Coretix maker. BP is being cheap and not caring about the consequences. Not only is the fishing industry in ruins, but the lasting environmental impact can go on for decades. This is what the damage looks like underwater.  Oil has already washed up on the shores of several islands and killed many birds, turtles, and fish, endangering over 4,000 species of birds and marine life. Due to the loop current, the oil can be spread all the way to Florida.

*What about the other existing offshore drills and the ones that will be built in the Artic wildlife reserves?

Unfortunately, the other oil drills are still in operation and won’t be shut down, and new shallow water drilling permits are still being handed out. Obama has postponed the scheduled Artic oil exploitation by one year; hoping public outrage would die down by then to allow them to continue this selfish act. We can not just let this go and wait until another oil spill to occur to regret our mistakes. Offshore drilling needs to be permanently banned right now. Saying something like "we should keep drilling, but just make it safer" doesn't change anything. It's easy to say let's make it safer but the matter of fact is, accidents, carelessness and oversight WILL happen. There have been over 80 oil spills in history, 4 in 2010, and 2 of those 4 are in America. The only way to be safe from this disaster is to ban offshore drilling. Again, this video gives a fine example of how it did not get any safer since the 1979 spill.

Just sitting around saying, "Oh, that's terrible" and doing nothing DOESN'T HELP!  If you think it's so terrible, then DO something!  I urge you to do more than sit around.  Join Yuumei's contest to help spread awareness.  Spread the word:  your blog, Facebook, Twitter, the forums on other sites you visit, e-mail, whatever!  Go to your local salon, get a haircut, and ask them to use your hair to help soak up the oil!  Dog and cat hair works, as well. 

Sign these petitions or make donations at the following sites to help with clean-up and permanently ban offshore drilling:

https://online.nwf.org/site/Donation2?df_id=16706&16706.donation=form1

http://na.oceana.org/en/stopthedrill?utm_source=twitter

http://action.350.org/letter/?letter_KEY=1307

http://www.thepetitionsite.com/takeaction/798/873/519

http://action.350.org/p/salsa/web/tellafriend/public/?tell_a_friend_KEY=6761

Boycott BP brands to show them we don't approve of their stupidity and don't intend to fuel it again!

List of brands:  http://boycottbp.blogspot.com/2010/05/dont-buy-these-brands.html

Time is running out.  Hundreds, even thousands of species of wildlife are in danger of extinction from the spill. 

I could go on and on about the idiocies of many humans, but this speech from Maximum Ride:  The Final Warning by James Patterson sums it all up (no copyright infringement intended; material copyright James Patterson.  I do not own Maximum Ride or any associated titles.) :

"Look," I said.  "There's a lot of official stuff I could quote and put up on the screen with PowerPoint.  But what you need to know, what the world needs to know, is that we're really destroying the earth in a more catastrophic way than anyone has ever imagined.

    "I mean, I've seen a lot of the world, the only world we have.  There are so many awesome, beautiful things in it.  Waterfalls and mountains, thermal pools surrounded by ice and snow as far as you can see.  Beautiful beaches with sand like white sugar.  Fields and fields of wildflowers.  Places where the ocean crashes up against a mountainside, like it's done for hundreds of thousands of years.

    "I've also seen concrete cities with hardly any green.  And rivers whose pretty rainbow surfaces came from an oil leak upstream.  Animals are becoming extinct right now, in my lifetime.  Just recently, I went through one of the worst hurricanes ever recorded.  It was a whole lot worse because of huge, worldwide climate changes caused by...us.  We, the people.

    ..."'We the people of the United States,'" I began, "'in Order to form a more perfect Union, establish Justice, insure domestic Tranquility, provide for the common defence, promote the general Welfare, and secure the Blessings of Liberty to ourselves and our Posterity, do ordain and establish this Constitution for the United States of America.'

    "A more perfect union?  While huge corporations do whatever they want to whoever they want, and other people live in subway tunnels?  Where's the justice of that?  Kids right here in America go to bed hungry every night, while other people get four-hundred-dollar haircuts.  Promote the general welfare?  Where's the general welfare of strip-mining, toxic pesticides, industrial solvents being dumped into rivers, killing everything?  Domestic tranquility?  Ever sleep in a forest that's being clear-cut?  You'd be hearing chain saws in your head for weeks.  The blessings of liberty?  Yes.  I'm using one of the blessings of liberty right now, my freedom of speech, to tell you guys, who make the laws, that the very ground you stand on, the house you live in, the children you tuck in at night, are all in immediate, catastrophic danger.

    ..."Every minute of every day, cars belch exhaust.  Factories spew toxins into the air, land, and water.  We've cleared millions of square miles of forests, rain forests, and plains, which means tons of topsoils is just washing away.  Which means loss of animals and plants, and increased fires, floods, and costal disintegration.  Just by the stuff people have made, created, we're raising the overall temperature of the entire atmosphere.  Well, we only have the one atmosphere!  What do you plan to do when it's destroyed?  Can we all hold our breath until we get a new one?

    "The problem is here, now," I went on.  "Nine of the ten hottest years ever recorded have happened in my lifetime.  I'm fourteen.  More or less.""  I, Nixitra, am too, people!  ""There have been record-setting weather extremes across the globe--tornadoes, hurricanes, typhoons, droughts, wildfires, tsunamis.  We're warming up the planet, and the planet's ice is melting.  If only fifty percent of the world's ice melts, countless rivers and streams will overflow and then dry up, killing hundreds of thousands of people from disease and starvation.  The ocean water level will rise anywhere from four feet to maybe twenty feet.  How many of your favorite vacation spots would be under water?  Want to see the Eiffel Tower by canoe?  Do any of you own beach houses?  Kiss 'em goodbye.  And not two hundred years from now.  Soon.  Maybe in this lifetime.

    "We can't reverse this disaster, even if we all pitched in now and did everything we could, which, face it, we're not going to do.  A small percentage of us will do stuff, and other people will ignore the problem and hope they'll be dead before it gets really bad.  But there are things we can do that would at least help.  It would make a difference.

    "The US could ratify the Kyoto treaty.  Pretty much every country in the world, except us and Australia, has ratified it.  How can we be so pigheaded?  Wait--don't answer that.  I know our time here is limited.

    "In general, we need to pay more attention to what we do, what we buy, who we buy it from.  Use compact flourescent bulbs.  If every house in America replaced just one of its regular lightbulbs with a compact flourescent, it would be like taking a million cars off the road.  I mean, how hard is that?  I can do the math, and I've never even gone to school!

    "Look into other kinds of power.  Windmills, water mills, solar power--every year corporations pay a jillion dollars in legal fees to avoid getting fined for pollution violations.  What if they took a tiny percentage of that money and put it toward coming up with better energy sources?

    "Right now America looks like a fatheaded, short-sighted, gas-guzzling, arrogant blowhard to the rest of the world.  And Sweden looks all clean and tidy and progressive.  I mean, where's our sense of pride?

    "Why can't we be the progressive leaders, showing the rest of the world how to clean up its act?  Why can't we, the people, get more involved and push through legislation that will help clean up our air, land, and water?  Why can't we take government funds from stupid things like war and use them for programs that will develop better fuel sources?

    "I'm just one kid, and not even a regular kid.  But if I can come up with all this, why can't you?  Will you wait until the water is lapping at your feet?"

Every second, Americans throw away 700 plastic water bottles.  That's enough to make two million fleece sweaters every day.

Last year, we threw away enough plastic water bottles to stretch around the Equator 109 times.

A water faucet that drips one drop every second will leak 165 gallons a month.

Every three months, Americans throw away enough aluminum to rebuild the entire US air fleet.

Recycling just one aluminum can saves enough energy to operate a TV for three hours.

Americans use almost 100 billion plastic bags every year.  Their use is banned in several countries.

So save the world!  Wings not required.  What are you doing to help?

http://www.dosomething.org/

Keep flying--and don't just sit around saying it's terrible.  Help!

~Cara

nook For the Win!!!

Well.  I have good news!

First of all, I'm back from Hilton Head!  Which means I'm back on my desktop.  After that little, easy-type laptop keyboard and the single-tap mouse--not to mention the very convenient mobility and automatic SpellCheck--well, this'll take some getting used to.  But I have Alice (my computer mouse) back!  Huzzah for speed! 

Anyway...I HAS A NOOK!  The Barnes & Noble digital reader thing?  Yeah!  I have one!  Now, allow me to say why it must be a nook (it's not supposed to be capitalized) and not a *shudder* KINDLE.  Number one, nook is from Barnes & Noble, which is THE best bookseller in the world, in my opinion.  They KNOW their stuff.  Kindle is by Amazon, however, which is a huge business tycoon and has one tentacle in about every category of online retail known to man (and I think seven known to dolphin).  Number two, the nook is smaller and easier to travel with.  It's lighter and not as bulky as the Kindle.  Number three, with the Kindle, the publisher can recall an e-book release, and guess what?  Even if you bought the e-book in question, Amazon swipes it off your Kindle.  Not so with the nook.  Number four, the nook comes equipped with an inate ability to connect to Wi-Fi hotspots, also known as hubs in your local Barnes & Noble store.  That's right--pop by B&N, grab a Starbucks, and read free e-books in the store.  Is there an Amazon walk-in store?  Thought not.  Number five, the nook has COLOR.  I know, I know, big whoop, right?  Right!  For me, what gets my attention first off with a book is its cover.  The cover holds the title, the image and design, the author(s), and possibly a tagline and/or which series the book is from, for example.  Kindle's grayscale touchscreen may be cool and all, but with the nook, I can see the covers as they would appear on the shelves of my favorite book store.  Now how cool is that?  Number six, the nook has a built-in app (I guess you could call it) called The Daily.  Blog updates and notices are automatically posted there by the e-book staff about new releases, recommendations, basic troubleshooting, and software updates.  Which leads me to number seven:  with both the Kindle and the nook, the technology will inevitably be updated.  The big difference?  You'd have to buy a new, updated Kindle (pricey!) and transfer all your purchases--if possible (questionable and a hassle, if it works).  With the nook, you can automatically download the updates and improvements for free. 

And with that spiel, I leave you for now.  Keep flying!

~Cara

The Legacy Begins!...on Halfway-to-Halloween Day?

Happy Halfway-to-Halloween Day!  Nah, just kidding; I have no clue if that's true or not.  That's just the story Caroline and I made up if anyone asked us why we were carrying our toy swords around the marina this evening as we snuck around like rats.  But  maybe I'm getting ahead of myself.

It all started in the chorus room...

...

*flashback fail*

What, you guys didn't get the ripple-y view and the harp glissando?  ...No?  Dang.  Well, all right.  In chorus a few months ago, I found a metal fork on the floor of the large rehearsal room.  Long story short, I dubbed it the Musical Fork of Evil, took it home, ran it through the dishwasher, slipped it into my bag, and carried it around as a self-defense apparatus for the rest of the school year.  And I will do so again next year.  And the next.  Until I graduate from college, that fork will be my constant school-time companion.  I'll sniff it when I'm lonely...  (Inside joke from a public speaker that came to our school.  Just don't ask.)  But I digress.

This evening, in a stroke of impulsive insanity, I crept ninja-style to the edge of the balcony of our condo and chucked a slightly chocolate-crusted spoon to the marina pavement, a good four stories below us.  We heard it clatter satisfyingly.  By the way, I blame Caroline for that, for the birth of the Legacy (which will be explained later), and for the aforementioned sword-carrying.  It was her idea.  All of it was.  I'm just the epically impulsive spazz that orchestrated plans that allowed us to actually go through with it all.  That's us--the tactician and the general.  

Sort of.

Anyway.  First of all, she said as we were eating our microwaveable cake out on the balcony, "You know, I've always wanted to throw something down at the unsuspecting bicycle-riding passerby."  Cue the impulsive spazz, also known as moi.  (That's "mwah," for those of you who are French fails; it means "me."  Which reminds me, I have a funny story about a student teacher failing with the pronunciation of "oui" in chorus.  Someone remind me to tell that someday.)  So what do I do?  Well, just re-read the beginning of this paragraph.

And THEN she said, "Haha, remember the Musical Fork of Evil?  What if we threw another spoon down there, but there was a note attached saying, 'if you find this spoon, you have been chosen!  You must pass on another utensil within forty-eight hours or you will'--don't tell me you're actually going to do that--!"  But it was too late.  At the word "utensil," I'd turned around and made a beeline for our room, clean metal spoon in hand.  The note was drafted.  The location planned.  The final copy of the note written, wrapped around the spoon and tied with gold-colored elastic thread.  We then convinced my parents to let us have "one last marina walk."  Little did they know.  Then--oh, and then--Little Miss Tactician gestured to our swords.  (You think she'd have learned by then.)  It was official--the swords came on this our Most Epical Journey.

We crept down to the marina and tried to plant the spoon at Frosty's, the ice cream place.  It was a fail--what if a little kid got it, or some creepy old man?  The Legacy of the Musical Fork of Evil would die before it had begun.  I said to Caroline, "A teenager has to find it.  Where have we seen the most teenagers around here?"  "The pool," she said instantly.  The pool was in Harborside I, just down the street from us in Harborside II.  I got a sparkle in my eyes.  "Don't tell me we're actually going to go over there!"  "We have to!"

Long story short, the spoon was planted at Harborside I's pool, and Caroline and I snuck back to the room without any further mishaps--although some people did comment on our swords, to which I muttered, "We'll just say it's Halfway-to-Halloween Day."  And now, I fear, the computer must be surrendered--keep flying, guys.

~Cara

Swords, Sand Dollars, and...Yoshi Fails?

Hey, guys!  Sorry I haven't blogged in a bit; I've been busy spazzing out with Caroline.  (SpellCheck still doesn't recognize "spazzing" as a word.  How lame is that?)  Anyway, today was a day full of, as always, wins and EPIC FAILS.  Let's start with the night's most recent fail, shall we?

I'm not sure how many of you play Super Smash Bros. Brawl for Wii (I use a GameCube controller because I am a fail with the Wii remote, like most people), but those of you who do play probably know about the CPUs and their levels.  Well, I have an alliance of local gamers that play similar games including SSBB.  We have a color and rank system and it's all official and pretty.  You know how I said my best friend Caroline was my mentor?  Guess what!  Anyway, I can kill three level sevens on a good day, which technically makes me a level eight.  Well, she was testing me on my level eight status.  After several fails, I got very, very mad at a certain egg-laying Nintendo dinosaur with a tendency to be green in color, high-pitched in voice, and annoying in demeanor.  Also known as YOSHI, who is *officially* my sworn enemy.  Just by the way.

But I degress.  Well, I set up a battle with me as gold Pit, the epical level-eight-in-training, two level-one Yoshis, and one level-three Yoshi.  Now, I know what you're all thinking:  "You dominated!"  Yeah!

NO.  

The level one killed me, people.  I have never experienced a bigger, more EPICALLY FAILING FAIL in my short life.  EVER.  God bless Caroline...

In other news, Caroline and I scuttled down to the toystore I mentioned in a previous post and purchased some *toy* swords and shields!  I'm not sure how much I said about our selections in the aforementioned post, but either way, they're those ones.  And they're awesome!  We can now run around the condo like idiots with *style.*  Win.

Also in other news, the sand dollars are bleached!  Nice and shiny white.  Yays!  And though I'm sorry to say that our local hobo, whomever he or she may be, does not get a white and sandy companion (if you'd paid attention to the poll I put up, you'll know what I'm talking about), it does make Caroline and me feel like we've done something legitimately productive.

~Cara (why did this say Caroline?!  For a freaking YEAR?! >.>)

Good Morning!

I blog to you guys now over a nice bowl of Cheerios with banana.  Caroline and I just got up (as in legitimately out of bed) about ten or fifteen minutes ago.  Sorry I didn't say anything yesterday.  There was a fantastic night-time beach walk last night.  I've discovered that there are a few things that help me feel like flying, or at least as close as a wingless person can get:  

1.) Howling outside, free and clear and loud

2.) Sprinting

3.) Singing

4.) Swimming

As of yet, I haven't discovered a proper wind tunnel, but I'm working on it...

Keep flying!

~Cara

Neep

Not much has happened today.  We went to the Salty Dog Cafe, though, which is always fun--I think.  This was my first time.  A great place, though.  

In other news...well, I have no other news.  No epic battles.  No awesome little kids or old people.  No life-changing experiences.  No epic wins (although, as usual, there were a couple epic fails).  However, recently, in a burst of Fire Emblem-y obsession, I yelled "Naesala!" to a crow that was flying overhead; it cawed back at me loudly.  *raven win*  Nothing much else to say right now.  Keep flying, guys.

~Cara

BLOBBEHS

Boredom+blobs FTW


http://www.addictinggames.com/gluey-game.html

~Cara

Another Day, Another Mollusk

So, as you all know, my friend Caroline and I are at the beach.  So, my dad dropped us off at the actual beach, which is across the road and down the ways a bit, at around 10:30 this morning, after we'd gotten up and nommed my dad's "famous" chocolate-chip pancakes, which Caroline can easily eat sixteen of in one sitting--literally.  She did it once.  

(On a completely random note, somebody just walked by underneath us--the condo's balcony is on the marina, where all the shops and restaurants are--whistling "It's A Small World" very clearly.  But when I stood and looked over the balcony edge [I'm typing from said balcony], the whistling fluidly stopped and no one was there.  When I did look over, however, I heard cooing from above me, from the roof.  Looking up, however, nothing was there.  *Twilight Zone music plays*)  

Anyway.

The waves, at first, were puny, and the water was cold.  Unpleasantly so, at least for me.  Caroline, however, did what I would normally do--flailed right in and splashed around, pestering me to do the same. Eventually, she managed to do so by dead-legging me, causing me to splash down in the water.  Naturally, a small water war ensued.  I'd like to think I won.  (That cooing was just confirmed--the pigeon took flight, wings flapping it into the air with that signature pigeon-wing sound.)  After that, we played in the waves for a bit before I yelped.  I'd stepped on something sharp, and automatically bent down in the water to investigate, though Caroline was basically yelling, "C'mon!  Just leave it alone!"  

All right, I'll admit, you think I would've learned my lesson after yesterday's incident with the horseshoe crab:  Caroline and I were wading in the ocean, and I'd felt something smooth yet with spikes in the sand, like a shell, much like today, actually.  I'd gone down to investigate and deduced that it was a horseshoe crab.  A dark-haired guy with a couple tattoos had answered my summons for help, then promptly backed off and said, "I'll pass."  I'd sighed and continued digging, ignoring Caroline's protests all the while.  Finally, I'd dug it up enough to pry it from the water.  Then I'd felt something slimy and hard.  I'd shrieked and dropped the crab, and I saw its tail thrash around just below the surface.  "Those things can sting you, you know," Caroline said nervously.  We then promptly flailed away, with her yelling "I told you so!!!" the entire time.

Well, today, I proved that I was not the "live and learn" type.  I felt something similar, but I quickly identified it as a conch or whelk shell because of the shape it felt like.  

So, naturally, I started digging it up.  Caroline groaned, throwing her hands up in the air.  "For heaven's sake!" she cried.  I ignored her, still digging.  I unearthed a beautiful pink whelk shell, containing the fattest, biggest, and possibly ugliest-in-a-cute-way creature I had ever laid eyes on (with the possible exception of...nevermind).  I promptly scuttled out of the water and went to the tidal pools, plopping it down in there.  "It's our mascot," I announced to an exasperated Caroline as she walked up.  "Its name is Frederick."  

She plopped down beside me in the shallow water and looked at Frederick with a blank expression.  Then she looked at me and said, "Can I stab it?"  

"NO!" I yelped.  I grabbed the long-handled pink shovel from our umbrella place and returned.  I then commenced digging a pool.  

"What.  Are.  You doing?" Caroline asked as I began to dig.  

"We're making a pool," I replied.  After I saw that she wasn't going to participate, I huffed out a breath and commanded, "Just...just make sure Frederick doesn't burrow too deeply, all right?!"  

She grinned smugly.  "Sure, sure."  She watched me dig for a very long time.  Finally, she looked at Frederick again, pulling him up from the sand and putting him back.  He didn't move.  She looked at me, then back at him and asked, "Do you think he's dead?"  At that precise moment, Frederick squirted a trail of water out of the tail of his shell in her general direction.  

We broke out in laughter.  "I'll take that as a no," I replied, then went back to digging.

Long story short, we used the extra sand from the poolfail to make a tiger sand sculpture.  I'd post a picture or two, but a storm was moving in, and my dad herded us off of the beach before I could get a shot or two.  We did, however, release Frederick with a call of "Be free!" that earned us several strange looks.

This is the life.

~Cara

Sword Evaluation, Model Investigation, Foreign Languages and Thunderstorms

It's thundering out, meaning the evening marina walk was cut short.  But, in the time we were down there, we were able to do several productive things, including (but not limited to) :

1.) find out that the "other side of the train-tracks" was VERY boring, and apparently anti-pet

2.) wander around like idiots (which is actually much more productive than most people think)

3.) head into a kid's toy shop and appear quite formal as we promptly ignored an "LOL! Rollover" toy that--as its name indicates--laughs maniacally and rolls around when it senses motion (I was able to ignore it because I was READY for it this time...) and made our way to the back of the small shop.  There, we evaluated various (toy) swords for their length, stability, design, overall quality, price, functionality, and appearance (my friend suggested "prettiness").  We took mental notes, and my friend vowed to save up twenty dollars by the end of the trip so that, at the last minute, we could dart in there, purchase a sword and shield each (in different colors so we can distinguish) for ten dollars apiece, and then spar the entire eight hours home.  In the car.  With the dog, my parents, and all our stuff.  Muahahaha...

4.) walk into the shop next door to the toy shop and investigate various models of ships and sailboats.  I was surprised by how many of the ships I actually knew.

5.) discover that the woman that...womanned...the toy shop spoke a foreign language, and that the man who...manned...the shop next door (which had models, various random things, fancy compasses, old-fashioned padlocks with small keys, false daggers that were, however, metal, chess sets in various forms, etc.) spoke the same foreign language; it sounded French or Russian.

6.) avoid electrocution, as lightning was present near the end of our walk and we were by water; however, as my friend pointed out, we were far from the tallest things around.

7.) take the stairs up to the condo, for exercise purposes as well as the fact that, if in some stroke of horrible karma the building was struck by lightning, we wouldn't be trapped in the elevator indefinitely.  (Can you imagine that phone call?  "Um...Dad?  Can you, uh...call 911?"  "WHAT?!  Why?  What happened?!"  "We're, um...stuck in the elevator." *pause* "...You're what?")

~Cara

P.S. Thunder+laptop FTW (for the win, for those of you that aren't up to par with the abbreviations--which is far too long a word for something that means a shortened version of a word.  Oh, irony...)

Okami for Wii Review/Rant

This is a fantastic game with a great if not predictable-at-times plot, with loveable and hateable characters and great graphics.  I love the Wii version because there's something satisfying about knowing that your wrist movements--and it is all in the wrist, people, especially with the shields--are the ones that result in absolutely epical battles.

The world itself is beautiful, and there's plenty to do.  The sidequests alone can take, literally, days of playing if you don't use a guide--which you shouldn't.  (Where's the fun in having someone tell you all the discoveries the game has to offer?!)  Firstly, regarding sidequests, I'll address the Stray Bead hunt.  You may have encountered these because you ignored the sidequests, and you just so happened to return to, say, Ishaku's place and talk to him, thus earning yourself a Bead.  Or maybe you got lucky and, like many of us have, encountered a Bead in a treasure chest.  Though I'm not going to spoil the surprise, what you get for collecting all one hundred--the 100th of which can only be gotten by completing the game--is very, very worth it.

Again, regarding the sidequests, they're half the fun of the game!  Even if, like my friend (I'm her apprentice regarding many games, all of which I will eventually cover here), sidequests aren't really your thing, particularly on your first run-through of a game, I encourage you to at least check them out for the fun of it--and the rewards aren't half bad most of the time, either.  Take the brush upgrades, for example.

As for the graphics and landscape, I can't count the hours I spent just running around like a moron--yes, doing the sidequests--just enjoying the people and the landscape and exploring everything.  I'm a packrat, meaning that most of the time, everything must be dug up--every hole, every chest, and if I can't get to a clover or chest, I MUST go to the Dojo and acquire the necessary skill to be able to dig up said item--; every clover, tree and patch of grass bloomed; every Devil and Demon Gate done; every Bandit Spider conquered; every chest opened; every pot, boulder--again, even if it takes a special Dojo skill to be able to do so--, and flower or patch of grass slashed or head-butted; every Demon Scroll wiped out; every nook and cranny investigated and appropriately looted.  That packrattiness led to a good chunk of my vast explorations.

By the standards of the Peacock Alliance (a group of gamers that stick together and play similar games; our headmaster's last name is Peacock, hence the name; my friend was a member, and I am her apprentice, initiating me by default), you're a master at a game if you've completed three full run-throughs of said game (for me, that includes all sidequests done).  You also must show considerable skill with the game, meaning you can't just flail through it in five months three times in a row and be a master.  You must have the map and landscape basically memorized; you must exhibit, as I said before, considerable skill in fighting or whatever the game requires.  The first game I Mastered was Okami, and the title was awarded to me after a test by my friend and teacher.

And so I say again, this is a fantastic game, if you couldn't tell by my ranting.  You get to run around as a beautiful white wolf with red markings, a four-inch-tall green Poncle on her nose, and a paintbrush that can control the elements in order to aid you on your quest to--naturally--save your world from impending evil and disaster.  You fight enemies, have to use strategies and quick thinking, and need a good sense of direction--but the map helps in case you're lacking in that last area.  As I said in the beginning, don't forget that it's all in the wrist!  Give Okami for Wii a try!

~Cara

Boredom Strikes...So Send the Link!

...and so I blog.  Surprise, surprise.  After my friend and I went on our second marina walk of the day--this time with the dog--we came back here to avoid the sun and to just chill out.  She's currently hunting up a pencil to draw with, and I, obviously, am blogging.  If I'm being completely honest, I'm merely rambling; I have no clue what to write about (my friend would say, "As usual!" but that's beside the point).

Anyway, for all you Zelda fans out there, here's something my boyfriend sent to me that totally made my day a few days ago.  Google image search "zelda send link" and it'll be the first result.

Hehehe, "Send Link"... xD  Like I said, made my day.  I shall now read the third Maximum Ride book, as I am addicted to that series.  

~Cara

P.S.  No clue what the hell is up with my font.  o.e

Sand Dollar Farms, Cover Stories, and Cookie Fails

Let's start with the fails we've had so far today.  Most recent fail:  I forgot how to spell "cookie" for the title of this post. xD  Cookie fail:  Are my friend and I the only ones that eat Oreos in three phases in an attempt to have the third phase be "eat the lone layer of frosting we've managed to separate from both cookies without breaking said layer of frosting"?  I sure hope not...  Well, either way, I did it twice.  That brings my total of counted times I've been able to do that up to...five.  *cookie fail*

In other news, as I said previously, my friend and I are at the beach.  Go Hilton Head!  And except for the fact that there is a little yapper dog in the condo next to us that won't shut the frick up, all is well.

After my dad dropped us off at the beach directly following breakfast this morning, she and I slathered on about four ounces of sunscreen each (not really, but it was a freaking lot of sunscreen) and flailed into the waves.  There were six.  Freaking.  BILLION.  Sand dollars.  Probably because it was low tide, but still!  We rounded up twenty--count them, twenty--sand dollars and scuttled back to the tide pools left behind because of...well, the tide.  (And the dog still won't shut up as I type this.  Oh, happy day. -.-)  Anyway, we dug a hole in the watery sand and dumped all the sand dollars in there.  We called it our Sand Dollar Farm of Partial Failure.  (I say partial because...well, adjectives make everything more interesting and SHUT UP YOU STUPID DOG!!! *happy place, happy place*)  Eventually, my dad picked us up from the beach.  My friend and I are going to bleach the sand dollars after we kill them (or kill them in the process; we haven't decided yet), write their names--most likely their namesakes will be the Greil Mercenaries--and take them home.  Hand-Made in the United States of America.  On a side note, you rarely see that italicized phrase anymore.  We've seen it a few times while souvenir shopping; it's very refreshing.  

As for the cover stories, well, we--my friend and I--are telling people the following:  We are twins.  I was born seven minutes earlier, thus I had seven more minutes to grow.  We lived in Colorado but we now hail from Georgia.  We miss the place where it actually snows.  We have one younger brother, who is ten.  Our and and uncle are a pilot and flight attendant, respectively.  Our dad is a partially-retired English professor who is teaching full-time this year, and our mother is an assistant dean.  Our pseudo-names shall remain classified; it is a cover story, after all.  Also, people are going for it.  It's really awesome, especially considering that she and I do look plenty alike, and we love each other like sisters.  So, it's pretty beast.  

On another note, my "twin" and I were bored, as the adults went to lunch and left us in the condo with the dog.  So, prior to my getting the computer and typing this, I pulled out the requisite deck of cards--the original boredom-buster.  She (my friend, not the deck) looked at me like I was nuts and said, "What are you doing?"  "Playing cards, of course," I replied as I started shuffling the new pack.  She blinked at me and said, "I don't know how to play."  Not poker, not War or the Never-Ending Game, not Go Fish, not ZIP.  ...It's a work in progress--just like my boyfriend (but I love him anyway).  But more on that later; the dog is whining, and must be attended to.

~Cara

P.S.  My genius best friend just managed to snap both of her rubber bands for her braces about thirty seconds apart from each other.  That either takes a certain amount of skill, luck, or stupidity.  Possibly all three.

You'll Get No Sympathy from Me--Now Go to Bed!!

Says my best friend, who is technically rooming with me.  She is with my parents, two very close friends of the family that are empty-nesters, and me.  We're chillin' in a cozy two-story, three-bedroom condo on Hilton Head Island for the week, in celebration of the first week of summer!  She and I are sharing a room, a bathroom, a dresser, a computer (which is my mother's laptop), a Wii, a TV, a sink, a shower, and basically everything else of importance except a toothbrush (which reminds me--I need to brush my teeth before I go to bed).

While I fiddled around with this thing, she'd been playing Super Smash Bros. Brawl on my Wii, which I convinced my parents to let me cart down here (thank God we have a TV in our room).  She went through Classic Brawl with Ike on Intense, then did some Brawls with Marth.  (I am highly aggravated that this computer doesn't recognize the words "Ike," "Marth," or "Wii."  I mean, seriously.  Get with the program, SpellCheck!

Well, my friend is getting a bit annoyed with my clickity-clickity (not to mention the glow from the screen), and I'm yawning as I write this, so I'm going to go to bed now.  Night, guys!

~Cara

Once Upon A Time...

...there was a girl with a blog who had no clue what she was doing. xD Well, guys, welcome to the homepage. This is where updates are posted, and stuff about my life in general. Make your way to the other tabs (when I get them) to read reviews and rants on various video games, books, my writing, et cetera. Enjoy, and bear with me as I get my...bearings...

~Cara