How Would you Like to Go Up in a Swing?

Here I go again, posting an art piece when I'm already done with the NEXT one. Inexcusable, really, but I doubt you actually knew it was sitting around, getting moldy on imageshack.us.

This one should be a nice reminder of what we're missing, with this cold and plain, though granted gorgeous weather.

This one was accomplished in Adobe Illustrator, a program I rarely if ever CHOOSE to work in. 1) I don't have it at home, so I'm not practiced at alllll... b)there isn't an eraser, as the program works completely in shapes and manipulation of such (or outlining to CREATE said shape for manipulation) and iii) the program isn't suited to as wide a range of styles as Photoshop or other programs are.

It really is a nifty program and can be fun once you get used to it...the sharp shapes and a few of the effects would be dang-near impossible to match in other programs. My friend in Independant Study who sits next to me LOVES illustrator and uses it for everything she can. Until she gets yelled at reprimanded for lacking in creativity for new projects.

You've probably seen Illustrator stuff before... most anything with this "modern", sharp-edge sort of thing is Illustrator-"style". Also, any ads put out by Apple for iPod, or poser "iFillintheblank" ads.

Like I said, it's a hard program that I don't get along with. Until I get used to it. Then it's really fun to manipulate shapes, layer colors, and bend the lines of reality and fantasy....literally. Which is what those ropes "symbolize".

This project is what Gehl claims to be the hardest CGII project, and I agree. Unlike our other projects, the sucess in this one comes not from illustrating the subject (that girl, by the way, is really just shapes I traced over her original image. But I am dang proud of that angle I found :D). It comes more from the actual DESIGN element, which is near impossible to teach and quite difficult to grasp. I like mine, and he did too. He pointed out a bunch of things I didn't realize I did (like the strong red on the rainbow splash balances the strong blue of the gradient background...which was a happy accident).

The best thing about design-based projects (and the worst) is that you really have to have leaps of faith. Which is why that ctrl-z key is a beautiful, beautiful thing...but seriously, there's very few things as wonderful as just hoping for the best and realizing you found just what you were looking for. I'd talk about the elements I used in here, but most where just that- luck. However, the gradient swooshes coming up around the girl and white circles around the sun-shape DO have a lovely story.

Nomi has this thing that she loves to incoroporate in her projects with multiple thin lines forming waves. I tried that, to give white swooshy waves up to the girl, and wasn't all too pleased. I noticed I liked the effect around the sun. And I DID like the swoosh. So after a bit of playing, I got to where I am. :)

okay so that story wasn't so good after all.

I still like the project!

"Swing" was preformed by the FGMS 6th Grade Choir by the class of 2008. Props to whoever wrote it.

I Guess that You Saw What Nobody Could See

Would you believe my New Years Resolution was to update this darling little thing more often?
Well.
It wasn't.
hahahha

---

Today, we went to the Reflections district-level award ceremony for the competition I entered The Justice Leauge piece into. If you didn't know, I really...really...am not pleased with it.
At all.

Reflections was held at Nancy Young, my old elementary school (just across the street), which is always a fun, special treat. I love Nancy Young and always light up to walk down its tiny halls and check out all the new paintings and additions.

Walking around and looking at all the other entries (about 90% were younger than fifth grade, by the way) was also fun, especially when we got to see the work of people we know. It was hard to walk past mine, since I hate it so much. In fact, one time I just stood there, ripping it apart to Dad, but stopped mid-sentance when a boy less than half my height stepped between me and the art, pointed up at it, and said, "Mommy, come look at this cool one with all the Superheroes!"

Several times that night, I stood at a reasonable creeper distance, watching as children of all ages came to the artpiece...the littlest one who only recognized Superman to the oldest who liked to see how many of the Justice Leauge they could name. They all smiled at it, pointed at it, giggled at it; no one noticed how shopped Wonder Woman looks, or how desaturated the Black Canary became. Nobody pointed out that Aquaman and Flash Gordan should technically be in the water with the way their torsos cut off, or that each of Vixen's body parts were different hues.

They just noticed that it was a fun, light-hearted piece. Something they could chuckle at with the idea, something that could entertain them. I saw, in those passerbies, something in their eyes that I wasn't quite able to write about in my artist's statement. These superheroes are more than a symbol of America- they're a symbol of childhood, innocence, and freedom. For fleeting moments, I saw adults light up like children, and I saw children light up like Christmas. Because they were looking at something I created.

Sitting here, it's hard to remember how much I hated that picture. Still do, you know...to me, I would feel a lot, LOT better about it if I had done it the way I ranted about in that entry. But I've seen first-hand what even disappointing art can do to a viewer, when the idea and heart are there. That emotional response we talk about in AP Art History isn't only for the masters. It isn't only for pieces of art that move on to regional competitions (which mine, by the way, didn't). It's for everyone.

Those children, pulling their mothers and siblings to look and see their personal and fantastical heroes, gave me more of an insight into the power of art than most experiances I've had so far. And I've had a few. ;) Perhaps it's only because of the subject matter (superheroes are always a popular choice), but even then- that's what the art usually revolves around...you'll be hard pressed to find a blank canvas that draws mass attention BEFORE it enters the museums), but I believe that, had just a bland picture of the Justice Leauge been sitting in my picture's place, it wouldn't have gotten as much attention.

I'm glad my silly little picture got into reflections. And you know what, I'm glad it sucked, too. Because now I have so much more appreciation for what I'm getting myself into...with great power comes great responsibility.

"You Found Me" was made famous by Kelly Clarkson

Joyful and Triumphant

Yesterday marked the end of the 2008 WVHS Prism season. It was the eleventh prism I've attended, the third I've been a part of.

Prism concerts are something...out of this world. I love them so much and they're one of the reasons I'm not excited to have Christmas away from Napauroraville.

So what is Prism? You see, WVHS has one of the strongest music programs in the area. The pinnacle concert of the year brings together the band, orchestra, and choir students in a two-hour concert of streamed music fit for the Holiday season.

Of course, WVHS is a public high school with a music program run by conductors who live for all kinds of music and all kinds of beliefs. So it isn't 100% Christmas music...there's some classical, some Hanukkah, we were originally going to do a Kwanzaa song for Mosaic (trust me, the new one was much better), and there's some folk holiday songs from around the globe. Of course, these non-Christmas songs are never audience favorites, but I bloomin' love Prism so much, I don't really care.

I've been eager to be a part of Prism for years...since the first few concerts I saw, I think it's safe to say. Freshman year, the first thing I did when I tried on my robe for the first time was pumping it into the air for "Jingle Bells". Heh...at least I got to do it once. : I quit curricular choir after freshmen year, and since the freshmen don't preform at Prism, and only curricular kids get the robes, I never had my robe to fist-pump with. And I'm never going to stand in the front of the audience, holding the hands of Varsity kids. I will get that Santa hat, though.

See, for those still reading and confused, Prism is steeped in tradition. The concert itself has been a WVHS tradition for...geez, I don't know how many years. We put on four shows because it is so popular and so well-loved by the community. My personal highlight every year is the Finale, the Creme de la Creme, the pinnacle moment- the Christmas Festival.

This song brings together all the students in Prism and has been with the concert for years. Almost every year, the special effects team adds a little something more, so viewers old and new can feel that rush.

It begins with a swelling timpani, and immediately, audience members know magic is happening. The lighting moves from hyper-focus on the conductor to the stage, filled with talented musicians. In front of you, behind you, and all sides are choir students, robed in green (or donned in Black for the mosaic-only kids like myself). Dotted through the room, students sport Santa hats. These are the seniors...the ones most likely to cry. Unless you're Alaina Hendricks. Then you cry every year. ;)

The first song of the medley is "Joy to the World", and it sets the mood immediately. Smoothly, it moves into "Deck the Halls", and with a minor transition becomes "God Rest Ye, Merry Gentlemen". The smooth song picks up pace into the high, exhilarating "Good King Wenceslas"...the bane of all freshmen, the only one whose words they don't know. Once that song ends, the transition slows for the moving and angelic "Hark the Herald Angels Sing". Then, the cellos solemnly set the stage, mirrored by the literal setting of the stage as the lights dim and the scrim lights up, Christmas lights putting on a faux starlit sky perfect for "Silent Night". The song of heavenly peace ends with the chipper and immediate switch to "Jingle Bells"...fit with snow, real fake snow falling from the catwalk onto the audience. After one verse, everyone takes it down an octave and fist-pumps that "Hey!" we've all been waiting for. Once that ends, the back curtain open wide, revealing a full hidden layer of brass, trumpets flared towards the audience with a beautiful winter scene behind them and a hanging wreath to top it off. The band and orchestra on the stage, combined with the additional brass with the power of a thousand angels pick it for the powerful and truly impressive "O Come All Ye Faithful", fit with impressive "accompaniment" that I can't help but conduct along to. It sweeps into the impressive chorus, powerful music ever-swelling and moving, far past when the choir quits. The cymbal crashes signifying the end are just as amazing as anything, especially as this year they were mirrored with flashes of colored lights. After that final note, the audience rushes in the applause they've been asked to withhold, offering a standing ovation to the thrilled performers. The applause is so much that we always offer an encore of that amazing "O Come All Ye Faithful"...this year, tripped up a bit (on purpose..."tripped up" is just as positive lingo as it is negative) with an extended drum roll between cymbal crashes.

You know Prism's over when the seniors toss their Santa hats into the air...their last Prisms and the end of something much bigger.

There's a reason WVHS passes out limited number of tickets to a concert that we offer four times.
There's a reason seniors cry when they preform their last performance.
There's a reason I cry (just a bit) of gratitude each time "O Come All Ye Faithful" begins.
There's a reason they preform the same finale every year to the same reaction every year.
There's a reason new audiences show up and gasp at the starlight...the snow...and the performances throughout the entire concert.
There's a reason I've wanted to be a part of this show more than any other thing in WVHS.

And until you see for yourself...you'll never know that reason.

Then again, people do walk out of the show muttering about how few Christmas songs there were, how long the rehearsals are, how off certain performances were, and how horrible the traffic to leave is. But for every Grinch has a heart that can grow four times, and I seriously believe that Prism helps tap at that Christmas spirit.

After all, what is Christmas about? Family? What better family to celebrate the gift of music with than the WVHS Music Department family, that gives its hours, nights, and weeks to the advancement of its students?

Giving? What better way to give than through the gift of music? To touch the lives and hearts of those around you and remind them of the power of a song? (There's also donations to be accepted out every door...;P)

Christ? As much as our school censors religion and asks for separation of Church and State...Prism does celebrate the Reason for the Season. What better way to celebrate Him than to sing Hallelujahs and Noels of His miraculous birth and mission...and to share that in the secular environment of schools?

Love? How can you better spread love than through song...both the teaching of and the sharing of? What better way to express your love than to support your students, friends, and children as they do what they love for whom they love? More teachers cried this audience than I've heard of in awhile. :)

Togetherness? The music students are infamous for our stereotypes...the dirty Band Geeks who hate the nerdy Orch Dorks and the elitist Choir Nerds who ignore them all...but for this one concert...for that one song...we all come together and push past all of that to spread that message and that joy of Christmas. What better purpose to come together than for this holiday season with more power than any other time of the year?

I LOVE PRISM. In case you can't tell. And I cherish the opportunity to sing with some of the most talented people I know for the best purpose imaginable...even if I can't wear that green robe I've dreamed about.

I believe in the power of Prism more than I believe in the goodness of Santa Claus.
And geez, you'll be hard-pressed to find a seventeen-year-old who loves Santa more than me.

"O Come All Ye Faithful" can be found anywhere this season...yes, including during Prism.

Enjoy the Humor of the Situation

Today started out normal enough. I have English first period, and we were supposed to start watching "A Knight's Tale" with Heath Ledger. It's based (lightly like woah) on Canterbury Tales, which we just finished. Also, it works for a three-day break for those who would rather not get homework as Prism (our big Christmas Concert) and Finals approach.

So we turned on the movie and it was just a few minutes until we got an announcement from a very frantic, very frightened-sounding Principle, alerting teachers that we were "in a hard lock-down" and this was "not a drill". Trulife, friends! Google it!!

So for those first few minutes of being cramped and sqeezed against the wall with lights off in silence, we were all terrified. At our wits ends. After a few minutes, we started to make jokes and lighten up a bit...but the majority of us were still just trying to ignore our fear. Mrs. Bello assured us that she's never had a real lockdown in her WV career, and they're very frightening things...especially when we realized it was a gun threat that put us in our spots. We could hear cop cars (and see them out the window) and all knew it was very possible there was an armed threat walking around.

Just a bit longer and we had loosened up a bit (physically) to the place where no one was any longer sitting on top of people. We turned the TV on mute to see if we were on the news. We got to CNN and the screen showed cop cars, fires, and explosions. The room went silent as we were all wondering; is that US? But it only took a few seconds for us to read the caption.
"Anarchy in Athens".
No one could do anything but laugh.
By this time we had already decided that someone should write a book about this, if not a movie.

We kept flipping channels and Janesh (the kid who is sort of our designated class techie) settled on a commercial of a fairly heavy-set african american woman advertising Tylenol. Mrs. Bello (my teacher) asked what he was doing on that channel and he answered, "it's the closest I could find to Waubonsie!" It's not hard to say that, again, we were laughing.

Easily, the most amusing part of that first hour or so was with Lauren's lunch. She was one of the very few in our class blessed enough to have packed her lunch that day, and first she shared her pretzels. We warned her against wasting her rations, but she always assured us "don't worry, I have a banana and a sandwich!". At this time, as it was still that half hour or so of laughing to mask our fear, we had planned millions of ways to protect ourselves should Gunman walk in. Mrs. Bello had already volunteered her ice tea, we had plenty of kids ready to chuck books, chairs, and printers if needs be. Eventually, when Lauren pulled out her banana, we found our best protectator yet. You know those lovely "Chiquita" stickers on the bananas? Well, our class's patron hero had one of its own, reading "The Food that Fights for You". The banana was passed around the class, perhaps sharing our first true laugh. Mrs. Bello promptly tied it to the overhead pully-string, drawing chalk arrows on the board to remind us of its constant protection.

Eventually, Mrs. Bello decided it was a good idea to put on A Knight's Tale on mute, as we were all cramped under the TV anyway. So, for the next two hours or so, we watched it. Very funny movie, but I've been assured the best part is the music/voices, so we missed out. Plus, only about four people paid attention to the TV. Most were chattering, laughing, or playing games in our tiny uncomfortable corner.

Hours went by. The movie finished, and Mrs. Bello decided to teach. NOT COOL, BTW. IN CASE YOU WERE WONDERING. In case you forgot, Knight's Tale is supposed to last us three days...Today, Tomorrow, and Friday. Then, Monday we have for Finals review and Tuesday is our Multiple Choice final. Real finals go from Wednesday-Friday. The lesson she taught us is supposed to be for after break. We got that homework she promised to never give us for Prism.

During Mrs. Bello's lesson, the police finally came in. A few hours before (it was quarter after eleven by this time; hour four of lockdown) we had recieved information (through secretive texts, as our classroom was one of the few not allowed to text or use our phones openly) that the police were "searching" from the third story down. Our classroom was on the bottom floor, so it was a good sign we were close to being done.

They had us line up and searched all our bags and frisked every student. Our officers were pretty nice and Mrs. Bello even chatted with them a bit. She was thrilled to introduce them to the banana that had protected us that whole time.

The officers told us we could leave our lights on and sit down as the threat had passed, but that we were to remain quiet. They also assured us that bathroom escorts were just behind them. Hours in one class is NOT fun...we were all missing passing periods where we drink and use the bathrooms, not to mention our lunch periods. Lauren's pretzels were long gone.

Mrs. Bello had us do homework and seemed to be even stricter about quiet than she had when the threat was still intact. That threat, by the way? It was revealed to be a bebe gun. Yup. And that movie I said would be written about the incident? I decided right then...it had better be a comedy.

After five hours in first period, our principle released us. Everyone was hoping and hoping and hoping we would be sent home, but instead we were told that the four lunch periods (3, 4, 5, and 6) would be for thirty minutes. Also, NOT COOL.

The remainder of the day wasn't bad, except for the fact that I was still at school. Genetics was pretty much spent looking up online articles about the lockdown. AP Art History we actually had class, but lunch and gym were really just complaining with friends.

Every class had a different experiance...some were awesome (the teachers that let them play games or text all they want), some were horrible (the kids who peed in bottles and trashcans, or the teachers that made them sit against the wall in total silence all five hours), some were funny (Mr. Lui getting a gun pointed at his face when he entered the classroom during their frisking from their 'pee room'), and some were sad (the girl who fainted).

Every individual had a different experiance, too. One girl trapped in the locker-room played hide-and-seek and made tons of new friends while Kathy, in that same locker-room, was without any friends and without her phone, homework, or our journal to write in and bored out of her mind. Jenny, who unfortunately can't seem to survive without laughing, realized how dangerous that can be. A girl in her class was flipping out whilst being frisked down, and Jenny laughed. The cop immediately pointed a gun at her vand yelled, "IT'S NOT FUNNY."

I know people were scared...both in and out of the school. But the longer we were trapped, the safer we knew we were. We had the Aurora PD with us as well as the Dupage County PD. Heck, we even had US Marshalls! There were dogs barking in the hallway, but really...that's just drug busts going down. Besides...we had that banana with us!

Lockdowns aren't joking matters. It's DEFINITELY not cool to bring a weapon to school...real or replica. And it's really not fun sitting in a corner for five hours, then going to other classes when you know you're not going to do anything productive.

But overall, the thing I learned most about this experiance?

I love Waubonsie. :)
"The Humor of the Situation" can be found by Barenaked Ladies

Angel of Music, Hide No Longer

This is old news, actually.

I've finished a completely new project since this one...but I've been lazy, I suppose, in updating about this one.

I'm quite, quite pleased with this one. But remember how the last one came out better on paper than on screen? Heh. The printer, for this project, decided it liked purple more than any other color. So the version anyone has seen at home is FAR too purple, and the version you all see now is FAR too not-purple so that the final print would be a nice medium.

If it gets to Fine Arts Festival or whatever, you can see the correct coloring there. It's a lovely rose, by the way. ;)

The prompt of this project was to create an object out of objects...much like the last project was a design out of letters. We had suggestions like a rasterbated image or inspired by nature or design shapes...whatever struck our fancy. One girl in my class was working on a BEAUTIFUL image of a woman in a dress of autumn leaves, far superior to the second example I gave you.

Originally, when the project was daunting us all, I wanted to just make an image, say I made it out of pixels, and be done with it. (hehe I'm so funny!) But one it hit me to use music symbols, I was on my way LONG before anyone else in my class. And honestly, all those music symbols are just from a font that types musical stuff. Which is MUCH EASIER than finding them all online...

In the original picture, the angel is surrounded by a horse and foliage. Neither of which were going to be accomplished through musical symbols...not in my lifetime, at least! Mr. Gehl had me ask another art teacher downstairs for her opinion and she suggested the treble clef "harp". LOVE IT, by the way. I eventually decided the classic cloudy-looking-angel's-heaven worked, so I had a LOT of fun with that. It's actually a double layer of the image, top layer "cut out" as seen in the example over here. Then, I used different levels of opacity to erase in places, giving me a look I just love. I wish I had spent a tad more time on it, though. Would have been splendid. Also worked with the sponge, a tool that saturates and desaturates the colors.

This was an interesting project. Once I figured out what I wanted to do, it was really more a matter of finding shapes that fit the lines on the original image. It was one of those projects I just relaxed and popped out...definately fun. Not exactly OH MY GOSH SO EXCITING but still, I enjoyed it, and I REALLY enjoy actually being happy with the turnout.

"Angel of Music" is from Phantom of the Opera, by Andrew Lloyd Weber

1 Thing 2 Say, 3 Words 4 You

So here are the rules of being tagged: list 3 joys, 3 fears, 3 current obsessions/collections, 3 surprising facts and then tag 5 other people.


3 joys
Christmas Music

My Family

Creating Art

3 fears
Getting my fingernails or toenails ripped off (no joke...biggest fear ever!)

Losing my family

Losing my pets

3 Current Obsessions/Collections
Giving myself french manicures

Lois and Clark's relationship

Disney Classics (I have a group of friends coming over today to watch movies for 9 hours straight...though I seem to be the only one who can make it for all 9 hours)

3 surprising facts
I've never seen A Christmas Story

The large majority of my art that turns out good is done during AP Art History

My favorite city is NYC

I tag these 5 people:
You, The one reading this, The one over your shoulder, Whoever hasn't done it yet, and Mom


"1, 2, 3, 4" is by Plain White Tees

My Dreams Are on You, Kid

The following comic is based on a real experience from Wednesday, as can be read (and most likely better understood) on Mom's Blog.


This week has been QUITE an experience. Tuesday afternoon was spent amongst friends-a new boy moved into the Fourth Ward and I followed Tiffanie, Jenny and Kyle, Josh, and Christian to a Chinese restaurant, the mall, and my house for Rockband to help welcome him. Later that night, we had mutual at our house to play yet more Rockband. I swear, no one's enjoyed Mom's birthday present more than my friends.


That evening, history was made as Chicago's own Barack Obama was elected to be President. The huge party and avid listeners (Mr. Meyer's described their attentiveness as pin-drop silence) in Chicago were described to look just like America; minorities and majorities all joined together in patriotism towards our new President.

The next day at Waubonsie I witnessed similar jubilee. Though many McCain supporters (such as my seminary friends and morning locker group) were both sore and sour, I've never seen more WV students wearing shirts that circled the same theme before; no, not even on WV/NV game days. President Obama won our school mock election with 68%, and although that stairwell experience was the only one I had like it, you could tell...for a day, there were no boundaries between races, no boundaries between friend groups, no boundaries between grade levels. I do not know who I would have voted for (I didn't look far enough into the politics), but to Waubonsie have such an underlying sense of connection...at least, with the exception of those who were on the losing side...I wave my American Flag high for our new President.


If President Obama can unify our country and our government system the way he's unified his followers, I think that's exactly what we need. The people of America need hope. Obama's ideals are lofty, and many of them are controversial and disagreeable. But that hope he inspires in America and inspires us to have in each other is a hope we need.


I'm just praying he doesn't get assassinated.


"One Last Hope" is from Hercules

Easy as ABC

We've finished yet another project for Computer Graphics! And this is perhaps the first this whole class I've been genuinely proud of...plus, it looks better on paper than on the screen. That's never happened to me. :)

Higher Res (and proper format)

We call this project (Computer Graphics II's most infamous) the "Font Design project" because, if you can tell, everything in this image is made of letters.

Our examples are absolutely beautiful...I remember last year I had one (that ended up going to Fine Arts Festival) hanging over my computer, and Christine and I would stare at it and play look-for-the-letter when we were at a loss for ideas in class. They tended to be designs like this or this or this but made of letters (and not henna on immodest ladies, either). There were countless other kinds, but Google Images isn't being very helpful (and searching "[various word] design") is proving to be VERY addicting and "oooooh lets go follow this link instead of being productive".

Regardless, I went this way with the project because!

1. Cursive is way easier than print on this project (it connects very artistically)...yet the spindly cursive works better for the designs like the second example
2. I fail at abstractism and this is the closest I could get...I like my rough drafts, and this kind of organic create-as-you-go project doesn't really like those
3. I like colors (as you can undoubtedly tell)

When we first started, Gehl went around as he does and really liked mine because "it's like six designs instead of just one" and something else and something else that he couldn't seem to put into words that ended up as "no one's EVER done ANYTHING for this project like THIS! :DDDD". So...that's pretty cool. :) I like being apparently creative. It's almost as good as when I get that artistic rush that makes me dance in my seat.

The worst part was trying to get the drops looking fluid. I'm not sure how I could have done much better though, so I'm cool with it.

And when I was done with the flat layers, I wanted to add something. I decided it was missing a shadow, so I spent a period and a half figuring out a way to grab each drop as one layer (I was working in Adobe Illustrator, which is very different and certainly not my favorite program) and add a drop shadow. Eventually, I ended up liking it with each letter given a drop shadow, which took me about five, ten minutes tops. C'est la vie....

To wrap it up, this put me in a much better mood than Justice League Crosses the Delaware EVER had. And I'm even on better terms with Illustrator...Christine can attest that Illustrator is not my friend.

"ABC can be found by Jackson 5"

Home

Well, I'm finally over at missalainius.blogspot.com! It's much more comfortable here. :)


ALSO

I have a bit of plea- could someone tell Grandma and Granddad and aunt Karin that I would love an invite to their blogs?

Thank you kindly!

(Why yes, this was a short entry. But I don't really have much to say today...)

"Home" can be found by Michael Buble

Fix You

I've always been irked by the mistake I made forever ago with having this blog at the web address "Missalainus". Miss-Al-ay-nus has no punny effect at all....it neither relates to the slighly uncommon but nonetheless quite wonderful English word, nor the quite uncommon but nonetheless slighly wonderful American girl.

But I figured out how to fix it yesterday. :)

Now, I'm going to fix it SATURDAY. So please be aware....all your links to this blog or in your favorites will lead to nothingness unless you change it to missaliainius.blogspot.com quickly!

(um...."editor"'s note. I wrote this YESTERDAY (and then realized all the links were corrupt to missalianius) so I edited the above blurb, but everything else is remaining as written. So please read all "yesterday"s from here on out as "monday the 13th", it makes for a much cleaner read. <3)

WHY YES I DID HAVE OTHER REASONS FOR POSTING TODAY.

Yesterday was my birthday!! It was fantastic!

I went to see Ghost Town with a few friends....a very funny and excellent movie. I highly reccomend it...it was very clean for being PG-13 (cleaner than my high school ever gets!) and very funny. I have one friend, Jenessa, who has told about seven of her friends one short scene and still cannot get through describing it without crying of laughter. (It wasn't really that funny of a scene, but....) Also quite unexpectedly cute and well-done with characters that almost all developed through the course of the movie and plot-points that carried well and had good themes.

Michelle, a friend of mine who works at Nova 8 Cinemas (and got me in for free!) said that they've had to refund LOTS of tickets for Ghost Town because people walk in thinking it's a scary movie. Guys. Don't be fools. At least look at a promotional poster before you decide the word ghost=scary.

After that, Mom and I were going to head out to get ingredients for lasagna, but that ended up not happening...because we went to the petstore to get me a replacement fish! See, I got a goldfish named Finnigan when I was asked to Homecoming and when I was putting him in his new tank this morning, he died. So, since I was promised a fish a long time ago anyway, AND yesterday was my birthday, Mom decided it was a good time to get one. We talked to this very smart petstore man who helped us pick out a beautiful Fancy Goldfish who I've named Fernando and a snail "companion" (read "maid") named Chiquiquita, as well as some plants, appropriate food, and a bubbler to keep Fernando from suffocating when he goes up for oxygen.

It took awhile to set them up, but Fernando and Chiquiquita fill up the tank ever so nicely, and it looks and sounds lovely. I may be a nerd, but I LOVE the rumbling sound of the bubbler, and going to sleep to it is absolutely heavenly. Waking up to it, however....let's just say it'll keep me from falling back asleep. However, I'm supposed to feed Fernando three times a day, and his water is already clouding, so I have improvements to make, such as not giving him as much food. ;) Also, the petstore guy said that fancy goldfish like frozen peas and orange wedges; you heard me right! You better believe it, 'cause my friend Killian had a goldfish she won and kept for several years who ate cheerios as voraciously as Papaya...but that's a blog entry for another day.

After that, we had no time for homemade lasagna, so we went to Luigi's House for dinner and dessert. My lasagna was absolutely fantastic, but I was way too full to finish (seconds for tonight! (note: actually....no...lunch for Mom and Dad.)) and their chocolate cheesecake has liquor in it, and it was too late to go buy some more. We're going to get more later! I also got to open my gifts...besides the shoes my friend Christine bought me (there's a lovely story behind them I'll tell someday), and Fernando, I suppose, Mom and Dad bought me a BEAUTIFUL (and on sale) pearl necklace. It's absolutely stunning...I'm just a not allowed to wear it to school. But that's cool....it'll make it even more special. I also got an adooooorable (and much needed) bag from Mark and Em with an iTunes card! I'm so excited to pick out my music. :)

I realize the majority of this post was about my birthday, but knowing me and my tendancy to skip over important days and events, I think I'll keep the title "fix you", as without my thrill in fixing that little domain name, I probably never would have gotten around to this.

"Fix You" can be found by Coldplay