Julia Nora

You know, I love the summer so much. It's my favourite time of the year: I have time to appreciate my friends and my family and books and art. I have time to go to the art museum with my dad and actually care, and time to throw myself into projects. Time to go on four hour walks with Sophie, and sit watching the sunset, or go to Lake with my family, probably for the first time with my dog. It makes me yearn for a time when I don't have the stress of school, but I can include it if I want.

In truth, the tragedy is, I can't start summer until spring ends. I have a huge list of things to do this summer- it spans from getting my dog to go in to the water so that she's off her feet, to reading at least ten books in Hungarian and 40 in English. That's a big step for me. But for the spring, I haven't got any plans, so I'm going to declare myself a list right here:

1) Get in shape: Summer team season is starting soon (in about a month and a half). So how about I make this last month and a half a good one? I started running about a month and a half ago and quit about two weeks ago. My time just got so short it was almost ridiculous to even suggest running. I love going around the lake, and seeing people ask me, "You run?" and then I answer, "No, I swim, this is the hardest workout imaginable for me." and I smile. Because I know that I'm telling the truth. When I swim, it's second nature. I move my arms, I kick my legs and I go forward. Occasionally, a challenge approaches. Maybe it's being an anchor in a relay, or wanting to beat my last time by a couple of seconds, or getting my flip-turn so that it not only hits the wall right, but splashes all the stroke and turn judges. Running is quite a lot harder for me. It hurts my lungs to breathe the harsh air and I really have to push myself at every turn. In swimming, it's just a pain getting in the pool. So, my goals to get fit include this:
    A) Run at least ten miles a week. That's four times around the lake. I think I can do this.
    B) Do regular ab exercises before sleep, coz, why not? It's the only way to get through that hard part.
    C) Eat regular. Coz I do have a shitty diet. I mean, not in the junk food way. In the pasta way. I loooove me some spaghetti!

2) Crack down in school: there are one and a half months left of school. Think about it this way. Two units left and a final exam. I need to get my 3 B's up to A's. And not just any A's. High A's that even out my GPA. So basically, this is gonna take some work too.
    D) Do all my homework every day. That's hard, you don't even know.
    E) STUDY for my tests, instead of just pretending to.
    F) Go in for extra help sessions when I need them, including the dreaded Math Lab.
    G) For Final Exams, study like All Hell coz it's the final run. I just gotta think of it like the anchor of a relay. Wear it down, coz that's the best way.

3) Write and Read: This one's self explanatory. I want to finish reading "Emma" and "Pride and Prejudice" by the end of school. I'm doing my own personal Jane Austen interrogation and it happens to include these two books. I also need to read the books assigned by teachers. Like "All Quiet On the Western Front" which, I must say, has really long chapters. Like 60 page long chapters. I also want to read Kurt Vonnegut a bit. We'll see what I do with that one. Writing, I'd like to start a project. I want to call this project observation, because I have noticed that creates great work. I've recently had writer's block, and I still have it. I feel like this is a good way to kick start my imagination- do a study of human nature, informally of course. We'll see how that goes. So, here's the list, let's have at it:
    H) Read Emma.
    I) Read Pride and Prejudice.
   J) Read a Kurt Vonnegut.
    K) Keep up with school readings.
    L) Start writing!

4) Practice Piano, Doggie School, and Cinderella: Lately I haven't had time to rehearse at all. I need to learn my lines like insanneeeeee. So, we'll need to start that really soon. Like this weekend soon. They need to be down by the end of April which approaches as fast as I'm gaining weight from not exercising. Which is pretty fast. Sophie and I have missed Doggie School for two weeks now. We're obviously behind and we're having some issues with dominance again. We're gonna try and pay lots of attention and educate the fam about how to act around Princess (she thinks) Sophie and we're also going to go running with her in order to practice my exercising as well as hers. Not just physical, but mental. For her training, for me commitment. Nextest, I shall practice piano like a madwoman. =] I never have time to practice and I need to devote that thirty minutes-  I really do. If I happen to devote that thirty minutes, I can't say I'm not talented at Piano. I've been doing music since I was five- it's not talent, it's been forced upon me! But anyway, that's the bottom line. I have no lessons in the summer, so if I can't have lessons, I need to practice like crazy while I can! So, summarizing, again:
    M) Learn lines for Cinderella.
    N) Bond with my lil' monster.
    O) Practice piano every day.

So, in review, let's see the list:

A) Run at least ten miles a week.
B) Do regular ab exercises before sleep,
C) Eat regular.
D) Do all my homework every day.
E) STUDY for my tests
F) Go in for extra help sessions when I need them,
G) For Final Exams, study!
H) Read Emma.
I) Read Pride and Prejudice.
J) Read a Kurt Vonnegut.
K) Keep up with school readings.
L) Start writing!
M) Learn lines for Cinderella.
N) Bond with my lil' monster.
O) Practice piano every day.

There is one thing that is not on this list. This is really important so that I can do all of the things on this list: SLEEP. I do need to sleep, most school nights by 10:30.

P) Sleep.

So, I just spent a ton of time making this list, but I think that I can achieve probably half the stuff on it. At least. So, let's at least try. I'm glad I got this chance to organize my thoughts anyway. We'll see how it goes. Oooer, my brother is chasing me off the computer coz he's a tad annoying. Bye bye sweetums! =]

I'll do regular posts on Fridays and when I'm in distress. For now, I'm watching House and I've just come back from a production of Anne Frank. My friend Beth played Margo in it, and another friend of mine, Claire, played Anne. It was good and I'm a bit tired and sad. People like Anne deserve to be writers much more than me. I don't do it near enough justice. Just today, Natalie, Claire's older sister was saying she used to write seven pages a day on MSW. Whatever happened to me? Why don't I write seven/eight pages a day anymore? I don't work enough and I don't even know anymore...

Sometimes life just gets to me. If I could only be what I used to be, and be what I am all at the same time. There are parts  of me I'd love to have back that I've lost with my young age.... and there are parts that I'm glad I lost.  Life ebbs and flows, ebbs and flows....

'Ello poppets. Spring break is over, the bunnies are coming out of their peep holes and the flowers are growing. Today, I took my sunglasses with me to school and wore them too!! The morning was a tad dreary but by 2:45 it was bright and shining and that left nothing for me to do but go home and walk down to the pool. Sophie and I played in the creek a little bit- she was eating sticks and grass and attacking water, I was sitting on a rock and throwing pebbles. We passed by the pool and found it to be open which was lovely. I said a valiant "Hi!" to Stew, and he asked me how my life was. I said it was boring, and also added I was doing lifeguard training. He seemed really surprised I was going to lifeguard, so I don't know anymore. Since I'm anemic, and a girl, there are certain cursed days where I won't even be able to leave the house, and that's really uncomfortable to explain to a guy, no matter if he's known you since you were 9. Either way, I'm sure to get a job with him, seeing as I live three doors down (no joke.)

School is pretty much as boring as usual and I'm planning to take a shot of espresso or something with me to drink before sixth period. Sixth period chemistry is terrible. Since we're all mature here, let me say it was fucking terrible. I'm so sick of my class, but I suppose it's been getting better.  We read a document on Machiavelli and it was tragic. It was really very very very very biased. I just feel that Machiavelli had some good points, no matter how much I hate him really. One of these is that his point is to consider the wants of the people when considering the wants of the country. Meanwhile, the writing says that he thought all people were evil and it was important that you fear them. Hmm, hmm, hmm....

So, listening to the news, all it's about is the polygamist family, gas prices, and politics. I have a little bit of homework left and I think I'm just not gonna do it anymore. I'm so tired and I've only got about a month of REAL school left.

Thank. You. Thepowersthatbe. =]

So, today, UNC has lost their Final Four game.  I am appalled and rather upset. I think they tried to make a great comeback, but how they started just... you can't start like that. But they did make a great comeback, and I suppose they just win so often, they need to let someone else win. But who's to say I can't be sad? Lifeguarding is great. Nine hours and I'm just so exhausted, but today we got let out early. I am currently reading my manual to study for a test and I'm rather miserable. I alsooo saw Leatherheads today. I think it wasn't the best movie I've ever seen, but some of the best scenes/laughs I've seen in a while were in there. I feel like it was plotless (like most movies) but good. =]

Sorry for the short entry, nohbdys, but I'm hanging my keyboard up and studying. And then I'm doing homework. My life is pretty much restricted right now.

<3

So, the big deal with spring break is that nobody's here. Everyone's off on cruises and whatnot. That's actually an exaggeration. This basically means Casey and Quinn are on vaca, Sarah is ill,  and I've already SEEN Marie this week. I'm really tired and I've started reading "Emma" by Jane Austen. This is the first Jane Austen book I've ever read, and I think I'm enjoying it a lot. I started Sense and Sensibility a while ago , but I got bored. Go figure. The bane of my existence today is defined by three things:

1) Sweeney Todd on DVD is a lot harder to get when nobody will take you to the local Hollywood Video and whatnot. I want to see it really badly, and I have this stuck in my head "They all deserve to die! Tell you why, Mrs. Lovett, tell you why..." and when that's going round in circles in your head, things get a tad crazy.

2) The new Panic (minus !) At the Disco CD is something you don't STEAL. Then you would have to associate bad memories with it. So I'm making do without it, but Kisa popping up on IM saying "Man, have you heard the new Panic cd? It's the shiiiiittttt!"

3) I sat down to do my homework, and my edition of "All Quiet On The Western Front" is different than everybody else's. And of course, my teacher assigns reading by page numbers: "Read from page one to page thirty three." How am I supposed to know if my thirty three is the same as everyone else's thirty three?

Anywho, I have to do Dramaturgical Research on the play "Bus Stop" by William Inge. I'm not quite sure what format she wants the stuff in so we're at a standstill. Also, I'm listening to Viva La COBRAAAAA by Cobra Starship, if you subtract a couple "A"s. Libba Bray in her blog has stated that they're.. considering (I believe) a film for "A Great and Terrible Beauty" and so now I'm really excited. I want them to cast Maggie Smith and I don't want them to cast Ellen Page. Because I love Ellen Page and I just feel like I couldn't watch it if she played the role, although I'm sure she'd do smashing and all that jazz. I just associate her with contemporary films so much that seeing her in something victorian would put me off edge. Although, if anyone can play Pippa, I bet you she can. (Get the UNKNOWN CHILDRENSSSSS)  Scrubs and House are coming back with new seasons, which is great coz I love those shows.  And allssssooo Sarah Dessen's new book is coming out THIS MONTH! Wowowow. And rehearsals aren't picking up yet this month which is nice. I found out my show dates are the last like, TWO days of May, which makes my life twenty times easier. I now do not have to worry about killing myself about final exams and being out late nights for the show becauseee there won't be school! But sadly, during rehearsals I will have my head stuck in a book.

Speaking of... I don't have an inkling what any of my script says (by heart anyway) yet, so I gotta go study. Only like 285 lines to go! (Hahahaha...)

♥♥♥ MWAH.
-Julia

What we do could throw us off guard... or not.  Lately, I have been feeling a lot of tug from two ends. At school, there's a lot of fuss about college and things. I keep receiving a lot of mail from colleges who want me to take summer camps or try and look into their programs. It feels like just yesterday I was in eighth grade, thinking SAT words were way advanced for my age... and just listening to my teacher's "facetious" remarks. And I read a part of The Scarlet Letter that year, but I put it down because I didn't want to be "advanced for my age." I just wanted to be... normal. But now, I'll be reading the Scarlet Letter next year as an assignment, even if I were in the lower English Class. And I think I'm growing up way too fast. People say you should enjoy being a teenager but I can't bring myself to it because it goes by before I have a CHANCE to even enjoy it. And on one end of the spectrum, teachers are telling you to choose colleges and majors, look into things, consider this, read that, join this club... but on the other end, they tell you that you have years.. months.. weeks... days.. hours.. it brings me to the brink of irritation because I can't decide if they want me to grow up or not. I don't know, whatever they want, whether I can do it for them. 

So, in a few weeks I have training for my first job as a lifeguard... in two months I'm going to play a leading role in a play and have my first job and in about five months I'll be a junior in high school, studying for my first SAT. I just wonder if I'm mature enough for all of this. And the thing I've wanted most in my life is to become a writer but even that doesn't run clearly. I'm so jumbled up inside. But yesterday I saw Breakfast at Tiffany's and it was... wonderful. They don't make films like that anymore, and in this time when I'm so confused and stuck in what appears to be a life swerving out of my control...  and I can't even create  the art I used to be able to, I can widen my art borders. So I'll keep telling myself and widening borders and hopefully it'll fall into place: films, art, books, plays, music, films, art, books, plays, music, films, art, books....

Yipes!
So, I still have no friends on livejournal as of now, because people I know lack livejournals. On the bright side, I've been able to keep up with the happenings of writing here and there. It just helps me know more, I suppose. Writing to no one, we learned about this in school and I felt like smiling at it, so here it is. The eight writing hints of the late Kurt Vonnegut:

1. Use the time of a total stranger in such a way that he or she will not feel the time was wasted.
2. Give the reader at least one character he or she can root for.
3. Every character should want something, even if it is only a glass of water.
4. Every sentence must do one of two things -- reveal character or advance the action.
5. Start as close to the end as possible.
6. Be a sadist. Now matter how sweet and innocent your leading characters, make awful things happen to them -- in order that the reader may see what they are made of.
7. Write to please just one person. If you open a window and make love to the world, so to speak, your story will get pneumonia.
8. Give your readers as much information as possible as soon as possible. To heck with suspense. Readers should have such complete understanding of what is going on, where and why, that they could finish the story themselves, should cockroaches eat the last few pages.

I leave you on the note of a quote:
"Try to live your life so that you wouldn't be afraid to sell the family parrot to the town gossip." -Will Rogers (whoever that was)

There. That is not the reason for the "Kablam." In fact, I've no idea why I would say "Kablam" but there you are. How I feel:

"If I was a flower growin' wild and free all I'd want is you to be my sweet honeybee. If I was a tree growin' tall and green, all I'd want is you to shade me and be my leaves. All I want is you will you be my bride, take me by the hand and stand by my side. All I want is you to stay with me, hold me in your arms and sway me like the sea." This is from Juno, the best movie since Pan's Labyrinth, Little Miss Sunshine, Finding Neverland, Becoming Jane, Accepted, or the Last King of Scotland. And it trumps half those. Trumps. Funny word. Haha. =]

TOODLES!
elektrickninja

This is me writing on my lj for the first time ever.
I have a few things to say, first of all:

1)This is being written to no one, most hysterically. I have no friends yet here because I joined livejournal so I could quit posting anonymously on other people's blogs. Does that make me a wannabe? Hopesfully nots. =]

2)I like to write a lot so that might show up. I can't guarantee that what I write in this journal will always be a journal. Actually, most likely, it's usually going to be a story or a poem or something. That's typical of me and I think eventually everyone will have to accept it and try and interpret the cryptic messages hidden in my writing. On second thought, don't try because even I can't do that sometimes.

3)My life's pretty boring so I don't have much else to say.