Changes, Samcat, and Nikita

I would like to say that I haven't blogged in a while because I've been blindingly busy, but in all actuality I haven't had anything to say. Life isn't too interesting when your soul purpose is to make money. I go to work, I come home, I sleep, I watch television. I'm singing in Men's and Women's Chorus on Tuesday nights but that is the extent of all my excitement. It is nice to slow down and breathe for a change but now I'm going a little too slow. I find that I'm having a hard time staying motivated. I don't practice as much as I should, I don't research as much as I should, I don't even visit my mother as much as I should. I had an epiphany today. It told me that I'm a lazy pile and if I don't break the trend now, it might never happen. So here we go! Let's see how my kick in the butt goes. I scoped out a bunch of summer programs today that I might want to apply to and am in the process of trying to put together possible rep for auditions. I even spent some time thinking about graduate school! I've got really indefinite plans for my next 6 months or so but I know that by May I'll be out of Vermillion and, hopefully, have some exciting summer opportunities to experience. Changes they are a comin'!

I MISS SAMCAT SOOOO MUCH!!! I'm trying to get home next weekend to visit her but I don't know if it's going to happen. I hung out with Amy and Lee's cat, Puzzles, and I just wanted my own furry ball of love in my arms. That was really all I had to say about that...Samcat definitely needed her own paragraph. Oh! I also miss Lily and Lola...

In my epic amounts of leisure time, I've come across yet another television show that I'm addicted to. My addictive personality is something that I've come to terms with...you should too...
Anyway! The show is called Nikita. It is a revamp of the 90's television show which is a spin of the 1990 film La Femme Nikita. The premise of all three is that there's a rogue government organization that finds young, attractive people in prison, fakes their death, and then turns them into smoking hot super spies. Nikita is the best agent of them all and goes rogue herself. She tries to take out the organization in an effort to right all of the wrongs she's committed. Hi-jinks ensue. I've covered 30 of 47 episodes in the last 4 days. Thank you Netflix! The new season starts in a couple of weeks and I'm in a hurry to get all caught up. It has me diving around the apartment pretending that I'm a spy...which nobody was supposed to know... *cough cough* So yeah...you should watch it. The cast is ridiculously attractive, of course, and there are twists and turns galore. Til next time!

Gracelessness, Magic Flute, True Blood, and Movie Monday!!

I have slammed my knee into two different things today and both times it hurt so bad I wanted to either pass out or throw up. Did it happen while I was saving burning orphans from a building? Did it happen in a lab accident while I was curing cancer? Did it happen when I was serving my country in a foreign land? No...the first time I was getting into Erin's car and the second time I ran into the coffee table. I couldn't be more pathetic if I tried. Erin, my compassionate and caring roommate, laughed at me while I writhed in tears on the floor. That's love man.

I'm saddling up for a week of dress rehearsals and awesome performances of The Magic Flute!
The rehearsals have been going really well and the I think the final project will be spectacular. I can't believe it's only 5 days away! The music is all in German with English super-titles and the dialogue has been wittily re-written in English. It is funny and family friendly. Watching professionals own the stage is such an awe-inspiring experience. My mom is coming and I can't wait for her to see it. EVERYONE SHOULD SEE IT!!! That's just my humble opinion of course...but...you should probably get your tickets, like yesterday!

I've started reading the Sookie Stackhouse novels. I've watched True Blood since the beginning and figured that I should commit to reading the print behind the awesomeness. I'm pretty addicted.
It got to the point last night that I was watching True Blood on TV while I was reading the 5th Sookie Stackhouse novel. I sang along to the theme song and made up fun new harmonies. All of these things make me a nerd on soooo many levels. When Adrian came over, I geeked out all over the place. I'm heartbroken that I don't have HBO because I can't watch the new episodes until they are released on DVD. I haven't even seen all of season 4 yet! I'm working on it though. I never thought that I could get into a show set in the deep south. No offense to those who live/lived there, but the accent makes it really hard for me to take them seriously. I'm going to fault Larry the Cable Guy for my subconscious stereotype. ANYWAY!!!  I love it and I'm whipping through these books as quickly as I can. If you haven't read them, do it!

MOVIE MONDAY!!!

All of my dreams finally came true at 9:20 pm on Sunday night. I bought my $3 ticket to the discount theatre, bought my reasonably priced popcorn, and sat in my broken theatre seat to see Magic Mike. I don't know where to begin! I don't really know what the movie was about, but who really cares!? Movie makers didn't put Matthew McConaughey, Channing Tatum, Matt Bomer, Alex Pettyfer, and Joe Manganiello on screen half naked because they wanted to sell a really deep, intellectual plot. They put these beautiful creatures in front of me in their natural form so that I could enjoy the constant ripple of their well-toned muscles. And so I did. And I would do it again...on repeat for days. Jared said that it was funny...but like I said...the details are fuzzy for me. I'll take his word for it. I recommend it for anyone who wants to delude themselves about what middle aged men look like. Enjoy the pictures and enjoy your week. Peace!

Work, America's Next Top Model, and Witty Wednesday!!!

It's been a little while! I have realized that in the absence of school and summer time activity, I don't have very interesting things to talk about. But....I'mma talk anyway! I switched from cashiering to inventory at work. Today was my third day and I'm liking it quite a bit. I'm constantly on the go and don't really have any down time to be bored. The days go by soooo fast and the hours are perfect for me. I'm terrified of my first day without my supervisor. I'll probably burn the store to the ground and not even know it. It's a bridge I'll have to cross when I come to it but I've been having some strange side-effects. Obnoxiously enough, I had a nightmare about it last night. Its a little ridiculous but it happened. In light of the fact that I'm now having nightmares about failing at Walmart...I've decided that I need to invest in a new hobby. I don't know what it will be yet but its going to be awesome!!! Stay tuned to find out what sick skill I develop next. :)

I've started watching season 19 of America's Next Top Model. Yes, I'm mildly embarrassed but I'm doing it anyway. I've been watching since season one and it has hit an ultimate low. This season, Tyra is featuring college students from all over the country. She goes from fashion schools to online schools to Ivy League schools. She comes up with a bunch of no-talent, diva-tastic, drama queens. Hijinks ensue. There is a girl who is so attached to her mother that she doesn't think that she'll ever get married because her mother completes her...wow. Oedipus had nothing on this chick! I'll keep watching (because I can't help myself) and I'll let you know what happens!!!

WITTY WEDNESDAY!!!

I've been trying to make sure that I stay in touch with my music while I'm taking time off from school. I feel like the test of time is the only one I can take to find out how dedicated I am. So far I'm missing all of my ensembles like crazy and I think that's a good sign. Some days I feel like I'm experiencing legitimate withdrawal. Although that might sound unhealthy, I've decided that it is better than any other addiction. Robert Nesta Marley said it best:

Denverstone 2012, Plan Changing, and Tacky Tuesday!

Denverstone 2012 (a.k.a. Yolostone) was an epic success! I had so much fun. We didn't see any bears but it is a disappointment that I'm starting to get over. We started off going to Denver. After we almost ran out of gas on the interstate (thanks to Adrian) we made it safely into the city. We went and visited Tory's uncle at the firehouse that he works at. It was pretty cool. He gave us a tour and showed us what they do with all their down time. It was definitely something neat to learn about. After that, we went to Tory's aunt's house and met the family. They had a very nice house and three gorgeous daughters. There were also two dogs, a goldfish, and miscellaneous window dwelling animals. On day 2 we went to Elitch Gardens and got our roller coaster on.

I was doing really well until we got on the Sidewinder. The Sidewinder is a short track roller coaster that shoots you to the end and then reverses you backwards to where you started. I was not okay with going backwards. It kind of turned me off. Luckily there was only one more roller coaster after that so I didn't miss much. I really liked the lazy river and wave pool in the water park.

There was an unfortunate almost drowning incident while the wave pool was going (which Tory found amusing) but I was only temporarily on the brink of death. :) Sprinterbadger was on the fritz so we took the bus/van to a mechanic. The next morning we headed into the wild blue yonder. 11 hours later, we rolled into the Grand Tetons. We stayed out there for a few days, went on a very non-scenic hike, and visited an exciting Jackson Hole T-Shirt store before heading into Yellowstone. The days blend together after that. We saw Old Faithful, watched a herd of buffalo stall traffic for a strange amount of time, looked for bears, and drank unknown amounts of beer. Everything was beautiful and so vast that it made me feel very small and insignificant. I really enjoyed just staring into the endless sky. The mountains went on forever and it seemed like you could follow it to the end of the world. I couldn't duplicate that feeling anywhere else on the planet. The 20 hour drive back was grueling enough to make one forget the beauty, but luckily I took pictures!

Upon my return, I changed my plans up a bit. Kenny isn't going to be ready to move to Chicago until November so I'll be hanging around Vermillion for a little longer than expected. I've moved from Ashley's apartment into Erin's 2nd bedroom and am settling in for a couple more months of living the dream. :S I think living with Erin is going to be great. She is most definitely going to inadvertently teach me to be the cleanest me that I can be. She is scary neat. I'm so jealous. Even when I'm at my best her housekeeping abilities put mine to shame. I'm going blame my cats for the reason that I don't have nice things and leave it at that. This plan change might be for the best though. We booked our trip to Disney World (!!!) and I'll be able to save more money living in South Dakota. I'm going to take my lemons and make the best lemonade ever! The main downside to not having my own place is that Samcat isn't doing very well. She isn't happy to be at my parent's house and she isn't eating very well. I was home last weekend and she's probably lost about 2 pounds. Poor baby. The kittens are thriving and will be just fine. Lola finally put on some weight which is good for her. So I just have to keep Samcat from falling into the pits of emotional despair for a couple more months and then rescue her from the bad place. It will be nice to have three cats in bed with me again...which is why I'll never get married...

TACKY TUESDAY!!!

I'll keep it short today because I've been awfully long-winded up to this point. I find crying children to be extremely tacky. As we traversed the mountain side, there were children everywhere on vacation with their families. And it seemed as though all of those children were being tortured. They were all screaming and crying like they were being stabbed in the eyelids. I just can't see the appeal in having any of those. Even more tacky are the parents who just stand there and don't do anything while their child's shrieks impede on other people's vacation. I'm trying to enjoy myself and talk to my friends but they can't hear me over the ill-behaved infant that nobody will shut up. If you can't keep your kid quiet, leave them at home! Another reason that I'll probably never get married...

Bared to You

Goodreads Synopsis:

He was beautiful and brilliant, jagged and white-hot. I was drawn to him as I'd never been to anything or anyone in my life. I craved his touch like a drug, even knowing it would weaken me. I was flawed and damaged, and he opened those cracks in me so easily...

Gideon knew. He had demons of his own. And we would become the mirrors that reflected each other's most private wounds... and desires. The bonds of his love transformed me, even as I prayed that the torment of our pasts didn't tear us apart...


Bared to You by Sylvia Day
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

I'm NOT going to compare this book to Fifty Shades of Grey. That seems to be the theme of most reviews. It has similarities but I think they are in entirely different leagues so I won't waste my breath. That being said, I really enjoyed Sylvia Day's writing style. I liked the way she characterized and I like that she made these two people a match for each other. I think she would have been better off leaving out the reveal of dominant and submissive. It didn't need saying because it was written so well into the subtext. It seemed forced when it was brought up and out of character for both Gideon and Eva. It made Eva weak where she had been strong and added a coldness to Gideon when he was naturally developing warmth.

I loved that Eva was firey and comfortable with herself. She was developed well as a victim who came back and perservered despite an awful childhood. She had her pick of men and owned her sexiness. She didn't take any crap from anybody and could hold her own against anyone. After the mention of her being a submissive, she became weak and I didn't like her anymore. It is a horrible thing for someone who came from her background to end up submitting to a man when she's worked so hard to overcome those demons. It totally reverts all of the work she's done on getting past being a victim. It was very sad. She started spouting her declarations of love and it just got so needy and old. I just don't understand how you go from completely independent to completely co-dependent in one day. The same goes for Gideon. He was so used to having short-term sexual relationships and then suddenly he turned his entire life upside down after knowing this woman for a week.

Perhaps the plot was just too fast paced for me. I understand that if I had to wait for this plot develop over an extended period of time, it could get boring. I have to believe there is a correct pacing though. It is all so irrational. All of their personal problems point to trust issues and a need to be assertive and independent. You don't break through all of your old issues and run the emotional gamut so quickly. They need to be thoroughly medicated if their personalities are altering themselves that quickly.

I'm not sure what role Cary will play throughout the remainder of the series. He seems really important to Eva but his last scene in the book was rather awkward and unresolved. He also has mood swings but at least he has a cause in the shape of his drug addiction. Everyone is very emotionally complex. It can be a lot to deal with. Despite that, I really cared about the characters. Well...I cared about Eva and Cary. I didn't really care about Gideon's emotional well being. I think that will change as I get to know more about him but for now, I'm left wanting for everything besides the extremely detailed descriptions of his penis.

All of the above comes off pretty negative....but I really did like the book and am excited to see what happens next. The chemistry is fantastic and I'm hoping that some of my issues will be taken care of as the characters continue to develop. More than I'm excited to read the rest of this series, I'm excited to read more of Day's books. She has a gift. She can make me enjoy a book with questionably tasteful content. I'd love to see what she can do with something really interesting. Day timed this series perfectly to get the most exposure and the most positive feedback. Kudos.

View all my reviews

Yellowstone, New LapTop, and the Olympics!

Tomorrow is the day! I'm finally hitting the road for anywhere but here. :D In roughly four hours, I'll be loading up the van/bus and heading for Denver. After going to Elitch Gardens and perhaps the zoo, we will head out for Yellowstone. I can't wait to relax and read and be with my friends and not be at work and not be in Vermillion. This adventure is long overdue and the next four hours will not go by fast enough. As soon as I get back I'm diving into rehearsals so I really need to live it up!

I got a new laptop! I'm typing on my pretty new Gateway. It isn't perfect yet because I'm experiencing the hardships of buying a laptop without all of my programs pre-loaded. It can get really expensive! Just buying Microsoft Office is ridiculous. It's especially ridiculous because I just want Word. If I wanted to buy word separately, it would only be about $10 less. Sooooo silly! More than I'm upset about that, I'm just excited to have a new computer. I can blog whenever I want and check my email and look at facebook....my life makes sense again. I don't know how to use half of the buttons yet....but some things take time!

The U.S. is rocking it out at the London Olympics! I've been hijacking Phil's television as often as possible so that I don't miss a moment of gymnastics and swimming awesomeness. We have been yo-yoing back and forth with China for highest medal count but I'm confident that we'll end up on top! Despite a rough start, Michael Phelps became the most decorated Olympian of all time and Gabby Douglas won the women's individual all-around. The men's gymnastics team tanked like rock stars and it was super hard to watch. I felt so bad for them. They had such high hopes and they looked so good in the qualifiers but they just didn't deliver. I can do nothing but feel sorry for them. I can't imagine being under that kind of pressure. It takes nerves of steel. Despite that bauble, job well done U.S.A.!!

I will definitely update with the hilarity of camping and adventures!

Melissa, Olympics, Yellowstone and Theatre Thursday!

After many days of sanity threatening Walmart experiences, I'm finally taking some time off! Tomorrow at the crack of dawn, I'll be moving my car to Ames, Iowa where the enchanting Melissa lives. I just need to get through one more shift and I'm home free. I couldn't be more excited about it. I haven't been to Melissa's new apartment so I'm eager to see how she's living these days. If she lives with bugs...I'm visiting from the hotel. :) Melissa dislikes bugs almost as much as I do so I don't think this will be the case. While I'm at Melissa's, a little known sporting event will be getting started. I'm on the edge of my seat to see as much of the Olympics as humanly possible. Gymnastics, swimming, diving, rowing, running, basketball, volleyball....I love everything! I think I'll pass on trampoline and badminton but sign me up for everything else!

About a week after I get back from visiting Melissa, I begin an epic journey to Wyoming to enjoy its wonder and adventure. Yellowstone will be our home for about 8 days and I intend to make the most of it. I'm also very excited to hit up Elitch Gardens on the way. I haven't been on a roller coaster in many years and I can't wait to end that abstinence. I will definitely have stories to share after that trip. I can't imagine 6 people stuck in a van/tent for 10 days not having amazing stories. So get excited for Melissa, the Olympics, and Yellowstone. I've been waiting for this part of the summer since it started and now, it is all within my grasp! Muafafafafafa!

THEATER THURSDAY!!!

This week we will actually be talking about something I saw in theaters. I know that's what Movie Monday is for but I missed it and I really want to talk about this movie. So deal with it! The movie is (drum roll)........Dark Knight Rises.
Adrian, Phil, and I went to Sioux City on Monday to see this movie and I liked it quite a bit. Now that I've gotten over the fact that Christian Bale has to destroy his vocal cords as part of his epic heroism, he's finally grown on me. There were so many things about this movie that I liked and a couple that I didn't. Let's get started!

I really appreciated the ridiculously attractive cast. Christian Bale, Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Anne Hathaway, Marion Cotillard, Matthew Modine, Daniel Sunjata...it was pretty much all good news. Even Michael Caine, Gary Oldman, and Morgen Freeman were rocking the attractive old guy thing. Can't lose!
I also loved that Marion Cotillard, turned out to be the bad guy. I totally didn't see it coming and she shifted effortlessly into an evil persona. She had conviction, passion, and explosive weapons. LOVED IT! I liked that the movie was a bit of a tear-jerker. If Michael Caine is crying, so am I. He is such an amazing actor and he really sucked me into everything. I adored Anne Hathaway as a pseudo-reformed bad girl. She really pulled it off. I didn't think she had it in her. I'll be interested to see the miracle of her pulling off Fantine in Les Mis...but that's an entirely different blog. I liked very much that they made Bane much cooler than he was in Batman & Robin. It wasn't hard, as that movie was an epic train wreck (sorry George!), but I was legitimately terrified of Bane. The bad guys have been so amazing under the guidance of Christopher Nolan. I'm a little sad that this will be the last one, but I think that it is good to go out with a bang. The Batman franchise will be revived again and again but I believe that this re-boot will always stand out as great.

That brings me into what I didn't like. If this was the last movie and they have no plans for more, why was there such an epic cliffhanger with the Robin character discovering the bat cave and Bruce Wayne not dying. It is too much for my fragile emotions to handle! I suppose if that is my biggest problem...it isn't so bad.