Awards of Laziness

Written June 6

So I want to blog, but I feel kind of stumped as to what to blog about. Luckily I do have something to jump off of – I’ve been given two blog award things, so I’m gonna do those and you’re gonna like it. So there.

*is the worst*

The first award is the Versatile Blogger Award from Julia over at Julia the Writer Girl.

Like basically ever other award, I have to tell y’all seven things about myself and then nominate other people except I have no friends so maybe I won’t do that part. Here we go.

1. When I was a kid, I really wanted to be a fighter pilot.

2. I have five stuffed animals in my room that I have received from the age of 13 onward; as a result, they all have names like Enthony, Piper, Beau, Schubert, and Chekov.

3. I had my last lesson with my cello teacher of over two years today.

4. I cry a lot more than the average human.

5. I have all the lyrics to this song memorized (in fact, this video is the first suggestion that pops up as I type “youtube” into my URL bar):

You are allowed to judge me.

6. I had a shrine to Artemis Fowl in my old room — in fact, if you look around enough on the blog, you’ll probably find a photo in the background somewhere. Now they books are just on my shelf… but I do still have all of them.

7. When I was a kid, I loved Macbeth.

8. I am of the personal opinion that Roald Dahl books are masterpieces, and I loved all of them as a child.

9. The Pottermore sorting hat would have put me in Gryffindor if it hadn’t put me in Slytherin. (Could you imagine? Me? Gryffindor? There’s a reason I stuck with Slytherin.)

10. Though I consider myself more of a Trekkie now (in every respect except music – Star Trek music can’t even hold a candle to the Star Wars score), I was obsessed with Star Wars when I was younger, and Harrison Ford was my celebrity crush. (I still have kind of a thing for him. I mean, look at this face.)

Written June 18

So I am really bad at this, apparently, but here’s the second part of this post:

Aspirer, from Heavenly Aspirations tagged me in the Scrumptious blog award. She asked me these questions – again, as I have no one else to tag, the buck stops here, as it were.

1. How do you like your tea?

Two sugars (Sweet & Low, I know, I’m giving myself cancer) and a dollop of skim milk.

2. Favorite Jane Austen novel?

I’ve actually only ever read Pride and Prejudice – but I love all the stories. Sense & Sensibility is fantastic.

3. Cellos or violins?

Cello! But I might be… slightly biased.

4. Latin or Greek?

Well, I’ve taken Latin for years and years and I’ve got a soft spot for the Romans, so I have to say Latin. But I’m dying to take Greek – unfortunately my schedule is too full next year.

5. Dream job? (Note that reality does not apply; if you so desired, for example, you could be a librarian in the 1900′s)

My dream job is to be a mom. <3 But careerwise I’d love to own a bookshop… One with bookshelves all the way up to the ceiling and sliding ladders and mismatched armchairs everywhere. I don’t think it would be possible because independent bookshops are threatened even now – think of in 10 years when I’m out of college? That’s one of my silly dreams.

6. Favorite saint, and why?

Ooh, tough one. I’d have to say Mary. I have a lot of favorite saints, but the Blessed Mother is so much a help to me in my life, and I don’t know what I’d do without her.

7. Would you rather live a short life with death by martyrdom or a long, painstaking life with a natural death?

I’d feel guilty picking either one – because I wouldn’t be picking them for the right reasons. But I’ll say this: neither is better than the other in terms of sanctification… Long & painstaking can equal martyrdom if offered correctly… *but this is a theology lecture for later*

8. Favorite kind of chocolate?

Dark chocolate.

9. Your kind of Prince Charming?

A doofusy one who likes music and reading and intelligent discussion. Basically the absentminded professor type who doesn’t mind dorking around from time to time.

10. Favorite fictional character?

Jay Gatsby. But you saw that coming.

I’ll try not to post so sporadically but I feel guilty trying to promise anything anymore… Forgive me?

~Hero

Did I Say Tomorrow? Obviously I Meant “Not Tomorrow” (May Report Card)

Oh gosh. Hi. I am the worst. Please hate me.

Now that we have that out of the way, I am going to pretend I don’t keep forgetting to blog & act like everything is totally fine.

Yep. Totally fine. It’s not like I have the biggest cello auditions of my entire high-school career next week, and it’s not like I’m starting with a new teacher – the principal cellist of the symphony – after that… Oh no, that’s not happening, and even if it were I wouldn’t be stressed out about it, of course not… Heh…. Heh…

I’m slowly descending into madness. Don’t mind me.

Hopefully after my auditions, I’ll get back into the regular swing of blogging. I feel slightly hungover from going to see Mahler’s 3rd symphony last night, so please excuse any and all lack of enthusiasm/tired ramblings… I didn’t get much sleep and I have a rather large headache.

Anyway it’s June 1st how did that happen. I’m a bit late on wrapping up my May Report card, but wrap it up I shall… I feel really good about this month; though I can’t remember all my resolutions, so I probably failed one thanks to not being able to actually… remember… it. xP

MAY REPORT CARD

1. Videocall with my friends more often. A! I probably tripled the amount of video calls I did, which was awesome. Getting to see my friends’ faces and voices is so amazing. I would give myself an A+, except I never got to do a call with Julia or Kira, so I wasn’t totally successful.

2. Get back into my spiritual reading. F. Big fat F. I probably read one chapter of Interior Castles this entire month. (This must’ve been the resolution I’d forgotten about.)

3. Write my 2013 Summer Bucket list. B – I wrote the bucket list, but I don’t think it’s finished yet. I just don’t have a lot of ideas. Leave comments with fun summer things to do so I don’t spend it watching Phineas and Ferb!

Agh

I am literally the worst blogger ever, I’m so sorry… Expect a real post tomorrow.

x
Hero

On My Stand

Sometimes I like to just throw a load of classical music at you.

Here.

Take it.

Enjoy it.

I’m currently playing all of this.

I’ve got some post drafts floating around and no time to write them. Many apologies, come summer posts will be up more regularly.

x
Hero

I’m Only Mostly Dead

It’s been so long that I’m actually embarrassed. Half this embarrassment comes from the fact that Kelli from She Learns as She Goes actually linked to me during my unintentional hiatus… So people came to see my blog and saw it kind of curled up on the floor, drooling and sniffing and making odd noises.

Yes. Hi. Welcome. Glad you’re here – if you stuck around after that… spectacle of drool.

So, in case you missed the memo, here’s Justin Timberlake to announce it…

You laugh, but this meme is the reason I now know all the words to ‘It’s Gonna Be Me’ by *NSync. Ugh, what is my life? (I just have a larger-than-normal appreciation of 90′s pop music, OKAY?)

WITHOUT FURTHER ADO BECAUSE I AM TIRED: GOALS FOR MAYYYY

1. Videocall with my friends more often. I skype chat with my faraway friends quite often, but I never seem to do video calls, which is so much more personal. It’s not that I don’t have time, I just don’t think of it. I’m going to make an effort to do calls more often.

2. Get back into my spiritual reading. School reading has eaten me alive. But school is almost over, so the spiritual reading can come back.

3. Write my 2013 Summer Bucket list. What it sounds like.

Thanks for reading, guys! Talk to you soon.

Best wishes!
Hero

Next Lit Project

Currently reading: The Madness Underneath

Currently drowning under loads of school, so actual lit projects kind of at a standstill. But my next big project is going to be 1984 & Lord of the Rings – seeing if there are similarities between Big Brother & Sauron.

So yeah, keep an eye out for that.

Chums for the Dumps

I’m feeling slightly out of sorts today, but I’m cheering myself up with a big cup of coffee, a week old soft pretzel, the 10th Doctor, and the thought that if I so asked, my friend Josie would pop out of the woodwork and sing the Gaston song for me to make me feel better. (She is the Le Fou to my Gaston and it’s awesome.)

And though I am almost identical to Gaston in every way possible (ha), I do have a penchant for reading that he rather lacks…

This is a rather silly lead-in to a post one of my and Josie’s most gorgeous friends tagged me to do, all about books and reading habits. So without further ado, here we go!

Do you snack while you read? If so, favourite reading snack: Yes; I snack while doing everything. Usually potato chips because they’re easy, or oranges. I love oranges. (I have an unhealthy addiction to oranges. Well, I guess it’s a healthy addiction… Guess who won’t be getting scurvy anytime soon?)

What is your favorite drink while reading? Coffee. During Lent it was tea. But usually it is coffee.

Do you tend to mark your books as you read, or does the thought of writing in books horrify you? It depends. I mark up & take notes in some of my spiritual books, but usually if something strikes me I write it down elsewhere.

How do you keep your place while reading a book? I actually have a tendency to just shut the book and search for my place when I come back. I’m properly good at it. (Sometimes.)

Fiction, non-fiction, or both? Fiction, generally. Non-fiction can be good, too, but I generally read fiction.

Are you the type of person who tends to read to the end of the chapter, or can you stop anywhere? I usually have to stop anywhere, because I don’t have time to read a chapter to its conclusion. (I read in bits and pieces because of my lack of free time.) I’ve been on chapter 17 of Out of the Silent Planet for about a week now.

Are the type of person to throw a book across the room or onto the floor if the author irritates you? Yes. Cue me at the end of Inheritance.

If you come across an unfamiliar word, do you look it up right away? If I’m on my nook, yes, because then I don’t really have to put the book down. Otherwise I just get around it by context and move on.

What are you currently reading? Out of the Silent Planet, by C.S. Lewis. I’m almost finished – debating whether I should move on directly to the next book in the series or leave it alone.

What is the last book you bought? I bought a bunch of books at Goodwill, including The Pilgrim’s Progress and Murder on the Orient Express. My mom just bought me The Dialogue of Saint Catherine of Siena, if that counts.

Do you have a favorite time/place to read? Basically whenever I have time!

Do you prefer series books or stand alones? If it’s well written, I don’t care. I prefer to write stand alones because I’m lazy, but I’ll read whichever with no preference.

Is there a specific book you find yourself recommending over and over? The Great Gatsby, lol. I recommend the Books of Bayern a lot, and the Leviathan series. I love that series.

How do you organize your books? My books are organized on my shelf by the last name of the author.

I guess the overarching point of this post was for me to say that the ultimate chums when you’re down in the dumps is a good book. And Doctor Who. If any of you want to do this, feel free! You don’t have to link back to me or anything. As for being tag-errifically annoying, I’m going to dramatically point at Raewyn from My Spare Oom!

Thanks for reading!
Hero