Memories of 2009

It seems like just yesterday I was sitting at my desk writing last years end of the year post. This year has speed by and yet was also rather long. I can't say it was the best year, but it wasn't the worst either. I've decided that instead of going into a long summary of the year, I'll merely mention the things I really enjoyed. This way, I can look back and remember the good and forget the not so good.
I suppose the year began, in a way, with the performance of Pippin. It was such a grand experience to be a part of, and it changed the way I see musicals. Before Pippin, I hated musicals and didn't want to be a part of one, and after I was craving for more. It is very different from normal theater and I'm not saying I like it more. I suppose it is a build up of nerves, a bigger inhale before stepping out onto the stage and a bigger round of applause when the certain falls. I learned a lot doing that play.
The daddy daughter dance was fun as always, I'm so happy its almost here once again! And prom was fun as well, although I'm still not sure whether it is my cup of tea or not. I suppose I have two more years to find out.
And with that, the school year came to its close. With promises of laughter and seeing each other once again we were launched into glorious summer vacation. In my case, that meant climbing aboard a plane to Ecuador. That was one of those trips that while you're there you often miss home and the little things we take advantage of here, but at the same realize what a wonderful time you're having. For example, staying in the amazon was amazing. I don't think I'll ever forget that even with all the troubles we encountered. It was so amazing to be around such a source of green and vitality. It makes you feel more alive. After all it is considered to be the lungs of the planet, so I suppose its natural to feel so wonderful there. People talk about how there can be no good without bad, this trip was a perfect example. It was great at some times and not so much at others. One thing I must say, the food was very very good. The potato soup, wow.
Once we returned, it was off to Comic Con. Those three days contained some of my favorite moments of this year. Being there with friends like My and Mary was such a blast! I can't imagine having more fun then I had with those two. Meeting the writers of Lost and getting to go to the Lost panel are two memories I will cherish forever. I'm not kidding, seeing that panel was utterly unbelievable. In fact it was definitely one of my top three things of 2009. It may sound weird to feel this way about a TV series, but I suppose its more than that. It's about being part of the world that is Lost, because for anyone who really loves Lost, that was history. Yes, it may just be an hour long talk, but it was the last of its kind. There will never ever be a Lost panel again, and although I may be totally obsessed My, who has never watched the show, will tell you it was pretty fun to be a part of.
Two Gentlemen of Verona was an interesting and educational experience. I got a leading girl in a Shakespeare play which hasn't happened since second grade. I got to play alongside Ventana in a role that I think related a lot to me at the time I was playing it. Although I wasn't always super happy, I think it was a great experience. I can't wait for next summer to do it all over again.
I set an odd record this year for longest postponement of a birthday party. My birthday is the end of January and I finally had a party in August, more than six months later. I don't know what that says about me, but it definitely says something.
School began again, bringing the perks of eleventh grade, a new play and the Catalina trip. I won't go into the trip to much, but I will say that snorkeling in the kelp forests was such an awesome experience. I had such a blast and it was so breathtaking in that world beneath the waves.
The rest of the year had flown by in a flurry of play rehearsals, German exams and weird revelations. I've also been taking a ton of pictures and discovered just how much I love photography, I've improved so much since last year. I hope the same is true for 2010.

Throughout this year I've had friendships disappear completely, new ones arise, tears and tantrums, a new love of singing, several shocks and inspiration from a source I would never have expected. It's been quite a ride and I find myself hoping for a little bit of a break, but alas breaks never come when you could use them.
And I suppose with that it is time to wish a fond farewell to 2009. I suppose that is why I've never liked New Years, because of saying goodbye and knowing that it'll never be here again. I'll look back at this year and smile as well I breath a sigh of relief knowing that its over. Its been a year to grow and learn and I believe next year will be as well. I think this year has shown me that I need to take chances and not do what I always do and hide away from them. And with that, I bid you adieu 2009.

Bonjour 2010!

Christmas 2009

So Christmas has come and gone once again. It feels as though it always seems to pass to quickly, don't you agree? As always, on Christmas morning I went down to my grandparents (the Neuharts) house for presents and breakfast.I always love opening gifts and seeing others people faces when they open theirs. I received many wonderful things including a camera I was dying to get, some amazing cookbooks, a great pair of flowered tights and the Monty Python the Almost Truth.After presents we had breakfast which consisted of scrambled eggs, oranges, bacon, prune bread, sassauge and my personal favorite, fruit salad. The table looked so pretty! I found myself taking many many pictures with the new camera.I also made poppy-seed cupcakes with silver "vintage" Christmas trees for on top.
In all it was a perfectly lovely Christmas day! I hope yours was lovely as well.

Avatar

I've been wanting to review this film for some time now. Maybe because of all the hype, or maybe because of something else. Well I can say this for sure, visually, the film is Stunning. The world of Pandora is just breathtaking and so life-like. The creatures also look great, as if they can come right off of the screen. Avatar is the story of a human settlement on a foreign planet in order to mine. Due to troubles with the indigenous people the "Avatar" project is created in which a human can "drive/control" a being that looks just like those of the indigenous people. It is one man's journey to learn the ways of the people and in a way, learn who he is as well. Like I said before, the film looks amazing. It also had a wonderful message about the environment and greed of the corporation. It was so nice to see such a meaningful message in such a main stream, blockbuster film. The story wasn't bad by any means, but I felt as though I had seen it before. Several times I thought to myself "this is just like Eragon, Princess Mononoke, Nausicaä, Final Fantasy, Ant Bully, Pendragon, Matrix, Avatar the Last Airbender, Dragon Harper, Dances with Wolves" or many other things I've seen/read. It seemed to have a great deal of borrowed interest.
I suppose before I even saw the film, I never really gave it film a fair shot. I was caught up in dislike of the director and how he self-proclaimed that his work is "the next big thing." I feel that when presenting ones work, whether film, art, or even literature, one should present it with humility, not as if it is the most amazing thing in the world. It's one thing to be proud of an accomplishment and another to be arrogant. Yes this film pushed the boundaries of what we've seen in the world of visual effects, but when it comes down to it does that matter, if the story has been told before? Can a film be truly visionary or unique if the story is lacking? I believe that once someone tells a new story, one that we've never heard, and combines it with stunning visuals then you will have "the next big thing." It's like they say "you can't judge a book by its cover" the same is true for film, you can't say it is a perfect film until its contents matches its appearance.Until its story is as unique and beautiful as its visuals. When that day comes everyone will be able to say that that person did something that is truly stunning.
In all I did like the film. I thought that as a whole it was well done. I recommend the film, even if just for the visuals and the message, which are both beautiful.

An Education

Today I went to see An Education with My. We had both been wanting to see the film for some time, the trailer had us wishing for more. It was quite a lovely film. It was shot beautifully, not only because of the fantastic locations, London, Paris and Oxford, but also due to the directors wonderful use of light. The costumes were lovely as well. An Education tells the story of 16 year old Jenny whose life revolves around going to Oxford for a proper education. When she meets David, a charming yet older man, her plans begin to change. David's world is one of fun, wealth and glamorous places, but is that worth giving up a degree for? The acting was phenomenal in this film. The only other time I have seen Carey Mulligan, who plays Jenny, in anything was in Pride and Prejudice as giggling Kitty and I must say I hardly recognize her. She has come so far. Peter Sarsgaard, David, was also very good. In all it was a very well made film for not only was it a visual treat, but it also made me think. It showed that sometimes an education is not from books but from ones experiences. That a mistake is not always the end of the world. I expect that when the Oscars come around we will hear more about this lovely film, it definitely deserves the recognition.

Trailer

Trick or Treat

(Rose, Grace, Hannah, My, Juda, Maya, Eve, Ventana)
This year I had a very difficult time deciding what I wanted to be for Halloween. For a while I thought I should be a Garden Gnome, but then I realized it wasn't really something I was looking forward to being. While shopping at Trader Joes, the theme song for the Addams Family started playing and an idea struck me. Wednesday Addams. So I did some research and found to my delight that Wednesday had a pet spider ( I love spiders ) and that I had all the pieces I would need for my costume at home. (Photos: 1. Wednesday from the original TV show 2. & 3. Christina Ricci in the film version 4. my favorite blogger in a Wednesday inspired photoshoot 5. Me as Wednesday)

I met up with Ventana on Hallows Eve and we went to school to go on the little tour there. She was a Cave Woman and looked rather like Pebbles from the Flintstones. The tour was fun, but it didn't seem to have the life it used to possess. Next we went to Grace's house to go Trick or Treating with her, her sister Rose Hannah, her friend Maya and My. My was a cat, while Grace and Hannah were a dragonfly and a ladybug. Grace's little brother Juda was a "Valley Girl" and looked exactly like a girl. It was hysterical!


Trick or Treating was fun, but not the best ever. I got a bunch of my favorite candy (Milky Ways) and had a scare or two on the way. Like when a man dresses as a clown jumped out of the bushes with a chain saw, scaring Ventana half to death.
Next we all headed over to Ventana's house for really yummy food and to watch Young Frankenstein. Elizabeth was there as well, she was a carrot.

In all I had a really fun time!

Catalina Trip

A couple of weeks ago my class and I went on a trip to Catalina. None of us were sure how the trip would be since the class above us didn’t have good things to say from their trip last year. We arrived at school at 6:45 in the morning and piled into the bus. Off we went. My and I chattered in the back of the bus, until and argument between Claudia and Armand grew so loud that we were forced to move.

Upon arriving in Long Beach at the port where the Queen Mary is docked, we all got out and waited for the boat to arrive. I was very excited since I haven’t really been on a boat before. At first the ride was really fun. The ocean had some huge swells so we rocked around and it felt rather like an adventure at sea. But after some time, my stomach got the better of me and I had to stay at the back of the boat, looking out over the sea. It felt so nice to have the ocean air on my face. In two hours we arrived at Two Harbors in Catalina where we met our “guides” Laura and Shannon. We ate a quick lunch then hiked to Cherry Cove where we were going to stay.

The beach at Cherry Cove was very nice, with little or no waves and sea shell speckled sand.
Everything seemed wonderful until we heard about the many restrictions we had on our stay there. No walking anywhere without a chaperon (yes, that includes the restroom), no sitting on the beach, four minute showers, no tea in the mornings, etc. We walked to where our “tents” where located. I shared a tent with My. It felt rather like an army or prison camp. With the army green tents and showers that needed a button to be pushed at all times for the water to flow. But we made the best of what we had.

We had a small snorkel which was really neat. Although it wasn’t as colorful as the oceans of Hawaii you still saw some neat creatures like swell sharks and garibaldi fish (which happens to be our state marine fish).
The worst thing about the trip would be the food, no doubt about it. Everything seemed pre-made and microwavable, the only vegetable being iceberg lettuce in salad. Ventana and I both had major problems with the food, and in the end the chief didn’t seem to happy with us.

On the second day we had an algae and sea animals workshop. I loved learning about the types of algae and some of the fish were really neat, especially the octopus. We saw some really cool things and learned a lot. We then played “Cherry Cove Jeopardy” which my team won! In the afternoon we went on a kayak which I enjoyed tremendously. It took me a while to get the paddling right, but by the end, I was pretty good. We played a fun game that was rather like ocean soccer. I had a blast.

The third day was our day trip. This meant we woke up slightly earlier and packed lunches and towels and sunglasses into our kayaks. We kayaked around the coast till we got to this lovely little beach covered in sea shells. We ate lunch there and then went snorkeling out by the large rock. It was an amazing snorkel because of all the kelp growing underwater. It was like a different world. The plants would sway and move in their own wind. There were many little fish and pelicans on the rock above. I had an amazing time. It might just be my favorite part of the entire trip. I didn’t want to get out of the water!
Once we got back to camp we were exhausted but found out we had a night snorkel to do that night. So once it got dark (and cold) we headed back to the beach and got backing into our wet (and cold) wet suits. It was pretty miserable, I must say. The snorkel was neat, but it wasn’t amazing. We saw most of the same things as in the day. The best part was probably the bioluminescence that glowed in the water when you turned the lights out. I was absolutely freezing once we got out. I thought I shower would warm me up, but all it did was make my hair extra wet. It was a long cold wet night and I woke up feeling not great.

I decided not to go on the last snorkel because I was already feeling weird and I knew if I put that wet wet suit on again that would be the end of me. So My, who was also sick, and I relaxed on the beach while most of the class went snorkeling. (underwater pictures from that snorkel are thanks to Elizabeth)
That afternoon we went looking in tide pools which was really fun. Joey Gilmore and I went on a search for crabs to catch for the octopus, but we weren’t in luck. Shannon (our guide) found a shed skin from a lobster which we put in Philip's shoe as a surprise for later.

That night was “dress up night” but since we didn’t have many clothes we made do with odd bits here and there. I was a candy sixties girl, while ventana was a lion and My a eighties fitness instructor. It was really fun seeing what everyone did with their normal clothes. And to make it all even better dinner that night was actually good.

On the morning of the last day, we packed up all our stuff and set out on a ridge hike. The hike had an amazing view, but was super hard. I found myself in the back almost the whole time, talking with Hannah about lemonade and soup, two things we were craving. We were all happy once we saw the boat pull into the harbor.
In all it was a good trip, but not an amazing one. It had it's bad points, but then again, isn't that true with every trip?