You Jealous?

I've spent the last hour or two on Tumblr enjoying one of my favorite pastimes-- stalking. Namely the talented and beautiful Zooey Deschanel. I honestly wish I could be her. She's unbelievably gorgeous is a totally real way; she has a wardrobe I'd kill for; I love everything she's acted in; and she has such a wonderful and unique voice. Basically she is definitely at the top of my "Perfect People" list.

So I'm sure you could imagine my dismay when I came across posts such as this:

And this....

I know these are really that harsh by any means, but for some reason they just really upset me. I get really silly when others insult celebrities or fictional characters that I love. It's almost like they've insulted a part of who I am...

Anyway, I started thinking about what exactly it is that encourages people to write posts like this, and I think I've come up with some likely reasons:

1. They are jealous of [insert celebrity here] and therefore are unable to find anything good about [aforementioned celebrity] simply because they wish they were more like [famous person]. The offender is unlikely to come to the realization that they are in fact harboring jealously for [beloved celeb] because humans are funny like that.

2. They are attempting to be a hipster and hating on whoever and whatever the so called "mainstream" is currently obsessing over. I could go into a whole rant about hipster right here and now, but I already wrote a blog post about that, so you can just go check that out if you'd like.

3. They really just aren't too fond of [celebrity in question]. Now there is nothing wrong with not being obsessed with someone other people really like. There are a slew of celebrities that I really don't think are as amazing as everything thinks, but I usually save the harsher reviews of their character/personality/talent for my personal friends and family. I don't go posting all over the internet about how someone's singing makes my ears bleed, or something about how people who like [celebrity here] have no taste. In fact I thin that is the one thing that bothers me the most-- the reason I get so upset when I see posts like this. Most of these posts don't just say negative things about the celebrity, they go even further to insult the fans of said celeb. I feel that is going too far. It's fine and dandy to express your own opinions so long as you don't attack others for having opinions different from your own.

Now I must admit that I am guilty of doing the above, but after having this recent epiphany I am going to try and be more respectful in the future. Though I can't promise that I won't be a dirty hypocrite occasionally because I'm human. Anyway, I'm sure you've already seen this video (it went viral almost instantly it seems), but I just feel like sharing it again because I really do love this duet:

I Liked That Before It Was Cool

Hipster. According to Cracked.com (my go-to source for all things hilarious), the term first arose in the 40's to describe middle class whites acting like black musicians, now referred to as "nerdcore".

Today, a hipster is self-centered elitist who, in their quest to avoid and cast judgement on the mainstream, is actually controlled by the mainstream. Even worse than the angsty, complaining hipsters are those who just wear clothes that almost pass as vintage and call themselves hipsters. The majority of self-proclaimed hipsters are just obnoxious teenagers who want to be accepted by society, but aren't man enough to just admit it. So instead, they choose to join the ranks of emos and goths; pretending that they don't give a crap when in actuality they do.

Anyway, I do believe that true hipsters do exist, but I prefer to call them indie. Indies are similar to hipsters in that they wear vintage-styled clothes and whatnot, but their attitudes are entirely different. For one, indies do not claim to be hipsters, or anything else-- they just are who they are (not intending to sound like a Ke$ha song...).

My main problem with hipsters is that they all claim to hate society for being so mundanely mainstream, when in fact they are just as much a part of the mainstream. Without mainstream, hipster would cease to exist as they would no longer have a constant supply of music, clothes, etc. to judge and dismiss. It's pretty ironic when you think about it.

All this being said, I do believe that true hipsters exist in this world, but I prefer to call them indie. See, indies are similar to hipsters in that they wear vintage or vintage-looking clothes, but their attitudes are completely different. Indies do what they do; wear what they wear; and like what they like because it is just what appeals to their personal tastes. Hipsters are tied to the mainstream, but indies are only tied to themselves. If indies like something that also happens to be mainstream, then that's fine because the reason they like it is not because it's mainstream. Hipsters, even if they liked something considered to be 'mainstream', would never admit it because that would destroy their 'reputation'.

This is why whenever I am told that I could easily be hipster, I get offended. Just because I like vintage clothes and accessories, which, mind you, I have been quite fond of for quite some time (not trying to sound hipster there, it's just a fact...), does not make me hipster. There are plenty of mainstream things that I like, and then some I don't. I like whatever I think is rad and if what I like happens to be mainstream then I like something mainstream.

I guess what I'm trying to get at is that you shouldn't put something down just because it's 'mainstream'. I mean, it could be mainstream simply because it's really awesome and a lot of people think that. At the same time, don't turn into one of those people (we can probably point out hundreds of them at our high school) who treat fashion magazines like their Bible and can't wear something that's 'not in fashion'. Just, man this is going to sound cheesy, be yourself and dress in whatever you like and you feel comfortable in. Don't conform. Don't be elitist.

We Meet Again

Wow. Hello there, New Post screen. It's been awhile...
I guess you can say that I've been a little preoccupied with life. Senior year is turning out to be even more stressful than junior year, despite many assurances that after junior year it was pretty much smooth sailing to graduation. Except for us poor IB kids. For us, senior year is the worst-- it's when we have all our exams.

Anyway, you haven't missed too much other than my intense school stuff like the 3,500-4,000 word essay I had to write over the summer. (For those interested my final word count was 3,647.) And I am not in my school's production of Beauty and the Beast. "WHAT?" you ask, "I thought you really wanted to be in that musical? Belle's your idol!" Yeah. I know. I still do want to be in the show, but I was sent home and callbacks and the director made it clear to me that I would not be recieving either of the rolls I desired (Belle and Mrs. Potts), which basically meant that I would have been in chorus had I chosen to do the show. I told her that I was only interested in those two roles (as I had previously indicated on my audition sheet)and so I was not cast. Despite her assurance that seniors would always be given precedence over underclassmen as long as the underclassmen were not vastly more talented.

Long story short: the director was a dirty hypocrite. Whatever. I'm mostly over it. It just would have been nice to be in my senior musical since I won't have as many opportunities to act in college since I am pursuing a music career, not musical theatre.

Anyway, enough ranting. Good things have happened to me as well since we last spoke. (Because clearly this is a conversation. It's just very... one-sided...) For one, I love being captain of Madrigals. It's super stressful at times, but it's also rewarding at others like when the choir director compliments me on my leadership skills. It's always nice to be appreciated.

Well, now everyone is up-to-date and I can start being sassy and opinionated in my next post, which will hopefully be in the near future. Possibly even tomorrow! Until then-- DFTBA [Don't forget to be awesome]

If you've never seen a Vlog Brother video, WATCH THIS:

Tune As Old As Song

It's been forever since I last blogged. The worst part is that I don't even have a legitimate excuse. I could say that I've been really busy and just couldn't find the time in my awesome life, but the truth is- I'm a lazy bum. But, hey, it is summer afterall, so my laziness is somewhat justified.

Anyway, though I haven't written anything for some time now, I have been thinking of good things to write about. (Another reason that I haven't been blogging for awhile; I've run out of things to say...)

Yesterday was the workshop for our school's Fall musical, Beauty and the Beast, which is where we get the music and learn part of a dance for the auditions in September. The dance was really hard and I sort of made a fool of myself, but I kind of enjoyed it... but only a little. I really need to work on my facial expression, according to the director, so that's going to be what I do with my time until September like third or whenever the auditions are... You have no idea how much I want to play Belle. She's one of my idols.

In the list of fictional female characters that have influenced my life it's:

1. Hermione Granger

2. Rory Gilmore

3. Belle

She's always been my favourite Disney princess because she's so independant and strong. She wore blue (my favourite colour). She loves books. She's also so... human... like, the way she's always pushing that one strand of hair out of her face. Perfect.

Basically, she's my favourite and I would be absolutely honored to have the opportunity to play her in my school's production.

My Disappointment is Great

Well, school's been out for a little more than a week now, and I have done practically nothing productive-- it's been heavenly. You have no idea how much I have needed this break. Though I must say that even though school is out, finally, I am still very stressed.

I can't remember if I've already said this, but I am a captain of my choir Madrigals! Which I am super excited about, but it also means that I have a lot more stuff added to my plate for summer.

The worst part about all the stuff I have to do this summer isn't the four thousand word essay I have to write, or the four summer school classes I have to take-- it's the fact that I will be unable to attend the eighth Harry Potter movie midnight premiere.


Yep, you did read that correctly. I WILL NOT BE ABOUT TO SEE THE EIGHTH HARRY POTTER MOVIE AT MIDNIGHT. The reason why: I will be at my All-State choir camp. UGH. This is the second year in a row that my choir camp has interfered with Harry Potter and I am really upset about it. This year even more so than last. I mean, this is the last Harry Potter movie premiere ever! And I won't be a part of it.

Harry Potter is my childhood. I grew up watching the golden trio as they fought off Voldemort and the other obstacles in their way and through all those years, I had never been able to attend a midnight premiere for a Harry Potter movie. Mainly because I had been too young, but this year was going to be perfect- I was finally old enough and my friends I could have gone without parental supervision... then I find out the dates for choir camp.

Oh well, I guess it was never meant to be. Though I'll probably be bitter about this for years to come. Especially because, unlike me, all my friends will be going... *sigh*

Too Much Weight on My Shoulders

Today I finished the second, and final, part of my very first IB examination-- Economics. I feel as though a weight has been lifted off my shoulders... The only problem is that there are still twenty-thousand more pounds of junk still there.

I am so stressed. School is stressful. But the good news is that I only have a mere thirteen days left until exam week when I will, hopefully, be allowed to skip class due to exemptions!

Until now and May 27th, though, I still have quite a few things to accomplish:

1. I have captain auditions for my choir, Madrigals, next Wednesday and there's a bunch of requirements that I must attend to between now and then. (For one, I have to teach a song to eight people and then conduct said song in front of the rest of the choir/directors. FUN.)

2. My English IOC is scheduled to take place Friday, May 25 at like 9am. In case I haven't already complained about the IOC is before, it's this thing where we are given a short 30-40 line passage from something we've read in class second semester and we have 20 minutes to create an outline and then we give a 15 minute speech during which we analyze the passage we were given. I'm terrified.

3. My mind is so filled with post-exam mush that I can't think of all the other things I still have to do, but I know there are more.

I'm sure, what with most school years coming to a close, that there are many other people who know what I'm currently going through. Sadly, that doesn't make it any easier on me.

Anyhow... I went to the library today to get the next book in the series I am currently reading (the Mortal Instrument series for those curious) and all three copies were checked out. Needless to say, I was very distraught. But thankfully a dear friend from my Economics class has agreed to loan me her copy tomorrow, so I won't have to wait until June 6th (the first day that a copy was due back at the library) to read it!

That's basically all of the exciting (ha.) news about things going on in my life. I hope you enjoyed this litte update!

Wait, it's NOT Mexican Independence Day?

Tomorrow is Cinco de Mayo and my Spanish class is apparently going to do some fun little activities in honor of the day.

I don't know about you, but I really don't know anything about Cinco de Mayo... I know that it's the fifth of May, but the meaning of the date in Mexico's history is completely lost on me. When my teacher asked us in class if we knew what it was in honor of I quickly responded (in Hermione-like fashion) that it was in celebration of Mexican Independence-- I was wrong.

Since I had thoroughly humiliated myself in front of my classmates (which I guess isn't that big of a deal considering there are only seven other people in my class), I decided to do a little research on the topic:

I discovered that, despite popular belief, Cinco de Mayo is in fact not a celebration of independence, but the celebration of an unlikely Mexican victory over the French in the Battle of Pueblo in 1862. And that while in Mexico the celebration really is limited to the battle, in the United States it has become more of a celebration of Mexican pride and heritage. Apparently the first celebration of Cinco de Mayo in the U.S. was credited to some Mexicans in California sometime during the American Civil War. Crazy, right?

Actually... I don't find this extremely fascinating (mainly because History is my least favorite subject after math), but there is never a bad time to learn something new and I just hate answering questions wrong, so I had to learn more, so that when my teacher asks us about it tomorrow I will be able to answer her questions.

I promise I won't bore you with history lessons in the future unless I find them incredibly fascinating.

Have a nice Cinco de Mayo tomorrow!

Exterminate, Regenerate

Would you look at that, it's April 30th-- there goes my "blog everyday in April" plan... Oh well.

Anyway, moving on, I hung out with a couple of friends last night. We watched Dr. Who episodes on Netflix, which they have on their Wii. For those of you who have never heard of "Dr. Who", it's a British science fiction series that revolves around the time travel adventures of The Doctor and his various companions.

The show started sometime back in the sixties, but I have only seen more recent episodes thus far. And I've only watched episodes in which David Tennent plays the Doctor. Even though I don't have anyone to compare his Doctor playing abilities to, Mr. Tennent is still my favorite Doctor. He wears converse with every outfit (even tuxes) and actually pulls it off. He also wears glasses sometime, which I think it great because I wear glasses and glasses are cool... (okay, not really, but whatever).

Something that makes "Dr. Who" such a unique and successful show (I mean it's been on since 1960) is that whenever the actor playing the Doctor stops playing the Doctor, the writers thought of like THE perfect way to working changes in casting without disrupting the show-- whenever the Doctor dies in the show, he regenerates. Only when this happens he is a different person, so-to-speak. What could be better than that? I mean it's the best way to deal with casting changes without losing viewers because the character is technically exact same, the actor playing him has just changed, which is a something the writers compensated for. Pur genius.

Sadly, David Tennent is no longer playing the Doctor. In the newest season, which just aired in America last Saturday, Matt Smith is the new Doctor. I haven't seen any of his episodes yet, but I have heard that he is fairly decent.

I have a feeling that David Tennent is always going to be my favorite though, and that is parcially due to the fact that he was in the fourth Harry Potter movie (he played Barty Crouch Jr.).

Anyway, if you haven't ever seen "Dr. Who", I highly suggest it. As of today, "Dr. Who" has been added to my DVR's list of shows to record. You should do the same as well. Unless of course your TV doesn't have a DVR, in which case you should just tune in everyday Saturday at 8:00pm on BBC America.

Random Fact: Charlie, you know that British Youtuber that I keep raving about? Well he's in a band called Chameleon Circuit that plays Trock (Time Lord Rock), which is songs based on "Dr. Who". My favorite song they sing is "Exterminate, Regenerate", but "Blink" is also very good.

Nerdiness Points

So apparently there's some internet rule about blogging everything in April... Well, I guess I already failed that, but I suppose I could try starting now (though I can't promise all the posts to have much substance since my life is incredibly dull at the moment).

Anyway, I believe I left myself some topics in my last post, so I'll at least have something to write about for next couple of days.

I recall proclaiming myself to be a nerd in my last post, so I suppose I should support my claim with facts... Well that, and I just feel like talking about how much of a nerd I am (and besides, it might help explain some things about me).

1. I love, love, LOVE reading for fun. Now, this in itself is not so much nerdy as it is bookworm-y, but don't be too quick to pass judgment; I recently spent over an hour standing in the Barnes and Nobles Classics section of the bookstore debating on whether I should purchase Jane Eyre or Wuthering Heights. Basically, not only to I love to read outside of my school required reading, but I enjoy reading the types of books (classics) that other schools require their students to read. That is both bookworm-y AND nerdy.

2. I play videogames. Not quite a religiously as some, and I'm not amazingly good at them, but I still find them very enjoyable. The games that I play most often are COD5 (well I supposed that I play Black Ops more now...), Super Smash Bros Brawl and Melee (Melee is my favorite), The Phoenix Wright games, and Pokémon (currently playing Black).

Now, I will say that while I play all these games, they are not my life and I'm not that great at them, so that sort of counts against me in nerdiness points. Regardless, how many girls at your school openly admit to owning and playing Pokémon games?

3. I'm pretty sure you've already guessed this, but I am a major grammar-spelling- syntax-perfectionist. Whenever I read something that my friends write, whether it be on Facebook or in a note, I unconsciously edit it for mistakes (it's quite sad). I've gotten better about keeping these edits in my head instead of voicing them constantly, but I still let one slip on occasion.

4. I am obsessed with Harry Potter. The books, the movies, (but mainly the books)— I can't get enough. I've read the Harry Potter books thirty-some times. (This estimate is based on the amount of times I have read any of the books, not the series as a whole.) I quote the books in casual conversation, and I am able to sit down quote the movies seconds before the actors, creating an echo affect. It's also a very well-known fact to both friends and teachers that I would love to marry Ron Weasley.

5. I watch "The Big Bang Theory". I think that being friends with Sheldon would be really cool. And all of the sciency things that they talk about intrigue me. (Points against me would be that I don't really understand anything that they talk about, but it is interesting!)

6. I find grammar jokes to be highly amusing.

7. I am obsessed with AVPM/AVPS and Dr. Horrible's Sing-Along Blog; two internet musical sensations. (I also know the words to all the songs.)

Well...there's an abridged list of reasons why I am a nerd. I'm sure many of you can find various things to laugh at me about, so feel free— I live to amuse.

The Great Harry Potter Miscalculation

I was organizing my locker afterschool last week, something I do many days afterschool (yet another aspect of my OCPD), and I found a list that I had written last year. It was all the books that I had read last year, or at least all of the books that I had remembered. The first seven titles were the Harry Potter books. The first four actually had "(read this twice)" written next to them.

At first, this filled me with pride because it meant that I had read eleven Harry Potter books last year, nothing record-breaking, but considering that I had read a great deal of other books as well it was a pretty decent accomplishment. Then I became a little upset because I had realized something- I had been underestimating the total number of times I had read a Harry Potter book. I had been saying that I'd read them somewhere in the late teens, early twenties range, but after seeing that I had read them eleven times last year alone, I realized that I had actually read them about thirty plus times. A much more impressive, albeit nerdy, number.

And as nerdy as getting upset about such a little thing is, I am slowly becoming okay with the fact that I am a major nerd. I have come to the conclusion that as much as I have, somewhat unsuccessfully, tried to repress it, nerdiness will forever be a part of who I am, and I'm proud of that. Well, I'm proud of that when I'm around other nerdy people, or alone. I'm still working on being okay with it when people are judging me for it. Someday...

Anyway, this realization had inspired a few blog post topics (different types of nerd/the difference between a nerd and a geek, more Harry Potter stuff, and probably one about my nerdiness in general), so look forward to those whenever I find another time to write.

Until that time comes, try to embrace who you are.

What Are You Afraid Of?

Everyday, well almost everyday, I tell myself that I'm going to write a blog post, but, as you can tell by gap of time inbetween this post and my last, I never seem to find the time.

And by "never finding time", I really mean that I waste my time doing things like Facebook creeping, procrastinating on my homework, reading books other than the ones assigned to me by my English teacher-- those kinds of things.

Anyway, it's Spring Break and the majority of my friends have abandoned me to have their own fun adventures in Colorado, Georgia and even Italy. Yes, that's right, the Varsity Choir trip this year was to Italy, and guess whose mother wouldn't let them go-- THIS GIRL. (Not that I'm bitter or anything...) So I decided to take a break from my book (Looking for Alaska by John Green) to write a blog post and watch Kathy Griffin do some stand-up comedy.

A couple days ago I was thinking about how so many people have this irrational dislike, even fear, of insects and arachnids. Then I started thinking about how everyone has irrational fears, but how exactly do people get these fears? I mean they can't just come from nowhere. So today my friends, I am going to psychoanalyze some of these irrational fears and share my thoughts on how these fears possibly came to be. Sound like fun? Good-- let's get started:

Spiders:
An incredibly cliché fear, in my opinion, but as one of the top ten fears its source must be addressed.

Possible Causes:
1. Your parents let you watch one too many scary movies as a small child and the creepy spiders finally got to you.
2. When you were young, you found a large, African bird-eating tarantula hiding in the sheets your parents bought you from Sears. (This actually happened to a friend of mine.)
3. You have fallen prey to the creepy spider stereotype that society has pushed upon us for centuries. Shame on you.

Dolls:
I seriously have two girls in my English class who are legitimately afraid of dolls. I find this fear both concerning and fascinating.

Possible Causes:
1. You came home from Elementary school one day to discover that your younger brother had beheaded your entire Barbie doll collection, scarring you for life.
2. Your parents let you watch Chucky when you were like five.

Frankly I don't understand why that Chucky movie scares people...

I mean, just look at that face-- totes presh.

Heights:
This is one fear that I can sort of see where people are coming from. Personally, I'm not really afraid of heights, but it's really easy to see where people who have this fear are coming from.

Possible Causes:
1. Your dad or older brother did that thing where they pretend to push you off a very high structure when you were young, which caused deep, emotional scarring.
2. You were forced to ride the Hollywood Tower of Terror as a child.
3. You are extraordinarily tall and have a great appreciation for irony.

I'm aware that there are various other irrational fears that I could address today, but I feel that this blog post has already become too long, so we will save that for another day's session of Dr. Em... Until then, please feel free to entertain yourself by watching Charlieissocoollike and reading Harry Potter.

Battling the Plague

My sister had the flu last week, so she stayed home from school. All she did was sleep and she didn’t have to worry about anything other than drinking a lot of liquids and taking her medicine every four hours.

This weekend, my mother came down with some sort of mutation of the illness my sister had, which I now have. Only I don't have the same luxuries that she had. I don't get to stay home from school and just relax and focus on getting better- I have to suck it up, take my medicine in the morning, and go to school.

Many of you are probably thinking, "WHY??? Why would you go to school even though you feel like death?” Well, I have two words for you: final exams.

See, second semester we are allowed three absences to still be considered for exemptions from our final exams. Four or more, and you have to take your tests. Of course there are other contingencies, but those aren't easier to deal with since I usually abide by them anyway: 85+ average, no more than five tardies and commended on all your TAKS tests. Those are things that I've always just defaulted to, but the whole absence thing is a little harder.

First off, you have sickness. It's something you can't truly avoid. I mean, sure, there are precautions one can take such as eating healthy, drinking plenty of fluids, taking vitamins and washing your hands a lot. But in the end, germs always seem to overcome these obstacles and take over your body.

Now I'm pretty sure that you've all had the flu at some point in your life, so you know how difficult it is to do things when you have it; you don't really have any motivation to just walk around your house, let alone focus on schoolwork.

But I don't really have a choice. Not only will missing school point me farther away from getting exemptions, it will also put me farther behind in my studies.

There's a lot more information to cover in high school than there ever was in elementary, or middle school. Or maybe that's just how it seems. Either way, there is a lot more work that the teachers all throw at us; more tests to study for. It's sometimes too much to handle even when I'm in my right mind. That's why these past couple of days have been so hard on me.

I've been at school, trying my hardest to pay attention in class, when I should have been back at home, curled up on the couch watching TV, or sleeping. It wasn't as bad yesterday because at least I could sing during choir, although in hindsight that was probably a bad idea because I'm sure I sounded terrible, but today I was forced to sit there in silence as my choir worked with our beloved assistant director. (Though in my opinion, and I know many others in the choir program agree, he should be the head director; he's more than qualified for the position.) Anyway, they ended up doing some work in the breezeway, this little room that has amazing acoustics, and I was in awe.

In a way, I was both happy and sad that I was able to just stand aside and listen to my choir for once. Happy because I could finally hear how we sounded from the audience's perspective, but sad because they had sounded so amazing without me that I'm almost afraid to rejoin them and risk ruining their sound.

Anyway, I think that three absences are not enough because with this rule many students, such as myself, go to school when they are ill. This cannot be good for anyone, and I feel very guilty for going to school in my condition knowing that I could possibly cause a fellow classmate to catch my disease.

Well, I say disease, but it's obvious not that bad, or else I wouldn't be able to go to school. Besides, the only reason most people can tell that I'm sick is that I'm not as spirited as usual and apparently I was pretty pale today.

But don't be fooled. Inside, I feel completely awful. It's hard to even focus on this blog post, but I need to do something or else I will go insane; I feel like I've just been wasting my life these past couple of days because I've done nothing but sleep.

I guess my main point is that I'm frustrated with my school for having the absence policy they do because it means that I have to go to school when I'm sick and just want to stay home and rest.

I hope you have managed to escape the evil clutches of the flu virus, but if you've suffered the fate as I have, then you have my pity.

New Directions

Oxygen had a "Glee" marathon all day Saturday and, with the exception of a lunch break, I watched every episode. I wasn't always a fan of "Glee", though. When I first heard about the show I was sort of interested, but I missed the first episode, so I just never got into it.

Being in choir, I was constantly surrounded by talk of this "amazing" show, so I began to dislike "Glee" out of spite; everyone else was obsessed, so I decided that I didn't like it.

I was just being stubborn and difficult (typical me).

Then one day, I walked into my choir director's office and a group of kids were crowded around his computer watching the previous night's episode. It was the episode where Kurt and the rest of the football team danced to "Single Ladies". After that I started watching the show, but it was just for the music and the discussions I could then participate in with other "gleeks". I have kind of gotten into the show now, but I really only watch it for the following reasons:

1. The music. Even though I don't like their interpretation sometimes, and even when I do I still prefer the original, I appreciate what the show is doing by exposing younger generations to music they otherwise wouldn't have experienced. Being a major Broadway fanatic, I love that "Glee" is getting kids to like some of the amazing songs musical theatre has to offer.

2. Jane Lynch (Sue Sylvester). She is the funniest character on the show; no doubt about it.

3. Heather Morris (Brittany S. Pierce). The second funniest character of the show. Her one-liners are hilarious.

4. Matthew Morrison (Will Schuester). I absolutely adore Matthew Morrison. He can dance, sing and act- a triple threat. I love that he comes from a Broadway background as well because it means that he can actually sing and doesn't rely on auto-tune like some of his cast mates.

5. Lastly, DARREN CRISS! (Blaine). I have been obsessed with Darren Criss since I first watched A Very Potter Musical last year. He impressed me with his talent from the moment I heard him sing, and he continued to amaze me as I went on to watch A Very Potter Sequel and as I watch "Glee". In fact, Darren Criss is pretty much the reason I have stuck with the show for this long. He has yet to disappoint me with his talent, and I sincerely doubt that he will anytime soon.

Frankly, I could write a whole series of blog posts about Darren Criss, and I might dedicate one to him, but too many could lead to some stalker/overly-obsessed fangirl accusations, so I won't.

"Soup"er Bowl of Caring

Prepare to, for probably the first time, be jealous of me. Channing Tatum will be in my high school auditorium tomorrow afternoon to talk to a select number of fourth period classes who had the highest percentage of donated cans.

See, we're doing this thing called the "Souper Bowl of Caring"; super creative, right?

Anyway, the top ten fourth period classes that brought in cans were given the opportunity to listen to him talk tomorrow and then the number one class gets to have a meet and greet with Mr. Tatum after the assembly.

I'm sad that my fourth period class was not as inspired to bring cans as some of the others in my school because I think it would have been worth it just for the chance to stare at him for 52 minutes.

But there's no turning back the clock-- what's done is done -- so I will not be getting to see Channing... Maybe next time a celebrity makes an appearance at my school I will be more dedicated, or maybe I'll just be stuck wishing I'd have brought in 1,500 cans (that's how many the number one class brought). Insane, right?

I mean, some girls at my school went door to door in their neighborhoods with wagons and trucks, practically begging people for cans, so that they could possibly see/meet Channing. I mean he is extremely attractive, but is he really worth all that effort? Especially when it takes away from your schoolwork? I don't think so...

Even more pathetic are the people who actually went to stores and spent money on hundreds of cans. COME ON PEOPLE.

Now please don't get me wrong, I think it's absolutely fantastic that our school was able to collect so many cans because they're going to a great cause, but the fact that the only reason some people brought in cans was so they could meet a celebrity is just sad. Aren't people generous anymore? I seriously doubt any of those Tatum-obsessed girls would have done all that, whether it be door-to-door pleading, or just plain buying cans, had Channing Tatum not been a part of the reward.

It just shows the priorities of my generation, and it makes me quite sad.
This is why I am planning on bringing some of my owns cans to school tomorrow, if they will still except them, and just donate them to the cause because I want hungry people to have food.

Hopefully in the future people will be as enthusiastic to donate cans just because it's the right thing to do.

Another thing you should understand, I completely understand where these girls were coming from, being a fan of Channing myself. I toyed with the idea of going to my neighbors to collect cans, but never did because I simply had too much homework and other things going on. So please don't think that I am separating myself from the rest of my peers because I'm not.

Instead, I am merely reflecting on this experience in the hopes that people, myself included, will remember my advice the next time they are asked to donated something as simply as canned food for a good cause.

On a completely random and unrelated note, my voice instructor informed me today that my voice recital will not be until next Tuesday due to inclement weather expected tomorrow. This gives me an extra week to memorize the French!!! It's also a relief because I sort of lost my voice this weekend and would have sounded rubbish had it still been tomorrow.

You're Invited!

What: Winter Voice Recital
When: February 1st
Time: 6:00 PM
Problem: I DON’T HAVE MY SONG MEMORIZED!

It's a choir kid's worst nightmare... (especially when the choir kid in question is a perfectionist with OCPD)

Usually, for me memorizing songs is like breathing— it comes naturally, effortlessly. Apparently those memorization skills don’t translate when it comes to foreign language solos…

Ever since sixth grade I’ve been telling my many voice lesson teachers that I only do solos in English. This stems from a fear of sounding like am silly, little white girl. Which, considering I am a silly, little white girl, is a perfectly valid fear.

I can’t roll my R’s and the most popular language for solos is Italian, so you see my problem.

Anyway, I had managed to avoid foreign languages up until this year…but my private voice instructor desperately wants all of her students to be 1st Sopranos, but I am an Alto, so that doesn’t really work out very well for me.

I mean, sure I can hit a high G, but that doesn’t mean I want to... Especially not in front of an audience when my heart’s beating a thousand times a second.

So my voice teacher really wanted me to sing “The Crucifixion” this year, which was appealing because of its length (only about 60 seconds long), but when I saw three high F’s, I went running for the hills.

When I told her that I thought it was a little high for me and asked if we could possibly try a song with a range more appropriate for an Alto, but she wouldn’t hear any of it… That was, until I suggested we try something foreign.

She was so excited that I was finally going to try something in a different language that she even had the piece I’m doing transposed so that I only had to hit a high E.

So what exactly am I singing? — “Romance” by Claude Debussy. It’s in French. None of the lyrics repeat. UGH.

I actually had a voice lesson yesterday, and was informed that, since my last lesson, I had improved nearly 200% since the last time I had sang the song, which lifted my spirits quite a bit.

Well, wish me luck because I still haven’t managed to sing the song without making a single mistake yet, and I only have four more days before I have to sing it in front of about thirty or so people…

(Oh, and in case you hadn't already figured this out, random Googler, I'm not actually inviting you to my recital because that would just be weird. Hope you're not too disappointed.)

Books Have Feelings Too

My whole life I've never really acted like the age I was. I've always been very mature and ever since eighth grade I've been asked by people what college I was currently attending. Just the other day a guy in my choir asked me if I was a senior. Mind you, we're now half way through the school year and I see this kid every day.

Anyway, the point I'm trying to make is that I've never really been a kid... or a teenager for that matter.

I mean, sure, there are certain things about me that are character traits of the typical teenage girl, but usually I am more like an adult.

I could go more into that, but that's not really why I started the blog post, so I'll save that for another time. What I really wanted to talk about was how teenagers in my generation don't read enough.

Seriously, so many people talk about how they don't read any of the required reading for school, yet alone read for fun.

It just makes me sad... Especially because there are so many things that you get when you read such as a wider vocabulary and a better imagination. Overall, reading makes you smarter.

And apparently the world agrees with me because many new inventions are making reading more appealing and "easier" for people everywhere to do. For example, electronic reading devices such as the Nook and the Kindle allow you to carry around a portable library, and new phones with Kindle apps allow people to have books on their phones.

Personally, I don't use a Kindle or a Nook and I hopefully never will (some people think that physical books will eventually be completely replaced by electronic copies... that's one of my worst nightmares), but I do appreciate that they are making more people become interested in reading. Not a lot of people I know, but at least some where there are people whose intelligence levels are increasing.

Now that I've said something positive about Nooks and Kindles (which I will now collectively refer to as Nooks because that's shorter), I have to talk about the negative.

Why I hate Nooks:

1. Their commercials litter my TV. It's annoying because you don't see commercials for actualy books on TV. Not even the Harry Potter books were advertised on TV when they were first released. Books are better than TV commercials and the devices that you can read them on should be too.

2. They might make books become considered obsolete and therefore cause publishing companies to stop printing them. This would compeltely break my heart because there is nothing better than opening a brand new book and hearing the spine creak, or the smell of books (old and new).

3. I get made fun of for carrying around books in my purse, yet it's perfectly fine for my friend to carry around her Nook. Double standards much?

I could continue, but I feel like I've hated on Nooks enough for one day.

Read books more and buy them so that hopefully they will continued to be published for a very long time.

That Sounds Like a Personal Problem to Me

The other day, my friend informed me that I was suffering from OCPD, which she explained as sort of like OCD only way more intense.

With semester exams at the end of this week, I had forgotten about this diagnosis until just now and since I was not completely satisfied with my friend's explanation of the disorder, I decided to do a little research.

My research skills are few and far between, so I just went straight to Google (by go-to source) and simply clicked on the first link that appeared-- Wikipedia. (Shocking)

SInce I'm sure you're all incredibly interested in my issues, I will include the interesting/important parts of my findings (And, hey, who knows? You might just learn something about yourself):

"Obsessive–compulsive personality disorder (OCPD) is characterized by a pervasive pattern of preoccupation with orderliness, perfectionism, and mental and interpersonal control at the expense of flexibility, openness, and efficiency. People with OCPD may feel anxious when they perceive that things are not right. This can lead to routines and rules for ways of doing things."

Yeah...that's like me, only in text form.

Anyway, I guess I should list the symptoms (go ahead and take this time for a little self-analysis):

"Preoccupation with details, rules, lists, order, organization, and schedules; being very rigid and inflexible in their beliefs; showing perfectionism that interferes with completing a task; excessive focus on being productive with their time; being very conscientious; having inflexible morality, ethics, or values; hoarding items that may no longer have value; and a reluctance to trust a work assignment or task to someone else for fear that their standards will not be met."

As far as the hoarding goes, it says that people with OCPD tend to hoard money, not items. The reason for this often lies in a fear of problems that could occur in the future, which would lead to a need for extra money.

Early in my life, I probably would have denied having a hoarding problem, but I have since then matured and know better-- I do have a money hoarding issue. It's something that I have had problems with since I was a child. Any time I would get money from relatives for my birthday or Christmas I would save and hardly ever spend it. Thankfully, I have managed to improve and do spend more of my money now (mainly on books, but that's something, right?)

Another thing I learned was that I had incorrectly diagnosed myself when I was younger, I used to say that I had OCD because that, ADD, and ADHD were the only disorders that I really knew something about, but I have since learned that, while OCD and OCPD have their similarities, there is a fine line between the two.

"Despite the similar names, they are two distinct disorders, although some OCPD individuals also suffer from OCD, and the two are sometimes found in the same family. People experiencing OCPD do not generally feel the need to repeatedly perform ritualistic actions-- a common symptom of OCD --and usually find pleasure in perfecting a task whereas OCD patients are often more distressed after their actions."

Great, so I get pleasure from my insanity.

Last thing that I found out was that OCPD only occurs in about 1% of the general population (so, random Googler, you're probably safe), 3-10% in psychiatric patients, and that it is twice as common in men than women.

I guess that makes me a double-whammy, general population AND a female. (I always knew that I was special, I just didn't know how special.)

Anyway, I'm going to go see a therapist now...

Hopefully you didn't find yourself staring back at you through those Wikipedia quotes, but if you did, then at least know that you're among friends... well a friend-- me.

Tutoring Mishaps

Usually I am a very dedicated, hard-working student; I get mostly A's and sometimes one or two B+'s, but recently I've been struggling to even make an 80 in Chemistry.

This has got my inner perfectionist in a state of panic because while my first semester grades don't affect my exemption from final exams, my grades next semester will have a major impact on my last few weeks of school.

See, if you score commended on all your TAKS tests (Writing, Math, Social Studies, and Science), have a second semester average of an 85 or above, three or less absences, and five or less tardies in every class you can be exempt from finals.

I have been able to achieve this the past two years without really having to worry about whether or not I would have an 85 or above semester average, but this year I'm not so sure about that... If I can't find someway to get my Chemistry grade up next semester, then I'll be taking that final and I'm pretty sure I would fail that, which wouldn't help my grades at all. But right now, I'm focusing more on my semester exams, which are quickly approaching.

My Chemistry exam is next Thursday and in an attempt to prepare myself, I asked a friend of mine to tutor me. It didn't go quite like I had imagined... When I asked my friend if they would tutor me, they said that they would and that since they were already going to be tutoring another of my friends in Chemistry that night that I should just join them. Being as desperate as I was, I agreed to the double tutoring session knowing that I probably wouldn't be learning very much; my two friends are crazy when they get together and the other one being tutored is one of the most ADD humans I have ever met, myself excluded.

Sadly, my assumptions were correct; my friend managed to half-way finish a single balancing equation problem and I think I'm more confused about Chemistry now than I was before the tutoring. Oh well, I didn't have any actual homework to do last night, so I basically just hung out with my friends for three hours as I attempted to make them focus, and they goofed around and got me off-task. It was actually really amusing, and I had a good time doing nothing productive.

If the three of us ever end up studying together again I'll have to try a little harder to keep them on-task. We'll see how well that goes...