A Little Rehab.

This blog needs to go off to rehab (what? All the cool blogs have already been).

I'm putting this little bugger aside for a little bit, while I work on my story (I'm aiming for novel length, btw) and research on what exactly makes a good blog.

Any suggestions?

Snow?

So what is this?  Snow?  That means Christmas, right?

(Yes, this is going to be about Christmas).

Here's the story:

While being terribly bored earlier this morning (school was miraclously cancelled--who woulda thought?), I was looking at the mail from yesterday which contained several coupon-bearing store catalogs--you know, the ones that are from like, supermarkets and local stores?  So I came upon Walmart's catalog-magazine thing and their holiday slogan is apparently "Christmas costs less at Walmart".

That made me laugh.  Here was tangible proof just how consumer-y Christmas has become.  Why does Christmas have to cost anything?  Because Santa doesn't really make toys up at the North Pole?  It's probably because (Christians) people forgot why we even celebrate the holiday.  I'm not sure how consumer-y Hannukah or Kwanza are or what other kinds of celebrations cost, but it seems like people think that if they spend December 25 without opening presents and indulging each other in material things, it will just not be the same.  Or maybe the TV just entices people to buy, because materialism is human nature, and once it starts, it is one of the most difficult habits to break.  I'm trying to kick the habit myself, which is why I didn't ask for anything from my family this year--we'll see how that goes.  

But going back to the whole "Christmas costs less" thing, perhaps we should take that as a sign to spend a little less on lavish seasonal parties.  I can't speak for other people, but I see the same issues of spending in my own Polish, Catholic family.  My parents both grew up fasting on Christmas Eve and Christmas Day, spending it at the church and with the familia.  They've tried to instill this tradition in my sister and me, but it took me all of almost ten years to realize that I should respect what is traditional (until about the age of six or seven, of course I did whatever they wanted me to).  My extended family seems to have been sucked into the swirling vortex of spending, throwing out money on things they don't really need to give, ever though I love them all the same, and who knows where they managed to get the money (they seem to be living a life of wealth when there is little wealth for them to sit on.  I'm sure they're not the only ones; i.e. "BIG FINANCIAL CRISIS").

The feeling of Christmas and the holiday itself should cost pennies, if anything.  We should look at gifts as extra things that come with the territory, but not things that should overpower the meaning behind December 25th.  I'm not trying to preach (I'm sure it sounds like it), but I would like to point out that Toys-R-Us, Walmart, the mall, and Abercrombie (or other high-priced clothing "boutiques" that leave you heavily intoxicated with perfume) don't sell happiness on their shelves--or if they did, it would probably break your bank account, because hey, who doesn't want to profit?

If you look past the gift wrap and sparkles and want to better someone else's life, do something useful with your time: volunteer.

Happy Holidays--because we're not "one-size fits all", are we?--and to people who may read this and react to that greeting like my father would, Merry Christmas!  

It's Britney, Besch.

My mom wants me to do homework, but since I'm not coming to school tomorrow, I'm going to rebel for once in my life, and not do it.

SAT here I come!

So yesterday, slacker-itis caught up with me, and that Britney Spears thing was on, so I watched it.

That's right, we're switching the topic.  Is that okay with you?  Yeah, didn't think so, everyone loves a good Britney story nowadays.

Well, except for me.  While she was going through her premature mid-life crisis, I could care less, only because the media made it seem like everyone cared.  And you know what?  I bet half the people I know didn't care.  At least for a little while.  So when I started watching the show, I wasn't amazed at how she felt about her life--of course she always had a fairly large magnifying glass over her--but I never saw just how bad things were for her.  And I liked the fact that I could finally say, "Yes, she's not stupid."

The media most definitely made her look that way, even though they didn't have to say it right out.  They must have been foaming at the mouth for the next crazy thing she did.

And you know what happened?  I started to like her again.  I wouldn't say admire her in a role model-y sort of way, but I liked seeing how her life was and hearing what she thought about what she went through.  I felt bad for laughing at her last year at the MTV VMAs.  I think a common reaction after watching that special was, "Wow, that must suck."

Some parts, of course, I had to laugh at her mistakes.  And then I took it back, because I reminded myself that no matter how distant I was from her, she deserved to prove herself of something before any judgement on whether to listen to her or not was made.  Which did happen, and I just sorta listened and watched in fascination.

It made me rethink my wish to be a musician.  Maybe I'd stay Indie, if it ever happened.

Personal Side Note!

Yes, I like my new Nirvana tee a lot.  Thanks for asking, they're really cool.

Now that I got that out of the way, I would like to take the time to write a personal note about the plight I have taken personally, that's right, folks, the plight of the author.  I had a brilliant brain-storm last night (I hate that phrase, but there did seem to be an unforcasted storm up there last night).  I finally dug myself out of the dark, brooding, depressing hole of "WRITER'S BLOCK".  The name is fitting.  Sometimes I feel like I hit a brick wall blocking my way.  Fun, eh?

Aaanywho, I put most of the (figurative) puzzle together, and so did my character, and I'm so excited to write, and I'm just so excited, and I'm thrilled, and....

I don't have time to write.

I love my life.

I just took the time out of English blogging to blog this, blog.

Let Me Be Objective (Critical)

So, yes.  Twilight pandemonium.

(Sorry, I'm watching The Soup while writing this, so I'm snickering while I'm trying to recount my thoughts).

Overall, it was a really good movie.  Getting into the effects and such, the "running" was decent.  People were complaining, but really, it's only like any other modern vampire movie, and specifically, I'm citing Queen of the Damned (yes, it didn't get fantastic reviews).  But the tone in which it was filmed was breathtaking at times, especially with the dramatically green Washington backdrop.  

The dialogue was decent, a few of the lines making the transfer from the novel to the movie.  But I wouldn't advise connecting the two.  I would put as being "loosely based" on the novel, because the director, Catherine Hardwicke, and the writer, Melissa Rosenberg, really morphed the movie so it would be told in a short amount of time, and that it would make sense to everyone.  So if one would go into the theater thinking it is exactly, or almost exactly, like the book, one will most definitely be disappointed.

Now on to the cast.  Yes, the boys were gorgeous, and Kristen Stewart is very pretty, but I found that Robert Pattinson's struggle with his accent hindered his performance, but he carried the part of Edward very well.  Bella, on the other hand, was not as easy to overlook.  Again, it is hard to detach oneself from the book when one recently read it (namely me, but I'm sure I wasn't the only one).  The annoying persistence (which is something I have against the book) of Bella's character, regarding her "love" for Edward, was there.  Stewart pulled it off, but I felt like I saw the same persona in the movie Speak (which I enjoyed very much) that I saw here, which was disappointing, personally.  Bella, novel Bella, grew on me over the course of four hundred or so pages, but it was hard to warm up to this Bella.  Book aside, Stewart's cold style of acting in these roles fit well with the rest of the cast, and as an audience of mostly teenage girls, some things that weren't supposed to be funny were.

My rant being done, I must go to sleep.  I'm tired and still not sure whether I want to go reaf laking (leaf raking, I mean), or sleep in.  I want to help the senior citizens, but I haven't gotten eight hours of sleep in almost a month.  But enough of me.

My final verdict: four out of five stars (being generous)

It managed to hold me captive, just as I as reluctantly held by the novel.

Go see it.

Done With Yet Another Vampire Novel

So, there, I did it.  As promised.

And yes, I have to admit that Stephenie Meyer is a damn good author.

She really did pull me in, and before I knew it, I had almost finished the book.  And truly, it was probably because I'm a teenager and also a self-proclaimed hopeless romantic.

But the entire time, I had a sober voice in the back of my head that would get louder every time I would put the book down to finally go to bed.  

Here's the thing.  Though Meyer spent a good three-hundred something pages growing a relationship, it seemed too short of a time to really build the bond of "I'm not afraid of a vampire, and I love one so much that I would die for him".  Too unrealistic.  While my other friends delighted in all four books of the series, I found myself "sobering up" from "Twilight fever" and looking at it in a realistic way.  The real action came a little too late in the story for me, and Bella was a bit too kluzty.

Not saying that I wasn't totally in love with Edward like every other female, teenage reader.  Yes, he was HOT.  But I simply felt it their relationship was rushed and it was a bit too artifically teenage for an old man and a seventeen-year-old girl.

Must go eat dinner.  I'll post my own movie review later.

Beware.

Yes, that's right.

I went out to Border's (or is it Borders?), and my mom got me Twilight from, that's right, TJMaxx. Whatev.  So I started reading it, and it's like, de javu.  I mean, I read the first chapter a year ago and put it down, but I'll will myself to trudge on.

I'm hoping that after the first chapter, Meyer will enthrall me with her story-telling abilities and I will become one of those lurrrrvly zombies walking the halls of Newington High School, who swear by these books.

We'll see.

This was just to serve as a warning, btw.

I'm waiting to be amazed and be completely sucked in to a swirling black vortex of literature that will have me finishing the entire series in a week.

Perhaps my expectations are too high?

Love of a Different Sort

It is not very advisable to fall in love with a vampire (let's assume, from this point on, they are real, fiction-wise).  So yeah, as I said, unrealistic.  Let's analyze this for a second:

1.  They are basically very, very, very old people encased in younger looking bodies.  (Even the ones who were changed when they were elderly-ish)

2.  Not matter how old they are, they have been immortal for quite some time, and they've seen and experienced things in history that some of us as current mortals would not be able to comprehend.

-Bouncing off of that: Because they were there and lived through it, we could not understand.

3.  Their appearance never changes.  You would have to become one yourself to keep up with him.

4.  Dude, they kill people and drink blood.  Like, guzzle, guzzle, munch, much, gobble, gobble, CHOMP!

5.  They are more likely to receed to their animal instincts (like zombies).

6.  Not all of them are hot, young things.  Only Hollywood and teen fiction have destorted their image into hot teen/twenty-somethings.

7.  They drink blood.

Now, there are a few stipulations, which I probably should have put in the beginning of the post (I do this often, no?):

1.  I love vampires.  

2.  I haven't read Twilight yet.  I know, it's a sin for all of you main-stream vamp lovers.  My opinion on this topic may change if Meyers manages to swoon me with her words.

3.  I'm not saying that any of my characters wouldn't fall in love with vampires, I'm just saying it's not realistic.  And probably not advisable.

4.  I happen to love roleplaying with malicious, hot-tempered vampires because they are more fun than sappy, lovey-dovey, do good vamps.

5.  When reading such mainstream vampire fiction targeted at teenagers, keep in mind to discriminate and not be overswept with delight.  Which is why I adore the Morganville Vampires Series because the main character falls in love with a human boy.

Anyway, that was my rant.  I needed to get it out, because it seemed that as soon as people read said books, they began to think of vampires as humans, which they are clearly not.  Again, I will revert to the recent SNL skit about The View:

"Elizabeth, you need to discriminate!"

I will post an update to my theory after reading Twilight.  I will try very hard not to get sucked into it.

We'll see. n___n

AP Biology

AP Biology.

Why is it just not "clicking"?  I write notes down when I think I need to, for Pete's sake (Idk who Pete is, man) I take notes when the teacher is just talking about a lab procedure.  But really, like, I have such a bad grade.

Granted, I do horrible on the tests.  But by my third year of high school, especially after last year's AP Chem class, I can come to expect C's.  But they shouldn't be there.

Every night, before I go to bed, I pray to God that he will find a way to proportionally extend the amount of time in the day and reduce the amount of sleep I need to function.

It hasn't happened yet.  :[

I just don't have the time, dude.

And by "dude", I mean, the teacher, my friends, my parents, all my other teachers.

I was considering wiping a few hours of sleep completely from my schedule, if not all the hours of sleep I get between ten and three, but I found that when I get to school, I am either unnaturally giddy, or incredibly gloomy.

And if you were wondering where I get the time to write all this down, I'm borrowing it from my Pre-Calc homework time.  Not like M (math) checks it. xDD

So yeah, M (science), if you're wondering about why my grade is below your standard, it's because I cannot find spare time to study every night, nor can I figure out which nights to study.  As it is, I'm scrambling to get all my homework done.

Whatev.  I need sleep, so I cut some work tonight.  This whole staying-after-school-almost-every-day-for-the-past-week thing isn't helping either.  Oh, well.

School Newspapers.

Ahh.
I'm working on the school newspaper.
And blogging.
That's skill, besh.
(Did I spell that right?)

I should prolly go, because I have work to get done.
Seriously.
I am sooo off track.
Need to work on The Scribe.
Ahh.

Finished!

I was just about to post another post about being done with my essay when I had to go and I closed the window.

Dammit.

But now it's official:  I just finished writing the rough draft of one of the worst essays I have ever written.

I feel like when I write essay, I drone on and I can never be on focus.

Sometimes I piece the words together right and I get recognition, and sometimes I don't and get a little "Try Harder Next Time" on the paper.

But it's fine, I guess, because this blog is taking up my attention span.

Oh, and about the title.  I changed it because I was listening to "Drive", by Incubus.  They're pretty rad.  Not just because of the music, but like, Brandon Boyd is president of the "Men Who Are Fans of Being Shirtless" Club.

AH-mazing.

Was that too inappropriate?  Whoops, too late, huh?

Youtube "Incubus" and watch the video for "Drive", or "Wish You Were Here", or maybe even "Anna Molly" (no shirtlessness there, sorry, but a pair of nice arms).

Oh my gosh, I have gone to far.

Time to go then and do some Journalism homework.

Spoilers! (The Following Movie Gets a Rating Between "Uggh" and "Eeh")

Seriously.

I really should be finishing my English paper.  (Half way done, Miss Winkler, if you happen to read this post).

But I was thinking about how yesterday, I went over a friend's house and met up with a couple other friends to do what friends do when they don't go to homecoming: have a movie night.

So we watched The Happening, and as freaky as some parts were, like the fact that the movie was about people killing themselves (sorta), the dialogue was enough to keep me grounded.

Seriously, M. Night Shamallama?  Mark Wahlberg?  I could not take him seriously.  Andy Samberg got that impression down (I'll link at the end, if I remember).

I mean, in the movie, the dude talked to a plastic house plant.

Then when he realizes he's whispering to the plant, he's like:

"It's plastic.  I'm talking to a plastic plant."  Break. "I'm still doing it."

That was when we all cracked up.

Or like when Elliot (Marky Mark) finds out his wife Alma (Zoooey Deschanel) had a date with another man, he's all like, "You know, I went to a pharmacy, and there was a really good-looking pharmacist behind the counter.  I asked her where the cough syrup was and I didn't even have a cough."

Hilarious.

A couple of times the dialogue sounded like an middle-schooler wrote it, but the fact that most of it was coming from Marky Mark's mouth healed the wound (somewhat).

And, get this, WHERE WAS THE ENDING?

The movie moved so fast that by the time the crisis "ended", we still didn't know how to wrap our heads around it, which probably solidified Faith's thesis that Shamallama was poking fun at how humans overanalyze things.  Props to Mr. Alaimo.

So yeah, if I ruined the movie for you, there really wasn't that much to ruin, and sorry.  Really, I am.  Now watch "Mark Wahlberg Talks to Animals" and you'll feel much better.

Click Here!

"You think you can do these things but you just can't, Nemo!"

I admit that I am in no way, whatsoever, the person who turns on her computer every time she needs to write something down.

I already broke my promise to LiveJournal.

But it could've been called an addiction, so I guess it's better I post sparingly.

Anywho, I'm reworking this little URL to be a more personal take on everything but my life and keep the personal personal stuff on paper, where, if worse came to worst, I would be able to destroy said "diary".

With the turf, comes the responsibility of posting more frequently.

But yeah.  I changed this because I realized that since I have to use this account to post on my English teacher's blog, I won't put any personal feelings somewhere my entire English class could, you know, read.  

And stuff.

More space fillers?

Okay!

So my name is Karolina.

And I probably should be doing my English paper.

But I have lost faith in my ability to write essays and I am not sure how to even write a thesis.

Okay scratch what I mentioned before, I will just write about whatever comes to mind.

Like this essay.

Which I don't know how to start.

Because I don't know what to write about.

Oh, why is Project Runway over and Gossip Girl no where to be found?!

Alrighty, time to put my "creative thinking cap" on (wear it all the time, anyway).

So much for being an English teacher, right?