Good Humour Man

The Good Humour ice cream man was the only person to say "no" to taking a picture with me. However, he convinced this random man standing along the street to come and take a picture with us instead. This man was hesitant was well, apparently he has been a photographer all of his life (the strap around him being a bag with a camera inside) and he said he was only comfortable behind the camera.

We met great people.

Giant

Me and my new friend, the Giant park ranger at the WWII Memorial.

Army

Me and my new friend, the military man.

Officer

Me and my new friend, the Security Officer at the Lincoln Memorial.

Ranger #1

Me and my new friend, the park ranger...at the Lincoln Memorial?

Suits

My true fantasy.

The Veterans

These veterans were the cutest people I've ever met. Lavern on the far right, is holding my hand. He is going to be 91 next week. I might love him.

Glasses

We told him that we needed a picture of a man with glasses. He didn't understand us, as he didn't speak English too well. He took off his glasses and cleaned them before he would take a picture with us. Then his wife came up, and took a picture of her husband and I with her Blackberry. I will forever be in a picture with this man...I picture her showing it to people in India about the nice girl they met in America.

Sports Man

"We need a picture of someone wearing athletic gear, would you...would you mind taking a picture with us?"

100 Middle Schoolers

Cassie: "Excuse me, we are on a picture scavenger hunt, and we need to take a picture with a large group of student tourists. Would you mind taking a picture with us?"

Chaperone: "Sure, sure, of course, of course....CLASS GATHER UP INTO A PICTURE!"

That's how we got one hundred middle schoolers from Cleveland into a picture with us.

Their teachers took pictures of this large group as well - so we will forever be embedded into pictures with these young middle school children as part of their school and class's history.

Beret

Me and my beret-wearing, NYC fan tee, Slavic buddy.

Teacher

We met this man farther up from where we met Jeremy, from Montréal. Ironically, this man is Jeremy's teacher! Heavy French accent.

Jeremy

My new friend Jeremy, visiting on a school trip from Montréal.

Beard

"You have the most wonderful beard I've ever seen, may we take a picture?"

Washington DC Adventure

My friend Cassie and I decided to go around and meet all kinds of people in Washington DC on our field trip. We split off from the group and met some truly remarkably interesting people:

Pepper

I hope that I never get pepper sprayed in the eyes.

Then again, I'm not a rapist or a convict, so I don't think that I have too much to worry about.

Scary Times Ahead

I often sit back and think about how I wished I wasn't alive in this day and age. Sometimes I wish I wasn't part of the technology generation - I wish that I was part of the decade that had no tvs, internet, cell phones. I wish that I was part of a time where reading, using one's imagination, and spending time with family and friends was all that one did. What I mean is, hanging out at football games and having lots of school spirit, being taken in a classic car to the local diner where your food was roller-skated to you. I wish I could take that classic convertable with a gentlemanly hunk to the drive-in theatre. I wish times were different.

I did wish that I lived in the 30s-50s. I wish I lived through the sixties as well - when technology was there, but simply being introduced. Not overpowering lives as it does today.

I'll be the first to admit that I spend a great amount of time on the internet...it's like an addiction to all of these technology devices that have become so incorporated with our daily lives. I feel like I cannot escape - yet then again, I wonder if I want to. I enjoy that the whole world is at our fingers with the internet. I like that you can find out anything you want about anything. At the same time, however, I wish that the mystery of the world were still to exist. The world is still mysterious to me as I have never really traveled..I can look at pictures, I can see what seems to be this alternate world. I would rather go into an unknown place, having only heard stories about the places and read of their descriptions in novels. I want to hear what places are like only through the fables and stories of these faraway ventures.

I feel as if the world is no longer a mystery. It makes me feel as if I should remain a mystery myself, to not let too much known - so that I alone can bring back the sense of mystery to myself, at least,that I find the world so lacking.

I find the world becoming an increasingly frightening place. Innovations in technology both excite me and scare me to no end. In class we were watching a video about the Cuban Missile Crisis..the teacher says, "You all were almost not born." If these missiles were to be sent in each direction, destroying the entire United States, I certainly would not exist. The world would be devastated. And that was in 1962! If I get paranoid about something that happened in 1962, just imagine how I feel about how technology has grown, especially in the military department, I feel as if the world's demise could literally be any second. If a bomb were to be dropped that demolished an entire country - our country - the world would become that of one seen in the movies. I believe that one day the things, the movies we pay attention to for entertainment will coincide, eventually, with actual world happenings. It's entirely possible that a virus could abandon New York City like in I Am Legend. It's also very possible that a virus could spread across the world, forcing the only survivors to live underneath the ground in a world impenetrable by the virus, like in 12 Monkeys.

Call me crazy, but technology is becoming very intelligent. Which is very scary. Scientists in this article:

http://www.livescience.com/technology/090802-brain-body-replacement-parts.html

insist that they hope to be able to artificially create the intricacies of the brain within the next decade. Creating brains, limbs? I even read a similar article today about space crafts/shuttles actually being developed that create such an explosion over the sky that they allow one to travel across the world in 90 minutes. It says such technology would emerge in the coming years - under five. This astounds me.

I remain both astounded and frightened at such things being developed.

Oh, how the times have changed...and will continue to.

Time

Has it really almost been a month?

Time flies.. but there's an emptiness in that month

That will only continue....

DC

Going to Washington D.C. today!

The more time off of school, the better.

Only about ten school days left of this .... "place"

Pictures of Prom

Here are two pictures that we took at the beginning of the night.

Prom was okay.

And Now For Something Completely Different

This post is dedicated to my new favorite comedy, other than The Cable Guy.

Monty Python's: And Now For Something Completely Different

It is absolutely the silliest thing I have ever seen in my life, and I love it. LOVE IT. I love the British sense of humor...much more interesting than the cheap, vulgar, American laugh. Not to say I don't like Superbad, because it is very funny, but I like creative humor - and boy oh boy, do the boys of Monty Python know how to be silly, witty, sarcastic, ridiculous...just the best of humor wrapped into one.

In the above picture there is a group of "baby-snatchers" on the loose (announced a news anchor), that are terrorizing the city. A man is shown pushing a baby carriage down the street. Suddenly a group of men dressed as babies come and pick up the man and carry him away...leaving the baby. One would think "baby-snatchers" would take the baby..but instead, they are just dressed like babies. The movie opens with this:

[first lines] [forest]
Announcer: In this picture, there are forty-seven people. None of them can be seen. In this film, we hope to show you how not to be seen. This is Mr. E.R. Bradshaw of Napier Court, Black Lion Road, London, SE14. He cannot be seen. Now I'm going to ask him to stand up. Mr. Bradshaw, will you stand up, please?
[Mr. Bradshaw stands up and is shot]
Announcer: This demonstrates the value of not being seen.

I guess it takes a certain type of humor...but to me, this movie is hilarious and it is even better whenever watched. Typing quotes does not do the movie justice. Also...trippy visuals!

Pretty Penelope

Pretty Penelope has a problem.
Pretty Penelope has a pussing, purple pimple!
Pretty Penelope's pussing purple pimple is right inside her dimple!
Pretty Penelope peels putrid puss from her pouring pores
Maybe Pretty Penelope has a putrid, pussing, purple pimple
From scrubbing her face along dirty floors!
Pretty Penelope no longer feels pretty
Especially when presented with painful pimple-popping machines!
Ones that chug-a-lugg and pop even pimples unseen!
Presently, no pimple-popping penetration will be performed
No pimple-popping technique will prep Penelope for this pest of a pimple!
Pessimistic Penelope no longer feels pretty
Forever putting pimple-puss-prevention cream
On her putrid, pussing, purple, pouring pimple.

My Poem

The weekend came and went. Sad Brad still waits in his tent.
Jill and Bill were to come over Saturday at two
My, oh my, how the weekend flew!
Toys and trains begin to rust, as Brad cleans up the unused cups.
"Maybe Jill and Bill got entangled with a deer
while riding on their bikes all of the way here."
thought Brad, wishing he had friends.
Blue Steel, his speedster bike was waiting for Brad to take a ride.
The grass, the trees, the bark, the bees,
Boy did Jill and Bill know how to hide!
Brad peeked in windows, under dogs
Even in the forest, under logs!
Brad sighed, gave up, and rode Blue Steel back into town.
Mom was outside, by the empty tents that only made him frown.
"Brad, over here," his mother yelled to him.
"Jill and Bill are over at the jungle gym!"
Brad raced, he flew, with anger now inside
He was going to give those two a real piece of his mind!
Jill was hanging by one leg, upside down
Bill was on top tanning, turning his skin brown.
Blue Steel was thrown on the grass in spite
As Brad walked over with all of his might.
Jill and Bill gave Brad a smile.
"Yeah, last time I invite them over for awhile!"
Bill climbed on top of the jungle gym
And slapped his hand hard on Bill's burning skin!
Bill yelled, he cried, as Jill almost died!
Topsy-turvy, she fell with a thump
On her head she now felt an egg-shaped lump!
Soon every boy and girl at the playground was crying
All as a result of little Brad's terrorizing!
Brad hung his head and walked away
His fuming anger would not let him stay.
Whining cries were now fading from his ears
But voices, it seemed, were only growing nearer.
Jill and Bill sprinted up to his side
"Hey Brad, what's up with all this, why are you trying to hide?"
"What do you mean?" said Brad, "You never showed up to my party!"
Jill and Bill looked at each other and gave a laugh very hardy.
"Silly Brad," they sang, "We didn't mean to leave you alone,
We came over at two, but your mom said you weren't home!"
Brad sped off on his bike, angry at his mother
"How c-c-could she d-do such a th-th-thing?" he stuttered.
Shaking with his anger, he could barely go inside
What if his mother yelled at him and he cried?
Before he could decide, she opened up the door
Gave Brad a widened smile and used cookies as a lure
How could he stay mad at warm chocolate chip cookies?
But still, he thought, how could his mother be so crooked?
She ruined his party, got rid of his friends!
He threw down the cookies and thought of hating her to no end
Again she stood up, and trapped Brad in a hug,
"Silly Brad, please don't look so smug
You know for you, I have nothing but love."
"Then why, why, would you leave me waiting in that tent
For friends who will never show themselves again?"
His mother looked down, apparently distraught
"Yeah," thought Bill, "She didn't think she would be caught!"
"Oh, my boy, I guess I have to tell you now.
I planned a bigger, better party with all your friends somehow.
There will be balloons and cake, play trains and sandcastles
I promised everyone a wizard who will truly be fantastical.
Cowboys will dance around your tent, lasso you up tight
Girls will try and save you from the pursuing fight!
Silly Brad, you'll truly have a surprise.
You really didn't think I'd forget my favorite guy?"
His mother tugged Silly Brad close into her arms
"I guess," he said, "Mother really does have her charms."

Finally

Cheers to Pennsylvania in taking a step forward in becoming more liberal and, well, taking America a step forward in their first attempt to decriminalize marijuana for those with debilitating illnesses. Ya know, like fourteen other states in America have? Not to mention countries, pfew! Kudos.

http://www.collegian.psu.edu/blogs/politics/2010/05/medical_marijuana_legislation.aspx

Spite

If there is one thing that really makes me angry - it is whenever promises are broken.

It doesn't matter whether it is a simple promise or not - a promise is a promise and they are things that I take very seriously! For if one is unable to keep one's word, then for what can they be counted upon for? Continual disappointment.

I do not feel betrayed because I am past the point of caring of such a menial thing, yet I am very annoyed and just sick of it and am ready for twenty school days to be up.

If you are going to promise something to one person, let alone a multitude of people - MAKE SURE YOU FOLLOW THROUGH AND KEEP YOUR PROMISE or else people will simply become disenchanted.

That is all.

My Big Post of Sexy Men

I have a thing for chivalrous men in suits smoking tobacco pipes with five o'clock shadows.

Sadly, most of these men only exist for me in movies of the past.

Why, oh why, can't I meet a suit-wearing, pipe-smoking, contained but scruffy five-o'clock-shadow-wearing, motorcycle riding, well-coifed man?

Maybe I'm too picky. *sigh*

Here are some men who fit this category beautifully for me.

ALEC BALDWIN

Oh baby, of course...the sexiest man in Hollywood, always wearing a suit! Gorgeous blue squinty eyes, jet black hair, a dark, soothing voice...the corporate man. So appealing to me for many, many reasons..

MARLON BRANDO

Old school Marlon Brando...so steamy! haha especially in "A Streetcar Named Desire." Unlike Alec Baldwin, Marlon gets uglier as he ages. No "Godfather" Brando for me! Brando is a brilliant actor - consistently portraying dark characters with a steamy anger. He is truly sexy.

Motorcycles...very sexy!

CLARK GABLE

Silently sexy in "It Happened One Night" Gable is always seen with a tobacco pipe, being firm in his words and actions with women, yet sympathetic and underlying caring. YES I can get that much from classic movie performances such as this one.

JAMES DEAN

No words needed. How I wish I lived back when all of these hottttttttttttttties were in their prime.

Smoking on top of his Porsche Roadster only adds to his sex appeal.

CARY GRANT

Where do I even begin? Cary is a bronze god. A professional, witty, light-hearted, mature bronze god.

Ladies and gentlemen, the picture above of Cary Grant is how I picture my "dream man" in my head. Take note. If the man in his exact form in this picture were to come up and talk to me, I would swoon...then faint. No picture can top this. Hey Cary, you have any sons?

HUMPHREY BOGART

There's just something really sexy about the mysteriousness of the way light hits a man with a hat, suit/long coat, and cigarette in a black and white photo.

STEVE MCQUEEN

Motorcycle-riding, chain-smoking, car-racing bad boy.

last but definitely not least.....

JACK NICHOLSON

I think that Jack Nicholson is a hair away from taking over Alec Baldwin's spot as sexiest man. Of course Jack is in his 70's now....but back in the 1970's and up he was a stud. Cigarette-smoking, motorcycle-riding, bad boy. His voice is smooth and sexy. The dark, twisted characters that he plays makes him all the more attractive. Man, I guess I really have a "bad boy" theme going on here - but he's perfect. His acting is brilliant...let's face it - dark, creepy characters are just more sexy to me than "surfer dudes." or nice guys.

Mhmm. No words needed.

Work

I'm sad.

I won't be looking forward to going to work for the next month.

Apricot Halves

Note to anyone who takes Calculus:

Never open a can of apricot halves in Calculus....or you will get yelled at hilariously for ten minutes by the teacher.

""I CAN TAKE THE COOKIES, THE BROWNIES, BUT WHAT IS THIS?! APRICOT HALVES? WHO EVEN EATS APRICOTS? SAM DOES I GUESS. YOU BROUGHT A CAN OPENER AND YOU DON'T EVEN NEED A CAN OPENER TO OPEN IT. OH MY GOD SOMEONE SHOULD TAKE MY BLOOD PRESSURE RIGHT NOW""

This made my day exponentially more exciting.

True Anger

I am honestly spewing with anger right now.

I had a day built up with small annoyances to lead up to this anger I am now feeling.

A few minutes ago I had a privilege of hearing a rumor being spread around about me - one that is DEFINITELY not true and could be potentially damaging to both parties involved.

I don't understand why people have to make assumptions about such things based on what they think they see or hear. Doing so and spreading it around only causes harm to the people involved, especially when what you are speaking of is not true.

It is past midnight and I cannot sleep. Thoughts keep whirling through my mind about how bad this is...and my anger only grows whenever I think about how it was spread without any notion or evidence of it being true - and how hurtful it can be to both parties if such a thing is spread.

People really are beginning to aggravate me....greatly. I want to just live alone for awhile. Move away. No one around. Sometimes I feel like I'd be better off without interruptions like this in my life. Also a world where my water bottles won't get thrown away in school when I'm thirsty because they think I'm carrying colorless/odorless vodka around in it (one of the SMALL annoyances of the day.)

I'll never get to sleep. Tomorrow is senior skip day and I am not doing that either.

Other people may be out having fun at their selected destinations, and as much as I'd like to get away from people for a day - the risk in getting caught is not worth it, kids. I'll just sit in school all day and think about my troubles, the rumors, everything I want to get far away from...

Prom Dress!

So after a long, frustrating couple of hours shopping for prom dresses...I finally found "the dress." However...it "the dress" was also way out of our price range. I tried on several other dresses, but none of them were the same. My mom agreed and understood that I really wanted this even though it was way more than we would like to spend - especially with the cost of my senior trip to Savannah coming up, things to buy for my dorm room, and the cost of the summer session at Penn State University. My mom somehow managed to haggle the price of the dress I wanted down $100. It was meant to be! Albeit it was still very expensive, it was a lot better than over $400...

This is the dress! However my dress is in a light-ish blue...a very good color for my very pale self. No tanning for me, ever!

The sides are cut out so you can see my tattoo that goes up my ribs! I think it adds to the dress.

I do have a couple scars on my back that I need to get rid of in the couple of weeks until prom! I believe I'm going to wear my hair down and curly, with a light blue ribbon wove throughout my hair. My mom describes me in the dress as "an Egyptian princess" ha! So I'll be floatin' to prom on a crocodile if that's the case!

Wants

I want to grow up.





....and publish children's books.

Glimpse Into the Future

When I was in New York City on April 1st, I saw the admirable Simon&Schuster publishing house. I stood in awe of the building. It was kind of surreal to see a place in person, in a big city, of a place I dream of working someday. A budding economist can easily go to Wall Street and stand in awe of their future home - however, publishing houses with children's divisions are a bit more elusive.

It was a glimpse, hopefully, into my future.

A Masterpiece of a Poem

Once there was a man who lived in a shoe

He was unable to tell red colors from blue

One morning he went for a stroll

An ocean popped up, appearing quite full

A piercing scream was heard

One to invade the souls of every man and bird

Through his eyes this ocean was red

Blood filled waters turning through his head

He lept out into the great red sea

Unable to take his color disease.

Mermaids

I find my attention span shrinking vastly.

I can't stand being in school.

I can't stand listening to teachers talk for longer amounts of time than ten minutes - even if it is a heart-wrenching story about girls in Tibet. My mind cannot focus, or sometimes it cannot even care.

I feel as if my mind may explode if they reach this ten minute point.

I feel like yelling like a maniac, then sprinting out the doors of the school, into my car, blaring music and taking off for State College.

I'll never have the confidence.

I'll just sit in school, zoning out after that ten minute talking point...thinking of all the possibilities of other, more exciting things I could be doing.

School is leading me to insanity.

I want it to be June 11th, getting my diploma - then leaving for the beautiful city of Savannah.

I must have freedom!!!! (Or things to cure my short attention span)

Life of a Truck Driver

I find the lifestyles of people who drive vehicles long distances as their job utterly fascinating.

Truck drivers, for example.

Vertically high up in our travel bus to NYC on Thursday, I nabbed the window seat and was, to entertain myself, able to pass the time by staring into the windows of speedily passing by trucks at eye level. Each truck driver was from a different state - usually one far away - and thus each had observably different habits whenever they passed. Eventually I got some other people to join in on this fun too. One truck driver was talking and mumbling to himself. One had his seat reclined and was smoking a cigarette. Some dance, some have eyes staring upon the road cold as stone. Each one is different. Each one is of interest.

I mean, think of the qualities one must exhibit to be a truck driver. One must enjoy spending mass amounts of time alone - away from family, friends, everyone. It's just you and the road. I really enjoy spending time alone on the road - but I don't know if I could do it for such long periods of time, cosistently! I might go mad without social contact. But then, there are truckstops where the burly men meet up to talk about goodness knows what, but I'm sure some interesting things! Especially after not having conversation for so long - which is why I imagine some people resort to talking to themselves, or dangerously attempting to shift gears while chit-chatting on a cell phone. This is why I'm always nervous to pass trucks on the highway!

A truck driver must also be prepared for the unexpected, be a good mechanic, and deal with problems regularly. I could imagine the worst thing being your truck breaking down in the middle of Kentucky, the middle of nowhere, and feeling lost. I bet it's a great break back into reality. Unexpected detours, also, would have to be dealt with...with great chagrin, I am sure.

My grandfather was a truck driver for his whole life. He got to see the entire United States. I find that appealing, but number one...I don't know of any female truck drivers...and two, I would only want to experience the job for a short period of time - maybe only try it out for a month or three just to say I did it! He made a good chunk of change doing it though! Hmmmmm.