in case you weren't aware...

It's officially Christmas time, I have now heard "I want a hippopotamus for Christmas" and the Chipmunk song as well as seeing commercials for the Chia herb garden and the like. The only thing that's missing is a good "the clapper" commercial. My problem may just be that I don't watch TV much any more. Oh well. Now you know!

Oh, and last night I heard the Snoopy and the Red Baron song! :D

a transformer Transformer

This morning started fairly normally when I woke up and got ready like any other morning, for the most part. Then, on my way to the office (the Biola one first and then later the ThinkinBig one), I stopped by a grocery store to pick up the things I was to contribute to the Registrar's Office Christmas party today. I also stopped at my old Chiropractor's office to pick up some medicine for Lorraine, my boss at ThinkinBig. After seeing how very little Dr. Parlee has changed, I got back on my way towards Biola. I took a route that would be faster since I'd spent so much time picking up the hot chocolate and the medicine. I got to La Mirada by 8:15 and decided I should pick up something festive to make the present I was to bring to the Christmas Party look a bit more appealing. I didn't notice anything different until I walked up to Metzger and saw a bit of a cart convention, mostly campus safety looking sorts. Well as I walk up I'm told that a transformer has exploded in Metzger and that the bottom floor is closed but with the windows on the top two floors, they're open. I figure if I go inside I'll be able to better figure out what's going on in the Registrar's office. I found my co-workers hanging out eating the breakfast-y party foods that had been brought and find out that most of them found out before they got to work, or while on their way. In the end I got to spend about an hour and a half or better wandering around campus (which had not lost power, but didn't have any internet service because the network in Metzger was without power) I ran into Amy and Sarah and Gina and Erin and Rusty, which was nice. Then, after helping to set-up/decorate for the party, enjoyed some awesome food before getting into my car and heading to where I currently sit: The ThinkinBig Office in Corona Del Mar. I've just finished pretty much, all there is for me to do today because we're waiting on a few things to get here before we can move ahead. Well, that's all for now. I'm wondering what tomorrow's going to be like! Until then!

pirates, choirs, and pastels! Oh my!

This weekend I hosted an Adventure on the High Seas mystery for the Guild of English Scholars












I then went to Disneyland, on Sunday with friends! I Listened to Uncle Jesse (John Stamos sp?) read the Christmas story accompanied by the Candlelight Choir!





























Of course, before I went to Disneyland, I happened to get myself a new set of pastels and while sitting in a parking lot, I drew this:














I don't have any pictures to show this part of my weekend, but it all started with my car breaking down, and going to The Egyptian Theater to see Casablanca and Citizen Kane with a post-movie chocolate malt at Mel's Diner. :D Quite a weekend, to say the least!

Merlin's Beard!

The blurb on the back of the book is enough to set this literature major's heart-beating a faster pace!

"THE TALES OF BEEDLE THE BARD, a Wizarding classic, first came to Muggle readers' attention in the book known as HARRY POTTER AND THE DEATHLY HALLOWS. Now, thanks to Hermione Granger's new translation from the ancient runes, we present this stunning edition with an introduction, notes, and illustrations by J. K. Rowling, and extensive commentary by Albus Dumbledore. Never before have Muggles been privy to these richly imaginative tales: [...]But not only are they the equal of fairy tales we know and love, reading them gives new insight into the world of Harry Potter".

I love that it's been "annotated" by Dumbledore and "translated" by Hermione! I'll share more about it later, when I've read a few! I'm so excited! Thanks J.K. Rowling for being a nerd like me and for writing this!

It might be miles beyond the moon, or right there where you stand!

I'm sure there are plenty of others out there who feel the same way, but there's a part of me that doesn't want to believe that there could be anyone who is as big of a believer in Peter Pan as I am. As soon as many of you, my friends, read this, I'm sure you'll pipe up and disagree. Proclaiming that you, in fact, are just as enthralled by this boy who would not grow up. To be honest, I'm sure that you're right. I wonder what it is that draws us all to this little boy. Is it his youthfulness, his lust for adventure, the sadness he must have felt when he returned to his window to find it barred against him, or something else entirely by which we're all so beguiled. J.M. Barrie stands as one of my favorite authors of all time and it's all because of this timeless story of his about the boy who wouldn't grow up and the girl who wanted to be more than a mother to him. I'm not sure where I'm going with this...I'd love to go to Neverland, but writing a blog about it won't help be get there any faster. For now I'll just end by saying, I want to live by these words: To live (or to die) would be an awfully big adventure!

You'll Be In My Heart

and now with my own iTunes library:

What's your motto?
My Favorite Things (Sound of Music)
What do your friends think of you?
Kiss Him Goodbye
What do you think about very often?
She's Leaving by Tyrone Wells
What is 2 + 2?
Mr. Horrible by They Might be Giants
What do you think of your best friend?
California Dreamin' by the Mamas and the Papas
What do you think of the person you like?
Jack's Lament by Danny Elfman
What is your life story?
Mickey Mouse Club March
What do you want to be when you grow up?
Dan In Real Life by Sondre Lerche
What do you think when you see the person you like?
March of the Witch Hunters (Wicked)
What do your parents think of you?
Shine by Newsboys
What will you dance to at your wedding?
The Pirates (Finding Neverland)
What will they play at your funeral?
Something There (Beauty and the Beast)
What is your hobby/interest?
Believe by Newsboys
What is your biggest secret?
Yo, Ho (A Pirates Life for Me)
What do you think of your friends?
My Friend, The Bracheosaurus (Jurasic Park)
What's the worst thing that could happen?
Promised Land (Veggie Tales)
How will you die?
I Call Your Name by the Mamas and the Papas
What is the one thing you regret?
We Are Hungry by 330 Plan
What makes you laugh?
On The Open Road (Goofy Movie)
What makes you cry?
Kryptonite by 3 Doors Down
Will you ever get married?
Little April Shower (Bambi)
What scares you the most?
River Lullaby (Prince of Egypt)
Does anyone like you?
Pennsylvania 6-5000 by Glenn Miller
If you could go back in time, what would you change?
An Adoring Heart (Becoming Jane)
What hurts right now?
At the Beginning with You (Anastasia)
What will you post this as?
You'll Be In My Heart (Tarzan)

Run Home Jack!

I don't really have a reason for that title today, but it's from one of my all-time favorite films, so it's just as good as any other, right? So, I found this on myspace or facebook or something...one of my friends had done it and well, I'm not at my own computer, so I'm not going to fill this in just yet. When I get back to Chuck (my laptop), I will. Below you'll find the Christmas version that I did using someone else's Christmas music on itunes at the office.

1. Put your iTunes on shuffle.
2. For each question, press the next button to get your answer.
3. YOU MUST WRITE THAT SONG NAME DOWN NO MATTER HOW SILLY IT SOUNDS!
4. Tag 10 friends who might enjoy doing this as well as the person you got the note from.

What's your motto?
Jesu, Joy of Man's Desiring - Amy Grant
What do your friends think of you?
White Christmas - Aimee Mann
What do you think about very often?
Happy Xmas - Thrice
What is 2 + 2?
Medley: Here We Go A-Caroling/O Tannenbaum/I Saw Three Ships - Aurthur Fieldler and the Boston Pops
What do you think of your best friend?
Holly Jolly Christmas - Burl Ives
What do you think of the person you like?
Don't Save it All for Christmas Day - Celine Dion
What is your life story?
Angels We Have Heard on High - Sufjan Stevens
What do you want to be when you grow up?
Cool Yule - Louis Armstrong
What do you think when you see the person you like?
I Heard the Bells On Christmas Day - Sarah McLachlan
What do your parents think of you?
Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas - Hem
What will you dance to at your wedding?
Come Thou Fount of Every Blessing - Sufjan Stevens
What will they play at your funeral?
Twas the Night Before Christmas - Fred Waring and the Pennsylvanians
What is your hobby/interest?
I've Got My Love to Keep Me Warm - Dean Martin
What is your biggest secret?
Hark, the Herald Angles Sing - Nat King Cole
What do you think of your friends?
Frosty the Snowman - The Ronettes
What's the worst thing that could happen?
I Hate Christmas Parites - Matthew Thiessen
How will you die?
Santa Claus is Coming to Town - Ella Fitzgerald
What is the one thing you regret?
Christmas Song - Vince Guaraldi Trio
What makes you laugh?
The Little Drummer Boy - Ray Charles
What makes you cry?
The First Noel - Sufjan Stevens
Will you ever get married?
Silver Bells - Kate Smith
What scares you the most?
Winter Wonderland - Diana Krall
Does anyone like you?
God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen - Julie Andrews
If you could go back in time, what would you change?
Rockin' Around the Christmas Tree - Amy Grant
What hurts right now?
Blue Christmas - Celine Dion
What will you post this as?
Christmas Time is Here - Vince Guaraldi Trio

Not to be confused with Bionic...

The idea of the Byronic hero has intrigued me for a while...mostly because I've found myself oddly attracted to those great Byronic heroes of literature (Rochester, The Phantom, Dracula, ...). To clarify Byronic heroes are based upon Lord Byron, the Romantic poet, author, etc. and they're the troubled, brooding, dangerous characters. I've recently learned that all vampires post the book "The Vampyre" have been Byronic and well, it make sense. Anyway...I've been watching Buffy the Vampire Slayer with a few friends and on Monday one of them posited the interesting idea of Buffy being a Byronic heroine! Now, of course I could count Angel in the mix of the Byronic heroes, but Buffy? Can there be a Byronic heroine? Well, needless to say, I've been having a grand time researching this possibility! There is precedence of Byronic heroines, including but not limited to Jane Eyre, Ligeia, and well Buffy, although I'm still looking into how that works. I'm intrigued by the idea of the Byronic heroine because it would finally give women in the Gothic genre another character type besides the domestic victim or the vamp! I'll see what else I can find and tell you about it later. For now I'll leave you with the answer to my last post's title: Evita and Buffy (both the film and the t.v. show [particularly the musical episode] have songs that open with "where do we go from here?".

Where Do I Go From Here?

wow, I wondered how it would feel when he'd moved on and found someone new. It's an odd combination of freedom and loss...oddly enough. With the way it ended, I kinda figured that I'd be the one explaining...well, sorry, but you see, there's this other guy. Part of me knew otherwise though, since I'd nearly-successfully avoided entanglements of that sort for a very very long time and well he, he'd fairly quickly (comparatively) moved from his last girlfriend to me...well on to another topic...

The title of this post comes from...should I tell you, or let you guess? It has two major influences. If you look at my last post, you may be able to figure out one of them. The other is well...ummm...I'll let you guess. Obviously the title deals well with what I just learned. I knew, of course that we would both move on eventually, but it's interesting to think about how quickly or slowly each of us is doing so. So I guess that wasn't really a different topic, but I need to keep working here. I'll write about my latest apostrophe in the next post. Until then, don't forget to guess! :D

Music

Ok, so last night, I spent about an hour and a half making CD's of my music so I have something to listen to both in the car and at work! I made a total of about 6 CD's. It's been fun listening to them now. I've only made it through 2 and a couple of songs since I burned them all last night. They are: Viva La Vida (cause who doesn't like a little Coldplay to drive or work by), Across the Universe (the film soundtrack, because it's such a great piece of art about those crazy years!), A good Christmas Mix of some of my favorite songs of the season from childhood (including but not limited to: Charlie Brown Music, and The Christmas Carols of the Young Messiah from the early 90's), One CD I entitled the Weird Brothers (borrowing from JKR calling a wizarding world group the Weird Sisters, but this is just a mix of Kings of Convenience, Billy Joel, Mika, Elton John, and Tally Hall), and then I made two mixes of my music from various musicals! Anyway, I'm excited to have a few more things to listen to! You probably don't care one way or another about what I'm listening to. But, hey...now you know! :D

to blog or not to blog

Ok, I know, that's not all that original of a title. Oh well. I doubt very highly that anyone will actually ever read this blog. If you are reading this, however, welcome! I'm glad you could make it. Enjoy your visit. Stop by again when you have time. Perhaps I'll actually have written something interesting by then! In case you didn't know, the blog's name is both a quotation from Shakespeare's Hamlet as well as from My Fair Lady. In case that weren't enough, though, I have also displayed my nerdy-ness by titling this first entry something else from Hamlet...sort of. If you come back to this blog you'll find ample proof that I majored in English in college and that my love of literature has not diminished. I would write more, but I'm doing this at work, and I should probably get back to actually working. Sometime, in the near future, I'll write more. For now, adieu.