How’s it going? November 5, 2009

I desperately would like to make a long, interesting (to me at least) entry about anything, but I am far to busy. Tomorrow I have a Civics exam (view my ‘Dignity’ entry for how I feel about that class) and a math test later in the day. I had an EQAO literacy test yesterday morning and then I went on a student’s council feild trip yesterday afternoon. I can barely comprehend the mathematics I am trying so desperately hard to learn for tomorrow’s test. On top of that, we’re applying math to chemistry in science class (!) and in vocals class I am rocking out. I’m becoming more and more social each day (which was my new school-year resolution) and my classmates in vocals are helping to get my friend (who, until I ask her what she would like her name to be in this blog, shall remain nameless) to feel comfortable singing with everyone. Which is great, and she was singing today when we had a class in the auditorium today. I love our school’s auditorium. I don’t know when it was last updated, but it must have been sometime in the seventies, more or less. I hope they don’t update it for a long time. I want to go back there at my high school reunion and be glad that one of the things I love most about the school hadn’t changed. (My other favourite thing about the school is the secret door in the prop room that’s hidden behind old shelves and costumes.)

Sorry. Rambling again.

Anyway, I’m trying to write my novel now, so I’ve gotto go.

I tried putting this playlist on the blog earlier, but it just won’t work, so I’m giving you a link to a list of some songs I like.

Click here for tunes.

Audrey Hepburn October 24, 2009

This is who I am being for Halloween.

Today my Brother, my Mother, and my Grampa were Halloween-costume shopping. It just seems like they’re the sort of people who’re into store-bought, ready-made costumes.

I, however, am not.

Halloween is a wonderful creative oppourtunity, and myself, being an incredibly and elaborately creative person, absolutely cannot turn down this oppourtunity.

I mean, I’m not sewing a costume or anything, since it would take too long (I have a surprisingly short attention span. It’s why I’ve not yet finished writing any of the 927094209 novels I’ve begun writing over the past five years.), especially without my mother’s sewing machine (goodness knows where that is) or any knowledge of how to use it.

So, being me, once I begun to outgrow store-bought, ready-made children’s costumes, I started to span my ideas farther from the average person’s ready-made costume.
Some of my ideas included a hippie, a drama queen, Hannah Freaking Montana, and whatever I was last year. I understand that Hannah Freaking Montana is not exactly original, but this was when I was 12 or so, (I turn 15 this December) and I had grown out of most store-bought, ready-made Hannah Freaking Montana costumes. [For the record, I do not mean offence by referring to Hannah Freaking Montana as such. It's just that 'Hannah Montana' is not so scary for Halloween, but 'Freaking' in the middle adds fright! It does too.]

I was planning on centering my costume around the above photograph, as to my knowledge, it’s the most-seen photograph of Audrey, and I figure most people would probably recognize my costume if I dressed like this. Also, I could probably arrange a costume from this more easily than the others.

This is because I already have pretty jumbo-normous sunglasses, I might have gloves in my costume box somewhere, I could refer to YouTube tutorials for hairstyling advice, I could come up with some shoes (ballerina flats, either my gold ones or my black ones), and all I need is the dress. My mother says she might have it in her closet somewhere.

Also, I was thinking maybe a trenchcoat would help and keep me warm. My mother says she’s pretty sure one of us has one. That’s fine if we don’t though, since I have a powder-blue jacket that could pass.

So, in case I don’t write again until after Halloween,

Have a good Halloween.

Truly and sincerely,

Alex Violet.

P. S. None of these photos are owned by me. I googled all of these pictures. I did not actually , ever in my life, photograph Audrey. I was born a year after she died. So how could I have photographed her?

I am BACK. August 28, 2009

I’m back, and it was a-m-a-z-i-n-g. We drove through the mountains to see British Columbia.

We went as far as Vancouver and I went up on Grouse Mountain (Grouse- pronounced like Sprouse, as in the Sprouse twins. Not pronounced like Gross.) in a cable car and then even farther up Grouse Mountain in one of those cool ski lifts.

It was amazing, but some people get awfully scared. I mean, I was a little frightened at first because your only restraint is the back of the bench behind you and the loose-ish bar holding you from falling foreward.

But you’d only fall off the thing if you did something incredibly stupid. I read in a magazine that only 3 people a year die on amusement rides. And usually it’s only if they do something stupid. (aka when they say keep your hands and feet inside the ride, they MEAN it. And they mean keep your abdomen inside the ride, too.)

Anyway, my point is after a bit, I got used to the height and the ride so I decided to let go of the bar in front of me. But then my dad got frightened and told my brother and I to hold onto the bar with both hands and not to let go.

The ride was pretty calm and quiet for the most part except when the people in your seat of the ride decide to speak. You could also hear the people at the end of the ride singing karaoke.

It was pretty life-changing.

BC is so naturally beautiful- but it was pretty sad how many trees were being chopped down to make tourist stops and attractions. I mean, the trees and the hills and the mountains should attract people. I agree that it’s a beautiful place to be and I’m guilty of visiting and enjoying tourist attractions, but I mean, shouldn’t there be a limit on it? In Ontario, there are laws about how much land can be commercial, and I think in BC they could really do with that.

Anyway, my little brother (who shall be referred to as either Little Brother or Buddy from here on in) has now allowed me to mention him in my blog. He wants me to now.

Buddy is making a smaller model of the Canadian Pacific railway, and the Last Spike. He is making it with his toy trainset, which I haven’t seen him use in a while. When we were littler we used to play with that trainset together. Which is basically the only thing we could play together nicely, considering that we’re about 4 years apart and it’s not as if we could play Barbie or Bionicle.

SO yeah. I had a good trip, I went to Alberta and British Columbia. I drove through the mountains. I stayed the night in a haunted hotel on the drive to BC. I had the best breakfast in the world at that hotel.

Well, I got my class schedule in the mail the day I got back. (Aug. 25) I’m satisfied with it. One of my friends and I chose all the same electives (singing, art, drama) and I left her an offline MSN message with my schedule and told her to IM me back if we were in the same classes. She sent me an IM back and told me we got the same classes for the ones we chose together. This is great since I get stagefright. ESPECIALLY for singing in front of people. Drama is okay, since I did it last year, PLUS I did a dinner theatre production, and I was good enough that people were rushing over to compliment me after I was done. So that made me less nervous. But that was about my acting. Singing, on the other hand, I have no clue. I did sing once for a talent show, once, and there were a few people complimenting me after. But I think they were complimenting me on being brave. I posted a YouTube video of me singing more than a year ago, and I must admit, it is NOT my best work. And I am not the only one who told me so. There are about 6 un-deleted comments sitting under it. And only one of them is slightly nice. It said to just keep practicing and ignore all the rude comments.
Anyway, I guess my voice is decent. It gets better with practice and if I know the song well. Plus, having it stuck in my head sometimes helps.

Song of the week: Don’t stop beleivin’! – Journey

Sincerely,
Alex Violet.