New Poll and DOOM!

I'd like to put forth a question. Is our country doomed? With election day drawing closer and closer, a feeling of doom seems to have fallen on the GOP. Are we ready for four to eight years of Obama? I'm certainly not.
But in the midst of doom and gloom, light does shine.

Daniel 2:21: "It is He who changes the times and the epochs; He removes kings and establishes kings; He gives wisdom to wise men and knowledge to men of understanding."

C.S. Lewis

"You don't have a soul. You are a Soul. You have a body."

“Though our feelings come and go, God’s love for us does not.”

"Until you have given up your self to Him you will not have a real self..."

"Aim at heaven and you will get earth thrown in. Aim at earth and you get neither."

"Education without values, as useful as it is, seems rather to make man a more clever devil."

“God, who foresaw your tribulation, has specially armed you to go through it, not without pain but without stain”

“The very man who has argued you down, will sometimes be found, years later, to have been influenced by what you said”

“I believe in Christianity as I believe that the sun has risen: not only because I see it, but because by it I see everything else.”

"Christianity, if false, is of no importance, and if true, of infinite importance. The only thing it cannot be is moderately important."

"A man can no more diminish God's glory by refusing to worship Him than a lunatic can put out the sun by scribbling the word, 'darkness' on the walls of his cell."

"Don't use words too big for the subject. Don't say "infinitely" when you mean "very"; otherwise you'll have no word left when you want to talk about something really infinite."

“You will never know how much you believe something until it is a matter of life and death.”

"My argument against God was that the universe seemed so cruel and unjust. But how had I got this idea of just and unjust? A man does not call a line crooked unless he has some idea of a straight line. What was I comparing this universe with when I called it unjust?"

*Sigh*

I haven't posted in a long time....as in, since last Friday, I believe. But, I've been doing SOME worthwhile things. I finished my script for Death Wears a Suit in a matter of a couple days, and I'm semi-satisfied with it. The final plot twist scene needs some work, I think...
So because I don't have much to say (haven't seen any new movies or finished any books worth reviewing) I'm going to combine a few tags I found on Q's blog because I like them.

My ideal...
Snack: popcorn or goldfish and a glass of milk
Day: is spent at the bookstore for hours or spent making films with EJC co-founders and whoever other actor friends I hire
Book: *sigh* again.....it's hard to squish an ideal book into a tag...
Friend: trustworthy, encouraging, and weird enough to understand me
Weather: cold enough to have a fire

3 Must Read Books:
The Lord of the Rings, by J.R.R. Tolkien
Jane Eyre, by Charlotte Bronte
The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy, by Douglas Adams
(I have wayyyyy more responses to this question, so see here)

3 Keep Your Eyes on These:
hmmm....not sure what is meant by this question, so I'll leave it blank

3 Look For These Soon:

Third book of Echoes from the Edge, by Bryan Davis (don't know the name...)

Bones of Makaidos, by Bryan Davis

Can't think of a third...

I tag...anyone who wants to do these.

As for the filming of upcoming projects, (i.e., Bookmark of Doom and Death Wears a Suit) we're looking at Thanksgiving week. I'm getting really excited because this will probably be the first time we do sketches with an ACTUAL script, not just impulsive improv.)

Presenting, Tribute to Charlie

Unashamed fluff about my kitten growing up set to music.

Tribute to Charlie

PS I got the main actor I wanted for the upcoming project. Hmmm....I need a secret name for it. Here we go: Bookmark of Doom. Right. So I have my leading actor for Bookmark of Doom, and as soon as we get our agents together, we should have a schedule for principal photography.

PPS I'm counting 71 as complete. 83 too.

Words for An Actor to Live By

"Acting or writing or directing in theater or television or screen is only for the irrevocably diseased, those who are so smitten with the need that there is no choice."

-from Audition, by Michael Shurtleff

Bangs and Cats

We have COLD WEATHER!!!!!! I'm actually sitting here in pants and a sweatshirt!!!!! I'm so happy!!!!!

So yesterday the boys decided we were going to put Charlie in a build-a-bear shirt. And they succeeded. She didn't want to tolerate it, but once it was there, she pretty much had no choice.

Also yesterday, Mom trimmed my hair and I asked her to give me bangs, yay. And yes, they were inspired by Abby from NCIS. Only difference is that my blonde roots are coming out.

PS The Charlie video will be up any day now......

Cause maybe....you're gonna be the one that saves me

I absolutely LOVE songs that tell a story. Not just narratives, but an underlying relationship or event that isn't expressly stated.
My musings are inspired today because I finally got Wonderwall (by Oasis) from Mom. The reason she thought to get it is that Charlie sings it in Desmond's flashes and it's such an ironic song for him to sing in regards to Desmond.
Here is a snippet:


And all the roads that lead you there winding
And all the lights that light the way are blinding
There are many things that
I would like to say to you
I don't know how

I said maybe
You're gonna be the one that saves me?
And after all
You're my wonderwall


Isn't that ironic??? Desmond, the man who sees flashes of Charlie's death in many different forms, witnesses Charlie singing THIS song in his flash. The music directors of Lost are awesome at finding songs that perfectly pertain to what's going on. So yeah. That's my current song that I'm obsessed with.




NOTE: I will have a new EJC Productions video up soon. Just a fluff piece on my kitten, but I thought it was fun to watch her be a cute little baby rat looking thing again, ha ha.
And also, in the works is another film that is Phantom of the Opera related. The script has been written and negotiations will start soon for a guest actor in the production.

Exasperation and a Confession

Things drive me nuts sometimes. There is no way around that.
Shareware is one of those things.
Picture if you will, this circumstance: Someone finds software online that they need for filmmaking. Nowhere on the website it is downloaded from does it say that it is a trial period. Yet after thirty inconspicuous days pass, the person using that software to make his movies gets the message "Your trial period has passed. View pricing options here."
That in and of itself makes him mad. Then he decides that he does actually need that software. He goes to the site and proceeds to download the WRONG program for a sum of money. After an hour of researching, he finds out that his computer won't even use that kind of program. He tries to find some way of returning it, but he sees that the stupid Australian company (no offense Aussies, I love y'all's accents) has a no return, no refund, no nothing way of fixing the problem policy.
Now he's been ripped off and has to go to Best Buy to find a better solution...
Oh well. I guess there are worse things that can happen. Maybe now I'll....excuse me, *he* will get software that's even better than the stupid Australian company can offer.
Now to the confession....
I know in the blog world there are many wonderful writers. Writers who are amazing at their craft and pour themselves into it. (Edge and Miss Erin to name a couple.)
I am not one of those people.
Don't get me wrong, I love writing, but it doesn't, as Gwendolyn from the Importance of Being Earnest would say, "Stir within me the deepest fibers of my nature."
What I enjoy more is pulling things from a piece of writing.
Take today for an example. I have acting class on Monday, so today's the day I do all the homework and preparation for that class. I have spent hours of solitude picking through a monologue and a scene using clues from the writer to form my characters. (the monologue is Mrs. Chevely from An Ideal Husband by Oscar Wilde and the scene is Ann from All My Sons by Arthur Miller)
Whenever I try to write, I always find myself wanting to DO what the characters are doing rather than just to write about what they do.
Hence, I am an actor.
Who am I kidding....Hence, I am a total theater geek. Let us call a spade a spade.

I Am Not Dead Yet...I can dance and I can sing...

Tasha lives! She can dance and sing because she took the PSAT today, and thinks she did pretty well on it! Even though we won't get scores back until December, I'm counting 51 as a completed goal now, because, as Dad said, "It's no use talking about anymore until December." Thank goodness...

I finally can read for real again! And just in time, cause Erustan lent me Inkdeath, which just came out! I LOVE LOVE LOVE the cover.

On the 101 front, I changed some of my stuff because alot of the goals were really vague...so if you see me complete a goal you didn't realize was there, it probably wasn't.

On the weird world front, today is Global Handwashing Day????

On the musical front, I meant to post this earlier but I didn't get a chance....

ANDY HUNTER'S NEW REMIXES OF STARS ARE AMAZING!!!!!!!!!!

James "Sawyer" Ford

"You're just not looking at the big picture, Doc. You're still back in civilization. Me? I'm in the wild."

"Doctor playing golf. Woo, boy howdy, now I've heard everything. What's next, cop eating a donut?"

Commenting on Ethan taking Charlie and Claire: "So a tribe of evil natives planted a ringer in the camp to kidnap a pregnant girl and a reject from VH1 has-beens. Yeah, fiendishly clever."

Talking to Libby with a shoulder wound: "You're a shrink? Well, maybe you ought to talk to my shoulder."

"Well, yeah, there's my favorite leaf. How could I forget this place? "

"Yeah, well, him says even though Pippi Longstocking and the Grape Ape are ideal candidates for the Dirty Dozen... I'm just going to say we might just want to bring the Red Beret. "

"Great idea, Moonbeam, then we can sing Kumbaya and do trust falls!"

"Don't get mad at me...just because you were dumb enough to fall for the old Wookie prisoner gag."

Eternity's Edge

NOTE: Before reading this book, it is HIGHLY recommended to read the first in the series, Beyond the Reflection's Edge. If you haven't read the first, alot of the concepts will be new and confusing.

The book picks up right where the first left off. Nathan Shepherd has found out that his parents are actually alive, but finding them is hard because he and Kelly Clark must stop Interfinity from merging Earth with it's mirror realms. Behind this scheme is Mictar, a stalker who feeds upon life energy of victims and feeds that power into his machine.

As with all of Bryan Davis's books, at times this book can be confusing if you just glance through something. It takes a bit of concentration to keep some of the facts straight in your head. But it's more than just a fantasy/sci-fi/action adventure. The characters are amazing. I would probably read the book even without the mirror realms, or magical violins, or interfinity just because the characters were so interesting and real.

I'm sorry, but I'm very tempted to draw paralells to Bryan Davis's Dragons in Our Midst characters, so for fun I will.

*Nathan is to Kelly as Billy Bannister is to Bonnie Silver.

*Kelly is to Daryl as Billy is to Walter.

*Nathan, like Billy, has a search for his parents.

*Mictar reminds me of Samyaza.

*Kelly is a confused character in some respects who looks to Nathan for guidance, Billy in some ways is confused and looks to Bonnie for advice

But, by no means let this make you think that Bryan Davis has some "writer's formula" for success. Echoes from the Edge series is VERY VERY different from Dragons in Our Midst and Oracles of Fire. I just tend to find similarities like that.

Huzzah!

Scholastically, today has been a great day. I took a practice PSAT and got 80 and 73 on the reading and writing. Only downside to that is a 54 in math.

Also, I finished last year's math...yeah, finally....

~

I have a completed goal because of my awesome acting class right now. I now have two more audition monologues that I didn't have before. One from An Ideal Husband by Oscar Wilde, and one from Jane Eyre, by Charlotte Bronte.

~

Final piece of news, I got my copy of Eternity's Edge this past week, and it is AMAZING so far. I'll try to have a review on it as soon as I finish.

~

Yes, I know my picture has nothing to do with anything in the post, but I put it because it shows how I feel right now...very, very happy.

~Phantom of the Opera~

The book was fantastic. Yes, I was biased in favor of it before I read it because I'm a huge fan of the movie. (still haven't seen the musical yet!)

Gaston LeRoux begins by saying, "The Opera ghost really existed. He was not, as was long believed, a creature of the imagination of the artists, the superstition of the managers, or a product of the absurd and impressionable brains of the young ladies of the ballet, their mothers, the box-keepers, the cloak-room attendants or the concierge. Yes, he existed in flesh and blood, although he assumed the complete appearance of a real phantom; that is to say, of a spectral shade."

The story that follows is LeRoux's investigation as a journalist that proves the Phantom (Erik) really existed. As in the movie, the story really kicks off with the arrival of two new managers who must abide by Erik's "house rules" which include Box 5 reserved for him and a salary of 20,000 francs. The managers staunchly believe that it is a joke by the previous managers and refuse to pay Erik or reserve the box.

Many tragedies and incidents take place over the course of the book, roughly matching the movie. Madame Giry plays the same part, but there are other characters such as the Count Chagny himself (not Raoul, his elder brother) and the mysterious Persian who play no part in the movie.

Another thing that was interesting to me was the higher stakes at the end. If Christine didn't choose Erik, not only would Raoul and the Persian die in his torture chamber, but the whole opera house would get destroyed in a rigged explosion.

Alas, I will not give away the end, though some of you can guess it if you've seen the movie.

PS See also my lovely Phantom avatars!

Poll Results/Debate

Because of Sarah Palin are you more excited, less excited or the same about the upcoming election?
More excited: 6 (42%)
Less excited: 1 (7%)
No change: 3 (21%)
I'm never excited about elections: 4 (28%)

~*~

I don't care what the media says; Sarah Palin CREAMED Joe Biden in the VP debate. And, Biden just lied, and lied, and lied, which gave rise to our old joke. Mom asked, "How can you tell whether Joe Biden is lying?" I answered, "His lips are moving."
He even lied about the Constitution. He said that the Vice President has nothing to do with the Senate except vote when there's a tie. Well, it's true that the VP votes only when there's a tie, but it EXPRESSLY says in Article 1, Section 3 that the VP presides over the Senate in the same way as the Speaker serves as chairman of the House of Representatives. HA!
All right, I'm done....

No, I'm not...I LOVE Sarah Palin.

Now I am.

A tag.....

Three things that scare me: Shelob, hard-core, left-wing liberals, tornados
Three people who make me laugh: I can only pick three? Mom, Dad, and Glenn Beck
Three things I love: acting, reading, sleeping
Three things I hate: math, Spanish, not getting enough sleep
Three things I don't understand: why people support Obama (hack, spit), why people aren't concerned about China and Russia with their military, why I've thought that Regis Philbin was Regis Philmin for all these years (I STILL can't get over that!!!!)
Three things on my desk: computer, page a day calendar, keys
Three things I'm doing right now: blogging, avoiding cleaning the kitchen (don't worry, I'll do it when I'm done here), reading Glenn Beck newsletters
Three things I want to do before I die: go to New Zealand, see Phantom of the Opera, act in MORE plays
Three things I can do: act.....read.......obsess over favorite things
Three things you should listen to: ALL of Andy Hunter's stuff, Phantom of the Opera soundtrack, The Prayer sung by Josh Groban and Charlotte Church
Three things you should never listen to: hmmm.....not sure
Three things I'd like to learn: how to do different accents, how Phantom of the Opera (book) ends, how to find more monologues that I LIKE!
Three beverages I drink regularly: tea, milk, water
Three TV shows/Books I watched/read as a kid: Pinky and the Brain (still watch it), Boxcar children, Narnia (still read it)
Future Job: Me: "Actor," Dad: "lawyer!"
Wants to Go To: anywhere that has a good theater program
Extra Curriculars: acting
Current Occupation: student, babysitter for brothers, steward of people's animals and mail while they are away
. . .favorites
Colors: purple, black, silver
Subjects: History, Literature
Food: steak, potato soup, lentil soup, potatoes, cinnamon rolls, chocolate
Season: winter
Time of Day: Night
. . . least favorites
Colors: hot pink, orange (though I do like BURNT orange cause I'm from a Longhorn family on one side), maroon
Subjects: math, Spanish
Foods: brussel sprouts
Season: I don't know.....I like winter best, but it's a tie for other seasons cause of so many factors
Time of Day: Early Morning
. . . currently
reading: Cash: the Autobiography, the Boy's King Arthur, my PSAT prep book
goal: get a good enough grade on the PSAT for a scholarship of some kind
playing: Phantom of the Opera audiobook
talking to: no one at the moment
drinking: water

I tag: Cornerstone bloggers and anyone else who wants to do this one