Random Blurb: Fan Fiction - Part 2

...and three hours had gone by.

I was shocked to say the least. "Have I really," I thought to myself skeptically, "spent three hours of my valuable life reading fan fiction?"

Yes, yes I had.

And it's not like I could tell anybody about it. I mean, you don't tell people that you've been reading fan fics all day.

Random Friend: Hey, Shauntel! What have you been up to lately?

Me: Oh, the usual. Just browsing Fanfiction.net.

Random Friend: *Blank stare*

You might just find your social life falling into Sturgeon's Law.

Anyway, so here I am, having just realized I've wasted three hours on this stupid website. In most situations, I would politely bid farewell and do something useful, like watch The Onion or something. But let me tell you, fan fiction is not most situations. I don't even think is has a situation category. 'Cause you wanna know what I did? I kept reading.

You. can't. stop.

It's physically impossible, unless you're forcefully repelled by some outside source, such as your sister telling you the cat broke his leg or your date's gonna be there in like five minutes and you're still wearing your pajamas or something. Not that I would know from experience or anything.

So you're probably thinking, "Come on Shauntel, three hours? How could you possibly read badly written stories for three hours? And then not stop?" I'll tell you why. Because at this very moment, at 2:26 PM on whatever day I wrote this (you'll never know), there are 14, 847 fics in the Legend of Zelda category.

That's a lot of crap to sift through guys.

Now, most people would be thinking at this point, "Geez, maybe I should be learning something from Shauntel's example..." But for those of you who are slow learners like myself, I've decided to compile a list of a few of the more popular types of fan fics you would encounter if you were to take on such a harrowing journey too. It might save you some time:

Drabbles- A "story" that's less than 1000 words. Occasionally 100. These make up approximately 98.4% of everything you'll find on fanfiction.net, but are usually combined with other "genres" for sanity. They usually consist of some random thought some random character had or will have during some random moment. If it's written in 1st person, you may not even find out the identity of the character, you just have to sort of assume. I often wonder if these aren't just randomly copied and pasted into different story categories. Because frankly, no one would actually know.

Death Fics- These serve pretty much no purpose except to kill off some supposedly beloved character, at least by the author's viewpoint, and watch everyone mope around and cry. Angst angst angst. Also, some "I loved him/her so much but I never knew it until now" will commonly follow, even if the pair is canonically incompatible. If the character isn't as loved as the author assumes, much rejoicing will ensue from the audience.

Crack Fic- A story that could only have been conceived if the author were on crack. Seriously. This is the story about how the Baudelaire orphans totally teamed up with Rorschach and totally took on Hitler, who had kidnapped the Fairly Odd Parents and stolen their magic powers and totally zaps everyone back in time to when there were dinosaurs and then these aliens totally stole their brains and-
Yeah, you get the picture. Like I said before, check out the X-Over section. Its... well it isn't boring.

Romance Fic- Do I really have to explain what this is to you? The title pretty much tells all. Two characters fall in love. And the author explains how. Happily ever after, the end. Usually this follows the canon, meaning the characters were already destined from the start, but shipping wars* can still start.

Slash Fic- Although technically a subset of the previous genre, this type is so popular I simply had to separate it. A slash fic is when two characters of the same gender, 99.9% of the time male, fall in love. Pending the canon, this is usually followed by denial, angst, then a magically happy ending. And anyone who would stand in their way ( previous love interests, parents, there's always someone) are promptly disposed of.

There. I think you're ready. Baby steps first.

So although that doesn't actually conclude my journey, that's the basic gist of it. Sorry to end so quickly but my email just informed me that a new Wicked fanfiction has been added.

Can't. not. click. on. link.

*To ship means to be in full support of a particular romantic pairing within a story universe. A shipping war is when these fans duke it out of the internet and totally bad talk the other one's pairing. Hilarity ensues.

Random Blurb: Fan Fiction - Part 1

(If you're unfamiliar with the term, do watch this video:

http://www.homestarrunner.com/sbemail188.html

I think it sums it up pretty well.)

But for those of you who do know, I think we can all join together and scream in unison. Let's begin now...



















Keep on going...




















Just let all those pent up feelings out...

























K, you can stop now.

But seriously, shudder inducing. My goodness, the things I do for you people. I mean, here I am, innocently trying to rack out my brains in an attempt to write about something remotely hilarious when the thought pops in: fan fiction. It gets a pretty bad rap right? Maybe something humorous could be found in there.

Also, I admit it, my own curiosity fueled it somewhat too. I mean, it couldn't be that bad, right?

Ugh, my own naivety kills me at times. I mean, just... wow. Just wow.

But okay, lets be fair. Sturgeon's Law, which basically states that 90% of everything is crap, still applies. That means that every so often you can dig through said pile of crap and find the occasional gleaming, and well-received gem that is not pure suckary. There are some fan fictions that are actually (can't believe I'm saying this...) kind... of............. *deep breath* good. There I said it. There were an amazing few that were great and perhaps even better than the original show/book/whatever thing they were based on.

But they were few and far between! My goodness gracious, you would not believe the idiocy that gets "published". I could seriously feel my brain cells slowly melting. The grammar nut inside me now has clinical depression. And I just felt.... dumb.

Anyway, so I, having decided to undertake this hopeless quest, ventured straight into the black heart of all fan fics:

*kindly say the next phrase with an evil, creepy voice*

Fanfiction.net. Muhahaha!

*Shudders* Anyway, there was so much to see! So many genres to peruse, so many stories to read! And I tell you, they have everything. Everything. You want superheros? There's a whole comic book section. Animaniacs? Take a gander under the link titled "Cartoons". Ya want Winnie-the-Pooh teams up with Mulder and Scully and battles against the Wizard of Oz? Do check out the "X-over" section on your way out. It's quite a treat, I assure you.

I headed straight over to the video game section of course, and the section titled "Zelda" almost immediately caught my attention. And once I got there, I had an array of specifications I could make. I could set the rating, length, genre, even characters I wanted to see.

And so, I began. I read, laughed, marveled at the stupidity, and various variations of those things. I took a glance at the clock...

...and three hours had gone by.

*Stay tuned for the rest of the adventure in Part 2*

Up there on the "Bestest Updates Evar!" list...

I sincerely apologize for my unexplained leave of absence. You know how some people do "research" before writing something funny/useless? Well, I decided to try that out and have had some... humorous results. You'll get that update soon enough.

But I'm also lazy. That's not really a secret.

Anyway, things have been cool. I've been seeing a boatload of live plays lately. Seriously. I mean, just this last weekend, I saw this hilarious spoof-melodrama called "Because Their Hearts Were Pure", an adorable version of "Robin Hood", and...

*Drum roll ensues*

Phantom of the Opera at Gammage!

And, let me tell you, it was AMAZING!

Oh goodness it was incredible. I could rant about it all day, but I'll spare you. There's more important things to be done.

Random Blurb: Childhood Crushes

Aw young love. It really is rather sweet at times. That doesn't mean I can't still make fun of it.

I was babysitting once for four little girls, aged from 6 months to nine years old. Their obsession with certain male Disney Channel Starz unknown to me, I made the unfortunate mistake of showing them IMDB.com, which is, for those who may not know, a site that has details and pictures for pretty much every celebrity to grace the screen. I was promptly shoved aside as they looked up Joe Jonas, Zac Efron, and others along that same line. They literally, and I'm serious, screamed when they saw them. (Including the baby, but I don't think that had anything to do with translucent, nasally-voiced male pop "singers".)

My point is, I don't get it. Seriously I don't. Maybe I was just some sort of dud who's first real crush came in the 8th grade. Am I the weird one?

The elder of my younger sisters has fallen prey to this phenomena as well, (Hopefully she isn't reading this right now...) albeit not with Disney Starz, thank goodness. Naw, she focuses on real boys.

(I won't elaborate further on that subject. I don't want to wish certain death upon myself just yet.)

I suppose I am being somewhat hypocritical. I guess I did have somewhat of a celebrity "crush" at about age four. However, for me, a "crush", if that's what is was, consisted of me thinking not that the individual was "cute" but "cool". I didn't want to meet him, I wanted to be him. Emulate him.

Looking back at my own naivety, I now see the irony of this philosophy...



Look, I was FOUR! I didn't understand the disturbingly lurid overtones! I just thought he had a cool costume!

And, if I might retain some dignity by the end of this post, I hold that John Partridge still sings better than Joe Jonas.

So there.

Yet Another "I'm Not Dead" Update...

Yeah, I really got nothin' to say. I mean, Fall Break, but whatever. I guess that fact that it ends on Tuesday is lame.

That's all.

Book Review: Capt Hook

Prequels are becoming rather popular aren't they? Especially ones not written by the original author. Nine times out of ten, they're boring, read like fan fiction, and are just generally horrible.

Sorry to disappoint the fans of the reviews of horrible books, but this was the exception.

THE BASICS: Our story begins with a fifteen year old James Matthew, illegitimate son of Lord "B", as he is only known to us as, leaving for Eton, a rather prestigious school. He's as cocky and proud as a young man can get, having perfect confidence in himself and in his plans, whether that be winning a "wall game", kidnapping a Sultana or initiating a mutiny on his own father's ship. And yet despite what you might thing about Hook-to-be...

THE CHARACTERS: ...he never comes off as obnoxious or annoying. Which is so appreciated. Spoiled protagonists spoil the show. Instead, he has to work hard and suffer for his mistakes. But he refuses to ever give up and surrender is never an option. He's not a bad guy, but he's certainly not a good one either.

TECHNICAL STUFF: There's several instances of violence, gore, and terror that could have very well been exploited and blown out of proportion. But our lovely author, J V Hart, has intelligently remembered that Peter Pan was a children's book, and so, this must be too. His writing style is humorous and frank, but he graciously skims over the more disturbing details while still keeping up with the mischievous tone.

(FYI I'm as much a fan of horror novels as the next person, my favorite book is Hannibal afterall, but not in kid's books. Excessive violence probably shouldn't be there.)

THE THEME: "Never give up" certainly sounds cheesy, but I suppose that really is what this book is all about.

OVERALL: I seriously love this book. I think I say that a lot, but I really do. Love this book I mean. What do I love about it? I love the details, I love the characters, I love the intelligent* foreshadowings and references to it's predecessor it presents, and, most of all, I love the story. It's just so different. Just, wow. Go read it.

GRADE: A

Would I let my sister read it? Yes
Would I let my cousin read it? Most certainly, I'll be recommending it to him actually.
Would I let my dad read it? Yes

*Random note: I tell you, I'm a sucker for good forshadowing. It makes me happy. I think I shall devote an entire post to it.

Admission For Ash Girl

The price for adults is $5
The price for students (with a student ID) is $4
Children under 10 are free. Although, I'm wondering if children under 10 would even want to come...

The Ash Girl

Many have been asking about all the side notes hinting about a play I'm in. And I've come to tell you all that it is true. I'm in the school play! Not that there really was any question about me making it, but yes, I'm in it!

It's called The Ash Girl and it's basically Cinderella, 'cept it's more like the older, Grimm's version, as opposed to the Disney version. For those of you who don't know what that means, it's somewhat gory, frightening, and just plain creepy. Also, the seven deadly sins are all personified as characters also, which is pretty much awesome. For those of you who don't know what the seven deadly sins are, I'll fill you in:

Slothfulness
Anger
Envy
Gluttony
Pride
Greed &
Lust

I'm the step-mother, who is pretty much the best character. But maybe that's just 'cause I play her. Who knows.

Also, I'm co- in charge of costumes and makeup and let me tell you, there are some serious makeup jobs in this play. And they are all going to be amazing.

Anyway, everyone should come and see it. The dates are September 24, 25, and 26th, and it takes place at the auditorium at my school. I'm pretty sure it's at 7. I don't yet know the prices, but I'll write about that when I know.

General Update, Just So You Know I'm Not Dead Or Anything...

As you may have gathered from my annoyed, and perhaps, annoying, comments on the side, I've been doing homework all weekend. Which sort of kills the point of Labor Day, at least for a student, but whatever. As a minor, I'm not entitled to the same rights as all you "adults" out there.

Anyway, the aforementioned projects have come primarily from my AP classes. For those who don't know what that means...

AP = college

Lovely isn't it?

Anyway, I'm taking two of them, so my life has just been rainbows and primroses, I assure you. Also, add to the equation your basic, every night type of homework from you math class times two plus another English written project...

This is getting confusing. I'll write it down in "technical" terms.

AP English book report + AP history giant vocabulary from summer project + AP history vocab that was assigned on Thursday + (general math homework x 2) + AP English story questions + a Spanish group project + the fact that I still haven't done my laundry = Shauntel's death/incredibly annoyed expression

Make sense? I hope so. 'Cause I'm not explaining that again.

Book Review: Watchmen

Oh deary me, this is so overdue. I mean, the movie came out forever ago, and the DVD came out two months ago, and the actual book itself came out like, 25 years ago. So yeah, I'm a wee bit late.

Also, no "but Shauntel, this is a graphic novel, not a book. It can't possibly count for one of your reviews". To that I say nonsense. First of all, this so called "comic book" is better than most regular books out there nowadays. Also, this is my blog. I can do what I want.

THE BASICS: In an alternate 1980s world, one where Richard Nixon is in his third term and nuclear war is just around the corner, masked vigilantes have been outlawed. Some chose to retire, either using their fame to gain power and riches or simply disappearing into the shadows, hoping for a quiet life. Others continue their work, either legally by working exclusively for the government, or illegally, and living by their own terms. However, when one of these "superheroes" is murdered, others suspect a plot that might lead to the extermination of them all. However, what is discovered is more terrible and disturbing than any of them could have imagined.

THE CHARACTERS: (I hate going down the line, character by character, but I find it necessary in this instance. Not only because they're all so interesting, but because they each seem to embody a theme, all of which are presented throughout the book.)

The Comedian's death is revealed on the first page, but that doesn't take away from his presence that pervades the story. He is unquestionably rude, blunt, and a downright jerk and yet, you never can quite come to hate him. Shooting a pregnant woman, presumably carrying his child, and attempting to rape his friend are only a few of the crimes he has committed, yet he's almost unnervingly likable. He doesn't really care about anything, because he sees it all as one big joke. He doesn't care about the "smaller" of any evil, he's calloused himself to the more awful things in life. As a result, when faced with something truly horrific, he can't handle it. Because it was, for him, too late.

Rorschach is justice. Unbiased, unquestioning, cruel justice. He won't think twice about killing or maiming a person, but only those who deserve it. He has only one motive in life- to punish those who would harm the innocent. And anyone who would try to stop his from achieving this goal. True justice never compromises, and neither does he. He's another one of those unnervingly likable sorts too.

There is nothing particularly special about Night Owl. But that's what makes him unique. He represents the "everyman". He's a good, decent person who's just trying to do that right thing in a world filled with things far beyond his control. He shows that you don't have to have powers or some strange psychosis to be a hero.

And like the average person, he does some truly remarkable things. He shows feats of bravery and occasionally intelligence beyond that of his more "eccentric" pals. He's willing to sacrifice to do what he feels is right. And he's friends with Rorschach. That my friends, is something to brag about.

Good ol' Silk Specter II. Her mother was a hero as well, the original Silk Specter, and she's one of the few members of the Watchmen who never really enjoyed her job. Her future was mapped out at an early age, thus she never really had a choice about going into the super heroing business. As a result, she has quite a bit of animosity towards her parents, mostly her mother because she was the one who chose her career, but somewhat towards her dad as well, because he left his family when she was young.

Because of this, she feels lonely and lost much of the time, and she's generally quick to judge others, as she doesn't want to get hurt. The world is black and white to her.

As the only person in the story with actual powers, Dr. Manhattan is truly unique. Because of a science experiment gone wrong, he has the ability to manipulate objects at an atomic level. But in being endowed with God-like powers, he lost much of his human side. He simply doesn't care about life. Sub-atomic particles are much more interesting.

He is what science without morality is. It simply keeps moving, keeps improving upon itself, not caring about what harm it might do to the world around it.

Last, but definitely not least, is Adrian Vendt, aka Ozymandias. He used his "retirement" to give him a substantial fortune and fame unmatched. He's the marketer of a large variety of commercial products, including action figures of himself and the other Watchmen. Yet, despite the fame and novelization, no one really knows much about him. No one understands who he really is. To the media, he's a poster boy, an celebrity who helps bring in their cash. But then again, he brought it upon himself.

TECHNICAL STUFF: The comic is written in a fairly common, nine panel format, not that that probably means much to my reader though. Also, the color scheme, instead of being the traditional primary color format, is done with secondary colors. But once again, not that you care.

What you do proabably care about is just how in depth the story gets. The story of the outlawed masked heros is only one tale within the book. Actually, there are three separate stories going on at once, the other two which serve as a way to further convey the themes outlined in the book.

THE THEME: Dang, there are a lot of messages hidding in this book. But the main one? Appreciate life. Make the most of it. 'Cause you never know when it will end.

OVERALL: This book is on TIME Magazine's "Best 100 Novels" list for a reason. It's a brilliant story, embellished with strong, fascinating characters, a crazy twist ending, and overall cleverness. It's the sort of thing that everyone should read in their lifetime.

GRADE: A

Would I let my sister read it? No
Would I let my cousin read it? Nope
Would I let my dad read it? Yes

Random Blurb: Opinions

So have you ever noticed that there are some subjects that, no matter whom you speak to, people always have an opinion on it? And it's rarely an indifferent opinion, they either love it or hate it. I've compiled a short list of a few I notice in my everyday life...

1. President Obama

Might as well start with the elephant in the room. Overall, this is a rather touchy one simply because most every person I've spoken to either thinks he's the savior of our country who will bring upon a new era of peace and prosperity, or thinks he's some sort of anti-christ who will destroy our country/world. Personally I think either philosophy is ridiculous but whatever. I often have a funny feeling that I'm one of the few people in the world who actually is indifferent. And for me to not have an opinion on something- that's kind of a big deal.

2. Twilight

Aw good ol' Twilight. We've had many a laugh, it and me. Although that generally consisted of me laughing at it as it yelled things like OMG EDWARD IS SOOOOOO HAWTT!!!!!!!!!!!111!!!!!11111

Yeah, you get the picture. Anyway, there are lovers, and then there are Twilighters, the ones who spout out quotes such as "You're exactly my brand of heroin" that in a normal society would get them arrested.. And on the opposite side, there are those who love to flame Twilight Lexicon's chatroom with pro-Harry Potter propaganda. It's a seemingly never ending war that simply can never be won.

3. Cats the musical

There are, quite simply, two kinds of people in the world. Those who love Cats, and those who find it just too odd. (There's also a lesser mentioned third party, those who haven't heard about it, but we'll skip them for arguments sake.) This is how a typical conversation between a pro and an anti might go...

Pro: I love Cats the musical!
Anti: But it's weird...
Pro: The music is superb and unique!
Anti: But it's weird...
Pro: The dancing is so talented!
Anti: But it's weird...
Pro: The story is so deep!
Anti: But it's weird...
Pro: The costumes are so cool!
Anti: But it's weird...
Pro: The Rum Tum Tugger is so hot!
Anti: But it's weird...

Need I say more?

4. PETA

... ...I'm not even going to elaborate on this one...

5. Violent Video Games

To the animal rights groups who said Super Mario Brothers abused turtles, to the women's rights groups who said Grand Theft Auto was mean to hookers, such a controvery should have been long seen coming. I mean, people will complain about anything if it gives them 5 minutes on TV and free pizza.

There are those who say it's good for three years olds to shoot old ladies on the street as they push A several times in an attempt to steal her purse, and then there's those who claim that if you even consider smacking a pixelated hungry tiger, you will undoubtedly become a serial killer. Undoubtedly.


So is there a point to all this? I think it's that the Rum Tum Tugger really is kind of hot...

But maybe that's just me.

School is NOT cool

As the title suggests, I'm not really enjoying school. Maybe I was just spoiled last year 'cause it was so great, but I mean really? So far, it's been ridiculous.

First of all, my seminary class has, no joke, 57 people in it. Fire safety allows only about 36. There aren't even enough seats. And there's absolutely nothing I can change on me schedule to get out of it.

Then, in my stupid AP classes, my best friend and I have opposite block schedules. If things had gone as it was originally planned on my schedule, we'd have the same one. But no, the office decided to change it. I'm still in the process of seeing if I can fix that.

Now, you may be thinking "Shauntel, that's not so bad. There's only a few things wrong." And to that I say "Wrong!" Because when it comes to something I have to spend the next 8 months with, I'd like it to be darn near perfect. Wouldn't you?

But like I said, maybe I'm spoiled. Maybe because sophomore year was so fabulously perfect, this is what I deserve. *Sigh* Lovely.

But I digress. There are some good things. Like choir. Choir's good. And my Spanish class, one of the classes I was worried about, is actually kind of fun.

I'm still angry though.

If I were a rich girl...

...I would totally have one of these...









Or this...































But, sadly, money is not something the average teenager easily acquires. So instead, I have this...











'Cept it's green, dusty, and smells a bit like cheerios. But hey, you take what you can get right?

No seriously, I'm grateful. I'd be more grateful if I could legally drive it... but that's something only time will heal.

'Tis the end of an era...

Aw summer. Guess there's really not that much else to say overall. 'Cept that it's done.

*sigh* School starts on Monday. Lovely.

But that's not what this post is about! No no, we're going to be positive, not put the past behind us, and discuss summer. Because it was pretty hot.

Nothing especially exemplary happened this summer, until the end, in which I was gone for almost three weeks straight on two entirely separate vacations. In the first, as many of you know, I went to New Mexico for Pioneer Day. Pioneer Day in Ramah, New Mexico, is very much like it is in Utah, namely there's a parade, people are off work, and children run around covered in sawdust looking for loose change. Unlike in Utah, at least I would assume, the parade was only about 5-10 minutes long, about which I was perfectly fine. Best parade I ever saw.

The next major vacation spot was at the Homestead, which is where all the dad's family's family reunions are held. It was cool (literally), mostly relaxing, and very sociable. I ate a crawdad that my cousins slaved away at catching for me, viewed a truly vicious spider attack, and squirted water on my younger cousin's from the balcony, causing them to honestly think it was raining. It was a good week.

And while the above are the only major vacations that occurred, there were plenty of smaller things that happened as well. I didn't read much this summer, a fact that's disturbing me greatly, I assure you, I saw plenty of movies. But more strange than all the movies is the musicals I saw this summer, both live and on screen. Starting a few weeks before school ended, I saw Fiddler on the Roof, Seven Brides for Seven Brothers, Cats, Wicked, Sweeney Todd, Across the Universe, and part of the Pirates of Penzance. Odd. Very odd. And, if I get around to it, I might just have to devote an entire post to the stupidity that is Seven Brides for Seven Brothers. Yeah, some of you might like that show, but you cannot deny that it made no sense whatsoever.

So that was summer, or some if it, at least. So yeah. That's about it.

Just remembered, I lied, that's not about it. I got a car. Kind of. So there. That's about it.

Leaving... Again

Yep, I'm back from New Mexico. But sometime in the next half hour I'll be leaving for a family reunion. So yeah.

'Twas as "wicked" as I remember...

Yup, I saw Wicked. And yup, it was pretty much amazing. Even with our craptastic seats (seriously, who's idea was it to install a third balcony in a theater), it was a fantastic show.

What to say about it? Well, it was almost embarrassingly better than the show that inspired it. (Is it a crime to think The Wizard of Oz is kind of lame? I mean yeah, it's a classic but...) It's sweet, it's funny, and near heartbreaking in some places. It gives the original story depth and character, something I always felt it lacked.

So I'm Seriously Excited Because...

I'm going to go see "Wicked" tomorrow! Anyone who knows me knows that I love this play like no other. So this is kind of a big deal for me.

I'll tell you all about it on Saturday...

A Brief Re-cap of Good 'Ol June...

...

...that's about it. Nothing worth speaking of has really happened. At least, not anything that hasn't already been mentioned.

The End

(When seeing a kid movie at the theater was the highlight of your month, you really need to re-sort you life)

Book Review: Sister of the Dead

The third book in the Noble Dead series is yet another win!

THE BASICS: Having defeated the vampires in Bela, Magiere and Leesil leave the capital city and head to the country of Droevinka, where Magiere was born, to try and figure out why a vampire would create a being capable of destroying it's own kind. What they find are the hints of a plot more disturbing and terrible than either of them could have possibly imagined. Also, they have picked up a new companion- a young, timid scholar named Wynn, who helps them discover that their dog, Chap, may be more than he previously appeared.

Unbeknownst to them, they are being trailed by two noble dead. One is a mysterious nobleman named Welstiel (who has actually appeared in every book so far but wasn't particularly interesting until now) and Chane, who is in love with Wynn.

THE CHARACTERS: I admit, I wasn't really happy when Wynn Hygeorht showed up and decided to tag alone with the adventurers. Her role in the previous book was important sure, but I didn't really see her as a potential permanent character. However, about halfway through the book, something changed. I actually began to like her. She gives (for lack of a better word) the team the normality, as she's only human, and kindness it needed.

TECHNICAL STUFF: What impresses me most about this book is the downright dreary atmosphere it sets up. Droevinka, is dark and rainy and the entire situation is bleak. But I never felt overwhelmed by it. Although somewhat frightening at times, it was never depressing, a fact that I highly appreciate.

THE THEME: Sometimes, the truth is better left unknown. Also, never speak to the mysterious, freaky necromancer living out in the woods. It will never end well.

OVERALL: I didn't like this book quite as much as the previous in the series, but I still harbor a great love for it. I admit, I can't even pintpoint what I liked better about the other. So I'll just leave it at that.

GRADE: A

Would I let my dad read it? Yes
Would I let my cousin read it? Yes
Would I let my sister read it? No

Book Review: Arthas

Yeah, I read books based off of video games. Live with it.

THE BASICS: A mysterious plague has gripped the kingdom of Lordaeron and it's prince, Arthas Menethil, is sent to investigate it's origin and possibly find a cure. Horrified at what he discovers but still willing to pay any price to save his people, Arthas travels a road of terror and destruction to a path where death is only the beginning of the journey.

THE CHARACTERS: Arthas's transformation throughout the course of the book is nothing less than tragic and riveting. And despite the fact that the average person will never be faced with the prospect of practically selling their own soul to save their kingdom, the basic aspects of the situation are so easily adaptable our own troubles, that although it isn't you, it might as well be. Because when it comes down to it, Arthas was a normal guy trying to do the right thing thrust into a battle of morals that he couldn't have possibly been expected to win on his own. And he doesn't win (it's not really a spoiler to say so). Because he forsook his friends when he needed them most, he lost.

*A couple of Spoilers in the next paragraph, so just skip it if you don't want any*
And it's these friends, allies, and peers who suffer just as much, if not more so, because of his downfall. Many are killed by or because of him, and the few who escape that fate are so emotionally and/or physically wrecked that they might as well have been.

TECHNICAL STUFF: The writing is excellent. As I mentioned before, this book is based off of a video game so I already knew the basics of the plot. But the details and the additions to the dialogue and story were so rich that it kept me interested up until the tragic end. And then, on literally the second-to-last page, a plot twist so small yet so important occurred, adding the final touch to a near perfect novel.

THE THEME: Don't get so caught up in an event that you lost sight of the goal. Also, making deals with the devil will never work in your favor. (That's figuratively speaking, by the way. However, funnily enough, I have read books where that statement was literal.)

OVERALL: As if you couldn't already tell, I really love this book. It's one of the few that doesn't do anything on my "...Things I Hate..." list, including the infamous predictability. It's sweet, it's tragic, and filled with the occasional subtle humor. What more could you want?

GRADE: A

*Just to give everyone a general idea of what age group the books I'm reviewing are for, I'm adding a new feature to the reviews so that the "age of enjoyability/appropriateness" can be known.*

(For adults) Would I let my dad read it? Yes.
(For teenagers) Would I let my cousin read it? Yes.
(For children) Would I let my sister read it? No.

The Return of the Revenge of Girl's Camp...

...really wasn't that bad...

Seriously, I really don't have much to complain about. Perhaps it was just the reoccurring nightmares from last year that put my optimism down (I'd like to see you live a normal life after a nightmare about snipes locking you in the bathroom with Doris Day *shudders*).

As absolutely enthralling as slipping on the stage carpet was (long story), being a YCL (Youth Camp Leader) was actually really fun. Although I ended playing mom the entire week, it could have definitely been worse.

Were there bad/annoying things that happened? Of course- it's a given. But will I be writing them down here? No. Why? The "good" answer to that is because we shouldn't dwell on the bad that happens in life. The real answer is that you never know who might read this in the future and then hate me for the rest of their life... those overly-sensitive moochers...

Mustn't hate, mustn't hate... so openly...

Anyway, there really isn't much more the say on the subject. So yeah, 'twas a mostly useless post. Just wanted you to know that I wasn't completely lazy for not posting in two weeks.

Also, on the most random note possible, everyone should go see the movie "Up". I just went and saw it today, and it was pretty much amazing.

So, I have a problem...

It's called "the last twenty seconds or so of this trailer actually look really cool"...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kSFMmkMfQ5Q

What do you guys think?

Book Review: Angels and Demons

So the movie came out the other day. Then I remembered- wait, I've read that book. I should probably do something about that.

THE BASICS: Robert Langdon, a Harvard professor and symbologist, is called to investigate a mysterious murder in which the victim was branded with a strange symbol. The symbol, he discovers, is that of an ancient, thought to be extinct group called the "Illuminati" who's greatest opposition was the Catholic church. With the help of Vittoria Vetra, a biology and physics major, and the daughter of the victim, he unravels a conspiracy that threatens the entire future of the Catholicism.

THE CHARACTERS: Robert Langdon is very intelligent, but not obnoxiously so, and, despite his somewhat humorous quirks, or perhaps because of them, he is actually really likable. As much as I liked Vittoria, she didn't feel necessary to the plot. *Spoilers* Her kidnapping later on added some drama sure, but was it completely necessary? *End Spoiler* However, if I were the author, I suppose I would have kept her in too. Like I said, I really did like her.

TECHNICAL STUFF: This is actually a rather easy read. That isn't a condemning factor however. There's some complex stuff packed in here, and it's nice that I don't have to be a Harvard graduate to figure it all out.

However, it's fatal flaw is the same flaw that many in the mystery genre posses- it's too predictable. I knew who the bad guy was. It wasn't obvious, but that's the point. It's never the obvious one. Once you figure out the guy who is least likely to have done it, you've found your villain.

THE THEME: Things are never the way they appear. (I suppose this is a rather cliched moral to a mystery story, but it really is a prevalent factor in this story.)

OVERALL: I liked this book quite a bit. Is it biased in some of it's beliefs? Perhaps. This holds true to all the Dan Brown books I've read. But it held the same opinion as I did. So I didn't especially care.

GRADE: B

A Brief Re-Cap of this Year

It's that time of year again! Namely, the end of it. The school part anyway.

This year has been memorable for many serious, funny, and just plain odd reasons. For example, I found out about a new talent I had. Turns out, I can act! Who new?

Just to recap, I was in the most advanced choir group this year, I was a lead in one play, a prominent side character in another (which, yes, I still need to put up pictures for), the object of many boy's affections (5 actually), read some amazing books, went to Disneyland, got a 103% in my English class, discovered a new love for biology, and a new hatred for geometry.

So honestly, I think Sophomore year has been my most memorable yet. I think I'll be sad to leave it.

Shauntel's List of Things She Hates that are Commonly Done in Books and Movies Much to her Endless Annoyance

Writing my review of "Thief of Lives" got me thinking about some of the things I hate in that are commonly done in stories. Unfortunately, I didn't get to talk about them quite as much as I might've liked to in the book review, so I thought I'd just give them their own post. So with much excitement, I present to you "Shauntel's List of Things She Hates that are Commonly Done in Books and Movies Much to her Endless Annoyance".

*Note* This is in no specific order. FYI

*Another Note* The books that are given as examples of something that didn't do whatever thing I was talking about are all ones that seemed to set up for it and then didn't. I didn't just go out and choose some books at random to use as fodder.

1. Predictable Endings
Almost every story you've ever heard of falls into this trap. I always try to guess the end of books and unfortunately, I usually get it right. I may not be able to tell you exactly what occurs and when, but I can usually give you a correct list of who falls in love with who, who dies, if and how the villain will be killed/defeated, etc. The obvious stuff. Now, you might be thinking, "But seriously Shauntel, that's just how stories are nowadays. There are no original ideas left! And it's okay if you can guess the end, it's still fun to read them." Yeah, maybe they're still fun to read. But there are still unused ideas! Originality is key people!

Example of something that did this: Almost everything
Example of something that didn't: Hannibal by Thomas Harris - the only book* in which the ending I predicted was completely wrong.

2. The whole "I love you but we can't be together because it's too dangerous"
That is one of the stupidest and overused plot devices ever invented. I hate it. I really hate it. Why? Because it's just a dumb way for the author to forcefully insert some angst and drama between their two love leads. And all that does is lead to some unnecessary tension and all that does is annoy the heck out of me.

Example of something that did this: Twilight series by Stephanie Meyer
Example of something that didn't: Noble Dead series by Barb & JC Hendee

3. Characters getting needlessly angry at other characters, usually done between love leads, and causing unnecessary plot drama
Oh, how I hate that. Seriously.
When I say "needlessly" I mean something along the lines of "I can't believe you did that 57 years ago! I can never love you the same way again!", or "How could you have lied to me about something as silly and unimportant as that! I can never love you the same way again!", or, by far the most stupid, "I totally saw you doing and you don't even have to explain because I insist upon blowing it needlessly out of proportion! I can never love you the same way again!"

Example of something that did this: Almost any romantic comedy
Example of something that didn't: Thief of Lives by Barb & JC Hendee

This list will undoubtedly be expanding over time. These are just the few I could think of at the moment.

*Although the book had a crazy plot twist at the end, the movie, which I haven't seen, only read the synopsis on the Internet, ended exactly as I had expected the story to.

Book Review: Thief of Lives

This is the second book in the Noble Dead series and I still continue to enjoy it. Anything that successfully holds my attention for this long definitely has something special about it.

THE BASICS: *Spoilers for the ending of the first book ahead* Word has gotten out about how Magiere and Leesil, a half-elf, which I had forgotten to previously mention, dispatched the vampires living in Miiska and Magiere is starting to accept, however grudgingly, that there's some truth in her possibly being a dhampir, a half-vampire, half-human who specialize in killing vampires, and that her role in the world might be more important than that of a tavern owner. *End Spoiler* Mysterious deaths start occurring in the capitol city of Bela and the duo are summoned to investigate.

THE CHARACTERS: Magiere and Leesil still continue to be some of my favorite characters ever. Their interaction, both humorous and occasionally sweet, is realistic, which is definitely unique on it's own. When mentioned in the wrong light, they sound like two love-interests in a really lame romantic comedy. And they very easily could have been. I'll get to why they're not in the next section.

The villains are improved somewhat, in the sense that I didn't want them to win quite as much. There was at least one I was actually voting for (his name is Chane, and I mention him because he becomes extremely important later) and the ones I wasn't especially fond of, namely Toret and Sapphire, were because if I met non-evil human equivalents of them in real life, I still wouldn't like them anyway simply because their personalities and mine are pretty much incompatible. Namely, Toret is a kind of a wimp and Sapphire is a total skank.

TECHNICAL STUFF: This entire story had a risky premise- meaning that it had the potential to get really stupid, really fast. Having read many books, I saw a variety of the usual, annoying cliches approaching, none of which actually occurred. *Spoilers* There was definite potential for the whole "I love you but we can't be together because it's just too dangerous" cliche and the whole "someone seeing something they probably shouldn't have seen and getting needlessly and stupidly angry at the person about it" indeed could have been an occurrence. *End Spoiler* But guess what? Neither of those things happened! And yes, this is a cause for celebration! Because I probably would have hated this book if either of those things had occurred.

THE THEME: Doing bad things for a good cause defeats the purpose. Also, the basic "trust your friends" message is in there somewhere also.

OVERALL: I forgot to mention one more thing I love about this book. It's funny. It's an honest to goodness "it's a good thing I didn't read this one during a quiet moment in class because I would have laughed out loud and embarrassed myself" type of book.

So basically, this book is amazing. The end.

GRADE: A

So hey! Do you have any suggestions for future reviews? I'd love to hear them.

It's been a while since my last life update. The reason? Well, nothing too out of the ordinary has really occurred. So, I'll just give you a list of some of the more mundane or semi-exciting things.

My choir concert was last Tuesday! Although we didn't get to sing some of the songs I was especially excited for, it still went really well.

More final projects for school were due this week than next week. Which I actually find rather odd but whatever. One of the more interesting projects was that we had to write some sort of book for my biology class. I wrote the "Children's Color and Activity Book of Disturbing Diseases and Conditions" in alphabetical order. I actually succeeded in grossing out my dad.

(Many might wonder: Why disturbing diseases and conditions? Why not just stick with diseases? Well the answer to that comes because of a good ol' pal I like to refer to as the letter "Q". He has nothing to add to the disease department. Even my generally useless friend "X" was more helpful than him. So quadriplegia was my only option.)

I've decided that although I'm fairly good at it, I will never be an architect. For my stupid geometry class, our final project is that we have to graph out a net design of a famous/historic building and then actually build it. My group chose the depressingly easy Washington Monument. It's easy, almost too easy, but seriously, I'm not enjoying it. This is why I'll grow up and write gross-out children's books.

Book Review: Breaking Dawn

*Note, this entire review is filled to the brim with spoilers. It was simply unavoidable. As a result, I'm warning you now.*

During this book, each of the major characters changes into something they probably didn't really imagine themselves becoming. For example, Bella Swan becomes a necrophiliac. Jacob Black becomes a pedophile. Edward Cullen becomes a pimp.

THE BASICS: Our favorite hybrid couple tie the knot within one hundred pages of the book's beginning. Most lame romances end there. But no, "Breaking Dawn" chose to be special and drag on for another 500 pages- none of which included anything even remotely important. It's the equivalent of crashing your car and then being forced to stay in it as it catches on fire and slowly burns you.

This book is ridiculous. Instead of reviewing it intelligently and properly, I'm just going to give a list of some of the more stupid events that occur...

-Bella gets pregnant
-The baby, when born, is named Renesmee
-Jacob falls in love with the baby
-Bella, when finally vamped, has no struggle whatsoever with controlling her thirst for blood
-The baby grows ultra fast, is super smart, has superpowers, is illegally beautiful, and is absolutely perfect in every single fricken way
-The Volturi (the self-proclaimed rulers of Sparkleville, left previously unmentioned because I assumed them mostly unimportant) come to destroy the baby so the Cullens gather up all their glittering friends and neighbors and prepare for battle...
-...a battle which never actually occurs
-Bella's vampire superpower is, of course, the most powerful ability of all - a completely impenetrable psychic shield that she can make grow and shrink at will
-Everybody lives happily ever freaking after

And yes, these events are all completely accurate. I swear, I did not embellish in the least.

THE CHARACTERS: These people continue to get stupider and stupider. Even the redeemable ones were ruined. That's all I can say in decent company.

TECHNICAL STUFF: The book is divided into three books. The first and third are narrated by Bells. The second is narrated by Jacob, which I say was a fine change of pace. He is, at that time, still uncorrupted by his embarrassingly creepy attachment to his ex-girlfriend's daughter, as the baby was not yet born. But even so, his snarky attitude could only help a bad plot so much.

Also, the foreshadowing was terrible. At the beginning, Swan Princess starts having weird dreams about vampire babies and then goes off on a 10-15 page explanation about where she heard about them and where they came from and what was done to destroy them. Talk about subtle.

THE THEME: I... don't actually know... not that I especially want to...

OVERALL: This book was bad. Actually, it was beyond bad. It was completely awful. Don't ever for any reason read it. Or, for that matter, any of it's predecessors. Because this is where they all inevitably lead. It's not worth your time or your brain cells.

GRADE: F

Questions? Comment? Seriously, I want to hear them!

Book Review: Eclipse

This book succeeds in many ways the previous books fail. There is action and a bit of suspense and all the excitement isn't saved until ending. Unfortunately for it, in other ways the previous books failed, this book fails on even worse. And yes, their are a few mild spoilers coming up.

THE BASICS: If you thought Bella Swan was clingy to her leech boyfriend before, then wow, are you going to be impressed to what lengths she goes to to stay with him in this book. Does she cling to him during potentially dangerous "how to kill newborn vampires" training? Of course! Does she remove him from his family during a fierce battle in which they need as many people on their side as possible? Heck yeah! Does she have him follow her to the bathroom? Probably!

But oh no, it's not just Edward she's clinging to. Now she also wants Jacob, her werewolf notboyfriend who adores her and worships the ground she walks on just like everyone else! But oh, woe is her, because she can't decide between the two of them.

*Spoilers* But in other, more exciting news, Victoria (remember her? she was from like, two books ago and then pretty much forgotten about), the vampire who's mate Edward killed in "Twilight", is coming back for revenge. And she's got a whole team of fresh, newly-created on her side. But then of course the entire battle sequence is ruined by Bella's bad narration so that pretty much kills it. *End Spoiler*

THE CHARACTERS: The beings in this book are pretty much as lame and Sue-ish as ever. Jacob however, as it also was in previous books, is the book's one saving grace. His snarky personality and immature insights make him the only realistic person in this book's entire universe.

Also, Edward is as controlling and "perfect" as ever and Bella is still retarded. And the other characters, of which there are, I swear, at least a billion, are still unimportant.

TECHNICAL STUFF: I have nothing new to say on this subject. Except perhaps that the writing style might be getting worse.

THE THEME: It's the same as in "Twilight" really. It's supposedly about true love conquering all but all I got was more angsty teenagers being angsty. *Spoiler* Also, there's a part neat the end where Bella's about to sacrifice herself to distract the bad vamps to save her favorite discoball. But instead of being written as courageous and heroic, it written as your basic suicidal teen being dumber than usual. *End Spoiler*

OVERALL: Bleh and more bleh. And snore. Seriously, I feel like I've read this before. Oh wait, I have. It's called "Twilight", you know, the first book in the series? They're basically exactly the same. This is where the series started dragging, so I stopped being quite as neutral in my opinion of it.

GRADE: D

I love it when book stores make mistakes...

So about a week ago, just a few days before my choir trip (which I will write about soon), I pre-ordered a book online which was due to be released on the 21st, aka tomorrow. Well, it came last Saturday, the 18th. Now, this may seem insignificant, but I'd been looking forward to this book for quite some time, so I was pretty happy about the whole ordeal.

Sadly, I finished the book by Sunday...

Anyway, that was pretty random, but I just had to share it. And yes, I'll probably review this one eventually.

My Choir Field Trip!

So tomorrow I'm leaving on my choir field trip! And it's going to be totally awesome!! And as you can tell by the excessive amounts of exclamation points, I'm ecstatic!

Basic rundown of what will be occurring:

We'll be traveling all day tomorrow...
We'll be going to Disneyland on Thursday...
We're going to the beach on Friday and then participating in a competition...
And then we're going home on Saturday.

So yeah, I'm pretty much excited.

Book Review: Dhampir

Finally, a good book that happens to have vampires in it. Why are there so few of these?

THE BASICS: For years, Magiere has conned peasants out of their money under the guise of a vampire hunter. In truth though, the "vampire" is her partner, a half-elf named Leesil, who she pretends to kill on a weekly basis. With Leesil's wolf-like dog, Chap, the three had wandered for years using this ruse as a way for easy money. Magiere, though, wishes to retire from the job, and saves up enough to by a tavern in a town near the sea. But their reputation has preceded them, and when three real vampires already living in the town decide to dispose of them, Magiere and Leesil find themselves in a little over their heads.

THE CHARACTERS: The characters are easily the best part of this book and the relationship and personalities of the two protagonists is easily one of my favorite parts. Magierie is condescending and blunt and, with her slightly gothic look, could have easily been a caricature of pretty much all lame fantasy book heroins. But unlike most fantasy heroins, she's well-rounded and isn't a total bee-yotch.

Leesil is funny, friendly, somewhat of an alcoholic, and gives the story the rather dry humor it needs. He's the polar opposite of his surly counterpart and knows just how to push her buttons. Also, despite forever being mentioned second, he's not a secondary character. He's just as much as main character as Magiere, sometimes more so in later books.

The bad-guys of the story, namely the three vampires, are probably some of the greatest villains to ever be written. I liked them. I honestly almost wanted them to win. And in some ways, that was their flaw- they were too likable. This is a problem that continues throughout the rest of the series, namely, almost all the villains are too sympathetic and likable. Although as far as fatal flaws go, I think this is an acceptable one.

TECHNICAL STUFF: The writing is very well done. The perspective changes are great and the voice of each character is unique and fitting. Magiere's point of view is blunt and authoritative. Leesil's point of view is humorous and witty. And all the supporting characters whose views it's ever from is always given a different outlook.

THE THEME: There are several different messages one could get from this book. One of the more uplifting is something along the lines of "sometimes you need to be willing to accept help from others". Also * Potential Spoiler* there is a less positive message and that is "sometimes, you can get away with living a lie". *End Spoiler*

OVERALL: I really loved this book. It hooks you from the start and in my opinion, there's honestly not a dull moment throughout the entire book. It's a great introduction to the "Noble Dead" series, about which more reviews will definitely be popping up, and is highly recommended to all (intelligent) fans of (intelligent) fantasy. (Yes, unfortunately I do have to specify).

GRADE: A

Book Review: New Moon

Once again, I read this book about a year ago, so if I forget any "important" details (if there are any in that book) then I apologize in advance. Kind of.

NOTE: There is at least one spoiler in this review and so I'll be giving an advanced warning just in case someone actually cares. I'll probably start doing that with all my reviews.

THE BASICS: The book begins with Bella's 18th birthday party which is held at the Cullen's house. Bella, being the idiot she is, lands herself with a papercut from wrapping paper which drives Jasper, one of the many Cullen brothers, bonkers and he attempts to eat her. If only the rest of the book were this happy.

Because of this, Edward decides that it's too dangerous for him to be around Bella anymore so he leaves. And it's just that abrupt. He pulls her aside one day, tells her he's leaving, and then boom, he's gone. No more sparklpire.

Bella then isolates herself from all her friends for a few months and becomes totally emo in her grief for Edward's departure (and I am not exaggerating that. She seriously stays depressed for months). She is, however, drawn out of her emoness by her friend Jacob Black, who was in the first book but no one actually payed attention to that. But of course, Bella attracts mythical monsters, so it all goes downhill from there.

TECHNICAL STUFF: This book suffers from the same flaws as it's predecessor- namely, the narration sucks. I am eternally grateful, however, that we weren't forced to sit through the entire Bella emo moments.

THE THEME: This time, the message is a little more positive than the one given in Twilight simply due to the fact that Edward barely makes and appearance. But even so, his influence is reeked throughout. Bella's depression over him leaving is depressing. It also ground in the fact that without him, Bella Sue has nothing. She'd isolated herself from her friends because he didn't like them, she had a shaky relationship with her dad from all the lying done about him, and she had no hobbies that didn't include him. He'd had complete control over her life.

OVERALL: This book is very different from it's predecessor in the sense that there's very little lovey-doveyness in it. As a result, I can't really say whether it's better or worse. Jacob Black, Bella's new friend, is a surprisingly well written character and the saving value to this book. Without him, the story would have been boring as heck. *Spoilers* Equipped with both snark and werewolfness, he's a perfect rival to Edward's "perfection" and vampireness. *End Spoiler*

GRADE: C

Book Review: Twilight

I probably should have done this when I first read the book about a year ago. But hey, better late than never right? And with the movie about to come out on DVD, what better time to discuss the book?

NOTE: There will be spoilers in this review. If for some reason you haven't read them or at least don't know the story, you may not want to continue reading.

THE BASICS: Twilight, begins about the same way as the Twilight movie, namely, some angsty teenage girl named Isabella Swan, Bella for short, who is pretty and perfect moves in with her father for unknown reasons and hates her new life, despite the fact that she chose to go there, and hates the people 'cause they're so dang friendly. Until one day, she meets this emo, pale looking boy who always talks about her death and how dangerous he is. He is, and I quote, a "god-like", "gorgeous", and "spawn of Adonis" type being and we are annoyingly reminded of that fact ever other paragraph (and I am not kidding on that). Also, he's a vampire who wants to eat her. I don't know about you, but this would kind of turn me off.

But of course, Bella, being obviously retarded, falls in love with him and declares that she "can't live without him" and Edward, as the emo vamp is called, feels the same way. They've seen each other for little over a month when that statement is said.

TECHNICAL STUFF: Despite being around 600 pages long, this book can be swallowed in less than a day. One, because it's in large print, and two, because the writing is disturbingly simple. Reading this book, I felt I was being talked down to. The word usage is...... questionable. It felt like the author went through with a thesaurus and just changed all the words to something fancy.

THE THEME: This book has a surprisingly negative message it's giving to people, young girls especially, as they are the target audience. I think the message the author was trying to give was the basic "true love conquers all" type thing and, while this does kind of work when forcibly inserted, the message I got was completely different. Bella's life completely circled around Edward. All her time was spent with him or thinking about him and all her hobbies had something to do with him. Edward however, did have hobbies and had a life, however drab and mellow. He made all the decision and, if Bella ever disagreed, he would woo her into seeing it his way. This screams abusive relationship. Now, perhaps if this had been an actual plot device and the author had used this, then I would have been ok with it. Because it wouldn't have been so masked in fluff and romance. Now, what is this teaching little preteen girls?

OVERALL: I don't hate this book. While it's kind of stupid at times, it has it's clever vices. Also, the mythology is very interesting. With the exception of the "glittering" I think it's almost better than normal mythos. Is the book good? No. It's actually really bad. Not apocalypticly bad though ( I reserve that title for some of the other in the series). But it really tries to be liked, and in that it succeeds more than it fails.

GRADE: C

Why I Didn't Like the "Twilight" Movie

I've probably already risked my life in just mentioning the above word in a disparaging way. So heck, since I'm already going to die, I might as well keep going.

The other day, I saw the "Twilight" movie for the first time in the dollar theater. I'm not a huge fan of the books, (that's a post for another day) but I was willing to be entertained by the movie nonetheless. Man oh man, that movie was bad. It wasn't obnoxiously bad so I don't hate it but wow, for a movie about forbidden love and basic teenage angst, it sure was boring. I can honestly say that nothing interesting happened until the end, and by that point, it was too late.

For those who have been living under a rock for the past four years, "Twilight" is about a girl named Mary-Sue, *cough* excuse me, I mean Bella Swan, who goes across the country, for reason pretty much unexplained, to live with her dad in Forks, Washington. She is pretty and perfect and hates her new school because all the people are so dang friendly and nice and just won't leave her along long enough for her to cry her little emo tears. Until one day, she sees this totally hot pale guy who gives her death glares and talks frequently about killing her. *Spoiler* He's a vampire. Oh dang.

Anyway, the music score was over-dramatic, the acting was, at times, laughable, and the story felt lacking. This is suppose to be an emotionaly charged story. So why was there so little emotion?

I lied. The admission price for adults is $8.

Just so you know, the admission price for the play is $9 for adults and $5 for students. I'm not sure if students includes children. Although, if it's like the last play, they might be free. Anyway, hope to see people there!

So I probably should have mentioned this before, but I'm in the school musical! It's called Back to the 80's and totally cheesy and silly. But it's supposed to be. It basically incorporates 80's music and 80's cliches to create something that simply screams the era. At least, I'm assuming that's what it does. I didn't exactly grow up during that time.

But anyway, while it is rather corny and pointless, it's very likable and fun. As a result, everyone who's reading this is invited. It's March 5th, 6th, and 7th, and all the performances are at 7 PM. And, obviously, it's the WFHS performing arts center. Same place as the last play. I don't yet know the admission price but I'll post that when I'm informed.

K This is just weird...

http://community.livejournal.com/twilight_crafts/42839.html

If that isn't creepy then I don't know what is...

Tragety...kind of...

So the other day, my dog, Max, started acting a bit funny. Normally, when he wants to sit with us he just jumps up and joins us. No problem. But three days ago, he wouldn't jump. He just was whining and trying to get us to pick him up. Then later, he started shaking like crazy and his stomach was completely rock hard and clenched. He was whining softly and it was very obvious that something was hurting him. We were worried but a few hours later, he seemed to feel completely better.

The next day, the same thing happened. But then it went away again.

So today, it happened again and it wasn't going away. So we took him to the vet. Turns out, poor Maxie hurt his back somehow and that's what's been bothering him. You have to realize though, Max is a dachshund. He's all back. As a result, this is both very common and potentially very bad. Basically, we'll be babying him like crazy for the next couple weeks (possibly months), and making sure that he doesn't jump or run or do anything too strenuous. And he has some medication he'll be on also. We put him on the pain reliever meds and he's been acting all loopy. Not going to lie, it's actually really funny. But basically, Max is in a rather disturbing predicament that will most likely go away in a few months. But, in a worst case scenario, he could be paralized if he continues to get hurt, in which case he'll have to have some painfully expensive surgery (try 2 to 3 thousand dollars painful).

Anyway, long story short, my Maxie is sick. And I'm very sad about it. But he should be getting better eventually.

Why yes, you are in the right place! This is in fact Shauntel's blog and it has in fact, been updated. Amazing eh? So I suppose the shpeel about me trying to be a better blogger was a big lie. Whatever. So, I'm coming up with a new resolution- I'm going to blog sometimes! There will be no "once a day, once a week, or when something cool happens" type thing. No. I will blog when I feel like I want to blog. And hopefully this will trigger something in my brain, the part that automatically turns off when ever responsibility rears it's ugly head, and, because there's no pressure now, it will do better. Maybe. Ok probably not. But it's worth a shot right?

Anyway, some of you might be wondering what ever happened to the play. Well, I'll tell you right now, it went absolutly fantabulously (yes that is a word, 'cause I just made it up) and I have some hilarious pictures that I will definitly post as soon as possible. But then again, maybe I won't. We'll just have to see what the future holds.