Curious, does anybody read this?

Now THIS sounds like fun :)

You know what would be really fun?
Have a bunch of really good girlfriends. We all go and dress up in our formal princess dresses, do our hair all pretty, lots of make up, we're all glamerous and what-not, and we take goofy pictures. Crazy, fun, wild pictures. And some pretty ones, of course. We're girls, we love to look pretty.
And it should all be outside. That would be fun. Be a kid for one last shot.
And then we all get dressed in pajamas and watch all of the Disney Princess movies all night long. Plus some like, Little Women, and maybe some Jane Austen movies. And P.S. I Love You! And chick flicks! Ah!!
I think I'm going to do this some time this summer. Seriously. How fun would that be?

Help!

Does anybody know where I can get any free borders/backgrounds for a Microsoft Word flyer? I'm making a flyer for girl's camp. All I can find is stuff that is very complicated to download, or really corny and not very good looking. All I'd really like is to just be able to right click and click "save image as..." and then paste it as an image border!!! I'm rather handicapped when it comes to finding things on the internet. I can work the Word and everything, but I can't find the stuff to put on word! Help please!

Guess what...

I'm done with my online history class!!!
Just about anyway. I'm done with all the work, all the essays, the projects, the journal entries, the reading, and the chapter tests. All I have to do now is mail in all of the journal entries, projects, and essays, and request the final. I will take the final sometime within the next week, have my transcripts sent in, they'll arrive at the school in a week or 2, and I'll be able to graduate!!!!!
I was feeling so unmotivated to write a poem for one of the chapters today. I had to write it about today's culture. After sitting there, working on another project and thinking about it, like what happens with most of my poems, the words started running through my head. I stopped what I was doing, opened up a word document and typed it out. It's really not that great, but it'll get an A and I'll pass and I'll graduate. And it rhymes! The requirements asked for 16 lines and it had to be about MY views of the American culture today. Didn't have to rhyme, but it does. :)

2009

What’s the matter with the world today?
Can’t they see that they’ve all gone astray
From the hopes and beliefs that we used to all have
They say they’re true to it, but they’re going down the wrong path
What used to be right is now seen as more than wrong
The evil is quickly rising and becoming more strong
The family values of the world are being misused
And shredded apart by those who are highly confused
About what they think is right and what they have for goals
They say the purpose of their actions is to find their deepest souls
But how can you find a soul with sex and drugs and beer?
I thought the purpose of life was all inside of here,
Here being the home, the family, the knowledge and truth
Of all things good and evil, not of illegal misuse!
All the drugs and immorality and hypocrisy that I see
Is making me question, are the people truly free?


ohhh myyy gooodnesss I'm SO happy I'm done! This means I can pin an exact date for my senior recital, I can do this state honors orchestra, I can do all sorts of stuff now. :)

Iowa Solo and Ensemble Contest was yesterday, and I did a LOT of things. I did a solo, duet, trio, quartet, quintet, a chamber orchestra, and I accompanied a friend on her vocal solo. I got score ratings of ones all across the board (1 being the best and 5 being the worst). What I'm most excited for are the quartet I played in and the solo I did. Both of those pieces are on the playlist. The quartet was the American String quartet by Dvorak, and the solo was Elegie by Gabriel Fuare. Both of them went amazingly well, and I even got a perfect score on my solo! The judge talked with me before I and the audience left, asked me how long I played, where I'm going to school and what I'll be doing, asked some questions about my cello, and gave a lot of compliments about my performance. I'm very happy about it all. But I think what I'm mostly happy for is that solo and ensemble is done.
I also got to enjoy watching some other people perform. Brian E. did an amazing vocal solo that I thoroughly enjoyed, he did it very well. I didn't get to watch her, but Katie B. got a one on her flute solo, which is excellent, and not very common for a freshman to get! Overall people did extremely well. :)

Tri-II

Today is the 60th annual Tri-II music festival in Dubuque, hosted at Hempstead. Unlike previous years, this year it is only one day, not the usual two. I'm totaly ok with that. Pretty much, I've been playing my cello since 8:00 this morning and didn't stop until 4:30. My hand hurts a lot, but at least I enjoy the music. This will be my last Tri-II music festival, which is kind of sad, but hey, everybody gets to put their 4 years in. I get to sit principle cellist for half of the pieces, which are a movement from this piece called Choreography (very fun to play), and for Star Wars, which is also very fun to play. :)
But for now, I'm extremely hungry, very sore and tired, and have to be back at Hempstead High in less than an hour to warm up for the concert. O_o

Wednesday

Do you ever have those days where you feel so happy and excited and beaming? And everybody around you is in a great mood, too? And then suddenly all of these little pesky things of bad and sad news come sailing at you, dampening the joyous spirits of the lovely spring day?

Well, I'm having one of those days. :(
I want to cry sometimes, but it's such a beautiful day and there's so much to be happy for. It's hard to be happy though when you have all of these upsetting and frustrating things to deal with.


Not related to the reasons why I'm not very happy above, but still something that is disappointing to me. It's not a call of desperation, it's kind of more of a reminder to the mothers (and soon-to-be-mothers) and cousins of mine who might read this blog of what it's like to be 17 and a senior again.
I'm a senior. And I know, I know, prom really isn't that important when it comes to the big picture, but seriously, haha, older people always say "try telling that to a 17 year old." It's like telling a 5 year old that candy isn't good for you. Haha. Yeah, so about prom... I'm not going to be asked out, I discovered. I kind of already knew that, though. I'm practically invisible at my school and all of the guys at church already have dates or something. I wasn't really expecting anything, but I was really hoping I could have one more date before I start college this fall at Clarke. I don't feel "unspecial", and I don't question if it's something about my personality people don't like (though it's a challenge to make sure that I do not tell myself I'm unattractive, or I'm not interesting, I'm a loser, etc), I mostly just feel a bit let down.
A friend from church however told me I can come with her group of girlfriends to my school's prom, so at least I can wear the dress that I got. :) I was getting nervous that I might have bought the gorgeous dress for nothing.

Pretty much, unless some LDS guy comes to Dubuque to go to Loras or Clarke or UD, I'm going to be just about dateless for a good 4 or 5 years, depending on how long it takes to get my bachelors in Music Ed at Clarke. Sure, I'll still be home when all of these young men come home from their missions (gah!!! I'll still be here!!), but how many do you think will stay in Dubuque for very long?
Bleh. I just want some fun dates. More like, I want some guys who I can go on fun dates with. But there's nobody here. That's very available/dateable, anyway.

This is stupid.

Talent Show Performance

This was my performance at my school's talent show last month.
Worst audience I've ever performed for, the wouldn't STOP TALKING, and hence it made me nervous that they weren't enjoying it, and the nerves brought on rushing. But over all it was fun to play and I think the audience enjoyed it. I'm still getting compliments for my little act around 2:20 in the video. :)

Watch it here.

A serious issue.

Yall probably know what I'm talking about... it's been bothering me for some time now.

The world is turning upside down.
Some might see that as a slight revenge, but I see it as hypocracy.
They used to be discriminated, hated, even killed. They were silenced and told they were wrong and evil for being that way.
It was horrible and wrong the way they were treated. The Lord loves all of his children, no matter who they are.
Now, here's where my views change.
The Lord loves everybody, all of his children, no matter what. That does NOT mean that he loves what they do. The Lord loves me. He does not love that I am easily angered anytime somebody does not wait their turn at a stop sign. He loves the kid in the hallway at school. He does not love that the kid in the hallway shouts obscene language at people and sexually harasses girls. The list goes on.
Now, those people who I described up above, they now appear to be free. Happy. Celebrating and joyous that the world is changing in their favor. Who wouldn't be happy if things started going their way after a life time of harassment? And another word that tends to be the buzz word for this occasion, equal. They now feel equal. And that's GREAT. Who doesn't want to have a feeling of peace and equality in their hearts?
However.
I've seen this on facebook and in person and just everywhere... whenever somebody, who used to once be the person on the discriminating side (not necessarily a discriminator, but who shared opinion with those who discriminated) speaks at all in these days, they are evil, horrible, and told they are wrong.

I'll just lay the rest of this flat out.
The scriptures and living prophets say (they even said this in the Young Women General Broadcast) that in the latter days, evil will be viewed as good, and good will be evil.
Hundreds of thousands of people strongly disagree with me, but just like the gays refused to be silenced of their beliefs, I feel I also have the right to refuse to be silenced of my own beliefs. I believe that this new law in Iowa is exactly what the prophets were talking about. I also believe this is just part of the beginning and that there is more to come. I believe we will have to go through a lot of what the homosexuals went through.

*side note, I don't think it's fair for me to be treated the way they once were. I personally never treated them that way, I wasn't even born yet, and I don't think it's right that people of my generation who share my beliefs should be punished for an older generation's wrong doings.*

But in the end, if we stay true to the Lord and his gospel, turn the other cheek, we will be able to be freed from all humilation and discrimination.
I'll have to leave it at this, for I must go to bed.
This is just the beginning of the end.

Oh what wonderful things can happen...

Quick blog post, I've been really bad about keeping this updated, but I'm a busy person, so I guess it's ok. I write in a personal journal at night anyway.
I spent this weekend in NYC, and it was amazing. Pictures to come.
But the main reason I decided to write today was because on Monday, the day I got back from the 18+ hour bus ride to NYC, I auditioned for a Concerto Competition at 9:15 PM. :o I know, late, and probably one of the hardest things I've ever done in music. No sleep on a bus ride, unpacking at home, being sore and tired and emotionally exhausted from being on the drama department bus, then showering, getting all dressed up, and performing my heart out. I went in there telling myself to just do my best, and whatever happens, happens. I wasn't expecting anything more than maybe honorable mention. And if I got higher, you know, that's cool, but I wasn't expecting much. Lots of competition, ya know. I played really well, however, I am my own worst critic and can't say much more than that.

Apparently, the judges think much differently than I do.

I got a letter today from the Symphony and I knew it would have the results of the concerto competition. My mom excitedly handed it to me and I opened it (note, I am the worst letter opener there is... takes me like, 60 full seconds to open a stinking envelope), and as i was opening it I was saying "I'm expecting the worst, expecting the worst" and thinking whatever's in there is in there, I'm ok with how I did, this is just one competition out of many....
Finally, I got it open, and the first word I saw was "Congratulations!" And my jaw dropped, leaving my mom hanging, and scared to read the next few words, I read them anyway,


I got first place!!!!! Woo hoo I'm so excited! As a prize I get $200 (!) and I get to perform my piece with either the Symphony or the Youth Symphony. Either way, lots of people go to those concerto performance concerts, and I'm SOOOOOO EXCITED!!!!!! I was SOOOOO not expecting 1st place!!!!! Holy cow. Here's a link to what m piece sounds like with orchestra. I don't play it quite that fast, but you get the idea. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9Rvv6T8LaeE
Wooo I'm happy and exhausted and my throat has been hurting all day. Now I must go and help with chores. :)
Life moves on. :) And it's a happy, though cold and icky snowing, wonderful day. :D