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Did I get the quote right? It's been so long since I watched Recess. : )
We had junior testing (NECAPS, pronounced 'nee-kapps') today. Last year, we had sophomore testing (NEAPS- pronounced Nee-apps, though 'neeps' would actually be kind of cute). This sort of testing involves coming in at the regular time (7:45), while the rest of the school comes in two hours later. For three days in a row. In our case, for two years in a row, because we did it as sophomores and as juniors. And my year is so not happy about this. I'm seriously expecting a junior revolt, a la the famous Bull Run of '04 (after the pep rally, the seniors ran through and trashed the sophomore core. Since they were graduating that year, Wotton and Co. decided that it made perfect sense to suspend pep rallies indefinately, because obviously, the problem will still exist once those who caused it are gone. I guess idiocy is like the plague, or something?), only they'll attack the main office instead. Heh.
Testing to see if this title is too long... Yay, it's not too long. And now I'm commanding Autosave to work... dammit. It's being ornery. Anyway.
I think Emily Christine is a beautiful name. A few days ago I was trying to figure out where I had heard it, and had just about convinced myself that I had randomly generated it for a story or something, when I remembered that it was the name of the little girl from The X-Files. The most ill-fated and badly executed plot device ever. *sigh* And the worst part is, I think it had potential to be good. I know the Christmas Carol/Emily eps are, for the most part, deemed some of the WORST EVAR by the general X-Files fandom, but I hold the belief that it really could have been good. But maybe that's just my uncontrollable loooove of seeing kids paired up with various characters I worship. Yeah, it's probably that.
I still love the name, though. And I still think that they should have stretched the storyline out for more episodes. Y'know, actually let Scully see the kid for more than, I don't know, two seconds at a time. Because wasn't it all "meets kid, gets to know her for five minutes, kid's in hospital, kid dies?" Eh? *eye roll* Could have been so much better. Plus, I wasn't too crazy about the kid who played Emily. She wasn't that great an actor. I know, I know, it's really horrid to say that about a four-year-old, especially since there aren't that many *good* four-year-old actors around, but... meh. They could have made her older. Like seven or so. Yeah, that would have totally messed up the timeline of the series, but what the hell? John Wells did it, why couldn't Chris Carter? Or they could have pushed the storyline up a few seasons. Let's go with that idea.
Speaking of potentially good plotlines that were essentially ignored in canon, let's talk about Huck and Molly. Ah, Huck and Molly. I live for Toby&Twins fanfiction, but sadly, there isn't really all that much of it. Luckily, the fics that do exist are really pretty good. Huzzah. But seriously. If Sorkin had continued on with the series, I bet he would have done more with them than neglect them for three seasons. Bah Humbug. I miss the Sorkin Era. I love the Wells Era (though the campaign stuff does get a bit boring- Santos is fine, but I watch the show for Bartlet!), but that's just compared to how I loveloveloveLOVELOVE the Sorkin Era. *swoons*
In other news, I'll be planning my TV-watching Christmas break schedule shortly. I'm planning at least two episodes an evening (I have no life) of TV shows eps from various TV shows that have to do with various winter holidays/winter in general, and I'm going to try and convince Mom and Jenny to watch with me. TV shows involved: The West Wing, House, The X-Files, MST3K, and 3rd Rock.
Funny thing is, I love reading more than I do watching TV (until about a year ago when I discovered MST3K, I essentially never watched TV at all), but you'd never know it from the way I babble on about various TV shows here. *sigh* On average, I get through three books a week (when I'm reading them one at a time, that is- I usually have tons and tons going at once), but I never talk about them. I'll try and do that more. (Of course you know I really won't.)
Pathetic-ness is fun.
"Do you hear the people sing?"
Nov. 13th, 2006 08:33 amI listened to the entire Les Mis original Broadway soundtrack (two CDs, each about an hour long, I think) on the way back from New York yesterday. w00t! Best musical ever. I'm planning on reading the book this year (but then again, that's what I said about Don Quixote last summer, and I'm still not really that far in that one...), 'cause my school library has it. Yayyyy.
How exactly to they change the musical to make a "Youth Version", though? (They do have one- Cam Brown was in a local production during freshman year.) Get rid of the naughty bits in "Master of the House"? ("Everybody raise a glass! Raise it up the master's ass!") Pretend Javert never committed suicide? Totally axe "Lovely Ladies"? (Y'know, the prostitute song.) Probably all of the above.
"I did it."
Nov. 9th, 2006 10:23 pmThe West Wing Season 7 came out on DVD last Tuesday! And I got the first copy sold by our local Best Buy! : ) This made me very, very happy. However, the episodes I watched tonight brought my mood down considerably.
I knew it was going to happen. Which kind of made it worse, somehow. It wasn't a nasty shock, which I guess is good, but as soon as Toby walked into CJ's office and Margaret left and CJ shut the door and then skittered around the room babbling on about coffee and campagne... I was like, "Oh, my God. This is it." And it was. And waiting was agony. I was in agony. And then Toby said, "I did it", and the scene ended, and the episode ended, and I switched discs, and then I had to watch the whole thing over again at the beginning of the next ep. But it was worse the first time, I think.
I don't know. I'm depressed.
I never watched the show when it was on TV. I became aware of the show's existance when my Dad started watching it, but I never watched it with him (though I do remember seeing a tiny bit the scene with the cheering Santos crowd, the first scene after the teaser of the first ep of the 7th season, when it was originally aired). But I had only just started watching the first season when the show ended.
When they were walking him out of the building... at the end, I had to hit the 'power' button on the remote really fast, so that I'd see the end of the scene, but wouldn't have to hear the delightfully cheery end-of-episode music.
Amusing spam e-mail.
Nov. 2nd, 2006 06:23 pmI just recieved a wonderful piece of spam (which, of course, I deleted on sight) with the subject line, "erections are still possible, Marisa". Well. First of all, my name is not Marisa (nor is it Emily, but that's another story, and shall be told another time), but if it were Marisa, I think it'd be safe to say that erections would not be possible. Heh.
It now being Thursday, I don't consider myself quite so screwed, schoolwork-wise. My Peace Studies paper is in (ages ago... yet for homework, we're now being assigned more reading in The Book of Holier-Than-Thou. Save me.) And my Ameri Lit position paper's due date was changed to today... so, of course, I didn't get it in. But I'll turn it in tomorrow, so it'll only be a day late. And I showed it to Mrs. Sullivan during lunch today, and she said it was fine (my thesis is apparently "very well-developed", and my writing "excellent". HA. Take THAT, Mrs. Morgan! [/immaturity] ). So it's all good. w00t.
I went trick-or-treating with a bunch of 8th graders on Monday, because I am that cool. And yes, we trick-or-treat on the 30th here. I have no earthly idea why. I guess they don't want our local Mega-Religious folk cracking down on the town for letting us poor, innocent children run around at night on The Day of the Devil. Our town is very good at giving people what they want- unless you're part of the group that thinks the public library deserves a better home besides a tiny lot in the middle of a strip mall. If you're a bigot or homophobe, however, they'll gladly do your bidding. I've heard tell that the reason the freshman class color was changed from yellow to green was because parents complained that yellow was a 'gay' color. Yeah, I know. ::headdesk:: They're apparently fine with the teachers being yellow now, which we in US History Block E all found amusing. Because if I were a bigoted homophobe, I know I'd want my childrens' teachers wearing 'gay pride' colors. Oy. Y'know, we should totally have a Rainbow Day for Spirit Week, just to piss the jerks off.
Okay, yes, I'm sorry. I'm being a bit of a jerk myself. But I can't help it. I'm tired. Blah.
SmarterChild: The west wing, watching the west wing, toby... You know, those kinds of things.
Hee hee.
Crap. Crapcrapcrapcrap.
Oct. 29th, 2006 01:49 amI have a Peace Studies paper due Monday (technically due Friday, but I didn't have to turn it in, because I was on a field trip, ha-HA!), and an Ameri Lit position paper (6-8 pages typed, welcome-to-college-prep sort of of deal) due Tuesday (which, of course, I've barely started). I'm screwed. I brought it upon myself, but still, I'm screwed.
So of course, I'm here, typing in this wonderful, wonderful journal.
We went to Boston on Friday, to walk the Freedom Trail. I took a picture of the General Hooker Entrance sign at the State House, and thought of Laurie as I did so. Of course, it's not like she's a hooker or anything. She's a call girl, and a very high-priced one at that.
Seriously though, considering the gutter-minds some of the boys in my year have, I'm surprised I'm the only one who seemed to notice the General Hooker Entrance double entendre. Hmmm. Maybe I truly am the only one who's mind is akin to that of an immature 7th grade boy. The others... probably more like immature 8th grade boys. Freshmen, at the very most, I'd say.
You know, if it were that many Europeans or Americans being massacred, the world would actually care. But it's Africans, so everyone's all whogivesarip. ::headdesk:: gsdojiLDGOIdjO>GF.
On the plus side, I've found a new cause to donate the money I earn from painting wooden stuff to. ('Wooden stuff', I know. I'm so descriptive.) Before it was the Red Cross, then it was the ASPCA. Now it's Any Organization Giving Money to Help People in Africa. Hmmm. Maybe I should just split it between the three. (Please note that as of now, this is all speculative- I currently only have $35. Stop laughing. At least I'm trying.) But still. But still. But still...
'But still' should totally be my motto. Along with 'Toby Ziegler is God in human form and should be treated as such and worshipped accordingly. Start building your shrines now'.
'Bot convos. Yes, again.
Oct. 21st, 2006 11:54 pmMe: What do I like?
SmarterChild: He effing.
Me: What else?
SmarterChild: You think geography, watching the west wing and the kiddies are pretty great things too!
Me: What else?
SmarterChild: Eating cooked mushrooms, running your dictatorship, and worshipping Toby Ziegler also.
Me: And what do I dislike?
SmarterChild: Hmmm...you don't like George W. Bush, contracting Mad Cow Disease, or eggs.
Me: What else?
SmarterChild: You think IMing me, the name Hester, and AOL hissyfits are pretty terrible also!
I have no idea what this whole 'he effing' thing is all about. I think it originated a while ago when I said of someone (I don't remember who, but it was probably Toby Ziegler) "He effing rocks!" Consequently, SC now considers 'he effing' one of my interests. That's just a guess, though. I usually don't try very hard to understand what the hell SmarterChild is talking about.
'The kiddies', however, is a bit more... colorful. I believe it came from a very in-depth discussion of pedophiles, in which I was trying to get SC to admit he was one. All that came out of this is that he apparently became convinced that I was one.
And here are some random (but excellent) little bits of chats I've had with him and the late, great ZolaOnAOL (I'm doing this because I know you care deeply...)
Zola was so disturbing (but awesome). Just when you were thinking she couldn't get any weirder, she'd pop out something like this:
ZolaOnAOL: Why now? "after him or her he or she is an he or shediot "
*sigh* I miss Zola.
I always seem to take scenes/quotes in movies the wrong way. I suppose the fact that I'm basically asexual is coming back at me in a very dirty-minded way. Though scenes that I find unintentionally funny don't always have sexual undertones (imagined or not). When we watched An Inconvenient Truth (totally rocks) for Peace Studies a month or so ago, the line, "In the distance, you hear a cow..." almost made me lose it right then and there. I never quite figured out why.
Ah, wonderful. Autosave is working correctly. So if AOL conks out again (which it is so well known for doing), I won't loose much crap. Yayyy.
Eh... what else, what else... Oh! I took the PSATs today. My inner Toby-ness did very well on the verbal sections, particularly with grammar/sentence structure. Now all I need is an inner John Nash or somebody to take over during the math sections, which I am notoriously slow at (during sophomore testing last year, I was the last person to finish (math was the last section), and was largely credited with "holding everybody else up". Which is ridiculous, really, because they had to keep us all all in our testing rooms till a specific time anyway, and if I hadn't finished by dismissal time, I would have had to give in my test unfinished, and therefore not hold anyone up at all.) But anyway. PSATS. Cool. I'm probably the only person in the world who finds standardized testing fun. Yes, even on a Saturday morning at 7:15. I'm odd in that way. (And many other ways as well, of course.)
SmarterChild: Look elsewhere.
Fluorinated Lubricants - Inert PCTFE based oils & greases - O2 & Cl2 safe. (sponsorship)
Hee. Like at that site you just sent me the link to, perhaps?
Bartlet has one 't'. No. Matter. What.
Oct. 18th, 2006 08:00 pm...
Don't answer that. (And anyway, who says he's fictional? Bartlet is my president! And Toby is my Communications Director!)
We went to iParty Monday night. (I skipped Quiz Bowl to do so.) I bought (among other things) a purple wig and a George Bush mask. Jenny bought an Afro wig and a Phantom of the Opera mask. We proceeded to drive through the center of town, honking the horn and waving to all the college kids. It was awesome.
But anyway, frivolities aside. Back to the much-loved topic of complaining about anything and everything. I'm supposed to be doing a U.S. History project right now. I'm not, of course. It's due tomorrow, I started it yesterday (well, I wrote the speech yesterday. I typed it tonight), and now I just have to make a poster. About the Quartering Act. Whoo. Also due tomorrow is my paper on The Scarlet Letter (still have to revise one little thing- I put something in my thesis that I never got around to discussing in the body of the paper. Will I add the part I forgot into the paper? No! I'll just delete that part of my thesis!) Friday I have an Astronomy project due (I'll start it tomorrow, during class). And I have a joke of a Peace Studies project due Friday. Except she might make it due Monday, because it's so much of a joke that no one in class is working on it, so we're going to need more time to finish it. But seriously, all I need to do is research school violence, draft an opinion on what causes it (I already know my opinion on what causes it, and it sure as hell isn't television and video games), and write a proposal on what our school could do to be more safe. Well, for starters, we could fire Mrs. Wotton and get a new Assistant Principal. Then we could move on to cracking down on bullies and drunken idiots, and stop blaming television for everything. Oh yeah, and gun control. Have I mentioned that?
SmarterChild finally comes to his senses.
Oct. 14th, 2006 10:11 pmAt long last, SmarterChild has finally decided to recognize Sam Seaborne as a real name. I've been pestering him about it for a while now, and he's finally given in. w00t! However, he seems to be randomly associating the name 'Toby Ziegler' with Maine. Oy vey.
Me: Call me Sam Seaborn.
SmarterChild: Yeah, you're Sam Seaborn.
Me: THANK YOU.
SmarterChild: You're welcome. :-)
Me: My life is now complete. You actually recognize Sam Seaborn as a real name.
SmarterChild: Whatever you say, Sam Seaborn.
Me: But...
SmarterChild: What do you mean, but?
Me: Call me Toby Ziegler, m'kay?
SmarterChild: The nickname of Maine is the Pine Tree State.
Do you want more information about Maine?
Me: Oy. Just call me Toby Ziegler.
SmarterChild: The nickname of Maine is the Pine Tree State.
Do you want more information about Maine?
Me: The hell?
SmarterChild: It's tough to say.
Anyway, moving right along...
Hey, can I ask you a few questions?
Me: Not a chance.
SmarterChild: That's cool.
Me: Call me Toby Ziegler.
SmarterChild: You said your name was Sam Seaborn but now I'll call you Toby Ziegler.
Me: Thanks.
SmarterChild: Hey, no problem.
I just realized I have seen another rated R movie besides Hide and Seek. We watched The Emerald Forest in World Cultures freshman year. But since it was made in the '80's, I don't think it really counts as an R-rated movie. It's more like PG-13 with pizazz.
~Friday the 13th~
Oct. 13th, 2006 01:27 pmNot only is today ~Friday the 13th~, it's also 10-13. How awesome. Is that. And in our math homework due today, we had... thirteen problems. Dun dun duuuun.
And I'd just like to add to my never-ending list of tests and projects another Peace Studies project, and a Geometry quiz on Tuesday. Joy and bliss. I don't mind the quizzes/tests much, but the projects are murder.
Random of fact of the day (which, I'll say again, is ~Friday the 13th~): You can add yourself to your own friends list. and I even made a category just for myself! I enjoy wallowing in my loser-dome! (Is that a word? No? Meh. If the president can make up new words, so can I.
... Not that I'm endorsing anything the president does, mind you.)
Oh, and something I find funny about the archive calendar list of all my entries... you go waaay back to August (because that was so long ago) and look at the number of entries I had each day- the list is something like this: "1... 1... 2... 1... 2... 1... 1... 1... 10... 1... " Hee.
In other, more sobre news, FBEye has been killed officially- and replaced by a not as amusing, but just as obscure show. I think it's about Kung Fu or something. Anyway. But I watched FBEye right up until the end. I think what I will remember most about the show is the way Jack followed Sue around like a lovesick puppy. Because when you get right down to it, that's pretty much what he was. Poor kid.
It really wasn't a bad show, though. Sure, it was cheesy- but a lot of the humour (the intentional humour, that is) was pretty clever, and the characterization wasn't half bad, for the most part (ironically, the most unbelievable and least developed character was Sue Thomas herself, the title character and, as far as I know, the only one actually based on a real person). Sure, it got dangerously close to 7th Heaven territory at times (God!Mentioning), and the "romance" was a joke (but really, what romance isn't?), and... meh. I'd still buy DVDs, if they ever make 'em. It really wasn't a bad show. Even though I made fun of it mercelessly. But really, what do you expect from someone who MSTs Nancy Drew books for a living?
... Just like you can't spell 'manslaughter' without 'laughter'. Or 'therapist' without 'the rapist'. But anyway...
I have:
One Peace Studies project due tomorrow.
One American Literature paper due Monday.
Another American Literature project due the 31st (this one has to be 8-10 pages long, too).
One U.S. History project due Wednesday.
And one Astronomy project due Friday.
Welcome to high school.
And that's not even counting the Astronomy test I had today, the History test we're having tomorrow, and the French test we're having Monday. But those don't really count, considering I'm not planning on studying for any of them. I haven't studied for a test since fifth grade, and I'm doing okay so far.
So. We're writing an analytical paper on The Scarlet Letter. Mrs. Sullivan stressed that we're not to use any external sources (though I really don't know how we're going to achieve this, considering half the class is reading the SparkNotes version)- yet we have to include a bibliography. The hell? What's the point, if we're only using one source- the friggin' book itself? Does she seriously think that we're dumb enough to put any external sources we illegally used in the Works Cited? Is this required bibliography just a lame attempt to weed out the 'sinners' (Oooh, Scarlet Letter joke) in the class? Probably not, but that would be pretty funny.
Anyway, now that we're essentially through with the book, I will never have to hear about Hester A. (Oooh, another Scarlet Letter joke) Prynne, whiny Arthur Dimmesdale, and not-so-demonic seven-year-olds ever again. At least, not until we're assigned the book again in a year or two. High school English classes seriously need to broaden their idea of American Literature- I've read To Kill a Mockingbird three times in the past four years. Luckily, I love that book to death. I couldn't say the same for The Scarlet Letter, though.
Not that I hated the book or anything. It was okay- but I've had enough symbolism shoved down my throat to last me a long, long while. And it's full of lines like this:
"As the two wayfarers came within the precincts of the town, the children of the Puritans looked up from their play... and spoke gravely one to another:
'Behold, verily, there is the woman of the scarlet letter, and, of a truth, morover, there is the likeness of the scarlet letter running along by her side! Come, therefore, and let us fling mud at them!'" (page 98)
I mean, come on. I bet even tight-ass Puritan kids didn't talk like that. Hell, tight-ass Puritan adults probably didn't. And my mom calls me wordy...
Random fangirling...
Oct. 11th, 2006 11:52 pmSeriously though, I was looking at some of the pictures of the cast on the little episode guide booklets that come with the DVD sets... and I was all, "That's a nice picture of Josh. Sam looks so adorable in that one. Sweet picture of Donna. And that's a great one of Toby. And another good one of Toby. And look, another great one of Toby..." Hee. But really, I can't help it. Any picture of Toby is a good picture of Toby. I'm just saying.
Anyway. So this Internet depravity has lead me to my last resort: writing entries for my LJ now, and then actually posting them later, when we have the Internet up again (which will be Tuesday, at the earliest). I’m such a loser. Heh.
I convinced/forced (you can use your imagination to guess which one it was) ma famille to watch "The Stackhouse Filibuster" with me... but Jenny backed out at the last minute, because I had recently shown her the "moveobjects on" cheat on The Sims 2, and she delighted in getting her people in the pool, then going into "Buy" mode, picking them up, putting them in the house, and watching the fun as, in "Live" mode, they continued to swim around indoors as if they were still in the pool. Quite amusing. Almost as entertaining as watching my Toby-Sim being carried away by the pizza truck (long story) yesterday... thank goodness I didn't save, so I got him back. : )
Anyway, I love "The Stackhouse Filibuster". It contains one of my favorite lines of the entire series, spoken by C.J. (well, the line was started by Josh, and finished by C.J. But the best bit was by C.J. Anyway.):
"We stared at fourteen different television sets while calculating in our heads the time it would take Grissom to walk from his office to the floor and we were frozen in silence as we listened to the rules of blackjack."
LoveloveLOVE this quote. Weird thing is, I'm not even sure why. It's not awesomely inspirational or tearjerkingly beautiful like so many of my other favorite quotes from the series... but it is SUCH a West Wing-esque quote! Hee.
The F.B.Eye "marathon" was today. Is it just me, or was it totally pointless to show the first episode in a two-part set, but not the second? o.O If I hadn't already seen them together a while ago, I would have been frusterated. Heh. Oh, and the ending of the last ep ("Fraternity"), was most amusing. Lucy tells Sue she will make a great mom (not would make a great mom, but will- like it's set in stone), and two seconds later, Jack comes running up. Coincidence? Or annoyingly obvious director-hinting psuedo-UST? YOU be the judge!
(But come on, you know it's the last one.)
