Los Juegos del Hambre!

So usually I wait to blog until I have something interesting, bizarre, or intelligent to say. Well, I don't know if the following will fit any of those categories, but as I've said multiple times before, if you don't like it, read someone else's blog.

So I went to see The Hunger Games this Saturday. And I thoroughly enjoyed it. When I saw the teasers and previews a few months ago, I was doubtful. Don't get me wrong, they certainly rile you up quite a bit. But it looked like a shoddy production from what I could see.

BLOWN. AWAY.

I don't pretend to be some sort of advanced movie critic, but here's the thing for me - I was 100% entertained 100% of the time. I knew how the story ended, since I read the books, but every part of the moviegoing experience was there.

I felt an agitating but not unhealthly level of anxiety for what would happen next. (Evidenced by my frequent change in sitting position).

I slowly grew to like the Katniss character (which I think was the goal; you're not supposed to like her that much at first).

I believed the character's motivations.

And I was rooting for the correct people. (One of the many reasons Avatar was flawed, in my opinion. I was rooting for capitalism the whole time.)

My only complaint was parts of the soundtrack... I'm not sure if I just didn't get it, or if it was off, but the music seemed oddly placed in some parts.

I fully plan on seeing it again. And again. And I think you should too.

The... Wizard of Cairo???

So.... I'm not in the habit of sharing my dreams. But this one was too good to pass up!

Last night, I had a dream that was The Wizard of Oz themed. However, instead of taking place in a forest with a paved brick trail, it took place in the deserts of Egypt. And instead of the three well-known, lovable companions of the popular movie, my companions were: an undead mummy, a flesh-eating scarab whose life I accidentally saved, so he made a vow not to eat me, and a tiny dust devil that was sad he didn't have a body.

Let's just say I'm glad that the original took place in a forest.

If you ignore it, it's not there!

Anyone who is familiar with canine behavior knows that dogs can do some pretty weird things.

One of my personal favorites is the reaction my dog, Ginger, has when she perceives as confusing and possible threatening in her line of vision. She doesn't bark, or investigate, or do anything really. She just turns her head until the threatening object is only perceptible in her most peripheral vision.

Something along these lines.

The following  is the human version of that phenomenon.

Utah's state legislature recently passed House Bill 363, which "all Utah public schools, including charter schools, to have abstinence only sexual education instruction and allows school districts to opt-out of providing sex education in high school health courses" (http://thestudentreview.org/2012/03/14/utah-legislators-sterilize-sex-ed/).

So basically, school districts can choose from two VERY liberal policies:

1) Not teach sex ed at all at the high school level
2) Teach abstinence only

Republican representative Bill Wright said the following: "When they are ready to get married, they can be taught how to use contraceptives."

Really, Bill? Really? You think that making teenagers LESS aware of current birth control methods is going to make the teen pregnancy rate go down? Or that the teenagers who were going to have sex are just going to say "never mind! It seems abstinence is our only choice! Let's wait until we get married."

Not happening.

So, to conclude, why not look DIRECTLY AT the issue as opposed to ignoring it completely? After all, the bowl of popcorn my dog finds so suspicious is still there, even when she ignores it.

This was more time consuming than I was expecting....

THE RULES:
1. Post these rules
2. Post 11 random things about yourself
3. Answer the questions provided by the one who tagged you
4. Create 11 new questions for the people you tag
5. Tag 11 people

11 Random Things About Me!

1) I HATE mascots. Like, a lot. I think they're CREEPY.

2) I love bacon. More than I love life itself.

3) Drinking plain water embodies all the things I hate about practicality.

4) I prefer long-distance relationships

5) I love to alphabetize things

6) I like it when my room is messy. That way, if I ever get bored, at least I have one thing to do.

7) I don't understand why people spend lots of money on cars

8) I shop mostly at thrift stores

9) Travel is my main priority. Period.

9) I love to read fantasy novels

10) I am sexist against my own sex, sometimes

11) Watching birds run brings joy to my heart

11 QUESTIONS I WAS ASKED: 

1. If I had to choose a career totally different than the one I'm in, I would be a geologist. I wish that I had majored in that as an undergrad, actually.

2. Three things that terrify me are whales, mascots, and rock climbing.

3. There are no TV shows I'm embarrassed that I watch. I enjoy watching things that are mentally stimulating - whether that's because they teach me new things or because other people are stupid, I'm cool with it.

4. I don't really follow any blogs regularly.... I go on binges to cooking blogs and stuff. Right now I'm into Smitten Kitchen.

5. Something that I have been wanting to tell someone but haven't been able to..... I guess to someone I work with: It's not LEIA. It's LEEEE-uh

ME

NOT ME

6. I recently finished The Subtle Knife, the second of three books in The Golden Compass series. Pretty good - very imaginative. I think some readers are turned off by how blantantly anti-religion it is, though.

7. My favorite flowers are sunflowers with any blue flower.

8. Everyone says I look like either Brad Taylor from home improvement or this girl

 

from the cover of cosmopolitan. 

9. My favorite article of clothing is my tube top I wear as a skirt in the summer. Really airy and cottony, long enough without being frumpy, great shape. Love it.

10. My family has 5 kids - Jennifer (almost 36), Debby (34) , Jared (almost 30), Rebecca (27), and me (25). Jennifer and Rebecca are married, and Jennifer has 3 kids - James, Luke, and Ben. Becca is pregnant with her first.

11. My least favorite chore is folding the laundry. I have really dry skin, and something about folding clothes makes my hands hurt because they're dry. It's like.... wiping all that fabric over them sucks all the mositure out of my hands.

Questions I'm asking!

1) Why do you blog?

2) What is one thing that comes easy to you, that doesn't come easy to others?

3) What is your biggest regret?

4) What is your one guilty purchase? Something you splurge on and justify splurging on?

5) Where would you live, if you could live anywhere?

6) How do you feel about cats?

7) What is your favorite place in the whole world? Post pictures.

8) What, in your opinion, is the biggest problem our society faces?

9) What is one of your pet peeves?

10) What is one demographic that truly pisses you off, and why.

11) What's the first thing you think when you wake up in the morning?

Who I'm Tagging

1) Eric

2) Becca Pacanos

3) Jodi

4) Tiffany Strong

5) Bridgette

6) Katie Roberts

7) Michelle McCombs

8) Rebecca Baertlein

9) Kelia

10) Mandy

11) Sarah Carter Robertson

The ghost of exes past.....

So I recently read a friends blog, that consisted of little letters to her exes.

I wanted to try it. 

The thing is, I posted this already, then deleted it.... it seems my blogs like to create drama. But I've decided to repost, because if you don't want to be reading this, then read someone else's blog. 

Dear G: I'm sorry I ended up so needy by the end of the summer. I'm not that type, I promise. You try to remember who you are when you are absolutely drowning in members of the opposite sex, and when the only members of your same sex actively dislike you. It could make anyone crazy. You were the best first boyfriend I could've asked for. Thank you for respecting my boundaries. And your accent still wins.

Dear P: First, when you finished my sentences, you were always wrong. Second, LEARN TO LAUGH AT YOURSELF. Third, don't' even pull the "I'm mad because you treated my like a conquest thing"... you made me chase you for nine months. What did you think was going to happen? And fourth.... you were my closest almost. And the best kisser. Hands down. If you had made me stay, I would've been yours. But the Leah you knew got lost in Armenia, and never really made it out. I'm sorry to say it, but I think I outgrew you.

Dear M:I've spent a lot of time thinking about you. About what we had, about who we were and who we are. And so I just have to tell you a few things. Not because I think it will change anything, because I don't. Not because I'm hoping or wishing for more. Just because it feels good to say it. I've spent a few years thinking that whoever said "it is better to have loved and lost than to never love at all" was full of crap. And now, after more than 2 years, I think I get it. They're right. I've been going on tons of dates recently. And all of them prove one thing to me. I loved you. There is a part of me that will never stop loving you. And, unfortunately, that part is big enough to make it impossible for me to give that much of my heart away again. If I did, it would stop beating. The next time I love, it will have to be less, or it will kill me. So even if you never read this, and even if we never speak again, just let me say this: you are the satisfaction that lasts a lifetime. The amount of love I had for you was enough to last me for the rest of my days. And that I would be happy living a celibate life, knowing that at one point, I loved. I loved you.

Dear B: I thought I knew you, and I thought I trusted you. But if I chose you, we would find ourselves swirling down into an deep, intellectual abyss. I really thought I had you figured out, but I was wrong. After too many lies, and too many stories not matching up, I wonder what really is the truth and what was part of the act. And how many times you've acted before. I think, eventually, we can be friends again. But not now. And not soon. You've betrayed me in too many ways for me to count. 

Dear E: After M, it took me a long time to be excited again. But the first time I saw you, I saw christmas morning. I was excited, and nervous, and challenged, and all the things I hadn't been in so long. I tried for MONTHS to get your attention. I got cute for all the days when I knew I would see you. Turns out, you were not the precious gem I thought you were. As I dug further and further through the blackened coal, I realized - there was no stone. You're just a lump of coal under pressure. No diamond, no ruby. You crumbled in my hand. Maybe you just need time. But I can say, you were the biggest disappointment of all.