Round Two

This is it.  My last week of freedom.  Before I have to go back to school. 
Don't get me wrong.  I am so thankful for the opportunity to further my education and take so many interesting classes.  I had some classes I absolutely adored in my last semester, especially my World Religions class.  I'm learning so many interesting new things.
The problem is, I'm used to learning at a fairly moderate pace, seeing as I only recently graduated from high school.  At college, it feels like they're trying to cram everything down your throat at once, because classes that took a full year before get a semester now.  And, I'm still not getting the point of homework.  I mean, there have always been classes that need extra practice, particularly math.  I personally have never been as good as I'd like when it comes to math, and I've found that the best way for me to learn it is to practice it.  That being said, there are other classes that don't make sense as far as handing out homework on a regular basis.  Classes like history or science.  I mean, seriously, some of us prefer to keep experiments out of our regular lives.  If those who enjoy science want extra credit or something, sure, go for it, but leave the rest of us be, please!  Another thing I hate is when teachers assume their class is your top priority.  I think this is something every school has a problem with, actually.  Believe it or not, I actually have a life outside of school and homework.  I'm looking for a job this semester, and then I would kind of like to start dating.  Unfortunately, during the school year I have to set all of this on the back-burner so I can make sure I have all of my homework done.  And then the teachers look at us and go, "Now remember, life is about more than good grades.  Do more than study."  Um, yeah, sorry, with the bajillion page paper you assigned us, when do you expect us to have time to do anyone else's homework, let alone do more than study?
'Kay, sorry, there's my rant for the day.  I think I'm still trying to deal with post-finals stress.  This does not bode well for this semester. 

Fare thee well, friend!
Mira

That Awkward Moment...

When you go to church and walk into a high school reunion.
Don't get me wrong, I love missionary farewells as much as the next person.  They're full of spirit and hope and new beginnings!  However, it does get awkward when everyone from high school shows up because the missionary in question happens to be very popular.  There I am, surrounded by all the popular crowd from high school, and only two of them acknowledged me.  There's a reason I hated my senior year of high school.
Oh well, thanks to those who did think I was important enough to say hi to, and for those reading this, please remember those who may be feeling left out in your life.  Even a wave is enough to brighten their day.

Fare thee well, friend!
Mira

Hot Chocolate

When I make hot chocolate at home, I put a bit of water in a pot and heat it up on the stove until it's the perfect temperature: not hot enough to burn, but still hot enough to warm me up! :)  Love my hot chocolate!  I also mix a bit of cinnamon in if it isn't flavored.  Yummy stuff.  I drink it immediately so it doesn't lose the heat.
But there is a slight problem with this.  That being, when I get hot chocolate somewhere else when I'm out and about, I tend to want to drink it immediately.  Except, those selling it have to make it EXTRA hot, so it's still hot when the customers get it.  I have no problem with this.  Ees marvelous!  Except, it tends to make it too hot to drink.  Mom and Mia will stir ice in theirs when it's too hot, and drink it through a straw.
Unfortunately, I'm too proud to do this.  Which means that when we got hot chocolate last night, being the impatient person I am, I drank it too soon.  I knew I had burned my tongue, but I've done that plenty of times.  I figured it would all be good in the morning, like usual.
Eheheh.
I woke up and could barely taste my breakfast.  Also, feeling slightly sick, because I kinda burned the back of my throat, too.  I'm putting ice in my hot chocolate from now on.  :)

Fare thee well, friend!
Mira

I'm a... Fairy?

So, I had another weird dream last night.  I'm thinking I should stop trying to come up with story plots before bed. 
I dreamed that I was fighting someone, and then I got turned into a smurf.  Yes.  A smurf.  Except then they turned me back into a human, but I wasn't completely human, because I was still little.  Then I had wings to go along with my small stature, and I was one of the blue/green fairies (I think we kept changing colors), and we were fighting against the black fairies, and they were supposed to be evil, but some of my friends were with them for personal reasons, and I knew my friends weren't evil, and I wanted to know why they had joined the opposite army, and then I was being chased by a bunch of black fairies through a courtyard, and a kitchen, and I was terrified because they couldn't catch me, but I finally escaped!  Victory!
Despite its oddity, it was one of the funnest dreams I've ever had!  Who knows, maybe it'll spawn a new book idea!  Haven't worked with fairies much, though.  It'll be an interesting experience.

Fare thee well, friend!
Mira

Merry Christmas!

I know I'm a day late, and I apologize, but I just wanted to tell my readers, "Merry Christmas!"  So glad we had a White Christmas this year, as opposed to last year when we had absolutely no snow.  I will admit, I dumped some snow down Dad's back today, just because we actually had enough snow for a snowball fight.  We didn't actually have a snowball fight, since I ran back inside before he could do anything.  Who says I have to play fair? ;)
In any case, I hope all of you have had a marvelous Christmas, and remembered the reason we celebrate this beautiful holiday!

Fare thee well, friend!
Mira

Combined Wards

It was strange.
But I'm getting ahead of myself.
We were combining wards today in my singles' building, since so many people had gone home for Christmas.  It was packed!  There were so many new people there!  Obviously not enough for us to separate times again, but still enough to need to open the overflow.
But that wasn't the strange thing.  The strange thing was that, during Sunday School, even though the room was packed, I sat... alone.
I have two or three friends I usually sit with during Sunday School, but by now they've all gone somewhere else for Christmas.  I thought that surely other people would sit with me, but the thing was, this particular class was big enough that we had to have it in the chapel... so everyone was sitting with their own friends without a problem...
And I was left to sit alone.
I didn't necessarily mind.  But it did make me wonder why it is I can't seem to get anyone to sit next to me.  Oh well.

Fare thee well, friend!
Mira

Playing Pool

So, apparently I've been playing pool wrong my entire life.  Not that I really play it all that often, but it seems that when I have played it, I've been mixing up rules.  I now officially know how to play 9 ball and 10 ball.  I also know that I am awful, and that Kay's little brother can beat the socks off of me any day of the year.  Oh, and apparently we're missing a ball.  Oh dear.
So, I wish I could explain the rules to you here, but I just know I would botch it up, so I won't bother.  You can probably look it up online or something.
Oh, and just so I can vent my feelings on this subject: ONCE UPON A TIME SPOILER ALERT!
I think Archie's gonna die.  And I don't want Archie to die!  He's one of my favorite characters!  Seriously, though, the description for the next episode involves Regina being blamed for murdering a beloved fairy tale character... and the title is "The Cricket Game."  PLEASE DON'T KILL OFF ARCHIE!  I LIKE HIM TOO MUCH!
Okay.  There's my vent.

Fare thee well, friend!
Mira

Blood...

So, I had to get some blood drawn today, and I rediscovered something.
I hate blood.  Like seriously, I get queasy and chills run up my spine.
Not fun.
Sadly, I think I'll have to do it more often, because I was having blood drawn so my doctor could make sure the medicine I'm on is working.  If this becomes a regular thing... :P
I mean, first they sit you down in a chair... then they put this bar down and make you hold out your arms... like they're about to torture you...  then they stick a needle in your veins...
'Kay, I'm gonna stop before I make anyone else sick.  Point being, I really hate blood, and now my arm feels like it should be weak or something... even though they didn't really take that much blood.
Sorry.  Hopefully the next post will be more cheeful!

Fare thee well, friend!
Mira

Hippity Hobbity...

So, I finally have time to blog about seeing the Hobbit!  I hope you're okay with nerdy rants and fond memories.
So, I had been looking forward to this for weeks.  Mostly because it's The Hobbit, who wouldn't be excited? but also because the midnight showing was the last day I had finals, and I was going to see it at midnight to celebrate!  There's nothing like celebrating the end of exams by staying up until three in the morning geeking out about John Watson playing Bilbo Baggins. ;)  Anyways, I was also excited because, while I'd been to midnight showings before, I had never dressed up.  This time around, Mia and I had the cloaks that Heather had made us, and we figured, "Hey, why not?"  So we dressed up in long, flowy cloaks, and Kay put my hair in a medieval hairpiece for me.  (I could have put it in myself, but it's a nightmare to deal with it on my own, and Kay did a much better job than I would have!).
By the way, if at this point you're wondering why I am such an absolute geek, you obviously haven't read my other posts. 
We went to the theatre all toasty and warm, because cloaks are really just like blankets that you don't have to hold.  In any case, we were a little lost going in, I guess the theatre wasn't opening the regular doors and we had to sneak around through the back.  By this point I was feeling foolish, because no one else had apparently decided to dress up, but I brushed it off.  I figured, if I dress up, at least it gives other people "permission" to dress up later if they were so inclined.  There were a few other people later that dressed up as hobbits, and someone wearing chainmail, but most people in the audience were fairly normal.
So, we had shown up an hour early to make sure we got good seats, but we really shouldn't have worried.  There was no one there.  Apparently everyone went to the theatre by the mall.  Oh well, I was happy enough, because when we walked in, Mia noticed someone already in the theatre!  It was Jam!!
Jam is an old friend from my young years, and I was so excited to see her!  We laughed and joked, and she introduced us to one of her other friends, and she kept trying to get him to catch popcorn in his mouth, except he kept missing, so by the time they were done there was a bit of a mess for the janitors to clean up later... oh well.
Now for the actual movie.  Ahem.
SO EPIC!  Seriously, so very well done!  I loved it to pieces!  Even the stuff they've added in was great!  I love Radagast, he's like the Fluttershy of wizards, so fun!  And the characterization was brilliant!  I loved it!  The interaction between Thorin and Bilbo was amazing, so heartwarming by the end!  Bilbo is such a wonderful character, congratulations to Martin Freeman on his amazing performance!  He was so relatable, I knew how he was feeling so often!  And I especially loved the bit with Gollum!  Such a well-done character, and the interaction between Gollum and Smeagol (yes, they've still got that) was hilarious!  And as far as the music goes, I loved it!  I got chills every time the dwarves went to fight and the "Misty Mountains" theme started playing.  Such a marvelous movie!
My opinion on the new material is that I like it.  It makes the storyline more connected to the rest of Middle Earth at the time.  We get a look at how Sauron actually came back, why the elves and dwarves hate each other so much, stuff like that.  And honestly, I think the movie would have needed three parts anyway, because even though it's only one book compared to the "Rings Trilogy," it had more action.  The Lord of the Rings had more description than The Hobbit, which is why it had three books.  The Hobbit, on the other hand, had a bit more adventure to it.
So, in conclusion, if you haven't seen The Hobbit, go online and get tickets.  Ees amazing!  If you have seen The Hobbit, when are you going again, and can I come with you?

Fare thee well, friend!
Mira

Meeeerliiiin...

So, I saw Merlin for the first time last night.  As in, the BBC version where Merlin is younger and dark-haired and attractive and has such amazing moral courage...
Can you tell I like him? 
Seriously, though, why is it BBC has all the amazing actors?  And TV shows?  I think the only popular American shows I really enjoy are Once Upon a Time and Psych.  Oh well.  At least we get to enjoy BBC, even if it is later than usual.  That's the nice thing about the internet, though.  Get the right site, and you don't have to wait!
Yes, I am an obsessive nerd.  But then, I've already mentioned this, so I suppose it should no longer be a surprise to you. 

Fare thee well, friend!
Mira

Lonely World

Some who don't know me may think me quiet.  It's true that I don't tend to make much noise.  But it's not necessarily because I'm quiet.  It's a combination of things.  On one hand, I tend to prefer listening to speaking, because I feel like everyone tends to have more important things to say than I do.  On the other hand, I also tend to zone out, because I'm thinking up story ideas.
Why do I prefer to live in my own mind rather than the real world?  Because in many instances, the real world is a cold, dark, heartless place.  A place where a choir girl can be ignored because she doesn't cause problems and therefore doesn't need as much attention as the other students.  A place where elementary kids can be slaughtered for no reason.  A place I don't want to be, because who would live in a place like that?
But then I take another look.  A look at people who reach out, who support mourners and grievers and those who are lonely.  These people are the reasons I live in the world, the reason I still continue to fight.  In the wise words of Samwise Gamgee, there is some good, somewhere out there in this world, and it's worth fighting for. 

Fare thee well, friend.
Mira

Nearly there...

Hey friends!  Sorry it's been so long.  Finals week and all that.  But I'm almost there!  Just one more final that's more like a big party.  After that, I'm off for Christmas!  Almost there, almost there...
Finals week was actually a lot easier than people were making it out to be.  Of course, I'm fairly good at taking tests, so that may have something to do with it.  The only real problem I had was with my Comparative Literature final.  The teacher decided to add a few random questions we'd never talked about "just to see if we knew them."  They kind of gave me fits.  I'm a bit of a perfectionist, so having a few questions I couldn't answer drove me up the wall.  Oh well.  I just hope he doesn't grade those particular questions.  That would be a nightmare, since I'm pretty sure I got next-to-none right.
But, in any case, it's over now, I passed my classes, and I get to party tonight!  Best of luck to those of you still in finals, remember to relax and have fun!

Fare thee well, friend!
Mira

Heavy...

So, most nights Merida will sleep on Mia's bed.  Generally because Mia enforces the bedtime rule for the cat and doesn't like her wandering around the room when we're sleeping.  However, there will occasionally be times when Merida decided to sleep on my bed.  Sometimes she'll curl up in the crook of my arm, or against my back, or right next to my face.
Last night involved none of that. 
For some reason, Merida decided that she wanted to sleep on top of me.  Now, I'm used to her walking on top of me.  She does it all the time.  I expected last night to be the same, but instead she just stopped... then settled down.
I have no idea how long she was there, because while she is rather heavy and I wanted her off, I just didn't have the energy to turn around.  When I finally did, she got miffed and went back to Mia.
Oh well.  I got my bed back.

Fare thee well, friend!
Mira

Guardians

Oh.  My.  Badness.
Finally saw Rise of the Guardians last night.  Completely epic!!  I loves it!  Jack is soooo cute, and the little tooth-fairy army is sooooo cute, and the villain is sooooo not cute!  ;) 
Seriously, that was one of the most intense villains I have seen in a long, long time!  Just enough angst to be pitied, but just enough evil to feel pleased when defeated.  Very well done.  I give Dreamworks two huge thumbs up!
Can't wait to see it again!

Fare thee well, friend!
Mira

Stress Habits

Thanks to finals, I have recently discovered my "stress habits."  You know, those things you do when you're stressed out and don't really want to deal with anything.  For me, when I'm stressed for long periods of time, I tend to rub the side of my nose... as evidenced by the two zits I am currently sporting there.  Luckily, I have creams.  ;)
The other thing I do when stressed, even more than when I rub my nose, is twist my hair.  Now, don't get me wrong.  I twist my hair all the time when I need something to do with my hands.  But when I'm stressed, I tend to make really thick twists, and keep twisting them over and over again. 
So, thanks finals, for revealing these habits to me.  I look forward to the day we can part. ;)
Good news is, I finally got my paper long enough!  Now I just need to go revise. 

Fare thee well, friend!
Mira

Finals Stress...

So, I think the stress from finals is finally starting to get to me.  Actually, it's been getting to me for a while, it's just starting to catch up with me. See, last night I had a dream that I was marrying my cousin, who is older than me but somehow ended up being my nephew's age, and then I called it off at the last minute because I realized I wasn't in love, and he was too young anyway, and then I found out one of my friends was taking prescription medicine, and I snapped at my niece because she was accusing me of being selfish with my iPad (which I don't own in any case)... and then I woke up and was still cranky over my "broken heart."
Yeah.  Crazy.  I wonder if professors have any idea what happens to their students during finals?

Fare thee well, friend!
Mira

One Done

There's something so very satisfying about finally getting a big project off of your chest.  It doesn't matter how many other big projects you have to work on, or what else is on your to-do list for the day.  You get one major paper done, proof-read, and submitted, and there's such a feeling of relief.  Your teacher may hate it, you may get an awful grade on it, but for now, you don't have to worry about it.  It's done and out of your life.
Now I get to work on the next paper!

Fare thee well, friend!
Mira

The Deep Breath

This is it.
The deep breath before the plunge. 
In other words, the week before finals.
I have one week to get everything done. 
One week to study before the tests.
Just two weeks to Christmas break freedom, and yet the obstacles seem insurmountable.
If you're wondering, yes, I have a paper to write.
In happier news, the anthology came out today!  

Fare thee well, friend!
Mira