Sorry about the rant

Today went fine and I'm feeling much better. My angsty post last night was so...angsty. I guess I was just stressed. In actuality, I had a great weekend. I went to a dbacks game on Friday with my dad and got to experience the moment the diamondbacks clinched the NL west division title. The whole place shook. I swear all 42,606 people lost control that night. So amazing. Then on Saturday I hung out with some amazing kids while my parents went to the ASU game. I'll have to post some videos and pictures on here it was so much fun.

So wired right now

I hate this.
I hate this stress
This school
Not having any time for myself
I hate that my room is a sty.
I hate that I can't be creative because I'm doing work for classes that won't matter in 8 months.
It's disappointing how I have this amazing photography idea I want to do but will probably never get to do it.
I hate discipline.
I hate scales.
I can't stand taking two steps forward and one step back
I'm tired of putting on a front at school. Some days I wish I could show up, and not talk to anybody all day.
I'm sick of people who think high school is the only reality there is. Why can't they see the big picture??
I'm so bored of texting.
I'm so bored of Facebook.
It bugs me how screwed up my adrenals are.
I can't believe I'm gonna be waking up in 5 hours.
I'm sick of dragging through the days.
I'm sick of feeling like Rip van Winkle after taking an unexpected 3 hr nap.
I wrote an extended metaphor on 'fog' for a class and you know what? I actually enjoyed myself. I felt very Emily Dickinson. It was the first time I've advanced creatively in 3 years.
3 years!!!!! It's insane.
Why did I do that co-op for two years, it amounted to nothing. Just a lot of stress, mediocrity, and lap-books. NOTE TO ALISHA. DON'T MAKE YOUR KIDS DO THEM IN HIGH SCHOOL. I'm not one to believe crafts prepared you for the SAT.

You know what I really want to do with my time? Go to the Vans store and buy some cute skinny jeans that stop at the ankles so you can roll them up. Then I want some really cute menswear-inspired shirts. You know, with the neat collars. Maybe some Sperry Top Siders. Call me preppy. I don't care. Then I want to go to this one thrift store in phoenix and buy a bunch of records I saw 2 yrs ago. Houses of the Holy in original plastic. Things like that. Then I wanna go to a vintage clothing store in Tempe/scottsdale area. Get my hair done at Rumor's and buy a bunch of film and start my photography project as my hobby.
I also want to buy some more Stride Shaun White gum. It's the only thing that makes me happy right now

But no. I wake up, eat, do homework, practice piano, shower, eat, practice again, probably go somewhere usually errands or a class, then more homework, and then eat and go to bed. That's how I spend my days. All of them. Weekends are no different. If I'm lucky, I make it to scottsdale bible cliquey high school ministry on Wednesdays.

I know this really cool girl, and I really want to hang out with her because I basically have no kindred spirits in my life (if Anne Shirley were here, she would be proud of my word choice.) But I don't know how to hang out with a friend. I don't know what we would do, or where we would go. Or if she would even have fun or not.
I'm getting tired. This is a good thing. Tomorrow's a new day with no mistakes in it. (wow two Anne terms in one post!!)

Picture: this is my computer where I do my work. My red shutters are my favorite part and I always change my screen to a photo I've taken.

interesting

I just found out, someone I went to kindergarten with, hung out all through elementary, home schooled all through high school, is going to try to major in music at ASU next year. Isn't that the craziest thing you've ever heard!!.

Waltz of the Flowers

I'm playing this for the studio's Christmas performance. It's gonna be my last year. I'm so sad. But so far, reading this piece, I've come to some conclusions:
It's boring and it bugs me.
It's too showy
It reminds me of my ballet-nutcracker years. The years of costumes, and 8 hour rehearsals, stress, running around Horizon High School's auditorium, stage moms, watching them from the corner of your eye in the wings holding clipboards, the stage lights glinting off their glasses, getting screamed at by said moms because you didn't put on your "wings" (special ballet stage eye makeup) yet (6 hrs before the performance.) And the absense of my mom during dress rehearsals and her forced enthusiasm during performances. My dad tagging along--yet asleep through the whole thing--because he overdosed on muscle relaxers. Countless cookie dough sales for the studio. Moms remarking to other moms about their daughter's bodies. IT WAS A CRAZY 4 YEARS.
That's why I don't enjoy my Nutcracker piece.

the Kirke's

Tomorrow my parents get to go with the Kirke's to an ASU game. Their son, Riley was on my dad's 13U team this past year. Riley gets to go to the game also. Eve does not. :(
But, I get to stay home with Dylan (11) and her sister Peyton. (13) But these two girls--like the rest of the family--crack me up. Here's a pic of Dylan from one of the NSLL all-star games in July. She was imitating someone from little people big world.
I choose to party with the kids almost half my age

Hmm

Today in student leadership class we were asked about the different leaders in our life. I only listed my parents because they're the only ones that have positively effected me in my life. All my other coaches/teachers have also, but not to a ground-breaking extent. I was feeling pretty blessed or good about myself, and especially with the next question. "Do you have any good influences in your life?" Duh, this was a yes.
And then, "do you have any bad influences in your life?" I said no, but seconds after that, I said yes in my head. It was odd. I honestly didn't know this person was a bad influence until that moment. It was kind of confusing and disappointing. I feel God has put this person in my life for a reason. A spiritual person once told me I am a comforter for a lot of people and I speak the truth and impact them more than I can imagine. This was serious. Throughout my life I've had certain people placed on my heart, and I've followed through with that and never given up on them. Not sayin I'm perfect, I've definitely had my foot in mouth moments....... But now this is different: this person is influencing me negatively. Yet, I need to be in their life. It's a crazy realization, and something new. I wonder how it will turn out

stress

The blood tests showed nothing. We're still deciding on running a test to check for Epstein-Barr and a wheat allergy. But it's most likely that I have chronic fatigue syndrome. It would make so much sense for the things that have occurred:
got shingles when I was 13 because my immune system was so low. This runs in our family, my great grandma had it, my mom and my aunt.
car accident last October sent me into a downward spiral. I suffered from so much back pain in my upper back and shoulders. It never seemed to get better, even though I was going to a chiro. It was hard to do my homework sitting in a chair with my back aching. It felt like someone had an ice pick into my back and shoulders. This caused me to get behind in school and I stressed and stressed and tried to catch up. I never would that semester. In Dec. we went to a different chiro and within the first treatment, I felt my pain drop from a 9 on the 1-10 pain scale, to a 7. Four months later, my pain scale was at a 2. I still have a little discomfort in my shoulders, but I've been working out and it strengthens my muscles around my shoulders. I barely notice anything now..
Unfortunately, during all this stress and trying to recover from the back pain, I got shingles again in April. I took the meds they gave me and it the symptoms went away. Usually shingles doesn't come back. But then again, usually old people get shingles, and I got it when I was 13; nothing should surprise me.
Then I got shingles again in June. That was really weird. I started to notice that a couple of days before it, I would get so extremely exhausted and no amount of working out, food, or sleep could recharge me. So I filed this away and tried really hard the next couple of months to not eat sugar, go to bed, and try to remain free of stress.
Well, it was summer, and I tried really hard to be healthy and rested, but still got shingles again in September.
That was it. We went to the naturopathic doctor and got blood tests done.
So I'm pretty sick of being tired all the time. Every day I get up and feel tired. In the morning, i feel mediocre, but in the afternoon I completely crash. I need a nap usually every day.  Sometimes I'll take a nap for 2-3 hours, so I keep these short so I can accomplish homework!!! (Frustrating.)
Then at night, I'm completely wired and can't fall asleep. Then I go to bed late, and wake up early, therefore dropping my immune system lower and lower. It's so annoying, I'm sick of this.
The doctor says my body can't handle stress very well. What could I possibly be stressed about? I guess my body thinks school is the worst thing since polio and freaks out. School doesn't stress me out that much--psychologically.
ANYWAY. I don't even know why I'm still writing this stuff. If your reading this, sorry!
I think I just like clearing my brain a little on this blog. I'm positive only 2 people read my blog as of right now.
Soo yeah. Hopefully I can go to bed early tonight and feel better tomorrow. I hate waking up at 5 for school. I also hope and pray I get better. I can't imagine college like this.

September is lame

I've never liked this month... ever. October--yes. But not September.
Some things that are cool:
I've been doing the worship for the eleven10 service at Scottsdale Bible. I play keyboard. It's the most contemporary service out of the 4 they have on Sundays. That's been great.
And physiology is an amazing class only our teacher is shoving it down out throats. We learn a chapter a day. Our first test will be covering 4 chapters and the test takes about 80 minutes.
Foster the People is all I've been listening to. Usually I hate indie music, but for some reason, Torches is the exception.
I might be getting my hurr done soon. I want to go as light as I can. I'm sick of dark hair all the time.
TCBS is starting this Thursday!!! It will be my last year. I've been dreading this moment since I was a freshman. Seriously, I love this Bible study. I only wish it was back at Scottsdale Bible Chapel instead of Scottsdale Worship Center. It's too small where it is now. Then again, we only have 10 regulars show up anyway. I hope it gets bigger this year.

"I'll take you one indie, and raise you one indie."--Evan

Soo today I woke up with a sore throat, which is super crappy. And on top of that I have shingles again for the 4th time in my life. 3rd time in the past 5 months. This is super rare, and I have blood tests scheduled for Tuesday. Baahhhh....
For the next couple of hours I'll be listening to music.
So far on my list I have,
Cage the Elephant
Drake
Foster the People
Bush
The Pixies
Stone Temple Pilots
Alphaville
Red Hot Chili Peppers
Pearl Jam (of course)
Ill Gin Blossoms
Massive Attack
Meat Puppets
Goo Goo Dolls
Switchfoot
Sublime
The Cure
Mumford and Sons
Modest Mouse.
 This unofficial list thanks to Robert who introduces me to amazing music (started with Gorillaz and the rest is history), and Evan who wants me to eventually love ghetto rap. (WE'LL SEE) And Ethan who enjoys Massive Attack. I believe there's a special place in heaven for those who love truly original trip hop.
Last night I went to an SCA football game with 8 girls from KEYS. Half of them lived in Glendale and the other half of us lived in Scottsdale. I had no idea I would know SOOO many people!! It was fun for me, but the rest of my friends were bored. That made things very awkward.
Also, the first person I recognized was this guy named Brad who goes to SCA and was on my dad's 18U team this past summer. I said hi and then he said, "So why are you here?"
"Oh. To watch the football game. My friend's playing."
He started to back away slowly, "Do you go to Fountain Hills?"
"No.."
"Uhm. Well.. ok. Fun. Well nice seeing you again. Bye."
Then walked away.
 Very awkward.
 My girlfriends started laughing and I was extremely confused. I came to the conclusion he probably thought I was someone else halfway through the conversation. That's always fun. Later, my dad ran into him too, and said he was just confused as to what school I actually went to. So he knew who I was, but didn't understand why I was there.
 Less awkward.
 Are you bored yet?
Good.
Are you still reading?
 I pity you.
 So my style has meshed into more grunge/90's minimalist. It's odd! And I've made up my mind I want cornrow braids next summer..Not sure about the upkeep. Can you wash your hair with them?? Serious question. Wow, this post has turned quite hipster in less than 2 minutes. more later!!!

Hawt

Today I did homework and then got ready for spanish class at the Bragg's house. My friends Jaclyn and Nate live two doors down from Elle and Sam and we all go to keys! Jaclyn is teaching us Spanish 2 on Wed. mornings. Mom was at lunch so I had to bike to the Bragg's. It's only ten minutes away but I was running late and couldn't find a backpack or my Spanish book. It was a mess. I just shoved everything in a bag and slung it on my shoulder, pushed my bike to the sixth gear and sped off. Soon I realized its really hard to ride a bike with a huge bag on your shoulder. And it was also 102 degrees at 11am. So there I was, literally huffing and puffing down the street determined to not be late. I envisioned myself growing feeble and weak and slowly falling over from the heat, my hands too tired to reach for my phone to call 911 as I lay on the side of a deserted, sunbaked, sidewalk.
I eventually made it.

Also I drove myself for the first time alone back to Jaclyn's house for a first aid/CPR/ EMT-ish stuff review in tomorrow's physiology class.  I brought a doll so we could do a mock incident. The doll literally scared their dog so bad, he would go into fits of barking and teeth-bearing when the doll would sit propped against the wall. As I left the house Jaclyn became terrified and said the doll in my bag looked so creepy, just winking at her. She took a picture. Post!

Drove myself to SBC which was scary. I took the back way and was late but oh well. Sat with Aisha, Brandon, and Kelsey. And after 3 months, Ryan Hubner finally scared me enough to make me jump. All those frustrating attempts of him hiding behind a curtain, or sneaking up during band rehearsal, only to find me unphased and calmly saying, "Nice try." "Hi Ryan behind the door." Or, "Funny how those curtains have feet." Victory was his! Although Eve gets ten points for not gasping or screaming, even though I recoiled about six feet to my left.

Church was really good! We ended the night and good message and altar call with 'Your Love Never Fails' that is my favorite worship song. We sang it during surf camp this year.oddly enough I had a dream last night I was surfing again. It was so real and vivid. I miss surfing!!!!c

*slow motion* "NOOO"

I'm falling into my old patterns! Choosing to watch tv instead of homework. Die netflix, die!!!

So some major earthquake huh? Hah. Californians are just laughing on this side of the coast. A 5.8 is like going over a speed bump.
On Fox they made a huuge deal and showed this one school in VA with 'severe structural damage'
(fallen ceiling tiles, a broken cement block, and books strewn around a classroom.)
How did anybody survive.

I'm wondering what they could possibly be covering up right now. There's no way this deserves so much attention.

'Jeremy' by Pearl Jam has been in my head all day. Such a great song.

Here's a picture one of those motivational posters you see around. I found it inside a YMCA building... how funny..

Re hash

Second day of school went lovely. I'm still on a high from Minnesota. Definitely did not spend near enough time there as I wanted.
It's gonna be two weeks tomorrow since Mitchell died. Still sad but its going away.
Back hurts a lot.... working out should make my shoulders stronger and feel less like they're being impaled with a knife.
Christian worldview class is going amazingly well, along with physiology!!! I'm pretty excited!
Student leadership is as awkward as it is awesome. I love planning events and collaborating with others and tryin to make Keys better. Or so I thought.
As I so vehemently stated to mom when I got home, 'gosh! There's so much dissension with everyone tries to lead!'

In other news, I've been enjoying Anne of green gables on byu tv quite regularly and plan to read the books soon! It's so Canadianly-nostalgic.

Look up the song re hash by the gorillaz... you won't regret it

Pics: my only friends in study hall Justin and Michael. A real life shawn and Gus from Psych. It's scary. There's even a 'Jules' for shawn... even funnier. Keys <3

Changes

Last week a really sad thing happened. My friend Mitchell died and its been a crazy thing trying to deal with that. I had a lengthy post in the works, but for some reason can't access it from mobile Blogger.. so I thought something was better than nothing. I can always post it later.

Well school started yesterday and I'm not sure how I feel about it either. A lot of things changed over the summer. Changes equally good as they were bad. Especially in the old friends department. I hate drama that doesn't go away. I'm not a dramatic person believe it or not. I'm easy to be around. I would rather forget than confront and unfortunately sometimes when you have to confront, things linger in the air for a while! I would rather burn bridges but that's not the way either.

Mitchell's funeral was today and I missed it because I was flying to Minnesota. I'm here visiting cousins and was greeted with just an overwhelming sense of change. People grow up, even your cousins. And it can be hard when you think YOU never change.
I also found out my friend's dad just committed suicide, so this has been a week from H-E double hockey sticks.

Well. This post has turned out to be quite existential!!! On the bright side, it poured for about 2 hrs today!! On fb I noticed everyone in AZ sayin that too. It's proven fact that when one of the Ontiveros' leave the state, it rains. But I'm glad I got to see the rain here.

Pictures: got my license Friday!
Me in study hall at school. Friend Michael was playing with my phone and I just found this pic he took.... I edited it because retro is the way to go

Old Patterns

Last night I had a dream it was the first day of school. It was pretty realistic, if you can overlook the fact that we flew to get around campus, classes were in different rooms of my house, and an old acquaintance from freshman year was back in our circle of friends. Now this friend--in real life--never treated me very well and almost symbolizes a time in my life I wish to never repeat. I thought it was odd that Friend was back and was a little concerned Friend was going to make life a repeat of 2008-2009. So there we were, my little group of friends, back at school like a nice reunion. Except it wasn't happy, but instead vexing.
I wonder what that dream meant? I think it means that a new year brings anticipation and a chance to change things and better yourself or redeem yourself somehow. And there's always that creeping thought in your head that you will slip into old habits and allow autopilot to take over instead of being actively involved in living your life. I look at last year and I see a lot of confusion.
As you may or may not know, last year I was emotionally bullied by a few in my circle of friends. Odd as this sounds, they accepted me and loved me as much as they flippantly slammed me. I now understand what it was: complete immaturity...and the most immature one involved was myself. I allowed it to happen in fear of losing my popularity.
So this summer I feel like I've discovered this new side to me; a side that won't stand for any more crap, yet still eager to give them a second chance.
The dream was a foreshadowing of things to come if I fail.

Some pics

Here's a picture of mom and Jacky. Ahh she is such a great dog with loads of personality. Too bad her usual dark eyes look like flying saucers in this picture.

And here is a floral patterned dress. Hate it or love it? Its the newest edition to my closet. Still deciding on wearing it or not.

I have a list of 8 or 9 families I want to go boating with. 2 of them we are taking this week. I NEVER WANT SUMMER TO END. :'(

I don't know if I'm lying to myself, or maybe I've forgotten what stress feels like, but I'm going to try my hardest to get my homework done ASAP and keep the feeling of summer alive. Even if it's only for the month of August.

Also, just scrolled on my weather app, and apparently were going to get a cold front that will settle on us for the first day of school. (august 15th) 93 high and 82 low with rain!!!!!!!!! Yes please! But I leave for Minnesota on the 16th so I get to miss out on all the cold weather. Seems to happen to me a lot. I think in 98 when it snowed here, we were in Louisville. And I was in San Diego this year and missed the massive haboob.

Piano today. Better go do scales.

Monsoon on Bartlett

I awoke at 4am to drive to Casa Grande to pick up my new grand piano. Yes, folks, after weeks and weeks I finally found the perfect one. And since pianos can't be moved in the heat we left real early.
The drive up there was amazing: only 4 miles outside of Ahwatukee and it's like a new planet. Just miles and miles of nothing, mountains, hills and creosotes. It was humid and storm clouds were rolling in for a beautiful sunset.
And by 9am it was there, sitting in our house looking tired. Poor piano. Here's some background info:
1929 Mason and Hamlin
rebuilt/strings, dampers, cast-iron painted, soundboard redone in 1970's
single family owners since 1929.
Black satin finish
5'8'' parlor grand.
and sounds so great.

That afternoon my friend Dan came over to go boating with us. I could not believe after a mere week of cleaning and fixing the boat, that we would be able to take it out to Bartlett.
It sat in the backyard for nine years and last Friday dad got the (terribly impossible) idea of bringing it out again! PUHLEAZE like that would ever happen!
And there I was, riding in the back of the Expedition up to Barlett. So excited, so glad, and so ready for some tubing!
We saw a wall of periwinkle as we drove to the north but didn't think much of it.
Getting on the water brought back so many memories of camping on Lee's Ferry, tubing with Keilah Ortegus when I was 6 and holding on for DEAR life as the boat pulled us at high speed. ALso the time when my dad forgot to put the plug in the boat, and we sped off and soon realized the enormous puddle pooling at the stern. And that one time mom gave me too much cough syrup and I lay asleep for hours as my parents and grandparents had a fun time on the boat.

We set off and dad pushed the throttle and we rushed across the water. It was beautiful and I forgot how much fun it was.
Dad stopped and pulled the tube out and tied the rope on and started fiddling with it. Something was wrong with the float that held up the rope, and it sank and therefore was geting in the way with the propellers. To make matters worse the waves pushed the rope under the propellers and it became tangled In addition, our dog was being VERY ANNOYING and whining and barking and jumping from seat to seat. My mom was screaming at Jacky to be quiet and 'lay down!' and dad was upset about the possibility of not tubing. I suddenly realized how the periwinkle clouds had turned to dark purple. The wind was whipping around us and I noticed how fast the horizon was moving. "Dad, the rocks." He looked up and worked even faster. Seconds later I looked towards land again and my eyes widened. We had moved SO fast within mere seconds and approached the rocky shore. "DAD!!!" I screamed above the din of wind, dog-barking, mom-yelling... "THE ROCKS, THE ROCKS!" Dad picked up his head from the mess of rope he was working with. We were suddenly in a terrible predicament. Faced with the rope off the end of the boat, interfering with the motor, we coulnd't punch it and get out of the waves. Decisions had to be made. Dad raised the motor out of the water and told us to jump out and push the boat away from land while he untangled the rope. It was a good thing the boat drafts in 8 inches of water, or we'd be wrecked for sure. Mom, Dan and I jumped out and clambored to shore and braced against the boat right as the hull gently collided with the bulky river rocks. Our feet were throbbing at this point; none of us had shoes. So there we stood on those rocks, acting like human bumpers, keeping the boat stable. The wind really kicked up now, dad told us to push off and get the motor away from the rocks so he could lower it, we heaved and the boat shot out just enough. He lowered the motor and we climbed in right as he punched the motor. Four foot swells crashed against the hull and pushed at our boat (which was still sideways.) Dad tried to steer the 18 foot deck boat in the shallow cove. The sunshade above us was acting as an enormous sail, and did not work to our advantage, but in that hairy situation none of us thought to take it down. Right when we thought we were out of the worst, the wind tossed the blaze oragne flag into the water. We all stopped for a second watching, and thinking it would float, but it sank! Dad stopped the motor and mom went in after it. Again, we started drifting to the shore. Dan put the ladder down and mom tried to climb up, but she couldn't because the boat was moving too fast. Dad couldn't speed away because mom was by the motor. We were now heading even faster to the shore of a yet another rockier cove. Nobody was worried about mom as she tossed about--sans life vest--in the middle of the lake with 4 foot waves crashing over her head.
One would think Jacky would have become hoarse from all the barking, but NO. She barked and barked and barked. The boat careened closer to colliding starboard side with the rocky shore. Dad screamed at us to get out and keep the boat from crashing...AGAIN.
Not thinking, I jumped out starboard side and the water was deeper than I thought, and the boat almost went over me! Dad was livid and I could barely hear why, because the wind was so loud. Dan was already on the shore struggling to brace the boat. The waves became so bad they pushed me face-first and I banged my shin against a rock.
Meanwhile, mom was 10 yards away scrambling to shore with the wilted flag. I heard her cry out in pain and hold her foot. This was quickly turning into a disaster!
Dan and I held the boat as best as two people could, but we heard the spine tingling sound of scraping rocks against the hull. Mom joined us at this point and we pushed the boat as hard as we could. We isolated the motor and dad lowered it. He got out and pushed with us, the boat traveled away from the shore for a brief moment. We jumped in and lurched forward as dad laid on the throttle.
But it proved to be useless. The waves were so bad, and the boat--extremely bulky. We had no choice but to drift into a sandy cove.
The boat beached starboard side, and port side to the waves. We assesed the damage: towels--sopping wet, chips and Cheeto's all over the boat, ropes in a mess, water all over the seats. So we got out, took some chairs and food with us and just chilled on the beach. Jacky bolted as fast as she could to dry land and... well, took care of business. The poor dog was freaking out the whole time because she had to go. My parents felt bad for calling her...colorful names during the whole boat-crashing deal. Surprisingly it was sunny and very nice out. Except...the wind was unreal and there was a storm moving towards us.
We were full and relaxed and exchanged stories. Mom said, "While I was out there flailing in the lake, I noticed a lonely Cheeto just bobbing by my face. It's funny the things you notice when you're about to die."
After lunch, dad checked on the boat and noticed the waves crashing into the boat had contributed to a very large puddle pooling at the stern. He turned the bilge pump on and trekked out with the anchor in search of a rocky point to hook the anchor on.
He came back and broke the news, we were going to have to push the boat out again to get it deeper into the cove and hook it to the anchor.
We braced against the boat, all four of us and pushed. It. Did. Not. Budge. Our feet slipped in the sandy mud and the waves crashed on the hull and into our faces. We pushed with all our strength and might for 60 seconds. Dad had us time the waves so when they lifted the boat up a tad, that's when we'd go in hard and push like never before, then when it loosened from the sand, we would push from the back. It was so stuck in the sand, I thought we'd never make it. NO phone service, no nothing. I guessed if it got too bad, one of us would have to swim to the middle of the lake and try to flag down a passing boat.
We set our feet and heaved. For what felt like hours we did this, and finally it let go. We moved to the stern as part of the plan, and manuvered the boat into the water. Dad got in and steered. Finally we were in the middle of the cove and hooked up to the anchor. I slipped into the deep water and just floated there thanking God.

The rest of the lake trip was fun. We jetted across the water and explored some beautiful areas of Bartlett. I got to drive the boat--which was fun. The day wasn't completely ruined and we ended up having a great time!

Belieber

Today a great girl named Brooke came over for my Never Say Never movie night. We both dressed up in sequins, sillybandz, converse and other 8th-grader clothes.
I haven't known her for a long time but she's been in my circle of friends for a while. I've wanted to hang with her since Sept of last year. I had a great night.
First we played an Elton John record because she wanted to see what it was like.
Then we ate quesadillas with Rooster sauce (super spicy sauce.)  After that, we viewed an episode of Arthur just to be nostalgic.
Mom geared up to go to Albertsons to get the movie from Redbox and we came. Feeling a little awkward, we stepped out of the car in our total dorky, sparkly 8th grade girl clothes and entered the grocery store. I, of course was ADD and hyped up on BIEBER. And could not memorize the 3 item shopping list. Brooke kept me on track. She is so funny and is like my twin. Only she is an Alaska native and I'm a tootall Arizona desert child.
We stood by the Redbox and found the DVD, and to my horror found mom chatting it up with the check out lady. (I assumed the lady was telling mom her life-story, because my mom attracts people like that.) But no, instead I saw mom mouth the words, 'Justin Bieber'. And then the check out lady and other people in line began to look at us and chuckle with those wide eyed looks adults give best. Brooke and I hid behind a cardboard display.
As we were about to leave, mom hands us both a Justin Bieber folder and says, 'The woman I was talking to suggested we get these. She also thinks your Bieber movie party is cute and she likes Bieber too!' So Brooke and I held up our Justin folders, smiled and walked past the check-out counters and the lady had a big grin on her face.
At home we watched the movie. Surprisingly, my dad would talk over the movie and other silly things in an obvious ploy for attention. We told him to leave in shrill girl voices. And dad even said Justin was adorable and beyond talented! Yay
The, movie was really good and during the concert scenes, we would use our phones as lighters and wave to the music. I'm not gonna lie, I kinda cried during the part where he struggled with strained vocal chords during his tour and his mom prayed for healing as he cried. IT WAS SO SAD.
I also brought out the teen gossip magazines and we peeled the Justin posters from the binding and ripped up the Selena Gomez poster--total revenge.
Brooke is the biggest Oklahoma Sooners fan known to AZ. When my dad discovered this at dinner, those two went back and forth about college football. Dad hates the TX longhorns, so they had something in common to rip to shreds with football-speak! Mom and I were laughing hilariously while the conversation escalated. Football stats were thick in the air, Brooke blared the OU fight song from her phone and confessed her love for Sam Bradford. Dad blathered on about Michigan's legacy and was all pumped about how, 'good they're gonna be this year.'
Brooke had so many amazing, funny stories from Alaska...and how her sister ran over their pet bird's toes. And growing up wearing side ponytails... and trips to Russia... eating dog... and twirling baton for the Fiesta bowl. Soo glad I had this party! Mostly because I was a somewhat sheltered middle schooler who never did girly parties and obsessed about a teen pop star. But I think it was wayy more fun to do it now as a high school senior. :)

Today

Piano lessons in Tempe. Stopped by the grandparents in Phoenix for homemade cookies and tacos and a nap. Gearing up for some errands, and a nice day of 100* with a thunderstorm. Party later tonight. I'm looking forward to badminton!

Another beautiful July day in the valley!!

Massive Attack, SoCal, Redscale, and Seventh Chords

Massive Attack
(Listen to the music. Not the videos)






I could literally look at pictures of abandoned psych wards and listen to this song. It's so weird!





After a year of Led Zeppelin, Supertramp, Alan Parsons Project, and Peter Gabriel I am finally on my new kick: Trip hop.
Trip hop is amazing. I bought 'Mezzanine' by Massive Attack and basically listened to the whole album for 9 months. It's so dark, surreal, and slightly orchestral and it blows my mind. It's crazy to think that most of their stuff was from the 90's. It's timeless. I would just love to chill back and have a jam session; record it, and then mix it later and get super creative--technically. That sounds like the best way to make and album!
Dubstep is increasingly becoming popular and somewhat related to trip hop. It's a little too over-produced for me, and rarely has vocals. But I'm glad the teen crowd's liking it. I think America will agree with me: I'm so sick of blonde pop stars and shrieky/ambient indie rock bands.

SoCal
SoOverdone. SoCliche. SoArtsyFartsy. SoTwoMinutesAgo
maxi dress, floater tops, single chain necklaces with little silver owl feather charms, military boots, leggings, boho hair extensions... MAKE IT STOP. You open your issue of Vogue, see something avant garde or unique, and you think, 'Why can't we do THAT??' Obviously true, creative fashion doesn't sell, because then it wouldn't be creative anymore. I'm a huge fan (now) of minimalism, and menswear-inspired looks.

Redscale film photography.
Not really a fan of the whole hipster lo fi photography movement, (Instagram is my enemy) but I adore redscale film.
It's July and I have yet to do this. All you need is two rolls of film and a 35 mm and you can do it yourself!

Seventh Chords.
I'm learning seventh chords in every interval of all major and minor scales. Musical theory is really opening up a new world for me. I play one chord and a million melodies fill the corners of my ear. I feel like I want to write music but I don't know how. So I'm just learning theory until I can.

Cyberbully
Just watched this movie on the DVR with mom. OH my gosh, yeah ABC Family you're thinking it's lame, but it was actually good!! I was blown away. It was so true: and I think every teen should watch it. And all the middle schoolers especially. You have no idea how much of this goes on. I see it a lot, and it's happened to everyone by some point in time. It was actually refreshing to see old Disney stars REALLY act (not just roll their eyes and deliver whimsical teenie bopper dialogue.)

I'll conclude with a laugh.
I literally could not stop laughing the whole time I saw this. My mom was in tears too.

Charm > Old People

Just got back from softball practice in Fountain Hills. Man, do I love that place. So much charm! I saw the fountain go off at night for the 1st time--that was mesmerizing. Also, I stopped at Fountain Bowl, the local bowling alley. Ok, I'm never going to Via Linda Lanes again! It was small and cute..... had old school arcade games and a great menu. We met the owner and she was so nice! I already know who I'm taking there in the future. It's worth the long trip!