My Patronus- HPA

So the Harry Potter Alliance (http://thehpalliance.org) is doing a thing this year, and this is my submission:

What is my patronus? It doesn't really have an exact form- more ideas than anything else. The idea that there is still hope in the world. Hope for a cure, hope for remission, hope for snow, hope for anything. The fact that there is always someone there- friends, family, anyone who can and will care. The fact that there is a tiny spark in everyone- that little spark of hope and light that will never go out. Not even the dementors can take it. It may take some work to find it, but it is there, and it won't ever go out. Even in the darkest night there are still stars, and those stars are the things that matter. Simple things: light, love, a smile, a hug, a warm cat, a horse. More than anything the simplest thing we can do is live in the moment. Enjoy the little things, the tiny bits of happiness and hope that make up a patronus. More than anything, the simple fact that here, and now, we are alive.

Knitting

When things go bad, I knit. Lately, my life has taken a turn for the worse, so I've done a lot of knitting.  For some reason it's very therapeutic to me- it doesn't require a whole lot of thinking, but it's something to do with my hands while I puzzle out bigger problems. Knitting is portable, soft, and of course ultimately rewarding.

I always have at least one "back burner" project- that is, a really easy project I can pick up at any time, and that I can leave without worrying. For me, it's usually a scarf. Right now I'm knitting a gray ribbed scarf with leftover yarn from a sweater I made for my mom. It's warm, cozy, and a nice color- perfect for a scarf. I made the pattern myself so when I work on it I'm on autopilot- knit four, purl for, knit four, purl four, knit four, turn, repeat in opposite order. Easy.

My next two projects are a little more difficult- a hat and socks, respectively. I've been wearing a stocking hat I made years ago, and everyone at school wants one now, so I've got to get working on that. It's nice to be liked for something you can give to others. I feel like they genuinely want what I'm doing. The socks are for myself. I found a great pattern online (knitty.com) for a sock with a cool twisted pattern. They're going to be a gorgeous blue-green color, and hopefully warm and cozy. Can't wait to get started!

Cold. Very, Very Cold.

In the past couple of days the temperatures have DROPPED. Majorly. In our house the radiators (we have a 100 year old house, so no central heating!) are constantly on, which is nice because I use them to warm up my clothes in the mornings. The cats are finding high ground and warm, cushy places to sleep, and the dog spends most of his time on his dog bed or next to a radiator. All of us are settling in for the cold weather. When I leave for school in the morning, it's usually around 25 degrees out, and yesterday there was a little snow. I'm having to resign myself to the fact that winter's finally here.

I don't mind winter in and of itself, I just have to get used to it. It's not the best time of year, but there's something satisfying about being somewhere warm and looking out the window and knowing it's cold out. And there's always the added plus of being able to give random hugs when you're cold, in a shared interest to stay warm... so winter is really a very cozy time. I just wish it wasn't so cold! But then it wouldn't be winter.

Abstruse

I was just looking at the header of this blog and thinking about the description.

Random- definitely. Random things make life more fun. Chance encounters, shoes, horses... all are random, all fun.

Abstruse- I just love this word. We had it on an English vocab quiz a couple of weeks ago and I just couldn't stop saying it. It's got heft, it sounds a bit mysterious, and the definition is wonderfully odd. It means "esoteric, or hard to understand". I'm not entirely sure this definition applies to this blog, but I couldn't leave it out.

Unconventional- maybe. I wouldn't say I'm 100% in with anything, so by default that makes my opinions unconventional. It's the best I can do...

Opinionated- aren't blogs for opinions? I wouldn't say I'm overly opinionated (i.e. shove my ideas down your throat), but I do know what I like and what I don't like, and what I stand for. Is that opinionated enough for you?

< 3 (Less Than Three)

 I love Eddplant. His new song, Less Than Three, absolutely blew me away the first time I heard it. It's catchy, it's happy, and there's Christmas lights in the music video- what could be better?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WeYpXEuHqvo&feature=sub

Who is Eddplant? He's a Youtube musician, part of the band Sons of Admirals, and an all around amazingly cool person. His songs are beautiful. His new album, Confidence Tricks, is available from DFTBA Records, on Amazon, and (soon) on iTunes. I can't wait to buy it! I've been listening to Less Than Three on replay for the last hour, and it still amazes me every time. I can't get enough of it.

Yours Forever, <3

Term Papers

Term papers: why are they even necessary? High schoolers do not need them. We already have enough to deal with. Between school, regular English class, and sports, not to mention drama drama drama all the time, we really don't need another thing on top of all of that. It's like having a whole other class... so on top of English, Math, Chemistry, History, Spanish, and Art, I now have Term Paper.

But now I have two days left of Term Paper. I cannot even describe how excited I am. Suddenly I feel accomplished. I've written a 11 page paper on digitization, and I actually think I've done pretty well. Bibliography is totally done, and edited. All notecards are finished. Citations are put in, but not official. Double spaced, Times New Roman font, size 12 with 1" margins. 11 pages.

Now, off to edit some more... and don't forget the oral presentation on Tuesday!

"Let's Run Away Where They Can't Find Us Now" (also Sons of Admirals)

Post title is part of a song that's been playing in my head for the last 20 minutes. It's from Alex Day's album The World Is Mine, and it's called "You and Me". The album is classified under iTunes as "Dance", but it's really more of an electric/ techno/ indie album.

I originally found out about Alex Day through Youtube (his username is nerimon). He's part of a band called Sons of Admirals, which is a British group composed of 4 independent artists who collaborate and do covers of songs. I think they all met through Youtube, or something... anyway, they all have Youtube accounts and have released albums on their own, all of which are pretty amazing.

The Sons of Admirals:
Charlie McDonnell- charlieissocoollike on Youtube. #1 most subscribed person in the UK. Plays the ukulele and generally makes pretty funny videos. Album was just released.
Eddplant- eddplant on Youtube. Really talented singer, writes his own songs. Just released an EP and his full length album is coming out on December 12.
Alex Day- nerimon on Youtube. Singer/ songwriter, plays the guitar, drums, and bass. Vlogs, blogs, and is generally the "cocky" one in the group.
Tom Milsom- hexachordal on Youtube. Probably the most talented of the group in terms of musical ability- I don't think there's an instrument he can't play. Definitely the quirky one in the group; he has blue hair!

Out of all of them, I think either Ed or Tom are my favorites, followed by Charlie and then Alex. I love Alex's music, but there's something about him in his videos... cocky, I think. Tom is just plain weird, and his music is sublime and like nothing else you'll hear. Ed seems really sweet, and he's got a gorgeous voice. I can't wait for his album. Charlie is adorable. He just is. All of them are amazingly talented, and you should definetly go check them out. Their music is available on iTunes, and their "big hit" single is called "Here Comes My Baby". It's a cover of a Cat Stevens song, and the music video is hilarious and cute. Check them out! :)