Surprised? (I am too ^,~)

Wowee wow wow! I can hardly believe how slow the day seems to be going, and on today of all days! I expected it to be quick and painless, but it's long and drawn out... but don't worry, it's still painless.

I thought I would be busily packing alllllll day, but it turns out we're not taking so much. We're just going to Boston for two weeks, after all. We were done before it was even noon! So I've been relaxing and relishing the normalness of my present situation before it's temporarily taken away from me.

I'm very happy that I'm honestly able to blog my "last" post here without feeling rushed or pressured (or tired, for that matter!). I'm writing at our library right now, enjoying some A.C. It's very hot out there! (Duh! Florida in the heat of June!) I vaguely wonder whether I'm going to miss this humid mugginess in cool Massachusetts...

Good news: We got our Skype to work, so now we coop-flying twins can still hear our family's voices from far away without resorting to a pay-phone! (My family doesn't use cellphones, btw. Sure saves a lot of money!)

I've been passing my idle time by reading (yeah, like that's a big surprise!) a special book that I think was written by my mom's best friend. She (Mom's best friend) compiled all these deep, random, meaningful stories in a manner similar to "Chicken Soup for the Soul" books, put her name on the cover and called it Thin Threads. I really like it, because they're just 2-3 page stories about people with inspiring tales. I think it's good that I'm reading it now (though it was supposed to be my reading material for the three-hour flight tomorrow morning!), because it makes me think about my own journey and how I will (hopefully) gather up some much-needed life lessons. I don't know what those lessons are, but I guess that's what happens when life is your teacher...

Again, I'm pleasantly surprised that today has turned into a slow, long thing to enjoy. Who knows how hectic my life will turn once I step on that plane? Even with all our planning and preparations, even I don't know. Weird. Even before I've left, I've taken to heart one perfect life lesson:
Yesterday is history, the future is a mystery, but today is a gift. That's why they call it the Present. ^,~

Today has been a gift. I have parents who love me and will support me, no matter what happens. I spent some time with my brother Adam today reading from one of my old journals (2007!) about the time we went to Israel for 10 weeks. The day before we left on that trip, it seemed to me that that day also felt dreadfully dragged out. Perhaps it was for the same purpose as now... So I can appreciate everything that is familiar to me even more...

And I predict that when I come home in two week's time, I'll be blogging back here and saying, "Wow, it's as if I never left in the first place!" (Though of course it will, because I will return with many new memories and experiences. Interesting that I can predict that happening.)^_~

I'll sure miss you, but don't think about missing me too much!

Couldn't sleep...

Yaaawn... I can't believe I'm up and writing this at the time we're supposed to wake up tomorrow morning for our flight to Boston. Just a bit before 4:30 am. We have to get to the airport by 5:30 and the plane takes off at 7:30... or so I'm told. I don't know. I really couldn't sleep, so I decided to blog a little. I know you'll all read this in the morning. (Some of my family reads my blog, so I bet they'll be a little extra surprised.)

I have less than 24 hours remaining to enjoy being in my own, comfortable, familiar house. *Meep*

Tomorrow we'll be doing lots of packing and making sure of last details, such as getting Skype to work on our laptops. Personally, I am at a complete loss of what to think here. I have thought about and dreamt about going up to Boston for ages, and for me and Annette to have an adventure by ourselves, without our parents or brother to hold us back. Now that's shortly to become a reality. Two fun-filled, semi-planned out weeks, all on our own.

And I'm a bit scared. ~_~

You've got to realize that I've never done anything like this before in my entire life. Neither of us have. My twin and I are going to get large doses of what we call "the real world," and "responsibility". I am almost 18, so I am going to have to face the fact that I'm going to be an adult for the rest of my entire life... It's just that I still feel a lot like a kid. And this experience that I'm going to get? I may be off to do very grown-up stuff: transporting myself, feeding myself, making plans for myself, meeting strangers and filtering out good from bad for myself...

But I feel the deep, dark fear of the unknown. I'm scared that I'm not quite ready for this adventure, though I've been awaiting it for so long. I'm scared of leaving my family when I have to board the airplane. I'm scared of finding myself in a big city (though I've been there many times in the summer) and feeling like an ant among millions... insignificant. Most of all, I'm scared of the future.

The future is so uncertain. Though I've got a lot of plans for it, I still don't have any idea what will happen to me until I get there. This is a scary thing, but I must also see this as a great thing. I have to face it. This is life. It's scary as heck, but it's also exciting. You don't know how excited I am to be doing all the things I want to do in Massachusetts. Unchaperoned! OMG. It's just so hard to believe.

Hmmm... while I'm here, I might as well tell you that I've been working on a new blog that I want to be specifically for my travels. (Here's the link.) I think it'll be fun writing in it. I'll be very honest about my trip and won't forget to write a single detail in it. The thing is that... I've decided to stop writing this blog for our 16 days up in Boston.

So all you faithful followers and readers won't be getting any new posts from here for two weeks. Therefore, if you feel you must know about how I am and what I'm doing, you'll have to check my new travel blog. You don't have to if you don't want to. You're not obligated in any way. But if you care about me, you can read it.

If you do read it, be aware that I'm not going to be checking any comments you may/may not post on my Travel Journal. I want to be completely surprised about the readership I get for this blog. Besides, this is going to be a journal of sorts. It's mostly going to be a corner of cyberspace where I can unload my memories. Uh, my future memories, that is. (Riddle that one out, huh?)

Anyway, I guess this will be my last post for the month. Won't be back until after the first week of July. I'm sorry to surprise you all with a sudden good-bye. (Though it doesn't have to be good- bye if you read the new blog!) Don't worry. I'll write here again the very moment I get home. No, wait!... I'll be leaving Boston July 8th in the evening, so I might go to sleep when I get home. Oh well, I'll blog first thing that morning, then!

Ahll be bahk! *she said in an Arnold Schwarzenegger voice.*

TTFN! Ta ta for now! (You saw Winnie the Pooh as a child, right?)

Rosebud.

*pfft* Sorry. I'm not dying. And neither is this blog. It's just going to be in a... two week coma. I guess that's it. But I'm coming back. I promise.

Farewell.

~ Bettina.

(Now I really ought to go back to sleep!)

My Good ole Dad

As you guys ought to know, today is Father's Day. So far it's been a really great day. My dad really loved the cards that my siblings and I wrote for him. That's great, because this year I was particularly proud of the poem I wrote for the inside note. I don't think he'll mind if I post it here, for you to judge. I combined the words of this poem and this other poem I found online for inspiration, but I turned it into totally my own thing.

MY GOOD OLE DAD

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

My father Benny (that's his name) is the best.

He is better than all the rest,

Combined.

Funny and kind,

With a very sharp mind.

I love him very dearly.

I say so quite sincerely,

I do.

Benny, I love you,

Like the sky and oceans are

Blue.

I can never be blue,

So long as I have you.

^,^ My good ole dad. ^,^

Full of laughter and smiles,

Happiness and piles

Of good times.

For listening and caring,

For loving and sharing,

I thank god every day

That you're mine.

^_^

My good ole dad.

---

BTW, the parentheses are not part of the poem.

Getting over it...

Though I'm still very upset about our hamster, Hazel, passing away, I know that the world won't stop spinning, and I'll eventually have to move on. Better it be sooner than later. Besides, I still have sooo much planning to do...
Our plane trip for Boston is on Tuesday morning, so that's only 4 days from now. Okay, 5 if you count today. I need to think about what we'll need to pack, where we'll go when we're there. Oh, you want to hear a funny thing? My mom told me that one of the homeschooling families, Tamara and her 3 girls Arianna, Kailen and Toni-ann, are also going to Boston, coincidentally on the same flight as Annette and me! So I think that's pretty darn awesome! Now we won't be all by ourselves for those 3 hours.

Anyway, we've started setting up a schedule for ourselves for the different colleges we want to visit and check out when we're there. Emerson, UMass, some Leslie art institute (forget the name, sorry), Boston University. Perhaps we'll think of more later, but it's plain to see that we're gonna be veeeery busy!

I've had an idea that I'll stop writing here for the couple weeks I'm gone and start writing a brand new blog that will be special for my travels. I can write very detailed posts about every day and not worry about being prolific for my readers, because it's mostly going to be for my benefit. Of course, you guys are free to read my adventures if you feel like it. If you want to know how I'm doing, that's what you'll have to do...

I wonder if I'll have enough time to read everyone else's blogs when I'm having so much fun? Maybe I'll get them on Reader like Q does...

As well as blogging frequently, I've promised my parents that we'll be in touch every day. We don't have cell-phones, but we'll still email them, maybe Google Chat, or Skype, if we can get it to work.

Today I'm gonna go shop for some stuff with my mom and sister. Oh man, and I need to write a card for my dad! It's nearly Father's Day! Sorry I'm in such a rush, but I can only stay a while longer, and I need some lunch in me!

Goodbye, Hazel -,-

I can't believe it. Something very sad happened yesterday.

Our sweet, beautiful brown hamster, Hazel, died in her sleep. ~,~

We were terribly shocked when we found it out last night. Why did we have to become so sad after we'd been feeling so happy that night? Our parents were out for the night, so we kids were on our own. We saw Roman Holiday, which is one of the rare old classics that I can say I liked, and afterward we caught some Jon Stewart and Stephen Colbert. They were funny shows, and we laughed a lot. (Both of them showed Obama swatting a fly while being interviewed. Hilarious.)

Then we shut the t.v. off and Adam and I went to see Hazel. She looked like she was sleeping in an adorable position. You know how hamsters do it, right? But then I noticed that she was lying with her eyes open. And she wasn't breathing.

I lifted the lid and gently shook her, but there was no response. It seemed she had died only recently, because when I picked her up and took her out, it didn't appear rigor mortis had set in just yet. Her jaw was set, but her body still seemed flexible, and her fur was so soft, just as it had been in life.

We were incredibly sad that Hazel was gone. We'd owned her for well over a year and a half. She'd basically been my brother Adam's responsibility. He wasn't always that diligent about feeding her, but I know he loved her dearly. We all did. He blamed himself for her death, but Annette and I tried reassuring him that it was nobody's fault. Still, he cried a lot. A lot, a lot.

For some reason, my sister and I didn't have any tears to cry. Not right away. It was hard to take in. Though we were very sad too, I guess we had to be strong for our younger brother. But later, when I was brushing my teeth, Adam surprised us by writing a beautiful farewell note to Hazel, for when we'll bury her. No one told him to, and usually he needs some help when he writes things. But he wrote directly from the heart:
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Dear Hazel, I'm so sorry that you had to go. Out of all the other hamsters that I've gotten, you've got to be the best hamster I ever had. I believe that you will go to a better place. Hope you have a blast in hamster heaven.
May you rest in peace, your loving owner, Adam Z. Levy.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
After I read that and I was alone in our room, I finally cried. What Adam had written was so beautiful. For Adam. I knew we would all miss her very much.

Do you guys think I should get rid of my virtual hamster, Gadget? Or should I keep him?

This morning, Annette and I decided we, too, would write notes for our hamster, though she'll never be able to read them. You know, being dead, and a hamster and all? But it's for our own sake. Here's what I wrote, plus a link to my sisters post about Hazel. She writes a beautiful poem.
-----

Dear Hazel, our sweet family pet:
I will miss you very much. Even though you had a long and wonderful hamster life, I wish you could have lived just a little longer, so I could take you out of your cage and stroke your beautiful brown fur one more time, to tell you I love you. Maybe somehow you already knew it, so it was okay for you to go.

All of us loved you a whole lot. You were so healthy and smart, funny and lovable. You never made any *baby hamsters like we expected you to when we got you, but you were still an awesome pet. Thank you for letting us film you on our **puppet show those couple times, even though you must have been very sleepy at the time.

Don't worry. Though you've parted from this world, you've become immortalized on YouTube, so you'll always be around whenever we miss you. You will always have a special place in my heart, Hazel. In all of our hearts.

Much love from your good owner's sister, Bettina Levy

* When we first bought Hazel from the pet store, the worker we talked to said she was pregnant and would have babies soon. We'd had a couple hamsters already (Stanley, Brownie, Muffin), and we thought taking care of tiny hamsters would be an educational experience. We waited for several days, not wanting to touch her so she wouldn't be scared of us, but no babies came. Eventually we decided she was a dud, but we still learned to love her very much. She was the best hamster ever. ^_^

** A couple times we needed Hazel to play a part in the Leslie and Kyle show. She was a fabulous actor. Here are the links to those episodes, Nine and Eleven, plus a couple other videos I once took of her (this and that). In fact, I believe those movies were the first that we ever put up as YouTubers. Wow. (Sorry for the terrible lighting, btw.)

Boston and Other Plans...

My, it's been quite a day. Um, let's see if I can sort through and explain everything...

For a while, my sister Annette and I have been planning on going to Boston, Mass. for a two-week long summer... well, not a vacation necessarily, but a very big and exciting trip.

My twin and I will be flying up, by ourselves, to the apartment our parents rent out to college students, and staying for 16 days. All on our own! We only reserved the flight tickets today. I have been excited for this thing for a long time, but now it's like it's actually happening. And it is! Well, at least in another week.

I'm very anxious, because this will be a big leap of independence for me and my sister. Over two weeks to fend for ourselves. In a big city. No parents, no brother... but then I think of how much fun it's going to be! I just love Boston! We go almost every summer, to find new tenants. It's going to be sooo much fun visiting our favorite haunts, and doing whatever we want at the same time! It's definitely going to be a unique experience for us. For one thing, we'll have to shop for food or decide where to go out for our meals. (No mom to cook for us up there. Wah!)

Needless to say, this trip is no small expense. The airplane tickets cost a lot, and we'll need enough money to last us two weeks. We withdrew all the savings we had in our bank accounts. (Don't worry. I've got plenty left in my personal spending money.) Sometimes I feel a little guilty about us going, since it's so money depleting.

I've sure been thinking some pretty deep thoughts today, wondering what the point of it all is...

Not just this, but also life in general...

I don't know how I'm going to be able to stand this week. ~,~ Yes Man (finally got it in dvd form after seeing it in the theater so long ago. Remember?), Being John Malkovitch, and Ballet Shoes. I'll talk more about Ballet Shoes in just a moment. As soon as we got home, my mom said she'd found this job for Annette and I on Craigslist. This toy store, the Gifted Child, a place we used to go to loads of times as a young one, posted for help wanted. So we got in the car and went to see the guy who ran it, an old friend, only to find out that the store is closed on Mondays. No one was there. Drat. Don't worry. Now I'm looking forward to going tomorrow, to see if we can get some work for after we get back from our trip. It'll be good earning some money, especially since we'll be spending a lot of it very soon.

This movie was absolutely remarkable. I loved watching it so much, and not just because it starred Emma Watson (who everyone knows globally as Hermione Granger in the Harry Potter films). The story was really, really good and inspiring, and basically something that was perfect for me to see at this time in my life. What's funny is that the movie also had a couple other Harry Potter actors, such as the guy who plays Mr. Dursley (Richard Griffiths) and the woman who is Madame Pomfrey (Genna Jones, I believe).

The extra features in the dvd were awesome too. There's a 20 minute interview with Emma, which I loved almost as much as the movie itself. She's such a brilliant person. ^_^ Hearing her talk the whole time, about her experience in the movie, how it was different from Potter, what her fellow actors were like, was simply fascinating.

There was also an excerpt from the audio book of the novel Ballet Shoes, which the movie was based on. It sounds very good. I'd like to read it in the future. I wonder if the book is better, or if the movie is. Hey, isn't it funny that Emma Watson has only acted in movies that were previously books? Potter, Despereaux, and now this! I see a pattern forming...

He he. Anyway, time for me to log off. Adam wants us to see Yes Man. Talk to ya later!

Happy Anniversary!

This blog post is about 2 anniversaries. One, of course, is my 6th month using Blogger. Personally, I find it veeeery hard to believe I've only been blogging for half a year. It's like I've blogged forever. But then again, doing something for 6 months straight is also quite an achievement, so I'm proud of that.

Seems like I average about 14 posts a month in my regular blog alone. Altogether I've written 144 posts (including my 8 in Picture Perfect ^,~), so I'd say that comes to... 24 posts a month. Of course, I didn't start blogging Picture Perfect until a few months ago, so I'm not completely sure if that counts. Anyway, moving on. So sorry for those statistics. I'm such a Virgo.

Now the other anniversary is cause for much more celebration. My parents have been married for 20 years! I'm so happy for them. Although what happened yesterday makes for a very funny story. ^,^

My mom and dad went out for the night and said they wouldn't be home until tomorrow, would stay the night at the apartment that we're trying to rent. So that gave us time to quickly put a rough card together from the three of us. (Me, my brother and twin sister.) It would've taken too long if we made individual cards. Oh, and we also watched The Tale of Despereaux. Yeah.

In my opinion, that story should've remained a novel, and not turned into a movie, especially if this was the result. I was quite disappointed with it. It ended with me thinking I'd seen some sort of ridiculous Tinker Bell movie, only slightly better. (Yeah, I saw Tinker Bell. Hated it.) The only thing good was that I liked hearing Emma Watson's voice when she played the princess. Totally sounded like Hermione Granger.

But anyway, we wrote the anniversary card and went to sleep. Early next morning, my brother and I wake up and decide to go to the supermarket to get some treats to surprise our parents. And instead of walking, like we usually had to do... I drove. ^_^ Yep! I drove my brother and me to the store and back! What a feeling! Owning a license is the bomb!

So we got stuff that would make a good brunch, since that's how our family usually celebrated things. Went home, helped Annette clean the place up, waited for them to come back. Only problem was, we had no idea when they'd be home! We'd never caught it when they left. At best we thought they'd get back in the afternoon or something. So we waited... and waited...

The day stretched so terribly. I didn't know what to do. We watched funny movies to pass the time, but I couldn't help worrying why they weren't back yet, and hadn't called us or anything. That's why we jumped whenever the phone rang, and we kept answering the phone for aunts or friends saying happy anniversary to our parents, and congratulating us for our drivers licenses on the side. It was nice talking to them, but, you know, we didn't know when they (our parents) would be back. So it was weird.

Don't worry, there's a happy ending. Our parents at last show up... at 5:00! Of course, any worry or pissed off feelings we may have harbored in their absence melted away at their arrival. We were soooo happy to see them! I guess that's usually what happens. I can get angry or impatient with something, like a prologue or a special clue game of sorts (^,~), but then as soon as things turn for better, I forget my negative feelings and become quite happy again. (Keep that in mind.)

So we celebrated together at last and they adored the card we wrote and everything. Very cool. Now the next holiday we have to look forward to is Father's Day. Go figure. And after that... That's something I'm gonna leave for next post. Though it's something very awesome.

YAAAAAYYYYYY!!!

Ooh, I'm feeling so happy! (My post title makes that apparent, no? ^,^)
That was an okay guess, Q, that I was auditioning for something. Close, but not very close.

Alright. I'll just spit it out already... I GOT MY DRIVERS LICENSE!!!!!!!

Yes, that's right! I took my driving test today, and I passed! First time! I absolutely knew I would pass, but it's still SUCH a comfort knowing that I've gotten it over with now! The reason I didn't tell you guys about it before is that I read in some online tips for the test that you shouldn't talk about taking the test to too many people, otherwise the pressure will be too much and you probably won't do good. But it doesn't say anything about not telling your friends that you passed!

Man, the test was pretty easy. I didn't go out in traffic, just in this course around the parking lot. The instructor lady was pretty nice. I think she had a Jamaican accent. I was very calm, not very nervous, though I did worry a bit if I would pass. You might know the feeling. You feel pretty confident, but still have just a tiny twinge of doubt somewhere in your gut. Like when you perform in a play or something, and you're certain you know all your lines.

Anyway, I'm awfully glad the pressure's off now. I feel really proud, almost grown-up. It's like having my license made me skip my birthday or something. Makes me feel different.

Still, I suppose feeling older doesn't change the fact that I'm two inches shorter than Annette. ^_^ We're twins, darn it! Why does she have to be taller than me? I bet she does it on purpose. (Just kidding, sis. ^,~)

Just something else I'd like to write. I noticed that today, certain foods I ate made me feel different things. Like this morning, I had oatmeal with raisins in it for breakfast. Warm oatmeal is so satisfying and comforting. I've had it every time I had to take a test or something, and it always makes me feel calm and good.

Then, after both my sister and I passed the test, we went to the store and had a slice of carrot cake. That's one of my favorite treats. The cake is so tasty, and the frosting so sweet and sugary, that it really makes me excited and happy. Of course, I was already feeling that way since I passed, but the cake seemed to intensify that feeling. I don't know. I just thought these were interesting observations. ^,^

Have a good week, everyone!

A big day for me...!

I'm not going to tell you why today is supposed to be big, in fear of me jinxing it. But I'll be sure to let you know how everything goes later on today... That is, if I do well.

(Cool. I'll bet this breaks the record for shortest post ever in my blog. ^,^)

Before I go...

For the first time in 3 weeks, we're going to the beach today. That's a relief. It's been raining so often for so long that it'll be a relief to see our old friends again. But I just wanted to say a couple things.

Needless to say, I'm taking a bit of a writing vacation this weekend, but I'd like to thank my parents, brother and sister for supporting me so much. While I spent perhaps hours at a time in my room, writing a page or two of revisions a day, they, for a large part, let me be, except when lunch was ready, then my mom would interrupt me for one minute to give me my portion. I'm very grateful for everyone's thoughtfulness. How many other wanna-be writers have this much consideration from their loved ones? ^,^

Unfortunately, because I've been writing a lot, I've been able to dodge certain small responsibilities, such as doing my share of the bird chores, or washing dishes, and other such small potatoes. I'm sorry about that, especially to Annette. I promise to pick myself up and make it up to her.

Also, I'm aware that up in Utah, the Teen Writer's Conference is starting today. Of course, I believe Utah is three hours behind me, so it doesn't start for a couple hours still. But anyway, it'll be funny knowing that it'll be going on while I'm at the beach with my family. I could've been up there, but I'm down here instead. I hope James Dashner talks a lot about it tonight.

See ya tonight!

Edit: Well, just my luck. It rained at the beach today. Unbelievable. It was almost a totally blue sky early this morning. We were just able to swim in the cool, clear ocean for a while (it's so clear because of all the raining, so I was grateful for that. You could see a few small fishes down there), soak a bit of sun, and said hi to a few friends before dark clouds started arriving. The wind picked up slightly, so we gathered that as a sign to leave before it started pouring. We hightailed it out of there and skipped the storm. Good thing. On the way back I saw awesome lightning bolts.

At least I got some time at the beach instead of none at all. About a couple hours. Not bad.

(sigh) I remember a couple weeks ago all I could think about was the writer's conference. Now I'm missing it. But I guess there's always next year, so... Too bad you couldn't go either, Jacoby. I remember thinking it would've been an awesome opportunity for us to meet. But you've got work anyway. Oh well. Still looking forward to Dashner Dude's post later tonight. It's supposed to end probably after 6:00, so in my time zone that means 9:00 or something. I'm curious about a lot of things. How many kids showed up? How old were most of the kids? Is it as fun as I built it up in my head? Guess I'll have to wait.

I'm writing again!!!

I feel so happy! It has been too long since the last time I shut myself away from the rest of the world and wrote things that actually help my story. I told no one to bother me and have been hiding away in my room for around three hours. Same situation as yesterday. I was at the computer nearly all day, stopping only when my mom came in to give me lunch and when we went out to the library. I typed a little at one of the computers there, too. I've basically been fixing up my beginning, which needed a lot of work.

Hey, wait a minute, you say, suspiciously raising an eyebrow. If you're writing so diligently on your book, then why are you stopping to blog right now?

Uhhh... That is a very, VERY good question, ha ha. *nervous laughter* Catch ya later!
^,^|^_^|^,^|^_^|^,^|^_^|^,^|^_^|^,^|^_^|^,^|^_^|^,^|^_^

By the way, what do you think of this picture I found? She looks just like me! (Only I'm not wearing pink at the moment, my brown hair is shorter than hers and I'm writing on the computer. But she has the same look of intense concentration. ^,^)

Things to be happy about:

• The Leslie and Kyle "Jokes and Riddles" special has gotten over 75 views in just a couple days. It's amazing. My sibs and I should think about the next episode...
  
• I've got two new followers on my blogs! Q joined this one (that's good for when she comes back from ????????, so she'll be able to catch up. ^,~) and Graham joined my Book Club. It's nice to have you two on board with me. ^_^
• Last night I went to the theater with my family and saw Monsters VS. Aliens. That was really funny. That blue goo, B.O.B. (Seth Rogen), definitely stole the show, and I liked how Stephen Colbert played the president. To be sure, there were lots of LOL moments in it. To name a few: When the Missing Link mentions an Inconveniant Truth... when the president plays the Beverly Hills Cop theme song... When the alien Galaxar curses "Ah, Spaceballs!"... When the countdown to the spaceship's self-destruct sequence finishes, nothing happens, and the computer voice (Amy Pohler) says, "Hmm, nothing happened! I guess my countdown was a little..." and then it blows up! Hilarious! ;P
• Today I beat my sister at Boggle. I love playing Boggle. Sometimes I even beat my mom, and she's really good. I consider myself an expert Boggler. (If you switch the "l" around, it spells Blogger! Hee hee.)
• Even though we set a ban on videos, my sibs and I have been seeing the Beatles' Anthology collection. We've watched 2 out of 8 VHSs so far. It's their whole story about how they got sooo famous. I really love the Beatles. They're the previous generation's Jonas Brothers. ^,^
• Yesterday we were at a different library then usual, and I spotted the 2nd Fablehaven book, so I read the first chapter and a bit of the second before we had to go. You're right, Graham. It really picks up!
• The other day I sat down and fixed up my Imazian prologue! I'm so proud of myself. I changed it a lot. It's not where you meet the Warlock and Gris anymore. It's in a different place entirely, and you meet my main character, Maggie. Do I have any requests? ^,~ Yeah, I should really work on my story more often.
• We have our pet cockatiel birds, Sasha and Sammy, out. They are so adorable! They always make me smile, especially now. They look tired; they keep blinking their eyes. So sweet! ^_^ (The only time they annoy me is when they fly all over the place and refuse to be taken back to their cage. We never clipped their wings. Sasha is particularly hard to coax down to my hand. Sammy's easier-going. But I love them both anyway.)

Yes, I feel very happy today. Signing off now. ^_^