Excuses, excuses...

(Taps on imaginary microphone) Testing 1, 2, 3... Is anyone still there? I wouldn't blame you if you weren't. I've been quite the blogging slacker, now haven't I? There's been good reason, I assure you. Would you like to hear the reasons or are you sick to death of excuses? To be perfectly honest, I don't care if you're sick to death of excuses. I'm going to tell you anyway. Now won't that be fun? (clears throat) Here we go.

Where I have been instead of writing on my blog:

*Driving to Cedar City for the Shakespeare Festival. This means that I spent three blissful days watching 6 plays only one of which I really hated. (Blech, Romeo and Juliet is not my thing. I blame it on being in jr. high when the Leo DiCaprio/Clare Danes/Baz Lurhmann version came out and every hormonal girl on the planet was completely enraptured with it. Okay, let's be honest, they were enraptured with Leo DiCaprio. Who has a tendency to die at the end of his movies. Which means that I found it to be silly and slightly ridiculous because my mom thought it was silly and slightly ridiculous.)

*Hanging out with the Stahelis. This means that I get teased more than normal (as I live alone and don't usually tease myself). It also means that I laugh more than normal. Which I love.

*Watching Harry Potter 7.2 and subsequently bawling my eyes out. DON'T JUDGE. I'm slightly attached to Harry. And Ron. And Hermione. And the Weasleys. (Oh Fred!) Sara and I ended up in each other's laps a couple of times. And it was delightful. I now have to go and re-read all of the books. Yes. Have to.

*Playing with Charisse. Why yes, she did visit me from London. And why yes, I loved it. Also, she brought me some awesome London-esque things. Like a "Mind the Gap" magnet for my fridge and a London Olympics key chain which I proudly use, as well as a dog. Yes. She brought me a dog all the way from London. He's meant to be a doorstop, but in actuality, he sits in the green chair in my room. (He's stuffed. And is made of out Union Jack fabric, which matches my "Keep Calm" poster.)

*Watching lots and lots of movies. Thor. Jane Eyre. The good parts version of the Toby Stephens Jane Eyre. Castle. Penelope. Gilmore Girls. Friday Night Lights.

*Reading. I re-read A Wrinkle in Time while I was in Cedar. I bought it from King's English right before I left and can I please just tell you what a treat that book is? I'd forgotten how much I adored it. I also read part of Quatrain, which is a series of short stores by Sharon Shinn who wrote one of my favorite books, Summers at Castle Aubrun. Read it. You will love it. Well, you will if you have any sense.

*Making thank you cards. I finally got all of my card making stuff from my padres' garage and that means making cards again. Which I have sorely missed.

Anyway, readers. This is a faithful accounting of all of my dealings for the past 10 days. I promise to try and be around more often.

M

I believe...

in PINK.
I believe that laughing is the best calorie burner.
I believe in kissing. Kissing a lot.
I believe in being strong when everything seems to be going wrong.
I believe that happy girls are the prettiest girls.
I believe that tomorrow is another day and
I believe in miracles.
--Audrey Hepburn

Don't you just love Audrey? I mean, come on. How can you hate someone who starts a quote with "I believe in pink?" I submit that it's entirely impossible. And ridiculous. Since this is my blog, I get to be right. That's the best part about a blog. If people don't like/agree with all of the genius that I'm spewing out into the interwebs, they don't have to read it any longer. Also, I get to be a big deal on my blog. This is particularly helpful when I don't feel like I big deal in other places. In short, (bah! the puns I could concoct with that phrase) a blog is a fantastic self esteem booster because a) I get to be right which is one of my all time favorite things and secondly) I get to be a constant big deal. If you haven't caught on already, today I'm in a slightly scattered mood. I really couldn't tell you why. It could be because I stayed up entirely too late watching Friday Night Lights for most of the weekend. What is entirely too late you ask? I'll tell you: 5 am on Friday (or is that Saturday?) and 2:30 this morning. Put your judging eyes away. Have YOU watched it? Then you can't judge. It's kind of awesome. Anyway, it could be that or the decided lack of air conditioning in my house. It's possible that what few brain cells my university education left me are now fried to a crisp.Can I please remind you all how much I loathe hot weather? Blech. I hate feeling like I need to shower three times a day. I change my clothes even more than normal in the summer because I always feel disgusting. I like the early mornings and the late evenings when it's cool out and it smells like Russian Olive trees and honeysuckle. But all that nastiness in the middle? I wish I could sleep through it all in a frigid room. Wrapped in a sweatshirt. Oh the delight. To combat this insanity I plan on going to the Shakespeare festival in Cedar City, which isn't any cooler than Salt Lake, but copious amounts of the Bard combined with a visit from Charisse has a tendency to make me feel slightly less...upset about the heat. In preparation for delightful journey, I'm watching the Shakespeare ReTold version of Macbeth. James McAvoy and Richard Armitage in the same movie? Yes. Yes, please. I don't mind if I do. I'm just hoping that this viewing doesn't lead to insane dreams about attractive Scottish men killing one another. Which wouldn't be pleasant. Well, the attractive men would be pleasant, but the whole killing thing wouldn't be so much a party. My subconscious has a tendency to take things and run with them at a breakneck speed. Once after watching too many episodes of Bones before bed, I dreamed that I was performing an autopsy on my little brother Cole. I woke up in tears. I might have to hang out with the Gilmores before bed to stave off the awful dreams.

(I told you. My brain is jumping all over the place. Don't judge.)

Words words words... (day 8)

My mom always teases me about my obsession with words. I love 'em. Here is a favorite quote of mine:

"If love make me forsworn, how shall I swear to love?

Ah, never faith could hold, if not to beauty vowed!

Though to myself forsworn, to thee I'll faithful prove; 

Those thoughts to me were oaks, to thee like osiers bowed.

Study his bias leaves, and makes his book thine eyes, 

Where all those pleasures live that art would comprehend.

If knowledge be the mark, to know thee shall suffice; 

Well learned is that tongue that well can thee commend;

All ignorant that soul that sees thee without wonder; 

Which is to me some praise that I thy parts admire,

Thy eye Jove's lightening bears, thy voice his dreadful thunder.

Which, not to anger bent, is music and sweet fire, 

Celestial as thou art, O, pardon love this wrong, 

That singes heaven's praise with such an earthly tongue."

-Shakespeare's Love's Labour's Lost

Written by Berowne for Rosaline

Isn't it lovely? It just makes you want to be in love, doesn't it?