BIRTHDAY!

IT'S MY BIRTHDAY! YAY! That's kinda all I wanted to say. Hung out with friends. Epic sandwich. Cake in the middle of Cityplace. 12 candles. Glitter. Purple stuff. British accents. Up there on Alexis's Itouch. Bags. Sound effects. Appalled people. Coffee. Tea smoking. I'm Telling You I'm Not Going. Yeah. :D

****Quote: Alexis: I drive a car.

                       Me: Really?

                       Alexis: Yes.

                       Me: Oh. Cool. I drive a tomato.

****Song: "When I Saw Her Standing There" by The Beatles

*returns*

    Wow. It has been a slight eternity. I was unceremoniously denied of Internet until December-esque, and haven't had a chance to get on here again til now. Even now I should be "studying" for the ACT, but that's no fun. So anyway. Well, I am barely half-way through my junior year. well I am quite opposed to growing up, I really want this year to be over. See, don't get me wrong, it's not nearly as bad as last year, but this year is much more stressful. So much effort all the time. Tho it seems it has been semi-paying off for once. Like, I am on my way back to reviving my gpa. It'll never be a 4.0 again, (stupid theatre) but it'll get close enough. And I got an a on my jury. I was so relieved. It bothers me so much that I feel like I'm not talented enough for my school, and it made me so happy that I finally got told I was good enough, at least at that moment. I'm also really glad that I did my piece justice. It was a very dramatic monologue about a religious woman who loses her son in world war II and struggles with her faith. I've wanted to do it for so long. :]

    Mhm. So that was good. And that's pretty much been the high point of the year, lamely. I had crew auditions today. Technician one again. Sigh. And I'm not even going to have a leadership-ish position. I thought I might have earned it by now, but nope. It just kinda frustrates me that I wasn't even considered. I've spent 3 years of my life and 100 of hours dedicated to the one thing the theatre department lets me do, and I feel like I am not going anywhere. Plus there is all this internal drama surrounding the next few months anyway. There's this show, and then I am planning on auditioning for a play as a *gasp* performer. Not that I haven't tried before, obviously, but I have not gotten a part in 4 years. Of course, I have been in showcases, but that's not nearly the same thing. and anyway, this show goes on at the same time as the one for which I'll be doing tech. Also going on simultaneously, is this academic competition that I always do. I must attend these local competitions so I can compete at the national level and (hopefully) be put in the hall of fame, because for some reason, I keep winning first place in random events. Should be pretty sweet. Tho going to this means I cannot go to state competition for my school's fall show. I'm a little disappointed, but having a chance to be in the hall of fame for something I've been doing for almost 6 years is an opportunity I can't pass up.

    Wow. I really do have problems with transitions. my useless English teacher was right for once. that's a little unexpected. But alas, I digress. I probably should get back to doing that math ACT stuff. Tho i'll still be ignoring my stat hw....o well. no one's perfect.... ;]

P.S. I'm thinking it's a little hypocritical that someone who's so into grammar has been writing a blog and not capitalizing anything. I'm gonna work on that....Tho, I don't think I can avoid my few Internet lingo word shortenings (ie: tho, gonna, hw, etc.) and starting sentences with 'but,' 'and,' and 'so.' Perhap's they're my kryptonite.

****Quote: "Tijuana? I got married in Tijuna. Except, my

    husband and I didn't know any Spanish. We had no

    idea what the guy who married us was saying. Oh well, we got

    divorced anyway. Bastard." -This lady in an elevator.

    (I was wearing my favorite t-shirt which happens to say

    "Tijuana" across the front. I wore it today and felt obligated

    to tell everyone the story. XD.)

****Song: "You Can't Hurry Love" by Diana Ross. (I'm really

    not obsessed with Diana Ross, but my hair

    definitely looked like hers today, as it always does

     if I don't straighten it, so I felt it important

     to pay homage to her. Again.)

things that make me sad.

    hello! no, this post is not gonna be nearly as sad as the title would lead you to believe. there's a word for that, you know: 'misleading.' see, you learned something today. isn't that wonderful? i'm slightly more educational than a television. perhaps. but yes. television brings me to theatre which brings me to my first point. so, i got called back for one of my school's shows, and didn't get cast. again. i was not even good enough to be an understudy. it is a little disheartening because i really hoped i didn't suck that much. but either way, this angers me a little, which leads me to what i really wanted to talk about. *drum roll please* MY PET PEEVES!!!! because i always forget them. which is a little irritating in itself. so now, documented here for all to see, in no particular order, are....

SHAYNA'S LIST OF NOs. CONCUR OR I WILL EAT YOU.
1) grammar mistakes. there is no excuse. learn how to write better. if i see one more person confuse "their", "they're", and "there", i will cry.
2) the sound of people chewing. i know they can't help it, but damn it's annoying.
3) mean people. so unnecessary. be nice. or mute. whichever works.
4) songs with the r&b sparkle.just no.
5) this situation: as i am about to leave a room, i say, "i'm going to the bathroom; i'll be right back." inevitably, someone always says, "wow. thanks for telling me." now, i understand that someone might not want to know that i have to go to the bathroom, but really, wouldn't you be alarmed if i just left the room and gave absolutely no explanation whatsoever?
6) southern accents. i know i'm hating. sorry.
7) dr. phil and hillary clinton. they both make me irrationally angry. who knows why...
8) conversations i have to carry out on my own. i know i hang out with quiet people, but will someone please save me from having to talk to myself!
9) humidity. damn florida.
10) establishments that close at 9pm. because i am not a morning person and the world should be nicer to me.
11) casual racism. like bringing race into a conversation when it is completely irrelevant. it is wrong. we live in the 21st century. everyone is equal. just because people in the past were too dumb to realize it does not give you permission to continue to act in such a manner. especially without noticing it.
12) users. i really am a nice person. in fact, this is pretty much the only thing most people remember about me. that and the fact that i'm loud. so, please, please, don't use me to get answers for hw or help at getting my friend to like you. i know you don't like me for me, so just stop.
13) 'grande' coffees at starbucks. ok, i admit defeat, 'venti' means 20, and your large coffee is 20 oz. fine. maybe you named small 'tall' to give it a self-esteem boost; whatever. but, by no stretch of the imagination does 'grande' mean medium. 'grande' means large, ok?!?! you already have a large cup of coffee! THIS IS NOT RIGHT! YOU ARE LYING TO AMERICA! AND DISCOUNTING THE SPANISH LANGUAGE! BAD!
14) teachers who won't let me talk/ have an opinion. i like to talk, dammit! let me be.
15) money. i really wish we could use the bartering system. money causes so many problems.
16) when people smoke cigarettes. why are you paying corporate america to give you cancer? dumb.
17) ads featuring only christmas decorations that say "happy holidays!" we all know that you're really only saying merry christmas. your attempts at being politically correct have failed. throw in some diversity or give up the facade.
18) scary things. why do people enjoy being scared? i do not understand.
19) pretentiousness. i greatly dislike stuck-up people. sure, you may be better than everyone, but i do not condone obnoxiousness in such a context.
20) salt. all you do is make food taste icky and cause health problems. stop existing. k thanks bye.

    o. i guess that was my list of the top 20 things that irritate me. alrighty then. that works. lol. i love how i felt a need to spend an entire entry just complaining. there's the spoiled youth of america for you: using the internet as just another source to send out negative energy. o well. that's the closest i'll ever get to normal.....

****Quote: on the starbucks website, under the

    heading 'rumor response': "Rumor Repsonse:

    Misinformation on Israeli Armed Forces Support."

    the idf + starbucks? *dies giggling*

****Song: "First Date"/"I Miss You"/ "All the Small

    Things" by blink182. (listening to a bowling for

    soup song on the bus with my friend put me in quite a

    mood for some good old pop-punk. :] )

school and minor insanities

    shalom! so, yesterday was the first day of school. mhm. i felt such an occasion deserved documentation, right? lol. so, yes. i am now officially a junior. i guess in the whole scheme of things it's not really a big deal, but currently it feels a little odd. really now, this means i've been in school for 11 going on 12 years. how crazy is that? so long and i'm almost done. i don't really feel old enough for that. i'm too much of a little kid. XD. of course, school was definitely interesting. it was cool to see all the people i've gone without all summer. lots of screaming and jumping on people, because that's how i am. and after all the drama of the first day of school, they decided to cancel school today because of a hurricane that is passing by. hurricane fay? or maybe it's still a tropical storm. either way the day off probably wasn't strictly necessary, but it was a nice surprise. impromptu breaks are always fun. :].

    so i spent my day sleeping til 2 and then going around random places with my parents. we went to this wonderful pier 1 type store that had many amusing international tchotchkes. my kind of place. hehe. and then at home i finally got around to watching this silent movie my friend ordered for me from korea or taiwan or somewhere. it's called metropolis and it is german and absolutely amazing. it's this sci-fi movie about a city run by these huge man-powered machines. everyone is incredibly over dramatic and wearing an extreme amount of eyeliner; they all grab their chests when they feel any emotion. and there are robots attempting to be sexy and men with great names like josaphat and really sweet scenery. it makes me happy. there's a random musical based on it that absolutely failed, but i really want the music because it sounds kinda wonderful. but it's expensive and i'm poor. story of my life....XD.

****Quote: "OMG, where is agador spartacus?!?!"-me (for

     the past 2 days there has been a slug on my porch

     that my friends and i named agador spartacus. but

     today i realized that he is no longer there. *sniffle*

     hopefully he has slugged himself elsewhere.)

****Song: "The Nicest Kids in Town" from Hairspray

it's all downhill from here?

       i iz very bored. when i am bored i talk. :]. well, no. when i feel anything i talk. when i feel nothing i talk. but that is besides the point. tehehe.

       so yes. hey there. it is august. it has been august for quite a bit but i'm a little slow on the uptake. it's cool; i work it. but more importantly, this august business means that school is quickly approaching. like severely quickly. like next week. this is breaking my heart because i have been greatly enjoying the break from all the drama and effort and such nonsense that comes along with the public educational system. and i have to be a junior. i know, not really a big deal, but it is a little terrifying at the moment. i'm so done with high school stuff, really, but the thought of leaving and dealing with the real world is not fun. i mean, i know i have two years left, but it feels like the past two years went by so fast....i dunno. i feel like i should appreciate it more while i have it or something cliched like that. and it feels like everything's gonna be different this year. i was thinking in a bad way, but someone who can't frown should be more optimistic, so it will obv be in a good way. :D.

       anyway...what else? *looks for cue line on floor* ah! my showcase went pretty well actually. i dunno if my piece improved as much as i was looking for, but it really was not bad. and i got to do tech, too. it was quite amazing, because i love being a performer more than the world, but i do like helping run a show, too. if only i could do that for every show...i can see it now, "SHAYNA: ACTRESS/ STAGE HAND AND/ OR POSSIBLY ASM." tres catchy. lol.

       and yes. finally started reading eats, shoots & leaves. i know, fail. i've had so much academic work type stuff to do i haven't been able to get to it. but my over-achieving has paid off! finally! huzzah! so i am reading mi libro (which is as epic as expected) and making my way through the stack of magazines that have been piling up next to my bed since march. superficial-osity is quite joyful!

       o, and i found the best thing ever, actually. like really, nothing could get any better. look:

       it is the bucket of fun! you can't make this stuff up, i swear. it is filled with epically useless odds and ends, such as various colored whales and safety pins and sequins and wooden shapes and letters. it really should be called the tub of fun because that is what it is, but you can't argue with a patent. i purchased it for my friend's artistic endeavours in exchange for her taking a picture with a wax andy warhol for me. (i love andy warhol, btw. did i mention this? idk. he has been my favorite artist since the fifth grade. we go way back.) *random lyric break* "look, i find some of what you teach suspect/ because i'm used to relying on intellect/ but i try to open up to what i don't know/ because reason says i should have died three years ago." sorry, i love that line. anyway....yes. fun. this friend and i have decided we are gonna put the same sort of stuff in a bucket and call it the tub of fun because being smart asses makes us smile. you would buy it, wouldn't you?

****Quote: "The next day after the abolishment of the

       apostrophe, imagine the scene. Triumphant

       abolitionist sits down to write, "Goodbye to the

       Apostrophe: we're not missing you a bit!" and finds

       that he can't." -Eats, Shoots & Leaves

****Song: "Undercover, Funny" by Atom & His Package

just thought you should know....

        so, i lack entertaining stuff to say to you. therefore, i am really just gonna quickly comment on some theatre/ movie/ musical stuff and then go back to reading new moon (lame, i know.). :D.

        urm, so i saw mamma mia. the movie. which was not actually that great, semi-depressingly. i'm thinking i'm not really an abba person, prolly. which is cool. the song mamma mia shall forever make me smile anyway. o, and i apologize to my poor straight male friend that i dragged with me. XD.

        y...i'm in theatre camp, which i may or may not have previously mentioned. so yes. no commentary really, just a statement. and i'm doing a jesus monologue which i'm hoping is gonna turn out really well. i've always wanted to do it, and i finally got the chance, which is pretty grand. tho i totally had no idea how to do the crossing yourself thing. and everyone giggled. *fails* lol. but yes. and we're dancing and singing and i feel a little old for the camp, but whatever. a chance to be in a showcase is always nice.

        oooooo! and now i thought i should tell you that.... *drum roll* dark knight was ridiculously amazing!!!!! really now. i don't generally like superhero movies (except for spiderman. JAMES FRANCOOOOOOO!!!), but this one was so good. prolly mostly because of heath ledger, which is why i went to see it in the first place, but still. i wasn't expecting how perfect he would be. so ridiculously committed. even down to the mannerisms. i can only wish to put out a performance half that good. le sigh. and then he dies. not cool. stupid damn method acting. here, let us have some pictures to remember the beauty:

        so yes. there you go, in case you weren't already aware.

        and, i FINALLY got the 1998 cabaret revival soundtrack. which i have been in desperate need of because the emcee is played by alan cumming. who is good at everything, but especially at being the emcee. so damn amazing. i mean really, look at that:

mhm. that's what i thought. :D.
alright, i will now stop obsessing over random, attractive, talented, and 50% dead men. well, actually, 33% as i vaguelly mentioned james franco in passing. but yes. i'm gonna go move on with my life now, as should you. so, so long and all that jazz...



****Quote: "Children? YAY! LUNCH!" -Me + improv

        games = ...

****Song: "Mein Herr" from the 1998 revival of Cabaret

long time no ramble.

     boo! hehe. i win.

     well, i feel like i've sort of been neglecting this poor little blog of mine. not that anyone reads it except me and lyla (<3). but still. i feel an obligation to this cute little inanimate object of mine. so yes. let me focus. i just got distracted by some game to which my friend sent me the link. escapa? i dunno. a little addictive. 19.867. pretty great, methinks. lol. so life. hrmmm....*muses* well, i haven't really done anything different. went water parkin' with my dear beloved senior, malling with my bestest friends from middle school, monopolying with the kid i've hung with since elementary school. :D. good times.

     o. started theatre camp yesterday. theatre is kinda a party. i'm super thrilled for the showcase at the end because it has been forever since i actually performed in a show. i mean, that's beacuse i'm kinda not a good performer, but i enjoy it. a lot.

     ugh. i am such a little emo kid lately. it is a terrible habit. i mean, nothing's really wrong specifically, but i'm just kinda generally angry at my life and some of the people i try to share it with. i dunno. i just feel like i'm really untalented at theatre and no matter how hard i try it's not enough. that by itself is distressing because i go to school for theatre. and then i feel like people don't really like me very much at school. i have friends, but in no way am i really a part of the theatre department. which is upsetting. and i dunno. i'm probably overreacting, but it seems like a lot of my friends, if i wanna talk to them at all, i have to be the one to contact them. no one really tries to talk to me first. i feel like they really don't particularly want to speak to me but they feel like they have to. or something. it just hurts a little to feel that the people i love the most don't care. and it's prolly not entirely true, but it's stil bothersome. and i also am kinda lamenting this i'm-no-one's-favorite thing. you know what i mean? like, people all have their best friends, the first person they come to with anything, a person they talk to everyday no matter what. that sort of thing. and i feel like even tho i'm good friends with a lot of people, i'm no one's best friend. or something like that. which sounds really elementary schoolish, but dammit, it's bothering me. and you know i'm really 8 on the inside anyway. well, YOU might not know, but i do, and that's all that really matters right? ;)

     k. that is really all i had to say. a little useless superficial ranting is good for the soul methinks. so i shall take leave now.....

******Quote: "I'm not jealous, I'm Russian."-this

          adorable child at my camp. :]

******Song: "Empty Apartment" by Yellowcard (i

          actually didn't have a song stuck in my head

          today *gaspdie* and this just came on and somehow

          seemed appropriate.)