Snow Thingys and Personal Peanut Galleries

NOTE: Hey guys, I fixied it so that anybody can post a comment, you don't need any kind of account to do that. Thanks Aunt J. for telling me I ought to do that ^-^

Hey guuuuys we had a snowday. When I woke up, my mom was already out in the yard finishing her snowman. At least somebody was happy about the snow (for reasons other than no school, that is) Unfortunately, the snow was and is too wet to go skiing, so that was a major killjoy. I am not a huge fan of skiing like my mom, but I do enjoy it. =]
When I finally got out of bed-after almost 16 hours straight-at about 2 PM, I went outside, determined to make a snowman to go with my mom's classic, and Cal's mini one. And...I ended up...with...a snow... THINGY?!

...I blame my dad and the influence of Calvin and Hobbes. <<>> My mom has never been this weird.

So...THROWS THINGS. My earbuds died on me...again. This is like the 5th pair in the past year. I want some really cool high quality headphones...like...these:
http://i1.stycdn.net/images/2011/06/23/article/wesc/hp2200305/wesc-oboe-kopfhoerer-lime-green-1530-medium-0.jpg
preferably lime green like that ;_; sigh. anybody got $50?
I've always thought some noise-bloccking headphones would be cool, but then I'd NEVER hear people yelling at me. I already don't...
I focus very intensely on things, and if I have my music cranked in the car or wherever, my family will be straight-up yelling at me and I won't notice a thing. Sometimes I do hear them, to a degree, but when I stop to listen, I don't hear anything, so I just reimmerse myself in whatever I'm doing.
One thing I know, I HAVE to get some new earbuds/headphones before we live for Florida.

How would I survive without my music? I have become a lot more attached to music in the past year. The space feels empty without it, and I listen to it on the bus every morning. Not only does it drown out the noise of the other people, but it can help improve my mood too. I have songs that make me sit up a little straighter that I like to listen to right before we get to school. I dunno, it just helps. Now all I need to do is figure out how to get the empowerment of music...while still being able to hear people yelling at me ^-^'

There are other things that have come to inspire me besides music, also in the past year. Since the beginning of seventh grade, I've grown and changed a lot. I've found what lets me soar, and what keeps me grounded enough to always come back.
Okay wow that sounded so cheesy. Moving on.
Reading is always a great way to have a small escape. Much better than homework. And a few times, I have found myself getting EXTREMELY attached to the characters. Oh goodness, then I get so mad when people diss my favorites or get stuff wrong. Series that affect me this way: PERCY JACKSON<3333,
Twilight (though I do not care for this so much anymore), and Hana-Kimi, my favorite manga. Obviously, PJ the most. I am so in love with RR's characters don't even start with me.
I also enjoy writing. I have my own characters permanently etched into my mind, and they are constantly visiting. You will find that these are the voices in my head, constantly giving input. Actually, Axel is the one that shows up most often, and I haven't even really written about him...
Moving on from the crazy voices talk. (But seriously, ask any author. They'll agree with me about the voices and characters always being present and giving their input. Thank you, personal peanut gallery)
I like sunshine and flowers too! /hippie/ I wish I was a more active person so I could be soutside more, but I am lazy. However! Bill Gates said, "I would give the hardest job to lazy person. They are sure to find an easy way to do it." So there is hope for world domination yet! (Alas, there is no hope for procrastinators. Enough said.)

I have also become a bit OCD about my room. My mother must be so proud. She hasn't had to tell me to clean my room in a long time. I like to keep it in a state where it is cozy and lived in, but neat. Everything is where I can find it, and the things I use often are easily accessible! It's a necessity for procrastinators who sleep in. Guilty as charged. YOU'LL NEVER TAKE ME ALIVE.
Cough. Moving on. Again. What was IN that gum Mikayla gave me at church today...?

One thing that I have found that I REALLY enjoy is blogging, actually. I always have a lot to say, and even if I get all ahsjgfjhsdf because I don't have time to write the lengthy posts I often do (procrastination, anybody?), it is relaxing. You can all just pretend I'm funny and laugh at my jokes =D

Success...and Waiting

I think I got it! Using my Uncle Justin's recipe (with a few minor changes) I have succeeded in making good mac-and-cheese. There are a few adjustments I can make next time to perfect it. Here is the original recipe:

1/2 box of favorite noodles. (rigatoni works well)
1/4 lb of Monterrey Jack cheese
1/4 lb velveeta melting cheese
3 tablespoons of butter
1/4 cup milk
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
1/2 cup bread crumbs

So cook noodles and drain.

Mix cheeses, milk, butter and garlic over low heat until melted.
Combine pasta and cheese sauce in medium baking dish.
Spread bread crumbs in even layer over the top.
Bake uncovered for 25 minutes at 375 in the oven.

Personally, I'm not a fan of the bread crumb topping, so I left that out. I would suggest using even a bit less of the garlic powder, it's really strong. (we were out of garlic powder, so I ended up using onion powder, but it's essentially the same) Another thing is to make sure you start melting the cheese and other ingredients while the noodles are still cooking, I found it takes a while. You  also will want to bake it covered, and it doesn't necessarily need to take 25 minutes. I added a bit of mild shredded cheddar on top, just for kicks. And once the cheese melts, you can have chef's liberty with it.

It was a good day. I didn't have homework. I came home, made mac and cheese, and watched a few more episodes of Winx Club, while eating cookie dough ice cream. Life is soooo worth living, if only for the ice cream and cartoons.

So now that I have that obsession out of my system, I can turn to other matters in my life. Our trip to Florida is coming up, and I am beyond excited! The Harry Potter place seems cool, and I might even enjoy Sponge-o-rama (though that's a long shot) I'm sure it will be amusing in it's own cheesy way. But..I mean...look at it. http://www.spongeorama.com/ It's sillier than Shell City! I'll be sure to bring back some sponge home decor to redecorate my room. ^-^

I have always had an intense desire to travel, to go anywhere but where I am. We don't travel often, so I'm gonna milk this for all it's worth!

Cheese Frustration and Guilty Pleasures

Soon this blog is going to turn into my documentations of my quest to make the perfect mac-and-cheese...

I plan to try out my Uncle J's recipe as soon as I can get the ingredients from Walmart, but since I hate to wait, I tried to make some using this cheese sauce powder we had in the cabinet. Good thing I didn't get my hopes up. I told my parents the stuff you make from "cheese powder" is always nasty, but they encouraged me to try it. Agh. It was terrible. I couldn't even finish one bowl, even after mixing in some real shredded cheese. It tasted so off, so unlike cheese, that I couldn't stand it.

At my rants about cheese powder issues, Mikayla just says to me, "You know who whines? Babies." A quote we all laugh at from Supernatural, but it is quite annoying to not have this terrible predicament recognized. My family and friends know that I take my pasta very seriously.

See, I figured out my problem with Easy Mac and other fake cheese powder kinds. Of course, I do have the obvious problem of it being real cheese, or at least TASTE real, but their is also the consistency. I want thickness, not cheesy water mixed with noodles. Like...family restaurant quality! If you're ever at Noodles & Company, but don't want to go with one of the exotic dishes (careful, most of them are spicy!) then go with their Macaroni-and-cheese; it's simple and amazing. I can definitely tell they make it form scratch...to some degree. Yes, I'm sure, Dad!

On a happier note, Mikayla and I want to drive to Chicago in October. Why? Supernatural convention, of course! Jensen Ackles (Dean) and Jared Padalecki (Sam) are going to be there! Though I knew about and liked the show before my sister Mikayla did, she's a real fangirl for it! There aren't many things she gets really worked up about, but when she does, it's an obsession! Hearing her go on about it makes me want to hole up in my room and follow in her footsteps on watching all 6 seasons ;_; Perhaps when I've finished the 4 seasons if Winx Club...

Speaking of Winx Club, we're back on the topic of guilty pleasures. Everybody has them, but who will admit it? Some of you know that I have my own level of love for pasta (especially Chicken Alfredo Tuscani Pasta from Pizza Hut! If you haven't tried it, do it now! Get breadsticks too, mmmm....) as well as chocolate. I am not a big fan of dark chocolate, but just about anything that contains chocolate at all is a great gift for any occasion (at least in my case). I have also always had a secret desire to watch girly kids' movies, namely Barbie. I was too old for them when they started coming out, but I've always wanted to see them anyways. I loved Winx Club back when it was still on Saturday morning cartoons (I was 7, maybe 8?) and now I have a renewed fandom of it, watching the episodes on youtube. They came out with a new version of it, and it's awful!

Are you willing to admit your guilty pleasures?

Gun Shows and Sherlock Holmes

Don't use that mac and cheese recipe. Unfortunately, it was a total bust. I will have to find a different one to try.

Today, I went to a friend's and watched Psych while our dads went to a gun show together. On our way back, we went to Dairy Queen.This was the first time I ever had REAL food from there, as opposed to just ice cream. The chicken sandwich could've used a bit more mayo and the fries more salt, but it was pretty good, otherwise. ^-^

I've also started watching all the episodes from the cartoon I used to watch, Winx Club. "Oh my goody goodness" I missed it. Don't judge, we all have those guilty pleasures we're way too old for but do anyways, right?

Mikayla, Dad, and I saw the second Sherlock Holmes movie again. If you have not seen it, GO. I have yet to see the first, but I cannot wait! You don't have to see the first to enjoy it =]

A Mac-and-Cheese Worthy Day

In a book series I'm reading, Stephanie, the main character, eats mac-and-cheese to help her get over her worst days. It must be a sign that I was craving it the whole time I was working at lit fair. True, I stayed up later than I should have last night, and thus it is partly my fault I had a bad day and sore legs, but whatever.
I hate the stuff from a box, so I chose this homemade recipe:
http://www.hippshelp.com/how-to-make-homemade-mac-and-cheese/
Looks promising! Will tell in the next post if it was any good.

As a dedicated follower of many online blogs, webcomics, etc., it is often quite disappointing when they do not update for a long time. As this annoys me so, plus the fact that I have a lot to say, I will probably be posting every day. I might as well get a twitter.

I have painted a bit more since my first post, but I took the bunny coloring book to school with me today and colored a few pictures in with colored pencil when I had the time. I earned a few funny looks, but it was definitely worth the calming effect it had.

For art class today, we had a special visitor, as opposed to an assignment. The daughter of our old art teacher, and a legit artist herself. She went to college for it and everything! She told us a bit about the process and mediums. It was very interesting, and makes me want to paint more ^-^

By the way: I have a new song I'm addicted to! Do not judge it immediately, the bagpipes are only for the intro ;_; Get past that, and it's a great song!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jHRpWQOqe14
Rhythm of my Heart- Rod Stewart
<3

In Which I am a Failure

Late last night, I decided I would try to give up chocolate for Lent. I intended for it to be a test of willpower, as well as a religious exercise.
That lasted until about 20 minutes after I got home.
I made a valiant effort, but chocolate has been on my mind ALL. DAY. And when I came home, there was a bag of mini Reese's peanut butter cups, fudge striped cookies, and a bag of chocolate chips. They mocked me while I tried to satisfy myself with chips... crackers... cantaloupe.
I finally broke down and decided that I was never cut out to be a dedicated person anyways, as I ate 3 PB cups and 2 cookies. The sad truth.
Think I can try again starting tomorrow? ;_;

Procrastinator's Therapy

Nothing better than painting whack Disney characters to calm the amateur artist's nerves.
I should be doing just about everything but creating a blog right now, but I've always been a procrastinator, and responsibility has always been able to wait. (I'm not dead yet!) Because I don't have my sketchbook (thanks, Sarah) I was desperately searching for some way to vent creativity. I started with clay, but it wasn't working the way I wanted, so I turned to watercolor painting. I got my mom's coloring book from downstairs and had at it. It's been forever since I last painted, and I soon discovered that watercolors are SABOTAGE for trying to stay in the lines. Any 1st grader could've told me that, but I seemed to have forgotten that problem. After mishaps with trying to mix the vivid green and the murky brown, I just gave up and focused on not making it look like it'd been done by a 3 year old. I even managed to mostly stick to natural colors! (Big thing for me, I usually get fed up with natural colors and go all fluorescent on it <<>>) However, the idea of simply painting Thumper grey and white was so devestating, I couldn't help myself. He now has a sort of...happy Disney Bunnicula vibe? I think it's an improvement.

Stupid phone picture, but whatever. His stomach's still wet here, but once again, whatever. After it dried, it actually didn't look half-bad overall. I will definitely be doing this again, though I might have to try fingerpainting again first. ^-^ I'll get the hang of it, and it's quite therapeutic.