Negative sponges...

"You know how people say that to learn, you have to be like a sponge... Soak it all in... Well, I don't think I'm like a sponge... I think I'm more like a rock.... The information pings off me... And I just sit there..."

-me, last night at 1:30 freaking-AM trying to study for my American Education test...

What is the opposite of a sponge????

Our whiteboard outside our door reads:

Rachel & Sarah's Room

Negative sponges live here...

We are rocks!

Yo, Ho! Many Happy Returns... Arrrr!

Piratical Birthdays "ARRR" the Best! P-)

What is it like to be 19...

For the record, I DID STUDY TONIGHT

...ahem...

*warm fuzzies* Matt, Rachel, and I (while studying... so there...) watched TV until midnight, then which Erik stopped over, as well as Holly (my RA) and they all sang HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO ME! IN HARMONY! Oh, it was beauteous! Then I opened all SEVEN cards from each member of my family... I had been waiting... haha... (Thanks Mom and Dad... Mary: yours made me laugh a lot, Matthew: how does Stephen know about Hawaii? Thanks for the AWESOME pictures Daniel and Philomena, :-D and Stephen, what in the world is a squishy cake???) AND the package, which contained BIRTHDAY CEREAL! YAY! Kix rocks my swashbuckling socks!!!!

My Grandparents on my Mom's side also gave me this cool clock thing... It's one of those with the 'wand' that waves back a forth, and makes a lightboard appear in mid-air. Matt spent 20 minutes programming it to read (in addition to the date, time, and day of the week) HAPPY BIRTHDAY SARAH! MATT IS COOL! and ALL HAIL DAME RACHEL!

And my Dad's parents sent me money! THANK-YOUUU! YAYAYAY!

AND Jessica left me a happy happy happy note on AOL.... She is amazing... I loooooove her!

AAAAND Andrea left me a note on FACEBOOK.... So did Holly! :-D :-D

OH! MY! GOSH! AND LINDA (my friend from New Zealand) SENT ME AN E-BIRTHDAY CARD! *DIES*

And Matt likes my uber-fuzzy fleece throw blanket type thing...

ANNND I fell asleep (between studying) watching the end of Disney's Hunchback of Notre Dame... Matt and Rachel were laughing at me. :-P

AAAAAAAAAANNDDDDD Matt, Rachel and I might go bowling soon for my birthday. :-D

AND, and final AAAAND, as a birthday present to me, I am going to bed! Night!

A room full of sleepyheads...

*smiles quietly* As I'm typing this, Matt is sleeping on our futon, and Rachel is sleeping in her loft. The movie Funny Face starring Audrey Hepburn and Fred Astaire is playing on TV, and I'm here, quietly blogging. It's nice to have friends who can all just snooze together. I would be snoozing too, if it weren't for the fact that I have lots of things I should be doing, like studying. (bleh)... I enjoy the fact that Matt is over a lot, and feels comfortable with our company to sleep on our futon... If that makes any sense... Anyway, I am content. My friends are my family.

Last night Rachel, Matt and I went and saw Casablanca. Dr. Earl showed it in the small auditorium, and there were other people there besides us... just for clarification... haha... It was cool, and amazing, and fantastic... Movies today just can't achieve that type of class found in Casablanca... The lighting... Oh. My. Gosh. The lighting was absolutely amazing... I can't get over it... Nor can I adequately describe it... They glowed and their eyes sparkled... Wow... Just. Wow....

After the movie finished, we came back to our dorm and Matt and Rachel gave me my own personal performance from Sound of Music. Rachel played Elsa, the Baroness, and Matt played Max, both at different schools. And in the *Broadway* show the only song they sing is together, so they acted it out for me in our dorm. :-D Oh, it was glorious! Then they did various other numbers from the show... Oh, it just rocked my swashbuckling socks!!!!

Ok, so that's all I should give myself time for.... I should study or something.

...They're still sleeping...

Random Road trips

Rachel, Matt and I went to Waterloo yesterday. It was great fun! Matt bought a lab coat, and then we went to Barnes and Noble, and Hobby Lobby, where we got some mattboard for Matt's posters.

I ate at Starbucks for the very firsts time! It was expensive, but really good! I had a strawberries and cream frappechino. :-D

For dinner we ate at Steak 'n Shake. It was really good too!!!! I had a BLT, it was delicious!

Then we came back and chilled. It was great, amazing fun!

I think we're going to go bowling next Thursday, for my birthday! :-)

Randomness

A thought: Why do I always think that people don't want to be around me? I don't know where I'm going with this... But why do I think this way? Rachel and Matt do things with me. Julia laughs and hangs out with me. Sam and I get along famously. And Jessica... Woo! We get along great! But still, I hang out with people, and I'm like... "Do they really want to hang out with me??? Or are they just being nice, because I'm with someone else in the group?"

Stoooooopid high school experience... Being excluded for practically 4 years... Now when people actually include me, I get all confused-like....

Random weirdness: Rachel and a couple other girls on my floor had a lively discussion of the color of my hair... Is it blonde, or is it red... The odd part is, I was not a part of this discussion...

Well, I'm helping Rachel with her music theory, then I'm off to bed! Tomorrow Matt, Rachel and I are road tripping for some stuff! Yay!

THEN ballroom dancing! Hooray! :-D

Arrr...

What's your pirate name?

First of all happy Talk Like a Pirate Day! Arr...

And that is about the happiest thing that is going on right now....



I just bombed my first test, and pretty much flunked a paper in the same class. Life sucks and I don't know what else to say other then I feel really crappy and mad and stupid and want to know WHAT THE HECK AM I DOING HERE?




I did have breakfast with Julia, and Matt said hi afterwards... That is a happy thought...


~Mad Mary Flint

Not sleepy...

Yay for staying up until the ungodly hour of 3 am with good friends! Matt and Rachel, you absolutely rock my swashbuckling socks!

Hoorah for watching 100 top movie quotes on Bravo, and huzzah for watching parts of Beauty and the Beast.! The BIGGEST hooray for the stories that followed, plus the singing and laughter... :-)

...And all that jazz!

Of Plays and Pizza...

*shouts to the world* I HAVE A PART IN WARTBURG'S PRODUCTION OF "A CHRISTMAS CAROL"!!!!

I play Mrs. Cratchet! :-D

And Matt and Rachel made it too!!! YAY! :-D

*is excited beyond belief*

So I have a cold, and it is not fun. My nose is stuffed up, and I cannot breathe very well... :-P Yesterday my throat was really sore.

Tonight Rachel, Matt and I ordered pizza and watched The Court Jester. It was great fun! We ordered pizza because food service at the Menza evidentially stops at 6 pm. Stooooopid.... :-P

Last night Lourey, Josh, Rachel, Matt, and I all went and saw the movie Red Eye. It was okay... I obviously had seen it before, but the company was excellent!

College is great fun... But not the homework part... The food is good, I like being responsible for myself, but the school workload is cruel and insane.

And a pox on Movies America for not having A Muppet Christmas Carol.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY MOM!!! I LOVE YOU!!!

My Mom rocks! She makes good food, and I miss it!

*throws confetti*

HAPPY BIRTHDAY!

Forgot...

Matt was also awesome and amazing in the fact that he fixed our broken closet door! THANK-YOU!

Woo-hoo... Studying...

Wow... Crazy day...

I got up and went to church... Stupid liberal church... But it made me really homesick... Seeing all the families there with kids... I miss rough-housing with my siblings... :-(

When I got back, Rachel called me, and told me to come to lunch. On my way, I met up with Matt, who was looking very dapper in his Sunday best. :-) Yay for people who go to church! I met up with Rachel in front of the bookstore, and we went and joined the lunch line. As we stood trying to find the back of the line for the drink machines, Matt and Julia found us, and told us to hold 2 seats for them. Julia ended up sitting with someone else... But Matt joined us, and it was great fun!

We talked about musicals, missed cues, and biased casting etc... I accidentally tipped over my FULL glass of water while gesturing along with a story.... Smooth, huh? It was embarrassing, but funny.

After lunch, I tried to help Matt with a word program on his computer... It took 2 hours to figure out that it didn't work. Poor Matt. He came over to our dorm a couple consecutive times... That's a lot of stairs... :-( A while later, he stopped back in, and compared obituaries with Rachel, which they had to write for a class.

Matt is a deity. His obituary said so! Rock on!!! ;-)

This time, when Matt came over, I was frustrated with various things, (like my stooped fridge!) and wished poxes on them. Matt humored me with making grand hand gestures, thus "poxing" the various items I named. It cheered me up a great deal. :-D

I also ran to the library for an article to review for my American Ed class, which I have just finished.

Gosh, I have more I want to type, but I'm beat. Night!

Oh, and Band Camp Bonding ROCKED MY FACE OFF!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY!

HAPPY 18TH BIRTHDAY TO ONE OF MY BESTEST BEST FRIENDS JESSICA!!!!! YOU ROCK MY SWASHBUCKLING SOCKS!!!!

Happy happy happy Birthday, and many many many more to come!!!!

Redheads for ever!!!!

MUCHO PIRATEY LOVE!!!!

College Update

THEY HAVE STERZINGS POTATO CHIPS HERE!

Wow... That totally made my life... Now I can bring them home for my family when I visit.

Yesterday was the Involvement Fair here at Wartburg, and I signed up the the Wartburg Players, the Ballroom Dancing Club, and Catholic Knights. The Wartburg Players are doing A Christmas Carol this winter. Rachel and I are excited, except that there are really no female parts, so we're gonna shoot for extras...lol

OH! OH! OH! OH! Guess who I might go see in concert over Thanksgiving break?????? JOHN WILLIAMS!!!!!! Oh! My! Gosh! He's directing the Chicago Symphony Orchestra... Some music ed students here want to go, because let's face it: John Williams is utterly amazing! :-D

Stoooopid College e-mail is not working.

Classes are intense... Lot's of reading... holy smokes... I guess I shouldn't complain since I have millions of papers to write before the fall term is over. But none due right now! So mom, if you're reading this, don't freak out!

I still don't like the book Frankenstien. And reading the essays at the end was not a requirement. HAH! :-P

Rachel, our new friend Matt, and I all watched The Swordsmen last night. It was great fun. It seemed to really amuse Rachel and Matt...lol... Yes it was corny, but it was fun. Yay, home movies!

I think the crush I've had for about 3 years is starting to get replaced... College is a good thing! Further information as I feel the need to express it publicly.

Band Bonding Camp this weekend!!!! Which I am TOTALLY excited about! YEAH! Symphonic band is gonna so totally ROCK as well! I think I am in heaven with all these theater and music geeks.... I looooove it!

My intermediate comp. professor is amazing... She made a reference to A Wrinkle in Time, and I was the ONLY one who caught it! It was great! She's pretty young, and she graduated from Princeton... wow...

Well, I'm going to practice my mallet methods.... And then eat....

... And Good Company

Thank-you my friend,
For sharing with me,
Your love and your warmth,
I’m grateful you see.
They bloom and they grow,
On someone in time,
For the best things in life,
Are born in the mind,
And I’ve been made warm,
For friendship is mine.

-Ahhh, camp songs…. *sigh*

Jason: Wow. I don't know how to express what I want to say... I had so much fun spending time with you... Getting to know you... We've had some good laughs, and lots of warm, contented, "enjoying each other's company" moments. You make me laugh, and your random surprise visits at work were the best!

Do you remember when we went to the sea wall, on your birthday, and those stupid kids were in the roped-off construction zone, and threw those traffic cones into the lake? And I didn't know the phone number for the PD non-emergency, so I called my Dad! Oh, that night was the funniest EVER! :-D

Dispatcher: (talking to me on my cell) Can you see who did it?
Me: Yes. It's the one in the water that did it.
Dispatcher: Alright. Hold one moment please... (heard over phone AND police radio) IT'S THE ONE THAT'S IN THE WATER THAT DID IT.

-Oh, my gosh, we about died... It was SO funny!!!

And talking on AOL until 3 am... Good times! :-)

I hope to catch up with you and the gang when I come home and visit... I will miss you!
____
Laura: I am so glad to have met you! Your strong will, and sense of humor are prominent traits, and you have the makings of a strong leader... Stronger then you are now. :-)

It was nice to discover we had more in common then just mutual friends, and The Swordsmen. Although I wish I had known some things earlier... Maybe that would have helped me, with some of the choices I made.

You are definitely invited to come visit me at college! In fact, I demand it! lol... (I know Julia would enjoy it too...) I will be sure to let you know when there are choir events going on!

Do you remember when we danced in the pouring rain, at Elias's house, and FORDED the creek 2 times, as if we were on the Oregon Trail? Then going to Be-Bops after filming, and I didn't know where to park? And the three second delay on the van's horn? *whack* ......... "HONNNK!" hahaha!

I hope to get to know you better, as time progresses... You are an outstanding person, and I will stay in touch... I adore your blog, and there's always AOL! Have fun with your senior year!
_____

Julia: I love laughing with you! I value our friendship so very much, and you are one of the few people I can tell ANYTHING too! You help me get through so much! We will have fun in college, I know. Remember that I’m always here for you too! :-) We should do a dorm sleepover, over a weekend, or something…haha!

Do you remember when we first met at CIT Camp? Wow… How our friendship has grown! And working on staff together… You are an amazing woman! I admire you so much! Your optimism and perseverance are brilliant qualities, and they are ALWAYS catching! :-D

Remember that one time we went to the maze, and then went dancing at the Surf? And I tried to teach you how to play poker with popcorn, and we eventually gave up, and danced?

AND MAKING COOKIES!!!! Oh, my gosh!!!! *dies laughing*

“My mom and her sister… Oh, wait. I forgot the funny part…” – you

Me: (referring to “well done cookies”) They’re a little burnt…
Mom: So you sugared the waxed paper???

You: What’s a carburetor?
Me: It’s part of a car.
You: I know that! CAR-burator!

And remember seeing Harry Potter together, WAY back when? Wow, it’s been a long time… and worth every minute…

Here’s to a bright future!
_____

Sam N.: You are another amazing woman who I can tell ANYTHING too! Your struggles are my struggles, and your joys are mine as well. I love the precious time we get to spend together, though it is never enough…. Your friendship is a beacon of light in my dark, confused life, and I appreciate all the times you’ve listened to my rants and ravings.

I also demand that you come, and visit me at college. We will have fun! LOTS of fun! You will meet my awesome roommate, Rachel, and visit Julia and Jill! :-)

I am so glad we got to know each other on our Europe trip… My life would be so incredibly different if we had just remained “just two people, who randomly talked, then drifted apart after the trip.” Yay, Switzerland! :-D

Do you remember eating half of that GIANT ho-ho bar? And the “Mosse” singing Duke of Earl with ALL THE VOICE PARTS! Eric sleeping on your shoulder, and drooling…… And that walk we went on in Seefeld, Austria? And you talked about being a ‘thespian’ and I thought it was like ‘lesbian’? (LOL) And we sat on a stone wall and just talked…. And Mark came, and chatted… *sigh* THEN you running off to the hotel, for the bathroom, in the rain, and me getting lost and trying to break into the wrong hotel…. Boy, was it hot on the way back from Venice… :-P

Fact: Orange Fanta, Provolone Cheese, Marshmallows, Maraschino Cherries, and Chocolate Pudding taste good when eaten at one sitting. :-D

You’re still not going to be able to get me on a roller coster! :-P I miss you, Oh Great and Glorious Sam!
____
Breanna: You are such a sweet, lovable person! I love hearing from you, and catching up on everything! We go way back, and I’m glad we’ve stayed in some contact with each other!

You are so passionate about your faith and very considerate of others… I think that is just amazing! May God bless you and keep you! Best of luck in college! *hugs*
____

Thank-you all…. I don’t know what else to say… Each one of you has touched my life in some way, and helped me become who I am now. I hope to continue the great friendships I’ve been blessed with for many years to come!!!!!

Missing good friends...

I wanna linger,
A little longer,
A little longer here with you...

It's such a perfect night,
It doesn't seem quite right,
That this should be my last with you...

And come September,
I will remember,
The happy days and friendships true..

And as the years go by,
I'll think of you and sigh,
This is good-night but not good-bye!

Camp songs always say it best....

Jessica: Your friendship means so much to me! Your support, encouragement, and attitude have helped me more then you know! You are ALWAYS there to lend an ear, and offer hugs and chocolate! I love how we share our "warm fuzzy" moments with each other, and giggle and squeal over the smallest (and not-so-small) things! I know I can tell you anything! I have so many fond memories of us together, but a few that come to mind....

Remember when we first went and saw Pirates of the Caribbean together, and we found all those camp references? (And don't forget: “It’s all fun and games until someone looses an eye! Then it's just a game: 'Find the Eye'!")

And when you, Julia and I had our Lord of the Rings marathon, and we pretended that we had sports pennants, and "waved" them as we cheered loudly for Merry and Pippin, and booed and yelled even louder at Saruman and Gollum?

Two Words: Cabin Coffee

Or when we went to Ames for my flute recital, and sat in the back of the station wagon, and BOTH got carsick from riding backwards? Then later, sharing your headphones, and jammin' to band music on the way home... LOL!

...That snickers ice cream Sunday we spilt tasted the best...

Mucho piratey love! Redheads forever, and best friends for even longer!!!! :-D
____
Isaac: When you are a famous actor, and have lots of money, I am going to join your fan club. Then I can have a bumper sticker on my car that will read: "OMG! LOOK AT THAT JAWLINE!" And everyone will know who it reffers to! :-)

I cannot thank-you enough for asking me to be in The Swordsmen. I had an enormous amount of fun, and made so many new friends. I would not trade this summer for anything! And I mean that from the bottom of my heart! I really enjoyed filming, and I learned a lot.

You continue to impress me with your strong personal integrity, and loyalty to your friends. Your patience and understanding are two very strong traits that you posses, and I admire you very much for that. I'm glad I got to know you a little better over the summer. Please continue to write, and get back to me when you are ready for an illustrator!

Do you remember when we started talking at the Night of Notables? About STAR WARS and Indiana Jones? And don't forget our discussions on classical music, piano, and music theory... And movies! :-)

I read Lord of the Rings, and saw the movies because of your passion for the series, and for that, I thank-you as well!

I wish you so much luck in whatever adventures lie ahead... God bless!
____
John: "...But his voice filled my spirit with a strange sweet sound, and that night there was music in my mind..." Yes. This quote still applies to you... And I do miss the memories associated with it… But I doubt you'll read this, so I guess this is just random.

Thanks for giving me the chance to be in The Swordsmen... I honestly am beside myself with gratitude... It was a blast! There were some times when the going got rough... lol... But the finished movie was worth it. :-)

Do you remember when we ran to Ace Hardware for stuff to make a new bow staff, and you asked for "PCP" pipe instead of PVC? I honestly think we made that clerk's day... :-) And when we were watching the dailies, and we saw the dagger throw for the first time? How we all shouted in amazement, and then rewound it, and watched it like, 5 more times? That shot turned out so cool... Yay for cheap sound effects!

I am glad I know you, and you make me smile. :-) I wish you luck in pursuing your future dreams! I'll watch for you on Broadway, someday...

I'm praying for you.
____
*sighsighsighsigh*
____
Andrea: I always have so much fun spending time with you! I wish we could have more time together... Things get rough, and just know that I am always here if you want to vent, and know that I trust you with anything!

Your excitement about the things you enjoy is so catching! I love hearing about what you do... In any subject! I'm glad you got to be a part of The Swordsmen, and it was very special to me that you were able to come back down for the grand premiere!

Do you remember one time when you spent the night, and we played STAR WARS Monopoly? And then played with the little pieces after we finished the game? Remember the story we had going? Han Solo smuggling dice, the wrinkle cream for the Emperor, the "Puree, Blend, and Tumble Dry" buttons on Darth Vader's suit... And the creepy Emperor piece "sneaking up" on C-3PO? Plus, the times when you got to stay over extra because of the snow storms!!! That rocked!!!!! :-D

I wish you oodles of luck in all your future endeavors, and rest assured that I will be first in line when you open your first feature film!!!!
____
Drew: Sometimes, I don't know what to think about you... There are times when you infuriate me... Like when you told me that Arwen died because she ate unripe fruit, or your jabs about being homeschooled... :-P But your camera work is good, and sometimes really funny... Like when you filmed yourself spinning on the tire-swing. I also would like to state that I appreciate the reassurance you gave me about my movie shots...

Do you remember when I got zapped by the cow fence? I still can't believe that your filmed that! It was pretty funny afterwards, though...

Good luck with Faron, and don't forget to save money to do it, now that you are a crazy working man now, with lots of money... Haha!
___
I have more already written... will post in the daylight hours... Good night!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY!

Today is my brother Daniel's Birthday! YAY!

*sings and dances, and tosses confetti*

HAPPY BIRTHDAY DANIEL! I love you!

A Day in the life of a Hogwarts student...

I don't know if anyone notices these sorts of things, but it's September 1st! The day Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry begins! Yay Harry Potter! :-D

Following are some pictures of mine, in a sad attempt to imply that I go to England, to attend a particular boarding school...


The Leaky Cauldron....


King's Cross Station, London


Catching the Hogwarts Express!


All ready for school! ;-)


A view of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, perhaps?