Stargirl by Jerri Spinelli

            This has been my favorite book since I was at least 14 years old. It’s a pretty low reading level. The back of the book reads “she was elusive. She was today. She was tomorrow. She was the faintest scent of a cactus flower, the flitting shadow of an elf owl. We did not know what to make of her. In our minds we tried to pin her to cork board like a butterfly, but the pin merely went through and away she flew.”  This most likely does not make sense, or tell you anything about the book. These words are coming from the mind of Leo, the only person in Mica High School the even attempted to understand this girl. She dressed differently, she played a ukulele and sang happy birthday to people at lunch, and she had a pet rat that went to school with her. As a reader I instantly fell in love with her. She dared to be different, really different. That is amazing. Even though, as I mentioned before this is a low reading level, anyone of any age can get something out of this book.  It is still your basic story about high school students; you know the one weird girl (Stargirl) who everyone thinks is insane and a poor dresser. You also know that one great guy (Leo) who cannot find a single flaw in this girl everyone else included in the “we” has so harshly judged.

Cirque du Freak: The Vampire's Assistant

A few months ago my boyfriend insisted we watch this movie. He told me how it was based off a book series. I was not convinced that this movie would be any good. A: it’s a movie adaption B: I’m tired of the vampire craze. Darren and Steve are best friends. Darren is a goody goody type and Steve… well not so much. The movie begins with Steve lying in a coffin playing games on his phone six feet under. Steve’s absolutely crazy parents do not like them hanging out together. One night they sneak out to go to a “freak show” they found out about from a mysterious flyer that blew towards them. I really do not want to spoil it for anyone if they actually show some interest. But this movie was better than I expected, not great… it was a movie adaption. These books are definitely in my  pile to read sometime. Can't wait!

LOST

I just recently started to watch the TV show “Lost” over again. I began watching this show when it came out, I thought it was great. It goes so in depth to each character’s life you find out about their inner struggles, the writers really bring you inside the mind of the character. The plot line is so huge and detailed I am not sure how the writer were able to keep up with what is going on. I know a lot of people who started watching this show and soon quit because the questions like “why is there a polar bear on this island” were not getting answered. Well all of the bazaar questions like that one were answered. It just took a long time, in some cases a REALLY long time.  I love how each character starts out as a flat character, you know absolutely nothing about them besides the fact that they were on a plane but with each episode they turn out to be a round character and grows more and more complex. You can tell right off the bat which of these characters will be sticking with you, they never give you a reason to be attached to any that will soon go away. That is one thing I like about this show. Don’t you hate it when you get super attached to a character and then they kill them off? If you enjoy TV shows with action and an amazingly complex plot line this is the show for you.

                

               

     

Fairy Tale

Cinderella's on her bedroom floor
She's got a
Crush on the guy at the liquor store
Cause Mr. Charming don't come home anymore
And she forgets why she came here
Sleeping Beauty's in a foul mood
For shame she says
None for you dear prince, I'm tired today
I'd rather sleep my whole life away than have you keep me from dreaming

[Chorus:]
'cause I don't care for your fairytales
You're so worried about the maiden though you know
She's only waiting on the next best thing

Snow White is doing dishes again cause
What else can you do
With seven itty-bitty men?
Sends them to bed and calls up a friend
Says will you meet me at midnight?
The tall blonde lets out a cry of despair says
Would have cut it myself if I knew men could climb hair
I'll have to find another tower somewhere and keep away from the windows

[Chorus]

Once upon a time in a faraway kingdom
Man made up a story said that I should believe him
Go and tell your white knight that he's handsome in hindsight
But I don't want the next best thing
So I sing and hold my head down and I break these walls round me
Can't take no more of your fairytale love

[Chorus]

I don't care
I don't care
Worry bout the maiden though you know
She's only waiting spent the whole life being graded on the sanctity of patience and a dumb
Appreciation
But the story needs some mending and a better happy ending
Cause I don't want the next best thing
No no I don't want the next best thing

                        I have always liked fairy tales, the Disney movies from when I was little brought that on. Not the more recent princess’, don’t even get me started on that. I enjoy this song’s allusion to fairytales. It takes all the overdone happy endings and replaces them with almost realistic problems that makes fairy tales even better! Cinderella does not end up happy with Charming. Instead she fancies a guy that works in a liquor store, which may be the only man she gets attention from since “Mr. Charming isn’t coming home anymore”. She was driven to be an alcoholic. That is nowhere near as glamorous as being a princess with a perfect “charming” personality. Sleeping Beauty’s prince turns out not to be perfect, she would rather go back to her eternal sleep then stay awake and see him. Sarah makes the point in her chorus that the girls “are only waiting on the next best thing”. I find that to be so true! Every so called princess is just waiting to get out of what they see to be a horrid place. In most cases it really was, being locked away in castles and such. In the end she seems to reach this revelation that these stories are made to be so perfect so you spend your own time “waiting on the next best thing”. The light that is shown on Repunzel is completely different from the story book version, she doesn’t want to be saved. She seems to like her tower, she’ll just cut her hair and “stay away from the windows.” I just love the negative turn the alternate endings take. It leaves a lot to the imagination of a simple childhood story.

Princess Bride

In the opening of the movie a grandfather is coming to read to his sick grandson, the boy is not thrilled because he is sure that there must be kissing. It starts out slow introducing the main character, Buttercup, and the farm boy Wesley. The only conversation Buttercup and Wesley ever engage in is when she asks him to do something and he replies “as you wish”. But this pattern cannot last forever. How can you not have a sympathetic heartache for buttercup when she has lost her dearest Wesley? My mom and I love this movie, when there is not anything good on TV this is what we watch. I hate to say how many times we have seen it. By the title this looks like it will be a girly sappy movie (I even thought that at first), but you cannot judge it by the title. There are vendettas to settle, secrets within the court, hidden torture chambers,“rodents of unusual size, and the former medicne man to the king. One of the main characters has spent majority of his life looking for the six fingered man, “Hello. My name is Indigo Montoya. You killed my father. Prepare to die.” Now does that sound like a sappy love movie? I think not! I have also read the book and recommend that as well. There are many points in the plot that stray from the movie as expected, I don’t want to give any away because I know some of you *cough cough Courtney cough* have not seen nor read this amazing story.

Things I'll Never Say...

                                              I’m tugging at my hair

I’m pulling at my clothes
I’m trying to keep my cool
I know it shows
I’m staring at my feet
My cheeks are turning red
I’m searching for the words inside my head

[Pre-Chorus]
(Cause) I’m feeling nervous
Trying to be so perfect
Cause I know you’re worth it
You’re worth it
Yeah

[Chorus]
If I could say what I want to say
I'd say I wanna blow you away
Be with you every night
Am I squeezing you too tight
If I could say what I want to see
I want to see you go down
On one knee
Marry me today
Guess, I’m wishing my life away
With these things I’ll never say

It don’t do me any good
It’s just a waste of time
What use is it to you
What’s on my mind
If it ain’t coming out
We’re not going anywhere
So why can’t I just tell you that I care

[Pre-Chorus]

[Chorus]

What’s wrong with my tongue
These words keep slipping away
I stutter, I stumble
Like I’ve got nothing to say

[Pre-Chorus]

Guess I’m wishing my life away with these things I’ll never say
If I could say what I want to say
I'd say I wanna blow you away
Be with you every night
Am I squeezing you too tight
If I could say what I want to see
I want to see you go down
On one knee
Marry me today
Guess, I’m wishing my life away
With these things I’ll never say
These things I’ll never say

I have always loved this song, everyone feels this way at some point weather you admit it or not. There is always that awkward moment where you just want to pull out your hair, or you feel the heat rising to your cheeks, of course you don’t want anyone to see this frustration. In this song it refers all this emotion to the situation of talking to the boy you want to be “mr. right”. This isn’t always the case. Her songs are very often about situations with boys just like pretty much every other song you hear. I’m sure everybody has that moment at some point where they want to make a good impression and not come off like a total dork. If we could only say what we want to say… that moment happens when you are having a conversation with peers, or having a discussion in class. There is always something in the back of your mind that you feel the need to ask, but not wanting to come off as an ignorant person you just leave it in the back of your mind. She says multiple times I guess “I’m just wishing my life away” as human beings that is just what we do. Ever since third grade (may be a bit of exaggeration) I couldn’t wait to graduate and wished for that to come sooner every day. Now it is right around the corner and there is that little bit of regret that I didn’t let myself enjoy it more, because now you can welcome yourself to the real world! This line is true especially in relationships, why waste your time to start a relationship if you don’t see a future in it. But when you see that glimpse of future you anticipate it and think about it constantly. But of course there are those things you’ll never say.