Planting Butterfly Bushes...

So my dad and I were lamenting the loss of old Yankees today. We were discussing the Old Guard, with players like Tino Martinez (remember when he hit the Grand Slam and spent the whole rest of the inning jabbering on the bench and illustrating his hit with his arms like a mad man?), Chad Curtis (who used to throw the ball into the infield so hard that his small 5'8" self would flip over), Paul O'Neill (used to break bats and water coolers; his wife used to call him Mr. Happy), Brosius (who looked around like a bird), Chuckie (every throw to first was an adventure), and all those other guys. And there was also the time when Chuck and Shane came to the stadium from the barber shop. Knoblauch had his typical blonde tips and Spenser...had a whole head of platinum blonde hair. It was obvious that Chuck had tipped them to make it lighter or something. Ah, the ragging of the rookie. Anyway, now it's all about the stars: A-Rod, Lofton, Sheffield (whose fans wear chef's hats...how original), etc. I mean we have some of the older guys, like Derek (turned the big three-oh), Bernie, Jorge, Mo, and the like, but all the old spirit is gone.

And you know what? I even miss Al Trautwig, the old nerdy announcer that always tried to be cool and to play with the big boys. I mean today Michael Kay said, "And now we come to the three headed monster Quangormo! That's Quantrill, Gordon, and Mariano Rivera!" I mean who says that? If someone didn't have a really, really firm grip of the English language, I guarantee that they wouldn't understand half of what they say. "Giving chase is Matsui" - lovely syntax there. "Along with Jim Kaat, I'm Michael Kay" - are you both at once?

Wimbledon's on too. My dad always plays devil's advocate and pulls for the opposite of who I want: I wanted Henman, he wanted Arazi; I preferred Roddick, so he wanted Dent. Although Dent's a pretty cool guy: looks a lot like Pudge Rodriguez.

Speaking of, I think it would be brilliant if we got Nomar Garciaparra to play second for us next year. I'd love to see the look on Boston's collective face if that happened. Then we'd have Posada catching, Giambi on first, Garciaparra on second, A-Rod at third, Jeter at short, then a choice of Sierra, Lofton, Sheffield, Williams, and Matsui in the outfield. Nomar seems like a good guy too: his spirit might work with us. Even though we still go for big bucks so much (nice to see that George really does love us), the connection is still what makes us. There are some pretty goot players that just can't handle being a Yankee (*coughKennyRodgerscough*).

"Deadwood" had its season finale. I love that show. So now it's just "Six Feet Under". Mena Suvari is going to play Claire's new lesbian, punk performer friend.

I'm going up to Massachussetts these next two weeks looking at Amherst, Williams, Tufts, Mount Holyoke, Smith, Brown, and Wellesley. I'm seeing Brown, Amherst and Williams this week, I believe, and the other four next week (I could be mistaken).

Well, I should go. Oh, look! A butterfly just landed on you. Namaste.

Strolling back in through the white picket fence...

I'm back from Spain. It was, in one word, awesome. Madrid is a great city. The fact that I got to practice my Spanish was a bonus.

I also just got back from the college trip that I did right after I got home. Trust me: jet lag and college do not go well together. I went to the Connecticut schools I was checkint out: Yale, Wesleyan, and Connecticut College. I loved Yale and Connecticut College, but wasn't so hot on Wesleyan. At the moment, then, I'm up to three colleges on my "damn it, I want to go!" list: Connecticut College, Yale, and Bryn Mawr. In my school, when you compose the list of colleges, they have how likely you are to get into each. Very Likely means that it's really a safety school of sorts, Likely is just one step above that, Maybe means that there's a 50-50% shot, and Unlikely means it's a reach. They also do "Maybe-Unlikely" and the like for things that are on the border. Bryn Mawr is a very likely on my list, Connecticut College is a likely, and Yale is an unlikely for everyone in the world...except maybe a Bush. The other school's I've looked at but didn't like are as follows: Cornell was a maybe, Haverford was a maybe, Swarthmore was an unlikely (sexist pigs), and Wesleyan was a maybe.

Although people really shouldn't tell me how likely these things are, because I tend to walk into unlikely's with a grudge, thinking, "hell: you don't want me, I don't want you." My latest 800 on the Math IIC SAT II will help...now I have 2 800s to send in: Writing and Math, the two most important. 680 on the Bio isn't too bad either. It's my next highest. I managed to kill the SATIs though, with an 800 on Verbal and a 760 on Math. "Kill" is actually the word that my SAT tutors used too.

Oh, when I was in Spain - well I drank Sangria, but don't tell the teachers...my dad knows and doesn't care, but don't tell the teachers - but also there was this huge poster for Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban, which came out Thursday when I was there. There was like this ten-story high head of Harry Potter taking up a whole side of the building. Hermione and Ron's heads took up the other side. Funniest thing ever. Maybe I can figure out a way to post the picture I took of it when they come back. The day it opened I also saw a bunch of girls between the ages of 16 and like 20 in Hogwarts clothing with wands. I really want Hogwarts robes. It was amusing too, because these were definitely Goth Spanish girls in Hogwarts outfits: with the piercings and colorful hair and everything.

Well, that's about what I have to say. Next week I'm visiting more colleges...and the week after that. Oi vey.

Oh here: I bought you a sword from Toledo. Namaste.

Playing with Snap Dragons

I had my last final today! That means no more finals for the rest of high school. Seniors don't have to take finals (no point, really, as they're already into whatever college they're going to). I don't have school tomorrow, so I might see Shrek 2 with my mom. Then I have class day Friday. I leave for Spain on Sunday.

I'm going to see Harry Potter again tonight, as my dad didn't see it yet. So I'm rereading the series, and I definitely think I accidentally said out loud - rather than in my head - "Oh, Snape, why are you so sexy?" He's my favorite character. Then I thought, "Oh, Alan Rickman, why are you just as sexy, even though you're too old to be Snape?" Then I said the same thing about Sirius Black and Gary Oldman. I seem to have a thing for 40+-year old actors. Not to mention the fact that Alan Rickman's older than my mom...that's really just inappropriate when I think about it. I still hold to my assertion that David Thewlis, while awesome as Lupin, was not quite the right fit. I didn't like the stupid little mustache (no offense to people that have that ridiculous-looking thing on their own faces). He did play enough of a wise, father-figure type character for me, though.

I was just thinking about a conversation we had with my friend Hyun Jee the other day. She made the comment, "We should people with AIDS separate from other people so they don't spread it." We replied, "Er - Sunny? That's called a concentration camp." These are the types of conversations we have in my art class. The other day, she also expressed her desire to get implants even though she's already a C-cup. A small C-cup, mind you, but that's still the same size I have. I keep telling my friends that, hey, I'd give them a cup-size and we could both be B-cups. I think that would be fine. What do you think? Oh, where's an easily-embarrassed boy to say that to when you need him? Bwahaha...

So, the "Six Feet Under" premiere's on Sunday...and I'm going to be in Spain for it, which mean's I'll miss it. And the season finale of "Deadwood"'s that night too. I've been whining to no end about it.

Oh, and I still need to figure out an art concentration. I have absolutely no idea what I want to do. Maybe I could do scenes from Tolkien books...no, that would just make Tolkien spin in his grave a little faster than he already is. I'll have to think on it and get back to you.

Oh, in reference to the title, don't you just love making snap dragons snap? It's so much fun. Actually, you don't make them snap, really: more just open their mouths. Namaste.

Repotting a Mandrake

The title's in keeping with the spirit of Harry Potter. I saw it on Friday (opening day here). So, it seems the New York Times is a big liar: the new movie's still only PG. I haven't written in the past few days because I've been doing a massive Virus/Adware cleanout on my computer. I think about everything's gone, thanks to Norton Anti-Virus and this SpyHunter software I downloaded.

I'm staying away from the personality quiz sites because it seems a lot of them spread disease. I'm pretty sure the only thing my computer didn't have was E. bola. Who knows: it may have had that too.

So, about Harry Potter. It was a pretty good movie: I don't think it can stand alone from the books, actually, but Cuaron is an improvement on Columbus. He has some amazing camera angles...and I actually like the kids' clothing better.

And I know the world is going to hit me for saying this, but about the Phelps twins (that play the Weasley twins): is it me or did they suddenly get rather good-looking? And did Daniel Radcliffe become a slightly better actor? I mean he can't fake cry for anything, but he isn't half as bad as in Chamber of Secrets.

I still don't entirely agree with all of the casting, but oh well. All the teachers (namely Snape, Black, and Lupin) seem rather older than I expected. Aren't they supposed to be about 35 or something? Oh well.

I haven't much else to say. Only two more finals to go, then I'm off for the year. Then I get to go to Spain for a week. SAT IIs were good at least.

Cover your ears! I'm about to repot it! Namaste.

Making a Daisy Chain

You are Tsukino Usagi

You are love food, boys, shopping, and hanging out with your friends. You tend to cry when things get too hard, and have trouble doing things right the first time. You probably need to study a little harder. Your faith in the basic goodness of all people keeps you on the right track, even when others don't see it.

Take the "What Magic Girl are you?" Quiz

Hey, I took the "WHAT ANIMAL ARE YOU." personality quiz and my result was:

BALD EAGLE!

YOU ARE A FREEDOM FIGHTER. YOU WOULD RATHER DO STUFF BY YOURSELF BUT YOU CAN HANDLE IT IF OTHER PEOPLE WANT TO GET INVOLVED.

You can take this quiz at:
http://dragonhame.com/quiz/2486/

I had my first final today. I also had my piano lesson: I'm playing Schubert "Divertissement a la Hongroise" - Allegretto with my teacher for a concert next Tuesday. It's such a gorgeous piece. I play Segundo/Bottom/whatever you want to call it.

I forgot to ask my friend permission to use the link, but I'm going to lose it anyway. If you want to see my prom photos here they are. Aren't my friends so pretty? It's my friend's site, so I'm obviously not Laura, but take a wild guess which one's me.

I might see "Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban" tomorrow. I don't have any finals and I don't really have much to do. The review Elvis Mitchell gave was actually good. This one's rated PG-13, surprisingly. I actually thought that, judging by their rating criteria, the last one was "frightening" enough to be PG-13 too. Mitchell loved the adults and Cuaron's directing style. I love Cuaron too. I still say that the day Quentin Tarantino directs a Harry Potter is the day I'm getting involved, though. That would be one of the greatest things I'd ever see. I'd find a way to get to England to try out. I'd do anything to be in something like that.

Apparently the idiots that schedule these things scheduled the Tony's to be the same night as the last Sopranos episode (with...two Tony's, oddly enough...Tony S and Tony B). Hugh Jackman's hosting the Tony's and they say he'll be giving "Soprano updates". I'm watching The Sopranos and Deadwood instead anyway.

My dad got tickets to the U.S. Open (tennis) for this coming September. He and I are going. My mom doesn't really know any of the players, so she's not going. For some reason, my dad and I both know a good number of players. It's one of those things that, even though the camera angles are probably so much better on TV, it'd still be great to go to.

Here, I made the chain for you. Namaste.

Napping in the Long Grass

My friend put prom pictures up on her site. I'm going to ask her permission before I link to them, though. I actually don't look to bad in the pictures. Everyone looked so gorgeous at the prom. I really wish someone had taken a picture when we got stuck in the elevator. It was really funny in retrospect. We decided to put fifteen people in the elevator, and we went below the ground level. We managed to hit the concrete on the bottom then get stuck. The door didn't open and we couldn't get out. We pressed the emergency button and paged security. Other prom attendees gathered outside the door and proceeded to sing "I know a song that gets on everybody's nerves..." as loud as they could until a friend of mine cursed them out through the door. Finally, we opened the door and climbed out of the elevator. Some of the girls were rather upset. I was actually fine - it got a little hot in the elevator, but I'm pretty good in small spaces. Having a picture of all of us would have been great. I think one or two people may have taken pictures. I'll look into it.

Is it me or are there more viruses on the computer lately? It's like all the lifeless hackers in the world decided to put up Trojans on every site. My virus scanner's been working overtime. My computer's rather old, too, with Windows 98. I'm not actually sure the scanner's been scanning every night though. It has been eliminating immediate errors, though, so that's good.

I have my math final tomorrow. Then I have Friday off. I have to go into school for art on Monday, I have bio on Tuesday, and English on Wednesday. Then I have no school Thursday, and Class Day's Friday. Then I'm all done with Junior Year. This Saturday coming up, I'm taking the Math IIC and Biology SAT II. That takes care of all of the boring areas of my life.

My second art piece for my final is actually not looking too bad. Hopefully I won't ruin it when I finish it.

I'm praying my computer doesn't just give out soon. It certainly sounds like it might. It already almost froze once when I was posting this.

Go visit my friend's blog if you're reading this. Here's the link: I Run With Scissors . She's a very cool person, so be very, very nice to her. Of course she's one of the only people that reads this, but oh well.

Well, that's really all that's important that's going on in my life. Check yourself for deerticks after you leave the grass. Namaste.

Gathering Parsley from the Herb Garden

I'm in a fair bit of a quandary. I really want to tell my friends about this blog, but I also want to be myself here. Obviously if my friends came here, even if I used different names, they could figure out who I was talking about.

Technically, I'm a senior now. The seniors aren't in school - actually, they left on their senior trip already - so we're the oldest. We already infested the senior hallway. Finals also start day after tomorrow. Then I have SAT IIs as well. Then it's off to Spain for a week.

Boy, my life is boring at the moment. I wanted to keep a regular posting up, though. I e-mailed Phil, though. Hopefully everything's cool with him. If not, well then there's not much I can do about it. He may not even have access to a computer for all I know. You know, he was one of the few things keeping his brother in line, in my opinion. I could be wrong, as I didn't know them really well, but that's the impression I got from my first meetings with the two.

Apparently two of my friends that hated each other finally decided to stop pretending to endure each other. I'm not sure whether they're speaking or not. It happened in an Art class I didn't go to because I was done with my piece. It wasn't so much what she did, I don't think, as that he had a lot of rage saved up, and it just all let out with her moving the pieces. I'm actually...on neither of their sides, really. Both do have a rather large self-image. I apologize if either of them find this page, but you both do sometimes at least say things that suggest high self-regard. I love you both though, and respect that you don't get along. Actually, I'm not even that close with either of you. Wish I could've been there when the roof blew off, though.

I only have to take three written finals: math, bio, English. Then I have my art meeting on Monday to critique our pieces. I would prefer if he didn't do it in front of the rest of the class, but we can't have everything. I just have to finish this second piece and then go back to work on the first. I'm not sure either's brilliant, but they'll do, suppose. As I said earlier, I can't do Monet in like two weeks. I could probably never do Monet, but that's not really the point. You know, I'm not completely satisfied with any of my concentration ideas, but I have the whole summer and part of the fall to work it out.

Here, have some parsley potpourri for your time. Namaste.