Duality

High school students are usually told to find out who they are and make decisions based on their answer. But what if teens simply cannot know who they are? With authority figures and peers constantly judging teens, they must continuously be changing themselves to please one group to the next. Young adults struggle to discover who they really are with all the pressure of being some one that others expect them to be.

            Alice Richmond had always been told she was mature for her age. As she progressed through high school, she couldn’t help but notice that she was always fighting with herself when making decisions on how to act or what to say when she was around certain people. Around her friends, Alice felt out of the group and didn’t care for the juvenile way her peers acted. After landing a job as director for a middle school play, Alice started to wonder if she could maintain her friends. They expected her to conform to their way of life – drinking, doing drugs, and simply just acting immature. Alice found herself feeling more alone than ever when she declined requests to join her so-called “friends.”

Brushing it aside, Alice focused on the play and the kids involved. She was the figure that the kids in the show looked up to. Alice was there for them and knew that if she acted the way her peers do, she would never be asked back to direct another play. All the production meetings, rehearsals, and talks with parents made Alice realize who she really was. She wasn’t just some stupid high school student that society frowns upon; she was doing what she loved and excelling in it.

Still, Alice dreaded going to school each day – the rude comments said behind her back were hard to ignore and she could never quite fit in with any clique. At times, Alice found herself being someone who she was not just to be around people her age and feel somewhat accepted.

Teens like Alice mask themselves around their peers. The pressure of conforming to society makes those teens feel as if they are constantly shifting between the comedy and tragedy masks of theatre (also called the duality of Dionysus, the ancient Greek god of theatre). The hardships that those young adults go through in high school should be noted, and those students should find a place where they are comfortable with whom they are. By doing something they love and that they are passionate about, the pressure of high school will slowly ease over time and sooner or later, they will be out of there and already have their future goals set around the people with whom they can be themselves with.

MERMAIDS!

So today I saw Pirates 4 for the third time. Each time I see it, it gets even better. I'm not really in the mood to right a review for it, but maybe one day I will. I'll just talk about it a bit...
First off, unlike most people, my favorite Pirates movie is the third. Then the second. Then the fourth. And finally the first. Most people enjoy the first the most. I don't... Don't know why.
In all the movies, the animation is AMAZING and Johnny Depp just makes the films what they are.
My favorite part of the fourth film are the mermaids. I'm almost obsessed. I just love them.
Each time I see it, I still laugh at the same things I originally laughed at. The humor is really good and the sword fighting scenes are rocking.

Random post, I know. Aye aye Captain!
Blech.

Go see the movie!

"Finish Each Day And Be Done With It."

Ralph Waldo Emerson was a great poet, essayist, and lecturer and his works include so many great, inspiring quotes.  These quotes have lasted over one hundred years, and one quote that can really be helpful in living a great life is the following: “Finish each day and be done with it.  You have done what you could.  Some blunders and absurdities no doubt crept in, forget them as soon as you can.  Tomorrow is a new day, you shall begin it well and serenely.”  Emerson is saying that people should not live with regrets.  He is saying that people should look at every day as a new one and not allow the events of yesterday to affect today.  Wake up every morning with a clean slate – do not be disturbed by anything and be completely calm.  Everyone should follow this quote and live by it.  It can help to make a person better, avoid arguments with others, and overall look on the bright side of life.

            What makes a person good?  One thing is by having the right attitude about life.  If a person wakes up every morning with a smile on his face and feeling calm, it can lead to a good day in general.  Emerson explains that when he says, “Tomorrow is a new day, you shall begin it well and serenely.”   Not looking back on past events that made one angry can save a person time by eliminating all the time that is wasted by thinking over things that shouldn’t really matter.  If unnecessary thoughts are forgotten as soon as possible, there will be more time to think over what matters.  With that attitude, a person can pay more attention to the important things of life and avoid pondering over the “blunders and absurdities.” Emerson clearly states this even in the very first sentence of the quote, as he says,  “Finish each day and be done with it.”

            If a person forgets about all of the meaningless things in life, there are many arguments that can be avoided.  This is especially in high school where most things that are debated are ones that shouldn’t even matter – who is going out with whom, what outfit someone is wearing, how someone reacted and what another person said, etc.  Letting foolish things slide and forgiving people easily is what Emerson is talking about when he says, “Some blunders and absurdities no doubt crept in, forget them as soon as you can,” because they shouldn’t phase a person.  Many times, humanity is bothered by trivial things.  Emerson believes that if people rid themselves of them, you will be happier and begin each new day calm and collected.

            Finally, Emerson reminds the reader that, “You have done what you could.”  He is saying that people  should let go of things that don’t matter.  In order to live happily and always be looking on the bright side of life, one should push aside the thoughts of how they could’ve done better.  When a person continuously looks back on what he has done or has not done, he will probably see the glass half full.  This is because that person may be afraid to take another step because what happened in the past may repeat itself.  Forgetting things that no one should care about can make a person stay optimistic about life and all the actions and words involved.

           All in all, Emerson uses this quote to remind people that they should live with out regrets. Thinking that way can make a better person, control arguments, and turn pessimism into optimism. These three life lessons should be followed by every one, and Emerson clearly explains that in the quote. With that in mind, everyone can be happier with life and live life to its fullest.

Back to Bloggin'

So since I haven't posted a blog in FOREVER, thought I'd might just post one for kicks and giggles. Let's see... my life has been crazy since I watched Princess and the Frog. ha.
(In order from oldest news to newest news!) I got a job, had a great Forensics season, met an amazingly inspirational famous composer, strutted my stuff at a fashion show, starred in a play, hosted my first exchange student, had a wonderful prom, and chopped off 10 inches of my hair.
A job. At Marcus Point Theatres. I give people overly priced popcorn, soda, candy, and the addicting pretzel bites, among other things. I love all my coworkers and just love everything about working there. Free movies is pretty cool, too.
Forensics. Second year in it. Play Acting this year. With the Baileys - Tbails and Kibbles. Or Taylor and Katie, whichever you prefer. We did a scene called The Rooftop Lesson. Kibbles taught Tbails and I a lesson on a rooftop. She was a teacher and Tbails was a suicide jumper and I was the good samaritan trying to make her not jump. It was very funny and I loved working with these great girls and having so much fun practicing (when we actually did practice). It ended up being okay, cause we powered at the Lodi Invite (first time powering - sooo much fun). We didn't place after that, but it was still TONS of fun and such a great experience. At Lakeside Lutheran, we got second place for play acting. Out of ALL the play acting groups (granted there weren't that many... but still!) we got second best. :) That was tons of fun. That was the same meet when our team won Conference for small schools (or something...). Still, big deal and lots of fun memories. And at State, we got 24 out of 25 points - silver medal! I felt we did a really good job and was really proud of what we've done, so I was totally fine with our score. Overall, such a fun day and I'm going to miss not being in 4N6 with Tbails next year when she graduates.

Forensics Team :)

Samuel R. Hazo and I :)

Samuel R. Hazo. He's amazing. You have no idea. He's a famous composer who writes AMAZING songs that we've played some in band at school and I've played them at various honors bands and band camps. Amazing on paper, even more amazing in person. Spending just 2 days under his baton was one of the greatest things ever. Tbails was there, too. We learned so much, met other cool people, had awesome roommates, and I made a really good friend - Alex. He's super cool and lives far away but we talk on Facebook all the time. Such a great weekend that I will always remember!

Roomies Emma and Autum, Alex, and me

Dresses. The prom fashion show. I wore a really cool dress that I nicknamed "The Mushroom Dress." I love wearing dresses, so this was super fun. The decorations were amazing, too. I got all fancied up with hair and makeup done and then strutted my stuff down the runway. Again, I loved that dress.

Tamara and Andreya

Aaron (big and buff), and the killer heels :)

A play. Othello Undone. I played Andreya. No way around it, but she's a bitch. Opposite of me? Yes. Totally fun to play? Yes. Othello Undone is based on Shakespeare's Othello. Andreya likes Aaron, who likes Miranda. Andreya wants the lead when their school puts on the play, Othello. Miranda gets it. Aaron and Miranda fall in love. Andreya does some digging and tries to ruin their relationship. Miranda's best friend is Ben, so Andreya tries to make Aaron believe Miranda is cheating on him with Ben. Aaron believes it and Andreya convinces him to actually kill Miranda when they are doing the death scene in the play. That's how much Andreya hates Miranda. But Aaron doesn't do it, so Andreya tries. And fails. Surprising enough, a girl who's not even five feet tall wearing a stupid ugly dress is no match for a big and buff firefighter senior guy playing a big and buff jock. Who woulda thought? So anyway, everyone, even Andreya's BFF and partner in crime, hates her at the end and leaves her all alone on stage. One of my favorite parts about this play was the costume and hair. I wore this crazy outfit with these KILLER heels (yes, emphasis on KILL cause they hurt!!!), and my hair was all straight and bumped and fun. I piled on tons of dark makeup that gave me nice raccoon eyes after the shows. People I've known for years told me that they didn't even recognize me when I walked out on stage. One, because of the way I looked, and two, because my character was so different from me. I had a BLAST, but still haven't worn those heels since...... ha

Cast of Othello Undone: Zach, Brandon, Colten, Kali, Isa, Sarah, Aaron, Taylor, Jason, Kyle, Jenna, Ka$ha

Italy. That's where they were from. The student I hosted was Marialaura. Pretty much every day, there was a party at some one's house. So we got a lot of air hockey, junk food eating, soda drinking, volleyball game playing, eating, and socializing time in. It was tons of fun and the entire group was awesome. They were only here fore 6 days and I miss them so much - wish they coulda stayed longer.

Marialaura and I

The group - Americans and Italians. Last night together.

POCKETS!

Dance. Prom. The biggie. Junior Prom. The one that I'd been planning since school started way back in September. Finally, on May 7, 2011, it all came together and was wonderful. The decorations was beautiful, the DJ was good, and the memories will last forever. Jenni won prom queen which was amazing, we had a crazy sleepover at Rachel's cabin after where I stayed up til 5am, went to sleep finally, but woke up to my bed being SW'ed (instead of getting TP'ed, I got SW'ed Seran(sp?)-Wrapped. And then got mustached by Livi. Great night. And I loved my dress. Like I said, I LOVE dresses - it's turning into an obsession. It was big and purple and I put a flower on it. Oh yeah, and it had POCKETS. I love dresses with pockets even more than I love dresses. Am I crazy? Yes. Do I love it? Yes. Pictures!

me obviously 

The group!

*crinkle crinkle* "Jenni what are you doing?!"

Thanks guys

Hair. Lastly, I chopped off my hair. Ten inches. And donated it for the first time. I dragged my friend, Ka$ha, along and then we saw Thor afterwards. I love my hair short, but now I have a few nicknames... Thelma and Edna Mode. Fun. But I love my hair :) I actually didn't base it off of Edna or Velma as some may think, but I got the idea from America's Next Top Model with Brittani's makeover. I loved her hair and wanted it for me after watching that episode.

Brittani - third one. Winner of ANTM Cycle 16 :)

Before (sorry bad picture, I know... but whatever)

After! <3 <3 <3