curiosity killed the cat...what's the lesson there?

i LOVE to stare. i know it's rude, but sometimes i just can't help myself. i only stare at people in a positive way, and that sounds absolutely creepy, but it's true. if you're ugly or funny looking i wouldn't waste my time staring. so if you catch me staring at you, take it as a compliment, i obviously find you fascinating and want to know more. i love learning all about people. i just get this craving to want to know everything about you; your favorite color, what you do when you wake up in the morning, your favorite book, all the weird and random things that make you you. i'm sure it's some eccentric psychological disorder i have in an attempt to make my bizarre habits seem more normal. i know why i'm so awkward, now i want to know if it's a similar combination that makes you awkward too.

here is a problem i run into often. they always say that girls can feel when someone is staring at them. which is completely true. it's totally subconcious, but whenever someone is staring i know to turn around and look for the culprit. this has been happening to me a lot recently. i always end up making that horribly uncomfortable moment when your eyes lock and you realize that both of you have now been caught staring. at work i would say i experience this moment at least ten times in my four hour shift. the first couple times i always think, man why are they staring at me? and then after we lock eyes at seven more times, i start to doubt myself. are they staring because all this time i've been staring? i mean who stared first?

then i try really hard to not look at all. which only makes me look even more awkward. and since i'm a compulsive starer, i probably started it, which now makes me look like a complete creep. or is it possible that there is someone out there who has the same fondness for an innocent gaze into other people's lives?

the answer is: probably not. i'm officially just a big creep, who now spends her time dwelling on stupid theories like such, all in the hope that one day, i'll find someone who embraces and loves my little quirks.

here's to hoping!

if i can read it, SO CAN YOU!

My roommate basically tricked me into reading this book with the promise of a future movie involving Anton Yelchin, whom we adore. Despite my rule of seeing the movie first, i figured by the time the movie actually came out i'd have forgotten the book, and besides i was going away for a weekend and needed some form of entertainment. Having spent the entire beginning of summer rereading mindless books, i was pretty thrilled at the aspect of something new.

I began the book, and immediately noticed that i was flyyyyyyying through it. I couldn't help but feel a small sense of pride, noting that despite half of my brain dying in my inexplicable obsession with the Twilight Saga, i still had my knack for reading. I imagined the actors as the characters i assumed they would play, and was falling in love. It's a pretty interesting storyline, filled with humor, and quirky characters. Exactly the kind of book i needed for vacation.

I finished the book in a day, and once i got back to civilization in San Francisco, i started doing some research on the movie. the first thing i came across was that this is actually a book written for the young adult crowd (ding ding ding, that must be why i read through it so rapidly). one small stab to that pride of mine. the next info i discover is that the movie is taking place in japan. in JAPANESE. (the actual novel takes place somewhere on the east coast). why you ask? i have no idea. i guess those japanese film companies swooped it up before we could. it most likely will never be released in the U.S. sigh.

that's the last time i'll be duped into reading a book under false pretenses. thanks roomie. cough cough. well if nothing else, at least i can muster up some enthusiasm for the fact that i actually read a new book this summer. even if it doesn't quite compare to my lengthy list well renowned classics. i should know that i'm too lazy to accomplish my overachieving dreams.

breakin all the rules

when i was a freshman in high school the movie "A Walk to Remember" came out. a story detailing an unexpected romance between Mandy Moore and the dreamy Shane West, it pretty much summed up the kind of stuff that i, as a teenage girl, lived for. i can very clearly remember sitting silently in my ceramics class and listening to all the older sixteen and seventeen year old girls talk about going to see it the weekend it came out and i was sooooooo jealous. being only fourteen, i was two years and a drivers license away from having the freedom to see movies whenever i wanted. i'm not sure what the circumstances were, most likely there was another more important comic book movie or something that came out, but my parents made it pretty clear that seeing "A Walk to Remember" opening weekend was not high on their list of priorities. devastated, i settled for what i thought would be the next best thing, buying the book and reading it. one chapter in and i was hooked, undoubtedly five or so hours later, i emerged from my room tearful, and holding the completed book in my hand. "A Walk to Remember" by Nicholas Sparks is a GREAT book, most definitely one of my all time favorites. the downside of finishing the book only made me want to see the movie even more. finally i was able to convince my mom to take my sister and i to see the movie the following weekend, and i absolutely HATED it. they ruined it. they took an amazing book, got rid of everything meaningful, changed characters, and tried to pawn it off under the same name. the next couple of weeks or so i argued with other girls about the quality of the movie, everyone else loved it. reason: they didn't read the book.

being an avid reader, i am completely aware of the saying, "the book is always better than the movie." and i completely agree, in most cases it is. it was at this point in my life that i created the rule that from then on i have very strictly followed:

if it's possible, always see the movie first, THEN read the book. that way you will not only enjoy the movie (having no preconceived expectations) but also love the book when you read it and find out how much more detailed and lovely it is. in my experience this always works. there is no doubt in my mind that if i have already read the book, i am going to hate the movie, and in all the situations where i have seen the movie first, i have loved both. the most recent example would be "Twilight." everyone insisted i read the books, but i waited until after the movie, and therefore i am still a fan of both. the dilemma is now, having read all the books, i probably won't like any of the other installments in the movie series. oh well.

the one possible exception in my past has always been Harry Potter. i started those books way before they were even expected to do a movie, so i couldn't help the order. but in most cases they have done a great job converting the books into the movies. it was probably this precise fact that caused me to go against all that i believe in and break my own rule.

i started rereading Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince, (mistake number 1) two days before the midnight showing (mistake number 2). WHAT WAS I THINKING? sadly i cannot answer that myself, i have no idea! (i nod my head in shame) the book was just sitting on my shelf, and clearly i have a problem rereading books, i just couldn't help myself. anyway with the book fresh in my mind, i went and saw the midnight showing (mistake number 3). needless to say i was the girl up in the front violently shaking her head, and making ridiculously angry over exaggerated facial expressions and body movements. thank god it was dark and most of the theatre was behind me. in that late hour, i felt like the movie had failed me.

but now i have calmed down, spoken to my sister (my official guide to all things harry potter) and have decided that i need to see the movie again. i have accepted my bad choices and am going to have to live with my mistakes. but i hope that with the book out of mind, and a couple week hiatus, i'll be able to fully enjoy the humor and bad ass scenes that so many other people loved. and if not, then i'll really know i hated it.

moral of the story: always read the book after seeing the movie.

OBSESSED!

Aaarry Pottaaah!

i've been a fan of Mr. Potter for many years now. i have read all the books, and obviously seen all the movies. i am definitely not as obsessed as my sister, but i still consider myself a pretty decent fan. the books came out ten years ago, meaning i pretty much grew up with harry potter, which basically puts me here: twenty two years old, and hardly able to contain my excitement about the release of the sixth movie. i've got my tickets to the midnight showing, my harry potter glasses, and every intention of drawing a lightening bolt on my forehead. sad, but i embrace it.

the sixth book was my favorite, and i think the movie looks really bad ass. i mean harry potter becomes such a BAMF in the last two books, how could you not be a fan? so here is to hoping the movie is truly as awesome as it seems like it's going to be.

2 DAYS!!

can i back that thing up?

i was a girl scout for 13 fabulous years. that's right, if you do the math correctly that is well into and through high school, and i am proud of it! if you weren't a girl scout you probably won't understand, but it's absolutely okay for you to be jealous. in fact that is exactly the emotion you should be feeling. girl scouts was an amazing experience, and i loved every minute of it. i bet you don't know how to chop wood with a hatchet and build a fire with just a pocket knife and mag bar. if you weren't jealous before, i am sure you are now.

anyway i must move on, because the actual topic of this post has nothing to do with girl scouts really. but to dwell on the point just a bit more, one thing you always did in girl scouts was everyone had to back their car in to all the parking spots. it's like the girl scout golden rule. even today i bet i could discover areas where girl scouts are camping, just on that one little fact. it was done for safety issues, i suppose in the case of an emergency evacuation, things would go just a bit more smoothly if we didn't have crazed mothers trying to maneuver their vehicles backwards. luckily i never experienced such an emergency situation, so i have no idea whether the concept is successful or not. but now onto the more important point.

as i was driving around in the parking structure at the movies a couple weeks ago, i noticed A LOT of cars backed into spots. obviously the first thing that sprung to my mind, was "wow, there are a lot of girl scouts here." but then of course my rational thinking kicked in, and i realized that at ten o'clock on a school night, most girl scouts are probably tucked into bed sleeping. then it occured to me, that all of these cars must either belong or have been operated by men. *ding*

Why do guys always feel the necessity to back cars into parking spots?

it's totally a guy thing. never once have i driven around a parking lot and thought "hmmm, let me take all this extra effort to back my car up, so it will be easier getting out later." yeah right, that's way too much thinking ahead for me. and then i remembered that any time i have let a guy drive my car, the same thing happens. they always back the car into the spot! does it save time? has that been proven? because if that's the case maybe i'll consider changing my ways. but still, i don't know if that's enough to push me over to the other side. i just don't get it. maybe it's a macho thing, that makes guys feel more manly. but seriously, go pump some iron or act like you have balls. trust me, using your smooth "one handed backing up into a parking spot" move is not going to convince me of your masculinity. in fact, the only thing i can think of as i watch you "back that thing up" is that you are a giant tool. i honestly cannot come up with any great reason why men feel it's necessary to always back the car in? so i have taken to my blog in hopes of getting an answer to this burning question?

Why?? Why must the car always be backed in? Why not think like a girl, and just pull right into the spot, and say "fuck it, i'll deal with backing out later."