Horrrible [CLASS] Field Trip

My not particularly bright [class] teacher decided to make us all (all of the agriculture classes, actually) go on a field trip to Cornell. It was mandatory, and part of our grade. My one friend managed to weasel her way out of it, but then she had to write a research paper.

As you know, I've already missed two days of school this week, and was not that happy at missing another. But what can you do? I asked Ashley to get my homework for me, and after homeroom went down to the cafeteria. 

It was 30 degrees out this morning and raining, which was not particularly promising for a great day.

I fell asleep on the way there. 

The first place we went to was to the (dormant) apple orchard, while a guy called Dr. What'shisface Justincasesoasnottooffendanyone Pseudonym rambled on about root structures and grafting and pesticides while we stood in the rain-sodden grass and caught pnemonia.

A NOTE: Some of these topics might be kind of interesting if they were standing alone, but the rain ruined any fun, and I'm not allowed to enjoy it, anyway, as that would make me an agriculture freak. Again, not that there's anything wrong with agriculture, that's just not my interest and also not the image I want to present to the world. 

Then, after an hour or so of torture disguised as academics, we got back on the bus and rove to the Cornell "plantation". The name plantation is misleading. It's actually a garden.

Admittedly, I liked this place the most, though it was kind of hard to fully appreciate it with the dull lectures, cold rain, and idiotic boys. My favorite gardens were the herb garden, which had an English/Oxfordian feel, the summer garden, with its yellow dogwood and giant magnolia, and the rhododendron and azalea garden, because of the beautiful lenten roses. 

Afterwards, we went to the lab of Ornithology. I love watching the birds and playing with the telescopes, but at the time I rathered to be with my friends...not that I could find them, as they all mysteriously disappeared. 

For lunch we went to the Ithaca mall. The table was full so I sadly ate my bag lunch alone at another table because I'm too mild mannered to tell them to budge over and let me sit down. I'll have to work on being ruder. 

But then Tirzah, Julia, and I all went to Borders for about ten minutes, which really lifted my mood.

But then we toured a sheep farm and a beef cow farm, and listening to dull lectures in the cold amidst noisy animals and the smell of livestock quickly served to make me miserable again. 

I fell asleep on the bus ride back again. 

There's No Place Like Home

I am so happy to be back. Nothing beats coming back from a vacation and getting back into routine and work and stuff.

Yes, I know, this is an atypical reaction. But frankly, vacations are great and all, but home is where I'm happy. It's where I know how to act. And I don't just mean my house, I mean school, too. I got to see all my friends today, as well as my non-friends and people I don't know. I also saw my teachers, and got a bunch of lovely homework. And I saw my sister and got into a large fight with her (at home). And I saw my first track meet, which drove any last possible urges to join track straight out of my head. And I also saw my room again, which is the best place in the world, truly it is. My room is the epicenter of the universe (well, at least my universe, which is admittedly rather small. But at least they know me here.)

Three cheers for home, everybody! 

I wrote a short bit of a story a few days ago. Actually, I couldn't put it down and was scribbling on it on a bench in the park and during dinner (this was in Sanibel). It's not that great, but I just had to get the idea out. I might post it, I might not...it's kind of long, and not my best work ever. In fact, it's rather disjointed, as I started slightly before the climax of the story again. I don't know why I always start there rather than at the beginning. It's difficult to write a story backwards.

Oh, and did you hear? Tamora Pierce's latest book came out: Beka Cooper: Bloodhound. I can't wait to read it, as this is my favorite series yet. I love Tamora Pierce books, but at least I'm not quite as obsessed as Ashley. She has almost all of them except three...and there are at least twenty. *grins*. Though, honestly, I wouldn't mind having all of them either (with the exception of the Circle of Magic Series. The characters really bug me in that one, and I'm trying to put my finger down on my problem with it. I haven't had much success yet, but for some reason the people just bother me.) I have been planning to get Beka Cooper: Terrier for a while now, but I may have to just buy it for Ashley and save up for another copy for me. Ashley's birthday's in May, and that's what I'm intending to get her (which is obviously much better than last year's present, or at least longer lasting. Last year I got her Little Debbie Nutty Bars--they were gone in a week, let me tell you.) 

I'm also following another incredible series...this one is the Fablehaven series by Brandon Mull. (In case you haven't guessed, I'm a fantasy freak). These books are written really well. They have realistic characters and exciting plot lines, and the world that is created in them is really well crafted. The fourth book recently came out, and Emme got it for me for Easter (I guess I should be nicer to her, huh?) It was amazing! I was afraid to start reading it because I was worried that the author might screw up the plot or the mood or the characters, like another author did to a really good series. That worry didn't last long, of course. I'm glad to say that the book did not disappoint, though the betrayal at the end was hard. And it was one of my favorite characters, too! *sob*.

One last thing: Shannon Hale conducted an interview of Brandon Mull, and frankly, it's pretty funny. Here's the link. 

Well, fare well, wherever you fare, and may the wind under your wings bear you where the sun sails and the moon walks (This is the polite thing to say among eagles - I'm just as wise as Gandalf. The Hobbit - an awesome book. If you haven't read it, you must). 

Till your eyries receive you at the journey's end! 

Sanibel

What a week this has been! I can't believe that I only have two days left here. It's depressing ... though, admittedly, I do kind of miss home ... and all the books I forgot to bring. 

The prime activity I've done this week is bike. Bike, bike, bike. Yeuch. I am so exhausted at the moment that walking across the room is an Olympic feat. 

We went to J.N. "Ding" Darling reserve two days ago, where we went canoeing with Sid, Sadie, Aunt Peggy and Uncle Jeff. It was pretty fun, though I started to bake towards the end. We saw starfishes, egrets, and striped fish. We also saw two three foot long fishes jumping out of the water! It was incredible! (Though I was slightly disappointed that they weren't dolphins.)

We went to the time-tested Trailer Park, which is a small zoo. There are parrots and ducks, and even a few lemurs. It was nice, as always, but I've seen it several times before, and was, consequently, not that interesting.  Pumpkin and Fred the macaws are my favorite.

 Tennis is harder than it looks.

There's a lighthouse only a little way from us that we biked to yesterday. There were some parasailers by it. It looked like so much fun. I would love to do that. 

Today we biked to Sid's condo and went swimming. I got even more sunburned than I was already, which is just lovely, isn't it? I feel like a lobster. Owww...

Goodnight, kids. I'm too tired to focus for any longer.

Ocean

I spent a good portion of my day at the beach. The rest of it was walking to the bike rental, three miles away.

I much preferred being at the beach, though, kind of obviously. The water is incredibly shallow for ages, and really warm. Also, the waves really aren't that big. I must have been in the water for an hour, jumping into waves. The highest wave was only slightly taller than me, which isn't that big if you think about it, and especially if you're jumping it. And methinks there was only one or two waves like that, actually. 

I'll try not to make you jealous. 

Seriously, though, what I'm enjoying the most is being able to go outside and not have to brace yourself for colder temperatures. And everything is so green. It's so alive down here! Also, there are tons upon tons of lizards everywhere. You can see them every ten feet on the bike path, and there's more hiding in the trees. I really don't know what to compare them to up north. I don't think they have an awesomeness counterpart, unfortunately. 

I haven't tried to catch one yet, and I don't think I'll be able to. They're incredibly fast.

Lighthouse Cafe all the way! 

Planes, Trams, Unstable Suitcases, and Sanibel At Last!

After going to bed at 11:00 last night, I still had to wake up at 6:00. I can be so brilliant some times. But it didn't really matter, apparently, since it's eight o'clock and I still haven't crashed. Though the couch is very comfortable, and the warm breeze from the ocean is relaxing...

But I'm getting ahead of myself. 

I hate flying, I've decided, though it's okay if you have a window seat. If you're stuck in the middle, however, it can get really gross. Ginger ale helps, and that's pretty much all that I ate today...excluding complimentary peanuts and chocolate. 

In the Detroit airport, we got temporarily stuck on a tram. We got to our station, but the doors wouldn't open, and the emergency open wouldn't work. Eventually we got off, quite a ways from where we wanted to be. We don't know what caused it.

I am incredibly uncoordinated. I kept running my suitcase into things, including myself, other people, and stationary objects. 

Flying from Detroit to Atlanta, someone had a seizure on the plane. I didn't see, but we were worried that we'd have to land somewhere else. We didn't have to in the end, though, because we were close enough to Atlanta. 

From Atlanta to Fort Meyers, we got rerouted around the thunderstorms over southern Florida. It didn't delay us, and I barely noticed. I ususally find it hard to sleep on air planes, unless I can lean against the wall, as I did today. That was incredibly relaxing, actually, and I didn't feel sick. 

And now, it's eight thirty in Sanibel, Florida! It's pouring and thundering out, but it will be gone by tomorrow (or so my sources tell me), and as I wasn't intending to go out anyway, the breeze and the smell of tropical rain is just so...perfect. *happy sigh*

Who wants me to bring them back shells? 

Thyme Flies

I am in love with this picture. 

Update

In case anyone cares, I occasionally change the Random Question on my profile. Like I did just now.

It's retarded, but if anyone cares...then there you go.

Easter Sunday

Emme woke me up early today, to my extreme disappointment. I love sleeping. However, I was eventually glad that she did, because I got four insanely awesome gifts. One was chocolate. I gave up chocolate for Lent, so I have been waiting for this day forever. The second was a red sweater!!! I have been waiting forever to find a red sweater, and at long last, I have one! Seriously, just that was enough to make my day! But then, Emme gave me two insanely awesome books in series that I am following doggedly: Fablehaven, and Pendragon! I spent all day reading the fourth Fablehaven. It was incredibly stressful, horrible, and awesome. It was the best book I've read for ages, and left me wanting to simultaneously hug and kill the author. Agggh!! 

In the morning, we went to a little chapel in Vesper, a church my grandparents go to. It was rather nice,  though the lady at the door creeped me out slightly. 

Did I mention that it was about 30 degrees out, and that my outfit was comprised of a knee length linen skirt,  a thin sweater, and flipflops? Not well planned, but thanks for trying, Mom. Thank god for leggings...

Easter Brunch is  always the best part of Easter. It was comprised of monkey bread, fruit salad, and an insane breakfast pizza. I'm making you jealous of my family's cooking skills. Your mouth is watering,  and yet you know that no food can be as good as the deliciousness that I am describing...bwa ha ha! 

Happy Easter!!! Enjoy your bizarre egg-toting rabbits and copious chocolate consumption! Yay!!!

My Biology Story

This is for you, Dad.

For Biology, my teacher had us write an educational children's book on ecology, as mentioned before. Because of the OVERWHELMING requests of my THOUSANDS of readers to hear this story, here it is.

Ellie Finds Her Place in the Ecosystem

Ellie was a little girl who wondered what her place in the ecosystem was. One day, she decided to go walking in the woods to figure it out. As Ellie was walking, she came upon a patch of flowers.

“Hello, flowers!” she said. “How are you doing on this lovely morning?”

The flowers did not respond, due to their conspicuous lack of larynxes, but she imagined that they replied with a jaunty “how d'you do? I'm fine too!” and a wave of their pretty little petals.

“What's your place in the ecosystem, flowers?” Ellie asked them. Again, they didn't not respond, but she imagined voices for them.

“Why, Ellie,” they replied, “our place in the ecosystem is as producers.”

“What are producers?” she asked.

“Producers are organisms that make their own food from light energy and natural resources, silly,” the flowers replied. “Everybody knows that.”

“And flowers,” Ellie asked, “What's my place in the ecosystem?”

“We don't know, Ellie,” they answered.

Ellie kept walking.

Ellie came up to a pond.

“Hello, leeches!” she said. “How do you do today?”

“Lovely, Ellie!” they chirruped.

“What's your place in the ecosystem, leeches?” Ellie asked.

“Our place in the ecosystem is as parasites, Ellie,” the leeches responded in their high, squeaky voices.

“What's a parasite?” Ellie asked.

“A parasite is an organism that survives by living and feeding on other organisms,” the leeches replied.

“That doesn't sound very nice!” Ellie said.

The leeches thought about this, and then answered, “Hey, don't begrudge us. It's our ecological niche!”

“What does that mean?” Ellie asked, eyes practically bugging out of her head.

“An ecological niche is the specific role played by an organism or population of organisms,” the leeches dutifully defined.

Ellie pondered this, and then asked excitedly, “What's a population?”

The leeches exchanged glances.

“Yes, Ellie, we could play this game all day long, too,” they said. “But hadn't you better get to the point and get on your way?”

“Okey-doke,” Ellie responded. “What's my place in the ecosystem, leeches?”

“We don't know, Ellie,” they responded, and then attached themselves to her lower leg.

Ellie kept walking.

Ellie came up to rabbits half in and half out of their holes.

“Hello, rabbits!” she said. “What's your place in the ecosystem?”

“Hello, Ellie,” the rabbits said. “Our role in the ecosystem is as a population!”

“What's a population?” Ellie asked.

“A population?” the rabbits queried. “A population is all of the individuals of a single species that survive in an area.”

“What's an 'area'?” Ellie asked, staring vacantly and drooling.

There was an awkward silence.

“What's my place in the ecosystem?” Ellie asked.

“We don't know,” the rabbits chorused.

Ellie kept walking.

Ellie came up to a rock.

“Hello, rock!” Ellie said. “How are you doing today?”

“Just fine, Ellie,” the rock said, miraculously acquiring a voice.

“What's your place in the ecosystem, rock?” Ellie asked.

“My place in the ecosystem as an abiotic factor is as a habitat to small decomposers,” the rock replied.

“What does 'abiotic' and 'habitat' mean?” Ellie asked.

“'Abiotic' things are the non-living parts of an environment,” the rock said. “A habitat is a home.”

“What's my place in the ecosystem, rock?” Ellie asked.

“I don't know, Ellie,” the rock replied.

Ellie then lifted up the rock to talk to the decomposers.

“Hello, decomposers. What does your name mean? I know Beethoven was a famous composer!”

“A decomposer is an organism, generally a bacterium or fungus,” the tiny creatures yelled collectively, their calls a little less than a whisper, “that consumes dead organisms or organic waste.”

“Neat-o!” Ellie said.

“What's my place in the ecosystem, decomposers?” Ellie asked them.

“We don't know, Ellie,” they responded.

Ellie dropped the rock back onto them. Their screams (“I'm being crushed! I'm being crushed!) were muffled by the stone.

Ellie kept walking.

Ellie then came upon a mountain lion, laying peacefully on an abiotic piece of ground.

“Hello, mountain lion!” Ellie greeted him cheerfully. “How do you do?”

“Lovely, Ellie,” the mountain lion replied.

“What's your place in the ecosystem?” Ellie asked with a smile.

“My place in the ecosystem is as a carnivore,” the mountain lion said.

“What does that mean?” Ellie asked.

“A carnivore is an organism that feeds on other animals for food,” the mountain lion replied. “I am proud of being a carnivore.”

“That's cool,” Ellie replied. “But what's my place in the ecosystem?”

“I know, Ellie,” the mountain lion responded.

“You do?” Ellie exclaimed excitedly. “Great! No one else knew! What is it? What is it?”

The mountain lion leaned in very close.

“Ellie, your place in the ecosystem is being the prey in the food chain!” he said happily.

“What's THAT mean?” Ellie asked excitedly.

The mountain lion said: “A food chain is a representation that identifies the specific feeding relationships among organisms. And prey is what is caught and eaten by the predators, who are carnivores.”

“What's a predator?” Ellie asked, shortly before she was consumed. But don't worry: it's a happy ending, because Ellie found her place in the ecosystem at long last.

THE END

Golden Chiffon Cake

Today I baked a golden chiffon cake as a dessert for Easter supper. It is like a lemon angel food cake. I know you're jealous. You are marvelling in its golden super-fantabulous splendor. I am the awesomeist! Bwa ha ha! 

Oh, and a round of applause for Dad for helping me out with the egg separation and my lemon zesting woes. *clappaclappaclappa*

Don't deny that you're insanely envious of my skills. I'm used to it.

The Music Technician Screws Up

Friday night at 6:00, I went to the church to help out with our Confirmation class's performance of the Live Stations of the Cross. A prayer would be read in the pitch black church, and then a spot light would come on, showing a freeze-frame scene of one of the stations of the cross. Then, in the 45 seconds of setting up before the next reading, music would be playing (Gregorian chants, actually.) I was the music technician. (Woo hoo! I don't have to act!)

The show started at 8:00. We had plenty of time for rehearsal and costuming. During the rehearsal, I set up in the choir loft with the CD player. I did a pretty good job with my fade-in-fade-out techniques, though a few times I came in at the wrong time because one of the readers was playing with their flashlight (one of my cues), or Mr. Paccia turned on or off the spot light in to help some one see(another cue of mine). But it went well.

Several minutes prior to the start of the show, people started coming into the choir loft! They weren't supposed to do that, and I had all my stuff set up there! I tried to gesture for them to go back down, but they just came up. One guy actually sat down next to me! I was freaking out because I did not want anyone watching me. Mrs. Downes then came up, thankfully!, and helped me move the stereo and such into the other half of the choir loft, where there is only one chair and no one was sitting. Whew!

It was pitch black in the church. I kept my fingers on the buttons and dials I had to use so I wouldn't get confused and push the wrong button. It went smoothly until just after the second or third stations. When the spot light went out, I was supposed play the music. I pressed 'play', but what came out was not Gregorian chants! It was some sort of jazz! I paused it as quickly as I could, and, panicked, felt around wildly for the emergency flashlight! It's kind of amazing that I figured it out so quickly. I pressed the CD 1 button that I'd seen earlier because I knew (hoped!) that that was where the CD was. I practically tore out my hair as it took forever to switch CDs. My theory for what happened was that I hit one of the other CD buttons in the pitch black and it changed CDs, and that was what played when I pressed "play"! 

After it finished loading, I tentatively pressed play, and it worked! I was so relieved, though still really flustered. The cue came really quickly, and I was glad to fade it out and turn it off. My heart was still racing and I was slapping myself in the forehead repeatedly. The rest of the show went really smoothly, though (I kept the flashlight on- thank god for that flashlight!)

Mom said that she didn't hear me mess up, but I still needed a second opinion. Mrs. Downes said that she heard it, but was happy that I figured it out.

I think I still need a third opinion, though...Who else heard it? (yikes!) Perhaps I should call Kat. 

Mr. Paccia gave us a pep talk/lecture before hand about reverence and really taking part in the event. Fortunately, it wasn't half as bad as he said it should be. He told us to physically feel the anguish of Christ. 

Hmm...that's a bit extreme, no? Yet another case of improper use of adverbs. *rolls eyes*.

At Long Last!

It is spring break, at very, very, long last! I am ecstatic bordering on delirious, for more than one reason. 

The first reason is that it is, finally!, sunny! I have been waiting forever for a warm, sunny day, and here one is! I LOVE YOU, MR. SUN!

The second reason is that I am obviously out of school.

The third reason is that I am going to a party tonight, at my friend Mary's house. It is Disney princess themed...don't ask...but at any rate, it should be tons upon tons of fun, though I may have to run out of the room when the Disney movies start driving me insane. Woo hoo!

The fourth reason is that I read my book today in Science, and it was well received. Oh, that's right, I haven't mentioned my book. Well, in Science, we had a project to write a children's book. Mine was exceedingly morbid (but very fun to write). 

THE CLASS LOVED IT!!!!! I am SO happy! Mrs. Kirk was slightly appalled, but in a humorous way that does not seem to imply a bad grade. I kept having small giggling fits while reading it. I edited out some parts, such as "etc, etc, the leeches said before attaching themselves to her lower leg" and "she stared vacantly and drooled." I, however, didn't leave out the part about Ellie getting eaten...that would obviously ruin it. 

As I was leaving the pep rally later, Mrs. Kirk saw me and said to another teacher (but also to me), "You've got to watch out for that girl...she's very different than she seems." That wasn't what she actually said, but it was along the same lines. It was really funny. 

Keep up with the posts...I'll be sure to write a lot in the days ahead.

Ghosts

Looking out the window

I search but can find naught to say

Mist curls and twirls and swirls

Trying to respond, but all I say is "oh."

Words are trampled by solemnity

As shapes weave and dance

And he tells from my dismissive stance

That I can feel only apathy

For him, watching as the fog holds me entranced

Pierced my heart with a white ghostly lance

Shades of a past Hades

And gone, devoured by the mist.

Grey Day

I can really only console myself about the grey skies and unfortunate precipitation by convincing myself that it's making things grow. Weather seems to have an irritating correlation with my moods. And on rainy days, I get depressed. It has been gray all winter, and most spring. 

Hmm...could this explain my lack of motivation to do anything, or my fatigue? How about my perpetual desire to go home, and when I'm home, my desire to go back to school? Hmm?

Yeah...that could be it. 

I was bored this afternoon, and a little jumpy. We are watching The Dark Knight in English class, and, yes, I know it's pathetic, but it creeps me out. Clowns are the freakiest things on the planet, seriously. So anyway, to alleviate my boredom and give me something else to think about other than gun-toting clowns hiding in my closet, I decided to make my own peanut butter. It was kind of gross, but tasted okay with jam on toast. =/ 

I now depart to spend the night at Ashley's house. It wasn't exactly my idea, but she's home alone until late, so I'm just keeping her company. 

April At Last

It was sixty degrees and sunny today. I am so happy. I just hope it stays, because I really want warmth and spring. The cold needs to go! 

The crocuses are up, and I found a beautiful iris by one of the trees in the back yard. It won't be long until the daffodils are here, too. I'm glad that it's finally turning green again. 

You know what, I'm so inspired that I'm going to write a haiku.

Grass still brown and dead

Leaves conspicuously gone

But flowers are up.

Hmm, I wouldn't exactly  call it a masterpiece...but it works.