A Very Potter Musical

http://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=a+very+potter+musical+act+1+part+1&aq=1


If you are a Harry Potter fan then you must watch this. This is a parody written by college students about the different Harry Potter books. It is quite brilliant with wonderful lyrics and well executed jokes. The script keeps everything moving and fits the random points together to make for a whole new take on Harry Potter.
With the newest movie, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, out in theaters this is the perfect time to watch this musical and really appreciate the theatrical arts.
There are certain people who really disapprove of the Harry Potter movies, believing that they don't do the books justice. But this play was designed to be very different from the books and the movies to appeal to the people who knew both and could appreciate the ridiculous antics that the characters do in this version.

It's a bit long because it is a full length play but it's well worth the time needed to sit through the two acts.

So have a sit, and watch the "totally awesome" musical!

Flying

It's needless to say that I was quite nervous the first time I flew alone on an airplane. What with the updated security and hussel and bussel of all the other people around you, it's pretty darn nerve wracking. I spent a little while reading articles about what flight attendants really think about their passengers and what security issues are amplified now and it made me even more nervous. But the day that the relatively small trip took place went by smoothly. And so this is my statement to all of you who have never flown alone but have to do so in the future.
Do no worry, and do not be afraid to smile and say "have a nice trip" to someone you have never seen before in your life. I did that, and someone told me I had a beautiful soul, it made my day. Also don't be afraid to sit back and watch the people in the airport itself. People watching may seem creepy, but really, it's kind of relaxing and it lets you know that other people are just as hectic and confused as you are.
Also make sure you bring something mindlessly entertaining, or entertaining in an intelligent way, what ever floats your boat. Try to bring a book though, because books are definitely better for you then a video game.
Happy flying!

Music

I love music. I've grown up with music flowing constantly around me. It fills me with the utmost happiness to dance around my room singing loudly to as many different songs as I can imagine. I played the fiddle for 13 years, I attempt to play the guitar, and other random instruments. So this is my shout out. Go and learn an instrument, go and sing your lungs out, even if you believe you can't.

Pick up a guitar and learn how to play a C chord, or a D chord. Put down the video games and the TV remote and make something beautiful that people can truly appreciate.
People now a-days don't appreciate music the same way they used to. We have guitar hero for those who are "musically challenged." We have auto-tuning for those of us who can't hit a pitch correctly. It's rather sad.
So please! Go and learn a song. Any song! Hallelujah is an easy song to learn on the guitar, and to sing. If your a guy play without a capo, if you're a girl, you may wanna use a capo for it. But do it! Have fun! Create beautiful music!

http://www.ultimate-guitar.com/tabs/j/jeff_buckley/hallelujah_ver2_crd.htm

The Scary Future

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1xHeqrjJ628

I am aware that I posted a blog about this just a little while ago, but it got re-established into my mind recently when I stumbled upon this video.
As a performer myself, I am slightly offended by this new form of "popstar." I understand that it is cool that this robot can "sing" and "dance" but it is not a being that has talent. It did not work and practice to achieve this level of "talent."
For people out there who are performers, they have generally spent their entire lives practicing and performing in order to become who they are today. And robots cannot replace that.
I do no think this is a good form of technology. I mean, have you ever seen AI? Or I, Robot? Those movies may have something when it comes to the future of technology. Bad things can happen. BAD things. So yes it's a ridiculous and funny video about a robot that sings and dances with real people dancing around it.
But remember that that robot did nothing to deserve the fame that it will get from this youtube video.
There are real people with far superior voices and far superior dance skills.

That is all.

The Future is Coming

So the human race is creating things at a new rapid pace. It seems like we are quickly reaching the "future."
From hand held face to face communication, to robots with "emotions," we are creating it all.
And now just recently we've created the car that can drive itself!

http://news.yahoo.com/video/world-15749633/driverless-vans-end-long-drive-in-shanghai-22681340


I like a lot of the new technology that humans have been creating, I'll admit it's a lot of fun. But if you really sit down and think about what it is doing to life as we once knew it, everything is getting a little scary. At least for me it is.
The family dinner table in many homes isn't a place to sit down and just be with the family. Generally the children have about 4 or 5 other friends at the table with them, through their phones. Texting, IMing, and skyping has taken over the way to communicate and in many ways it's made life easier to stay in touch. But what about staying in touch with the people right in front of you. It's hard for people to stay focused on one person, the actual person who is sitting and having a conversation with them, especially when three other people are texting that person.
It's like we have to be in 3 different places at once. We have to stay in touch with everyone 24/7 and that's really hard to do!

Technology is a blessing and a curse. That's all to be said. It helps and it hinders. And we all have to know how to use it correctly, or it can just become a nuisance to us, and the people around us.

Oh What a Wonderful World

I find it amazing that we have lived on this planet for countless years, and yet we are still discovering things in the world. I recently stumbled upon this short movie showing a new cave that was discovered recently and I was in awe of what people have discovered. This world is a magnificent place. Full of natural beauty and wonder. There is nothing more spectacular then what we have yet to find hidden in the natural confines of the earth.
I've explored caves before in my life when I was younger. I've gone up to old gold miners towns and getting tours of the caves, and my cousin had a hobby of going spelunking in the bigger more intense caves. But the caves that this short movie talks about are far beyond anything that I could have imagined.
Think for a moment about Superman's fortress, and now watch this link, and see it come to life.

http://whoknew.news.yahoo.com/?nc&vid=22589400

Potatoes

So everyone has their favorite food in life. Many peoples favorite food changes as they grow up, and many people can't decide what their favorite food is.
My favorite food hasn't changed in years, mostly because you can practically make anything from it.
This is my tribute to the wonderful food that is potatoes.
Potatoes may not be the healthiest food for a person when just on its own, but the beauty of a potato is that you can practically make anything from it. You can bake a potato, make it into a stew or even make it into a kind of pasta.

http://www.101cookbooks.com/archives/how-to-make-gnocchi-like-an-italian-grandmother-recipe.html


Potatoes have been the basis of so many meals for hundreds of years or more. They are a classic part of Thanksgiving, and the perfect part of a breakfast scramble.
Try to think about all the meals you've had where potatoes have been a part of it. I'm sure it's too many to count. The dishes you can make from them alone are numerous.
Potatoes are one of the best vegetables out there, and I swear they are one of the only foods I could not live without.

What's Happening in the world

As I was sitting on my Yahoo account trying to figure out something to write I saw two articles directly next to each other that I found slightly amusing, only by the fact that they were next to each other. One article is about a terrible storm that hit New York City this past week, and the other is about how the Bay Area is having an immense heat wave.
On Monday night a freak hail storm hit the areas of Brooklyn and Manhattan. The hail was approximately the size of quarters.  Last month the same area was hit with flash floods, just like what was occurring on Monday.
People had to run to get inside because the hail was so painful to be in.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/yblog_localnyc/hail-brings-brooklyn-to-a-near-standstill-in-a-freaky-fast-but-furious-storm

The Bay Area on the other hand is getting "excessive heat warnings" until this Wednesday. The temperature on the west coast is getting hotter and hotter. The North bay is getting Fire Warnings.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/yblog_localsfo/20101012/ts_yblog_localsfo/bay-area-weather-very-warm-today-red-flag-warnings-in-north-bay

So if you don't believe in global warming, or you think people are just overreacting to some minor weather changes. Think about it this way, even if global warming doesn't exist and this is all "perfectly normal" it's still not good for us, or the environment. There is still dangers, and people should still try to help out those "Crazy Global Warming People" just so that we can all sleep a little easier at night knowing our planet wont explode into a fiery blaze and then freeze the next night.

Invisible Children

This past Tuesday I attended a showing of a documentary on Invisible Children. The documentary showed the horrors that are currently going on in Uganda do to a group called the LRA lead by a man named Joseph Kony, who is now thought of almost like the boogie man. The LRA abducts thousands of children from Uganda and the surrounding countries every year. They are terrorizing the families and communities of these places and leaving the towns in ruin. Face to Face is an organization trying to bring help and relief to these places. They fund raise for schools, and scholarships for students so that those children who are there can have an education that can help them in the future.
One of the girls in the program from Uganda spoke about her past, and how happy she is now that she can attend school thanks to the program, Schools for Schools.
Her story was touching, and reinforced the fact that this is happening in our world. It reinforced the fact that people need our help.
www.invisiblechildren.com is the website where you can watch part of the documentary. Watch it and think about these children, and families, that are devastated by this war that has been going on for over 20 years.
Even if you feel there is no way for you to contribute to their efforts. The fact that you know about what is happening, and have those people in your thoughts will help. It will help spread the support that they are in need of.

Greek

For the past year I've been a dedicated watcher of a TV show called Greek. This show has been almost therapeutic for me. I watch it to raise my mood, to pass the time, and to get ideas for how I want to think about certain situations. It's kind of a ridiculous TV show and I understand that there may be a lot of people who think I'm crazy for loving it so much, but now more than ever, I enjoy this show.
I recently joined a sorority, Delta Delta Delta, to help myself become involved in CSU Long Beach and the community around this school. I moved down here from Northern California and knew only one other person who attends this school. I basically had no friends and no connections.
On move in day a few girls from TriDelta helped me move into my dorm room. They were so friendly and wonderful I decided to look into rushing, just rushing. I told myself it probably wasn't for me, and that rush could just be a good way to meet people.
In the four days that I rushed, I met more people than I had in the whole 3 weeks I'd been in Long Beach. I'd met more people that I liked, and I fell in love with a house.
The girls are nothing of the stereotype of a "normal sorority girl." So many of the girls that I've met are becoming fast friends of mine. They all have different personalities and hold a different position in the sorority, but because they are all together they make a wonderful group, or a family.
It isn't all about the social aspect though. I'm learning about the philanthropy that we will be doing for St. Jude's Children Hospital. I've never been involved in community service, I've sang at a church, but never really set out to do something beneficial. In this way my sorority is helping me give back to the community and know that I am making a difference.
There is one last benefit that I find in the sorority, and that is tradition. I love that I am part of something that is old enough to have a sense of tradition. I love that we have rituals that I know women have performed for years, and will be performed for years to come.

Nip/Tuck

So I've been watching a show called Nip/Tuck for the past month or so and have become quite enthralled in it. It's about two men who perform plastic surgery and how their lives form around their practice, and the hardships that are dramatized about their lives.
Most of what happens in the show is rather ridiculous and is only thrown in for shock value, but some of the show is actually fascinating and thought provoking.
I find it amazing how present day people seem to have it ingrained in their thoughts that they are inadequate. That to be better in life, one has to make oneself look better artificially. Humans are constantly trying new ways to improve themselves, but plastic surgery may be taking it a step too far.
People start losing who they really are when they start changing their outside image permanently. Liposuction may be a necessity for some people, as might a nose job for someone with the unfortunate problem of having his or her nose broken. It's the breast augmentations, altered cheek bones, and face lifts that strike me as being an excessive beauty treatment that might cause more harm in the long run then good.
People should try to embrace their self image. If we raise our children in a society where they instantly are taught that hating oneself is perfectly normal and a quick fix is all that is needed, then we are raising a population of self mutilating depressed people.
I myself have caught myself looking in the mirror trying to imagine what I would have done to my face or body. I would have my chin reformed, remove the "extra" that I inherited from my father. That in itself is a problem though. My chin is what makes me look like my father. My cheek bones come from my mother. If I change my face I am losing my family appearance, my connection to the my ancestors.
I believe plastic surgery should be taken into consideration only if your body has been seriously altered by some outside force, or if you have some sort of life changing part of your body that needs to be removed.
Overall I find it a little sad that so many people in today's world find it necessary to change themselves to be accepted and found more beautiful. Diversity should be thought of as beautiful.