Happy day

I found out a few days ago that I got into the ARC Masters and certification ed program at SPU. This is how I feel about it:

Love this

Photography scavenger hunt. If you've got a digital camera, you can make a date out of taking pics. Pick a theme and objective. For instance, go to the park and take pictures of the 10 most obese pigeons you can find.

~Courtesy of the stumbleupon toolbar and a website I can't recall the name of

I want to be an Irish dancer when I grow up...

Learning to Irish dance is my new life goal. I took Maslyn, one of the girls I babysit, to her dance practice today. This was the second time I had done so, and each time I'm more and more enamored of this kind of dancing. It resembles ballet in that it has hard shoes and soft shoes, but otherwise it is much harsher and regimented than ballet is. But still, I love it. I love how it looks, and I love how I feel when I do some of the steps.

Rainbow cake

I will make this cake one day:

http://omnomicon.blogspot.com/2009/01/how-to-make-rainbow-cake.html

My new favorite thing

Why is it that a new cardigan can make me feel like a whole new person? I suppose it could be because I haven't purchased new clothing in quite a while. But, I think it also has something to do with the fact that it has RED flowers and looks very pretty and put together. I think I've subconsciously looked for a cardigan just like this one for a long time. And now I've found it!

Why are there two "i's"?

Let me start by saying I've never been a lover of video games. Reading was always my most time-consuming activity.

My brief history with video games can be found below:

1. As a preteen, I had a fleeting addiction to the shooter game Goldeneye. My friend, Michelle, owned it, so I played it whenever we got together.
2. My three brothers and I went through a period where we compulsively played our Toy Story 2 computer game.
3. And all my life, I've loved Mario, Luigi, Yoshi, and all those lovely characters.

That's about it.

But now, here in Seattle, I have hardly ever played them. The occasional Tetris game satisfies my minimal need for them. Which is why I'm a little astounded at my recent obsession with the Wii. WiiFit--specifically the balancing games--is so darn addicting. I played one called "Table Tilt" too many times to count the other night while babysitting.

It would be dangerous for me to own a Wii, I think.

Little Max

I am now the nanny for an adorable five-year-old boy named Max. He has a slight lisp, the makings of a uni-brow, and a vivid imagination.

Yesterday, I played with him and his sister, Grace, for a few hours. We were paging through one of their family photo albums. In some of the pictures, Grace was two years old or so, which prompted Max to say "I wasn't alive yet." This is what ensued:

"I was still being made. God was making me in his workshop. He was stapling me together." His hands go up to his forehead in a stapling gesture.

Can you say adorable?

Today, he and I decorated and played with his new monster trucks. We also played with blocks, Hot Wheels, and read a few books.

Right about now, I'm so grateful that I grew up playing cars and Star Wars with my three younger brothers.

Revolutionary Road

Leonardo Dicaprio and Kate Winslet are finally together in a movie again. It's one of the most somber, provocative, brilliantly acted masterpieces I've ever seen.

I read in a Seattle Times article that both actors had difficulties doing the "yelling" scenes because they're such close friends and had never raised their voices to each other, that they could remember. But, watch those scenes, and you are immediately convinced that they are feeling and thinking everything their characters are. The raw emotion present onscreen is mesmerizing. I would watch it again for that reason alone.

You can read the article here:

http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/movies/2008577807_zmov01winsletdicaprio.html

"A Whole New World"

Um, you just have to watch this and see for yourself why I'm enamored with this guy. Well, not enamored. More like... stupefied?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t9-CS2v8wcc

Yes, I will go to Nebraska with you!

I saw the movie Yes Man last night. And, unexpectedly, it inspired me. Jim Carrey and Zooey Deschanel play the lead roles as Carl and Allison. Carl is plodding through life, barely acknowledging his close friends and making a nightly trip to the movie store. He's merely existing. Then he goes to a "Yes" seminar and resolves to make some big changes in his life. He meets Allison by chance at a gas station and is attracted to her passionate, out-of-the-box philosophy on life. At 6:00 am once-a-week, she hauls herself out of bed and takes a group of photographers running through the park to capture blurry, scenic photos as they exercise. She's part of a band that has a five-person following, but continues to perform every week because she loves it. She rides a motorized scooter everywhere and always opts for the unconventional. She's exuberant, fun-loving and everything he isn't, and he finds her fascinating.

At one point, Carl and Allison decide they want to travel somewhere for the weekend, so they go to the airport and ask to leave on the soonest flight available, which just so happens to be middle-of-nowhere Lincoln, Nebraska. They look at each other for two seconds and decide that it sounds like an adventure waiting to happen. THAT. RIGHT THERE. That part of the movie made my jaw drop with jealousy. That's my idea of fun. I hope I marry someone who's spontaneous like that. Assuming we have the money and the time to do wacky things. :P


If I did a bunch of random things I've always--or just recently--wanted to do, here's what they'd be:

1. Learn how to Irish dance.
2. Go white water rafting again. Multiple times.
3. Run a half marathon.
4. Learn to play the violin well.
5. Take a photography class and then buy a very nice camera.

I'm sure there are more, but that's just a little taste. Although I don't really have the resources to do most of those things right now, I know what I CAN do. I can resolve to be dissatisfied with a boring old routine. I can resolve to stretch myself and think unconventionally at times. Life is meant to be lived not tolerated. That was the basic gist of the movie, and I couldn't agree with it more.