Claire

[FONT="Arial"]Right now I'm reading Dracula, and I'm loving it so so so so much. I already adored vampires, so the original story was bound to become a favorite of mine. It's probably just the League of Extraordinary Gentlemen portrayal of her that's giving me this opinion (in fact, I know it is, haha) but whenever Mina Harker is mentioned I'm like "you're such a badass!"

[quote name='Rachmaninoff']Oh you won't get any argument from me, the singer has a fantastic voice[/QUOTE] [FONT="Arial"] I knoooow! I'm still slightly mad that she got kicked out of the band. She's so much better than their new singer. I haven't listened to much of Nightwish's new stuff, but I got as far as the vocals in one of the new songs and had to turn it off. It's just not the same. :[ I'm listening to "Janet" by Kiss Kiss. They're really good, but I wish the album had more to it. It only has nine actual songs and three random sound byte tracks. I love how this band has an electric violin player; when I first heard "Machines" I thought they had a whole string section and imagined this incredible gypsy band, haha. Now I'm listening to "Cats in Your House" by the same group. This is one of my favorites. I really want to put it to a Tom and Jerry montage, because some of the lyrics and general feel of the music reminds me of some classic cartoon "cat chases mouse" scene.[/FONT]

[FONT="Arial"]If you're going to insist on talking about genres, then do it nicely. No name-calling, no insults. Do not get overheated and lose control. Check yourself before you wreck yourself. If anyone has another outburst (ahem, Hunter), I'm going to have to step in for real. Play nice, please.[/FONT]

[FONT="Arial"]It varies. I hardly ever eat either cookies or crackers, but I do crave sweet or savory foods quite often. For several days in a row, all I had to eat at lunch was a peanut butter and jelly sandwich, a ton of fruit, and a Special K chocolate bar. That was really way too much sugar and fructose to eat as a meal, but I really don't have time to prepare anything...not sweet. I did start taking cherry tomatoes for a while, so that took care of my salty yearnings. Recently, I've been desiring sweet stuff. I must have overloaded on savory. I guess if I had to choose between a cookie or a cracker, though, I would pick the cookie. Crackers just don't appeal to me in general, hah.[/FONT]

[FONT="Arial"]Genres are so lame, you guys. I don't see how it's possible to classify every band you listen to perfectly, because I seriously doubt each band will fit all the genre criteria exactly how it should (according to whom, anyway?). Really, it just seems like such a waste of time to try to put your music into a bunch of different categories, and then get into little tiffs when someone disagrees with what you think. It's not important, in the long run. Music should be enjoyed as it is, without the bells and whistles of post-whatever-core and the like. [/soapbox] I've been listening to Godspeed You! Black Emperor; "Blaise Bailey Finnegan III" for the past fifteen minutes or so, and I like it, for the most part. Fifteen minutes, to me, is a little long for a song to last, especially when there aren't any vocals (other than a sampled monologue that plays intermittently throughout), but I've been sitting through it this whole time. I love how the instruments play quietly for a long time, then slowly build the tension during a more vehement part of the monologue, and manage to squeeze my heart as they climax. Beautiful.

[quote name='Heaven's Cloud']One of the better vampire related books I have read is Vamped by David Sosnowski. It is a humorus novel about a world populated almost entirely by vampires. It is more a chaacter driven story and less a traditional horror story, but it makes for a wonderful light and quick read.[/QUOTE] [FONT="Arial"] It's been a while sense I read this book, but I ADORED it. In all caps. There were times when I didn't really like the idea of the [spoiler]entire world being made up of vampires instead of humans[/spoiler], but overall I loved the originality of the story and all the characters. It was very refreshing to read, and now I'm rereading it for lack of anything new to check out. It was a very very sweet book, in my opinion, that made my heart smile again and again.

[FONT="Arial"]I'm fascinated by tattoos and piercings. I can't even fully explain why, other than they "look cool." How lame am I? Hah. I'd love to have some body mods in the future, but I don't really have any good ideas with any good reasons. The only piercing I've been wanting for a while would be in my lip, to the right of center. The only reason being that I like how it looks. I wouldn't mind having a tattoo of a rainbow colored nautical star, either, but only because I love how the different colors look. I can't figure out where I would place it. I don't want to just get a tattoo for that reason though. I'm too young right now, anyway, but I figure if I still think it's a good idea by the time I'm eighteen I might consider getting it done. I wish I was creative enough (and had important things to represent symbolically!) to design something meaningful for myself. However, some body mods really freak me out...like horn implants. Those are the worst, in my opinion; they look like those cartoon bumps growing out of someone's forehead. Just looking at pictures of them give me a headache. Surface piercings are pretty creepy, too. Especially when they're gauged. Guuuhh. Some places just don't need to be pierced, like your cheek, or your back. :[ I don't understand the appeal some people find in those kinds of mods. If I ever met someone with such, I wouldn't express any discomfort outwardly, but they'd definitely be hard for me to be around. It's okay to be "different," but why does that have to be synonymous with "creepy" sometimes?[/FONT]

[FONT="Arial"]Until recently I always saw no point in having regrets. If the present is fine, what would going back and changing the past really accomplish? Or, more logically, thinking about how much you wish something didn't happen? I'm more interested in the present and the future and keeping them as happy as possible. But I finally thought of something I wouldn't mind forgetting. When I entered high school my mom made me go to the school she taught at, which none of my friends went to. I was extremely shy and introverted then, so making new friends was near impossible. Somehow I found a couple of people I actually cared about with the same intensity as I did my friends at the other school. My sophomore year, one of them had transferred to a different school, and I never even saw the other, not even in passing. I couldn't handle being alone all over again, and my parents finally let me switch to the school all my friends went to. I haven't spoken to either of the two in over a year, and now I'm kind of wishing I had never met them because I probably won't ever see them again, and I just don't want to miss them. But really, I think it's better to have loved and lost than to never have loved at all. "Forget regret, or life is yours to miss."[/FONT]

[IMG]http://i227.photobucket.com/albums/dd177/nilsnectar/ldfnip.jpg[/IMG] [FONT="Arial"] The debut release of Canadian indie duo Lödersdorf. "From Nowhere in Particular" showcases the two members' years and years of inexperience with their instruments. Most of the songs are horribly composed completely by acoustic guitar and bagpipes. Only a few months after the album hit stores, the pair broke up from frustration at being constantly mistaken for a metal band. They later reformed, adding a tap dancer to the line-up, and changed their name to The Flirt.[/FONT]

[FONT="Arial"][CENTER][B]-chapter one-[/B][/CENTER] I can never have a nice night at work. Mostly because I still don’t understand how I got myself into this Pizzeria mess in the first place, but every now and then some pretty awful things occur. Like food inspectors coming to make sure everything is up to standards, and unfortunately for me, leaving two hundred percent satisfied with the place. Or even worse, food critics from all over the country showing up to find out for themselves why other critics called our pizza the best in the universe, then publishing reports that all previous reviews were “sadly under-exaggerating.” It’s them that I currently loathe the most. Without their praise, I would not be staring down the barrel of a fully loaded pizza rocket. She’s very unimpressed, I can tell, with the exterior of our little restaurant. I see her standing outside the glass door, staring up at the classy neon sign, most likely wondering why we couldn’t think of a better name than “The Pizzeria.” Every critic has gone through the same routine, so of course I figure she’s one of them. Other things are tipping me off, like the crisp navy business suit and leather briefcase. No average businessperson has ever dared enter this place. As soon as she opens the door, pulling slowly with a very regretful expression, the tiny bell dings and Selena bursts out of nowhere. “Benvenuto!” she exclaims, her usual greeting to new customers. I sense that the woman is not any less doubtful, though her face has become quite friendly. “Hi,” she smiles as she approaches the counter. Her eyes lock on me. “I’m looking for Lucio de Luca?” “He’s on break,” I say with the most joking tone I can muster. I may not be interested in dealing with a critic, but at least I can be moderately polite. Of course, Selena can be moderately obnoxious. “Not at seven thirty, he’s not. This is Lucio right here.” I give her a quick death glare while the woman laughs very unconvincingly. “Well, it’s a pleasure to meet you, Mr. de Luca.” She extends a hand. “I’m Angela Page, from the Food Network.” I nod and shake her hand, mentally arching an eyebrow. I didn’t think Food Network sent out its own critics. “Really?” chirps Selena, learning slightly over the counter. Angela casually sets her briefcase down, with a white Food Network logo facing us to prove it. “We’ve been reading some incredible reviews of your Pizzeria, and we’re very interested in featuring it and some of your recipes on a TV special.” Selena’s eyes widen, catching the fluorescent lighting and making their orange color very obvious. “Oh my god,” she beams, glancing at me. As a reflex to the shock, my eyes bulge even more than hers. Inside I’m screaming “NO” over and over again, but I try to play my reaction off as pleasant surprise rather than horror. My mind reels, trying to find a good way to decline the offer, but all I can do is sit in silence. However, the feeling that Selena is about to do all the talking for me breaks me out of my speechlessness. “May I have a word with you?” I ask her. She frowns at me, then turns back to Angela. “Sorry, we’ll only be a moment.” Every word is emphasized, telling me that she plans to have her way no matter what. “Can I get you anything?” Angela shakes her head. “I’m fine, thank you.” I step into the kitchen and shut the door behind Selena. We voice our opinions simultaneously. “I’m not doing it.” “You’re doing it.” We exchange glares, and she crosses her arms. “Why the hell not?” “Because I don’t want to!” “You never want to do anything!” I hear the door bell ring again, and even through the kitchen door and the aromas of spices and herbs, I can pick up Nils’ scent. Dammit. Selena grabs the handle of a sauce pot, staring me down. “Lucio, if you do not tell that woman you will do the show, I’m going to dump this pizza sauce all over you.” I smirk defiantly. “There’s nothing in there.” “Crap,” she mutters. Outside, I can hear Nils talking rapidly with his voice raised. His presence worries me. And of course, in less than a second he bursts through the door, his face shining with ebullience. “We’re going to be on Food Network?!” he nearly screams. “No!” I whisper snappily, moving to re-close the door. “He’s being stubborn,” Selena says, still holding the pot. Probably considering throwing it at me. Nils grabs me by the shoulders and lowers his head to look directly into my eyes. I recognize that look and immediately try to escape: he’s going to put on his most persuasive face and use whatever annoying mental powers he has to change my mind. Just like I expected, Selena swings the pot at my head and it connects with a deafening crack. It doesn’t hurt...unbearably...but the force of the blow knocks me to the floor. Before I can get up, Nils has me pinned. “Please, let’s do the show!” he grins. The waves of influence emanate out of him, his pleading eyes wide. Maybe it wouldn’t be so bad.... I squeeze my eyes shut and turn my head, trying to rid my thoughts of his intrusion. “Please!” he repeats, shaking my shoulders against the floor. Selena joins in, the two of them broken records as I struggle to get free. “Get off me!” I groan. Their incessant imploring lasts for a few minutes, and there is only so much of it I can take before I can no longer handle the grating on my will. At this point I feel like I’d do anything just to make them shut up. “Fine!” I shout, clenching my fists and forcing them to not fly into Nils’ saccharine face. “We’ll do the damn show!” In a flash, Nils lets go of me, and the two of them fly out of the kitchen. By the time I get to my feet and angrily slam the door behind me, Selena is shaking Angela’s hand vehemently. “We have Lucio’s blessing! Now since this is technically my pizzeria, I’ll negotiate everything....” She whisks Angela over to a booth to sign whatever contracts are necessary. Nils yanks the phone almost clean off the wall, his dialing fingers a blur. “Who are you calling?” I demand, though I know full well the answer. I rip the receiver out of his hand and slam it back on the hook. “Don’t tell Charlotte!” “Why?” he says, arms akimbo. “I don’t want her to know.” “Why?” I cover my eyes with my hand; it’s so irritating whenever he does this, and I’ve just about reached my limits for patience tonight. Already. “She doesn’t need to be involved. She’ll make a big ordeal out of it.” His lower lip pokes out, traces of persuasion rising in his expression again. “But--” “Don’t make me kill you.” He sighs and walks away from me. “Fine.” It’s not long before Selena and Angela return, the two of them looking quite pleased. Actually, Selena is smiling smugly, but I can detect some uneasiness in Angela’s eyes. “It’s all set!” Selena says triumphantly, turning to Angela. “I’ll get everything ready for you. We’ll be in touch.” Angela only nods, pulling a small card from her blazer pocket and putting it in Selena’s hand. She then mutters a quick goodbye, it was nice to meet us, and speeds out the door. We stand quietly until she drives away. “What’s her problem?” Nils says. Selena shrugs. “Beats me.” I scowl furiously and ignore them, walking away as they begin to celebrate their victory. But the familiar scent of Charlotte meets me, turning my anger into panic. I whirl around and she’s at the door, watching Nils and Selena inquisitively. “What’s going on?” she asks. I shoot an urgent glance at Nils, hoping that he can come up with a lightning fast excuse. Or at least that he keeps his promise to not tell her anything. Selena speaks up first. “We’re--” is all she can manage before Nils clamps his hand over her mouth. “We just served our, like, ten millionth customer,” he grins. Charlotte’s eyes narrow, and a jolt of panic flows through me as the corner of her lip curls. That’s her “I don’t believe you and I’m going to give you hell if you don’t tell me the truth” face, though most of the time she uses it whenever she feels like it. “What? We did.” I say, keeping all my anxiety inside. Her eyes begin to glow dimly. Selena catches on, pushing Nils’ hand away from her mouth to speak. “Dammit Nils, I wanted to be the first person to say it!” He sticks out his tongue at her. Charlotte’s expression softens, turning to mild annoyance. “Oh. Well...congratulations.” I mentally sigh and fall into a booth. Problem solved, I suppose. For now. [CENTER]---[/CENTER] “The show is called ‘Pizza Perfect,’” Selena tells me with a subtle eye roll. It’s just after two AM, closing time, and Charlotte is safely out of earshot. “Fantastic,” I mutter. “I know it’s lame, but I couldn’t change their minds.” She has a large calendar spread over the table and has decorated a couple of boxes with multi-colored star stickers. “We’ve only got two days to film,” she says, pointing to the stars. “The second day we’re supposed to give a public demonstration and serve some free pizza.” I frown so hard I feel like it might fall off my face. “We have a problem.” “Take a chill pill,” she interrupts. “We can spare a couple of pizzas. You don’t need to be so greedy.” “That isn’t it,” I retort. “Did you forget a very important detail about us?” She stares at me blankly. I throw my hands up and sigh. “We’ll just go out and film all day, then. Let’s disregard that we’ll be reduced to piles of ash at the end of the first hour!” I whisper emphatically, despite having no humans around to have to whisper for. “Like I said, take a chill pill! I took care of everything. We’re filming over night,” she assures, maintaining her casual tone. I sit back, grimacing. Damn. I was hoping that would be grounds to not do the show. “Listen,” Selena says, becoming serious. “I made sure it will be perfectly safe and enjoyable for us. You don’t have to worry.” “Hah!” I snort. “Enjoyable. Right.” “Oh, shut up. You always jump to the conclusion that you won’t like something, so you never do anything.” “Well, what is there to like about this? It’s just something else you goaded me into doing because you think it will be fun.” Her orange eyes darken, taking on a reddish tint. “If you are really that adverse to whatever I suggest we do, then you should really just ignore everything I say and not do it. But no, you always give in, and then complain everyone’s ears off.” “You wouldn’t let me forget!” I exclaim, grasping the edge of the table for leverage. “You would be angry with me for a freaking decade.” For some reason, this chases the red out of her eyes. “So you’d rather suffer through this than have me mad at you?” she asks, her tone suddenly cheery. “That’s so sweet of you, Lucio!” I remain silent, looking across the aisle out the dark window instead of at her. She’s right, though, I can be such a doormat at times. I fume wordlessly at myself, and the whole situation. “Give me your phone,” Selena says, reaching across the table. Still avoiding her gaze, I pull my cellular from my pocket and drop it into her hand. She rapidly punches the buttons, then tosses it back to me. “I put Angela’s number in your address book, so you’ll know to pick up when she calls. And you will pick up.” “Says who?” “Says the woman with the great big sauce pan.” I will my eyes to take on an irate tint. I doubt the color change is possible without enough of the real emotion to fuel it, but it’s worth a shot. Judging from Selena’s unchanged smile, nothing happens. “Whatever,” I mutter. She slides out of the booth and steps in front of me, leaning close to my face. “It’s going to be great. Trust me.” I look away in defeat. “Sure.” It’s going to be a long week. [CENTER][B]-chapter two-[/B][/CENTER] Charlotte says she’s bored. As it’s ten thirty in the morning with nowhere to go, so am I. But I could easily keep myself preoccupied by seething over the situation some more. Rather than do that and irk Charlotte to no end, I shove those thoughts to the back of my mind and try to focus on something else. “Aren’t you always bored?” I say, half-smiling to convey the joke. And it’s true, most vampires are constantly restless like this. Eternity definitely has its perks, but one can occasionally grow tired of its monotony; especially during the daytime, when the world outside our pitch-black bedrooms becomes dangerously off-limits. To combat the ennui, vampires usually just sleep from sunrise to sunset, which was actually near-impossible in my early years. Back then you couldn’t have your windows obscured all day without garnering suspicion of sin amongst your overly pious neighbors. Coffins were most necessary then, unless you were wealthy enough to have your own wine cellar. No matter where you slept, however, it was extremely difficult to predict exactly when it would be dark enough to leave our makeshift caves. All we had to tell time with were sundials. Hah. It’s perfectly simple now, since the advent of television. We just have to wake up a little while after whatever time the local weatherman forecasts the sun will set. “Lucio?” Charlotte says, snapping me out of my flashback. “Sorry,” I reply. “I was just lost in the past for a moment. She arches an eyebrow, the corner of her lip pulling upward. “Weirdo.” I chuckle under my breath, and she sits up on the bed. “Seriously, I’m incredibly bored. I don’t even know what to do with myself,” she sighs. On the nightstand, my cell phone vibrates violently. We both stare at it, she probably wondering who would call me at this hour, myself hoping to god it’s not who I think. I leave it alone. “Are you going to answer it?” Charlotte asks after a few seconds, her eyes locked on the phone. I fidget, then casually put my arm around her shoulder. “Just ignore it. They probably have the wrong number.” Please. Before I can stop her, she curiously picks up the phone and looks at the front display. I hold my breath and tense up, trying not to see the caller ID and confirm my fear. “Who is Angela?” Charlotte says suddenly, an edge in her voice. Shit. I rip my phone out of her hand and fly from the bed, my thoughts ricocheting off the sides of my brain like tiny rubber balls. “Uh, it’s....” is all I can manage before I find myself in the bathroom, and, without thinking, slam the door. As soon as my thoughts catch up, I figure I might as well lock it. I feel like my heart should be pounding, but I know the danger is not great enough to inspire such a human reaction in me. I lean against the wall and slide to the floor, flipping the phone open to accept the call. “Hello?” I say, my voice lowered uselessly. Charlotte would be able to hear everything I say - especially with her ear pressed against the door as I sense it is. “Hey, Lucio,” Angela’s voice responds. “Is everything all right?” I remember to breathe again, though I still feel sickly anxious. “Yes, I’m fine.” I try to keep my voice steady. “Okay, well, I just wanted to make sure Selena informed you of everything.” She doesn’t seem to care that, even though I am supposed to be the star of the show, I have absolutely no say in anything about it. As if Selena is my very own agent. As if intermittent pizza chefs even have agents. “Yes,” I say, clearing my throat. I rise to my knees so I can reach the sink to turn the water on, full blast. Just as a safety precaution. “Great, we’re working on local promotion for the demonstration, so once we figure out all the minor details we’ll let you know what’s going to happen.” “Wonderful,” I mutter. “What?” she says, volume increasing. “I can’t hear you, there’s too much background noise.” My hope is that the same goes for Charlotte. I stand and yank the shower curtain to a close, then twist the hot water knob all the way. “I said ‘wonderful.’” “What?” Charlotte knocks three times, impatiently. “Lucio, what the hell are you doing?” I press my lips against the phone and whisper. “We’ll talk later.” I snap the phone shut and hide it safely in my pocket, standing silently as warm steam billows around me. Despite the heat, my legs are frozen in place. I do not want to face Charlotte right now. I hear her move away from the door. Her eyes might be a burning shade of crimson instead of their natural emerald. The hue of anger in a vampire’s eyes isn’t really very intimidating to me, but whenever Charlotte gets that look, I’m absolutely petrified of her. Sensing that she’s left, I turn off every faucet and peek out of the bathroom. Her dark silhouette is waiting on the bed, like a hooded executioner. Slowly, I force one foot in front of the other, trying to return to the bed. I arrive all too soon, and find myself face to face with something scarier than death. “What the hell was that?” she demands. With her fiery gaze upon me, I find it impossible to think. There are no words that I could say that I don’t foresee leading to disaster. “That was the, um....” I stutter. “The...whatsit....” I wave my hand in a circle, beckoning the words that fail me. Charlotte’s eyes burn brighter. She doesn’t speak. “Damn,” I whisper. “It’s on the tip of my tongue.” “Mmhm.” She definitely doesn’t believe whatever I’m getting at. I don’t even know what I’m getting at, much less believe it myself. I gulp nervously. “Why?” I ask, keeping my voice and expression as nonchalant as possible. Still, she doesn’t respond. With words, I mean: the red lightens, intensifies. She’s getting more and more furious with each passing second. I inch past her towards my side of the bed. “There’s no reason for you to be mad. That was just....” I racked my brain again, desperate for the perfect excuse. “A food critic.” Well, that sucked. Her upper lip curls, creating a very enraged version of her expression of disbelief. “You’re lying.” I stretch out on the bed, frowning. “Why would I lie? You’re making a mountain out of a molehill.” “No,” she finally snaps. “You’re the one who made a big deal out of it by hiding in the bathroom and being so damn dodgy about it!” I crawl closer to her, deciding to take an enormous risk. “Cara mia,” I purr, reaching for her hand. She snatches it away and bursts on to her feet, her ire raging. “Don’t try that with me!” she roars. I shrink away, my eyes wide with fright. There is only one more thing I can think of to do to quell the situation. Hastily, I gather up my pillows and roll across the bed, keeping my distance from the smoking volcano at the other end. Without a word, I slink out the door into the hallway. Before I can even think about saying goodnight, Charlotte bangs the door shut in my face. As I head downstairs, I find it much easier to be mad, now that Charlotte isn’t leeching every bit of emotion out of the room. I’m mad at her for overreacting, but also at myself for giving her a reason to. And most of all, I’m mad at Selena for giving me a reason to give Charlotte a reason. Nils, thankfully, has the heavy curtains over every window pulled shut, so I’m at least safe from the sunlight. He watches as I drop my pillows on the couch, snickering to himself. “Did you bite too hard?” he laughs. “Shut up,” I groan, not in the mood to deal with any jesting. I never am, really, but now more than ever. “Just kidding. I could hear the whole thing,” he says. Meaning he was actively eavesdropping. I collapse on the sofa, covering my eyes with my hand. “At first I thought it was just Maury,” he continues, grinning ridiculously and pointing to the television set. “Shut up,” I repeat. For some reason I feel exhausted, though the only time I’d be capable of being so is when I go too long without hunting, and it hasn’t even been a week since my last “meal” yet. Nils muses, “I think that you could have saved yourself a helluva lot of trouble if you had just told her the truth to begin with.” I lie on my side, facing the back of the couch, and close my eyes. I know he’s right, goddammit. All I want to do anymore is get this moronic television show over with. And later, quite possibly, break into the Food Network’s film archives and destroy whatever footage they acquire. Nils would probably get a kick out of that. [CENTER] to be continued.[/CENTER] [SIZE="1"]This story kind of got out of control, haha. I definitely wasn't planning to use chapters, much less expecting it to go on for more than a couple of pages. (It stands at ten typed, as of right now, with at least five more for the upcoming chapter three). The only reason I'm posting this now is that I feel fairly confident that I'll get this story done. It's already three complete chapters in, and I've discovered that it's very easy for me to go on a writing spree while I'm at school. How soon chapter three goes up depends on either the responses I get, if any, or as soon as I finish chapter four. There will probably be a fifth chapter, but no more than that. It's the longest short story I've written for this "series," so I'm very happy with my current progress. And if you wanted to know, the title means "The Silver Lining."[/SIZE][/FONT]

[FONT="Arial"]I never really though of Florida having a regional cuisine or whatever. The main street through my city has about a thousand restaurants, many commercially owned but several locally. These range from Mexican to Chinese to seafood to southern to breakfast, etc. etc. I s'pose you could say there's a lot of southern food eaten down here, but I honestly wouldn't know. I don't think there's a statistic for it, and there certainly aren't a lot of "southern cooking" restaurants. It's probably just the part of FL I live in, which is very urban/suburban. I'd bet spanish/cuban food is pretty popular around here, though.[/FONT]

[quote name='Revelation'][size=1][color=#8B008B]You know who would make a good Bella? Ellen Page. I think she would've made a wonderful Bella.[/size][/color][/QUOTE] [FONT="Arial"]I haven't seen Juno yet, so I can't verify that. Hah. I hardly ever watch movies, so I can't think of actors that would be perfect for certain parts. I haven't even seen Gaspard in a movie, I just think he looks the part much more than anyone else in the whole world (...that I've seen, hah). When I first read the books I just imagined most of the characters as completely made up people, though some as people I know and others as complete strangers. I'll just see someone walking down the hall at school and think, "She looks like Bella!" and that will be who I envision whenever I read one of the books. [/FONT]

[quote name='Revelation'][size=1][color=#8B008B]And speaking of casting, I saw the choices for the cast and am a bit iffy on most of them. The one that I can see clearly is Rachel Leigh Cook as 'Alice Cullen.' I think she'd make an excellent 'Alice.'[/size][/color][/QUOTE] [FONT="Arial"]Haha, I was like "WAIT A SECOND WAIT A SECOND WAIT A SECOND" when I read that, cos' I thought you meant the official casting choices and I was shocked that it would have been done already. The only casting idea I had was for Edward, and I would've loved for Gaspard Ulliel to play him. I also think one of my good friends (the one who let me first borrow Twilight, haha) is secretly Alice. Whenever I reread one of the books I imagine her as Alice.[/FONT]

[FONT="Arial"]I've been in a few plays and musicals. I'm pretty much a drama kid. [LIST] [*][B]Into the Woods Jr. - Cinderella's Stepmother[/B] This was my first time ever performing, so I had no acting experience or anything like that. I really wanted to be Cinderella, but now I don't understand why. [*][B]High School: It's a Concept - various roles[/B] Drama 1 project. It was a pretty lame play. [*][B]Annie Jr. - Miss Hannigan[/B] Being the main villain was so so so awesome. One of my best friends, Becca, played Lily St. Regis, so it was even more fun getting to be evil with her. [*][B]Charlie and the Chocolate Factory - Veruca Salt's understudy [/B] I took solace in the fact that the girl who got Veruca was a senior (and one of the most talented actors my school has had) and that as a sophomore, I beat out other seniors and juniors and got to at least be understudy. Second best! [*][B]Alice in Wonderland - Tweedledum[/b] I auditioned for the Cheshire Cat, but this role ended up being a lot more fun. Probably because Becca was Tweedledee, haha. I believe I'm best in a mean/bratty role. [*][B]Sweeney Todd - Mrs. Oakley[/b] This was not the version Tim Burton remade, unfortunately. It was so lame. There weren't any characters I wanted to be, so I just got put as Mrs. Oakley. It was alright though, since it was a small part and Becca played my daughter. [/LIST] Right now my drama class is getting ready to work on another play, [B]Jolly Roger and the Pirate Queen.[/B] There aren't any parts that really scream at me in this one, but I'm really hoping to once again be cast alongside Becca as one of the Pirate Queen's best friends. It's a pretty funny play, and I'm really excited to get to be a pirate. I have to say I like acting a helluva lot more than being on the stage crew. For Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, all I did was try to move a sign off the stage, and it fell apart right there. After that I've been terrified to do tech stuff, even though it really wasn't that big of a deal. I've seen a couple school plays, but I got to see the touring cast of Wicked a couple years ago. During the part of Defying Gravity when [spoiler]Elphaba begins to fly,[/spoiler] I started BAWLING and could not stop until the intermission. It was the best thing ever. [/FONT]

[FONT="Arial"]I don't usually consider what I have "talent." I can play guitar and sing decently, but for how long I've been doing so I feel like I should be so much better than I am. To me, that's just a learned skill, rather than a talent. I used to think I was natural really good at acting, but I haven't been able to do it in so long (and I've also met people who are, of course, much better at it than I) that I don't really even know anymore. The only talent I believe I have is that I'm a pretty good writer. At least, for my age, and compared to other teenagers. My mom is an english teacher and my dad and grandpa have had journalistic jobs, so I guess it's just in the blood. A downside to that is always noticing grammatical errors and dying to correct them and stuff like that. Whenever I see the Nutrisystem "IT WORKS SO GOOD" commercial, or the Proactiv one where the guy was like "I put it on at night, and when I woke up in the morning...you don't have acne!" it hurts my heart.[/FONT]

[FONT="Arial"]Davey Havok (AFI, Son of Sam, Blaqk Audio) William Beckett (The Academy Is...) Anthony Green (Circa Survive, Saosin, The Sound of Animals Fighting) I don't really know how to describe why I love their voices so much. They're all very very good singers, and I can't really pick which one is the best out of the three. [/FONT]

[FONT="Arial"]A lot of my friends are going crazy over this movie and have seen it 3+ times, and are probably planning on going to see it again, again, and again. (Of course they don't invite me so I can find out what's so special about it for myself, harumph! jkjk) My friend told me his mom has a screener of it, so maybe I should just borrow that from him. Depending on whether or not I'd be able to actually see the movie through any kind of marking or whatever.[/FONT] [quote name='James'][font=franklin gothic medium]In my view this was sort of like a much wittier version of Napoleon Dynamite. Kind of.[/font][/QUOTE] [FONT="Arial"] I have no idea why I kept thinking that. I haven't even seen any previews for it and it still reminds me of Napoleon Dynamite! Maybe it's just that it's a purportedly funny indie film?[/FONT]

[FONT="Arial"]The title is pretty self-explanatory. If you have a myspace and have put music on it, you have a song history. So post it here. Here's mine, starting from when myspace first gained that ability to now. [LIST] [*][B]Nectar of the Gods; "Under the Milky Way"[/B] My band's cover of one of my favorite songs of all time. I wanted to promote us a little. [*][b]Blaqk Audio; "Stiff Kittens"[/B] I was absolutely obsessed with this one for a little while. [*][B]The Academy Is; "We've Got a Big Mess On Our Hands Tonight"[/B] I'm pretty sure this was up the moment I found out I could go to their concert, haha. [*][B]Saosin; "You're Not Alone"[/B] I just really really like this song. [*][B]The Academy Is; "Down and Out"[/B] I'm sure at the time it was up it was my favorite track from their Almost Here album. [*][b]Crepusculum; "Anachronism"[/B] This is an amazing guitarist that I found through myspace, whose music is very ambient. He didn't have my favorite song of his up, so I went with the next best. [*][b]Circa Survive; "In the Morning and Amazing"[/B] I believe this was up when I first got into them. [*][B]The Blood Brothers; "Cecilia and the Silhouette Saloon"[/B] I used to always skip this song if it came on shuffle, but one day I let it play. I LOVE the band's intro right after the electric one. [*][B]Circa Survive; "Act Appalled"[/B] My FAVORITE song of theirs, hands down. [*][B]The Medic Droid; "Fer Sure"[/B] My friend, who got me into The Academy Is and took me to see them AND AFI, made me and another friend listen to this song, and we had it stuck in our head for a week. It's awesome. [*][B]The Sound of Animals Fighting; "Skullflower"[/B] A friend sent this to me. I love Anthony Green a lot, hah. [*][B]Rufiomercutiopistachioadagio; "Lucio"[/B] I discovered this guy when I was looking for "Over It" by Rufio, I think. I listened to this particular song because it shares its name with one of the characters from my stories. I fell in love and put it on my myspace, where it stayed for at least five months. [*][B]Erik Satie; "Gymnopedie No. 1"[/B] This is a very pretty classical piano piece that reminds me of winter. [*][B]Goo Goo Dolls; "Iris"[/B] Another of my all-time favorite songs. Whenever I hear it I almost want to cry. [*][b]Kiss Kiss; "Dress Up[/b] I got their song "Machines" from a friend, and that was enough to make me buy the rest of the album. This song isn't my favorite (Machines is) but it's still a great song. [*][B]Explosions in the Sky; "Welcome Ghosts"[/B] Kevin told me to listen to this, so I did, and I promptly put it up. [*][B]Vitamin String Quartet; "A Favor House Atlantic"[/B] I was searching for a different string cover song, but I do like the original song and the string one sounded nice. [*][B]Blur; "Girls and Boys"[/B] I couldn't stop thinking about this song the other day, it's really catchy. [*][B]Circa Survive; "Act Appalled (acoustic)"[/B] As I mentioned, this is my favorite Circa Survive song. But this time it's acoustic, and absolutely amazing. Anthony Green makes it sound like a lullaby. [/LIST] You don't have to talk about all of them like I did, but it would be nice if you expounded upon a list a little.[/FONT]

[quote name='Gavin'][SIZE="1"]I've done that a few times looking for my regular glasses, and seeing as I'm blind as a bat without them it makes the search seem even more irritating. I guess that's one of the better things about wearing contact lenses.[/SIZE][/QUOTE] [FONT="Arial"] This happened to me this morning. I couldn't find my glasses because they weren't in the usual spot, and I couldn't see to find them. So I went in the bathroom to continue getting ready without them, and they were sitting on the sink. Then I remembered I had just gone in there and taken them off to wash my face, and for whatever reason I left without doing so and forgot the whole incident. Wtf.[/FONT]

[FONT="Arial"]Oh yeah! The school thing almost happened to me once. I woke up one morning to find sunlight streaming through my curtains, and I panicked because I have to leave my house at 6:20 AM, when it's still pitch black outside. I just laid in bed for a few minutes like "O_O!" before I remembered that it was Saturday.[/FONT]

[FONT="Arial"]I don't think I ever snack. There is either no snack food around here, no snack food I actually like, or no snack food that won't make me feel guilty after consuming it. The one thing I can think of that I actually do snack on every now and then are Flaming Hot Cheetoes. I just don't do it that often because A) they're called Flaming Hot for a reason, B) each bag has like 400 calories in it, and C) I can NEVER find them in a vending machine at school because everyone else likes them as much as I do. And they're not that easy to find at a grocery store, either. But when I do get them, I have to be careful not to down a whole package in one sitting because of reason B. :[ I think I mostly never eat between meals because I've become rather health conscious. Or maybe it's because I don't feel like spending a whole dollar on a bag of chips at school, or because I can't find a working vending machine. I really don't eat much of anything, anyway... Oh, sometimes I find myself craving Special K cereal like nobody's business, and when that happens I eat at least three bowls of it a day.[/FONT]

[FONT="Arial"]Pretty much everyday I will walk into a room and forget why I went there to begin with, or I'll think of something to say and not even a second later have no idea what it even was. My memory is so strange. I hardly ever remember small things like that, or instructions my mom will give me, or dreams. But I can write spanish vocabulary words once and never study, not even for the exam, and get a really high score. I can remember really useless information after hearing it the first time, especially in easy classes like health, Spanish, or Driver's Ed. It doesn't work for important classes, though, like physics or trig. Lame.[/FONT]

[quote name='Billy Shears'][COLOR="darkred"][SIZE="1"] They are plausible ideas, but I just don't see any of it sounding good. First off, having pre-recorded drums is going to look and sound bad. Unless you have a pro-quality track of them, its going to be hard for them to actually be heard over everything else and have them sound clear enough for the crowd and you. Second, running it thru your half-stack along with the guitar will make everything sound pretty cluttered. If you do go along with the pre-recorded drums, try and use a separate amplifier and them mike it up if there is a PA.[/SIZE][/COLOR][/QUOTE] [FONT="Arial"]The problem is that I have no friends who are good at playing drums. I'm not even acquainted with any drummers. So having a pre-recorded track playing is my only option at this point. The vocalist is good friends with a drummer, but now she can't find his number to get in touch with him. Assuming he'd be willing to help us out. Every time I've spoken to a musician, they're already in another band and don't have time to join another, even temporarily. I may be able to get another speaker, but I'm already having to borrow one for the bass, and I'm not sure if I CAN get another. Oh, and the drum track would at least sound real. I have Guitar Pro, which has a "realistic sound engine" that simulates guitar, bass, and drum sounds. It's not like a midi at all. [/FONT]

[quote name='Billy Shears'][SIZE="1"][COLOR="DarkRed"]There is bass, but it is played thru an amplifier with an MP3 player.[/COLOR][/SIZE][/QUOTE] [FONT="Arial"] This is what I was planning on doing for my band for drums, so it's good to know it works. Bass and drums are obviously different, but I've already had one band practice doing this and it sounds fine. A question, though, are you using a separate bass amp for this or are you playing it through your guitar amp? I don't have the means to acquire another amp (not even a crappy little 15watt one, which I know is not stage wattage anyway), so I'm having to play the drums through my own 60w half-stack.[/FONT]

[FONT="Arial"]Yay, TSO. I won't say they put on the best live show in the whole world, but I've seen them three years in a row and I was basically floored every time. So, I've been to six concerts my whole life put on by ten bands (including six opening acts): Louis XIV (which I didn't like) opening for The Killers (bleh); Trans-Siberian Orchestra; The Dear and Departed and Sick of It All opening for AFI (best night of my LIFE); Trans-Siberian Orchestra; Sherwood, The Rocket Summer, and Armor For Sleep (who I really didn't pay any attention to) opening for The Academy Is; and most recently, Trans-Siberian Orchestra. The only reason I've seen TSO so many times is that they start their tour here every year and my dad loves them. Haha. I've yet to go to a local show, mostly because there are a lot of ska bands around here and I don't really like ska that much. I also don't like spending money on something I'm not sure if I'll even like, so I'm not going to drop even five bucks to go see some bands I haven't even heard of. I haven't played a real show live yet, but I'm working on it. One time my band's vocalist and I randomly got permission to play on Sam Ash's stage setup, which they've since taken down, which was awesome. If I were in a screamo-whatever-core band, I would do Open-Drop-D chords just so I could give high fives to everyone during the breakdown.[/FONT]