I Have Found the Cure

I have found the cure for boredom, any time, anywhere. Watching Jim Parsons interviews on Youtube. I haven't looked at them in a while and it seems he has recorded a whole lot more, much to my pleasure. 

First, there's the really freaking hilarious one he recorded with Craig Ferguson (one of my favourite late night hosts): 

Then there's the totally intense, actually kind of fascinating one he did with George Strombowhatever (which I wouldn't have clicked on if it hadn't said "In Canada"): 

And then there's the more traditional stuff. The Letterman, the Conan. I love it all. I just love him. But you already know that. Just watch the videos and be happy. 

P.S. It may seem, some days, like I'm running the Jim Parsons fan site. I assure you, I'm note. I just like him. A lot. If you want a fan site though, go here. 

Coincidentally, I have also invented the best game to cure boredom, in case the videos don't work for you. It's called Spot That Famous Actor in Greek, When They Still Had to Take Bit Parts Before They Made It Big. I think it's going to catch on. There are just SO many. If any up and coming actors want to make in the big times, I'm fairly certain they have to have a part on this show. I mean, first, there's Jesse Williams, who you may know as Dr. Jackson Avery on Grey's Anatomy:

But before that, way back in 2008 he played Ashleigh's "Hotness Monster"/Casey's newest crush in a couple of episodes in the early part of the second season of Greek. I even have a picture to prove it:

And then there's Dan Byrd, who is more commonly known as Jules' son Travis on Cougar Town,

Or, if you want to get fancy, that guy that pretended to sleep with Emma Stone in Easy A to convince everyone he wasn't gay:

Of course, to me, he will always be Hilary Duff's best friend from A Cinderella Story. And to others he will be Dale's stoner friend on Greek:

To keep the ball a rollin' there's always Danny Pudi, aka Abed from Community, aka the most adorable guy of all time (after Jim Parsons of course. See above).

It's funny. On Greek Danny Pudi plays a stereotypical Indian character (I am just basing that off his very Indian name, to be fair), and then he goes on to play the totally original Abed on Community. He's still equally as adorable in both though. He actually made numerous (totally randomly spaced) appearances in Greek. One:

Doesn't he look so young? Awww

And, two:

Actually, on second thought he looks a little scarier on Greek. 

Last but not least, there's Harry Shum Jr., a name a don't know, but I face I recognize:

Yes, it's dear old Mike Chang from Glee. He was only in Greek, for like five seconds, in some random episode. Luckily I captured the moment on tape, just for you,

I hope you all appreciate the work that I went through to share this game with you. Making sure to pause at the exact right second when the certain actor was on screen (trust me, for some this was hard. Dr. Avery would never look directly at the camera. And Mike was only in the show for one nanosecond). Screen capturing and saving a picture of every actor. And I hope you all can enjoy this game. I see it being played at parties across the world. 

While I'm here I'd like to point out the irony that every single one of these people went on to big stars in tv shows, while no one has ever heard of any of the Greek people (shout out to Spencer Grammer and Jacob Zachar, aka Casey and Rusty Cartwright, my favourite sibling duo ever):

I hope they will all go far. I love them all (and I love Cappie and Casey and I can't wait until they get together on the next season which debuts in less than a week!!!!). 

Oh, and if I'm talking about ABC Family shows I have, just have to, mention my Second Favourite Show, after Big Bang (again, see above), a little show called MAKE IT OR BREAK IT. Now, stupid ABC still hasn't given it a winter premiere date (and I've been checking weekly for the last few months. It's very irritating. Darn you ABC!). I don't know when it's coming back, but I do know that will be the best day ever. I mean, I'll finally get to find out what happened with Sasha, after Lauren screwed him out of the show. Fingers crossed, I'll get to see Kaley stripped of her place, because of her eating disorder. And, of course, the highlight of it all will be the Emily/Damon scenes, which are always the crowning jewel of the show.

So, those are just a few things you can do to cure your boredom during this holiday break. Watch Jim Parsons videos (or better yet, Big Bang), play fun Greek games, and/or catch up on old Make It or Break It episodes. Since I've already done all of those things I will be filling my week in a few fun ways. I'll explain with pictures (cause that's always more fun!). Tomorrow, I will be going to the Toronto Reference Library to do research for my history culminating (woohoo!):

Would it be totally nerdy to admit that I'm actually going to enjoy this a little bit?

Then I'm going to skating with my father at this awesome new skating trail that just opened this season,

It's very picturesque, no? Actually, that may actually be a painting...

Also, a very big happy birthday to my friend F****, who's turning a big 1-7 tomorrow

I will not be celebrating with her tomorrow since (1) I'll be at the god damn library and (2) She's supposedly having a party some time, later on. But send her your best wishes. She's a fantastic friend to me, and a totally fantastic person, who I love to pieces. 

The final highlight of my break (besides more theatre arts, history, and english homework) are my New Year's plans, when I'm going to Niagara Falls

Quick reference: "I have to leave this party right now, because, for the life of me, I can't figure out why they're showing a picture of Niagara Falls, which has absolutely nothing to do with the Caribbean". Anyone?

And I'm going to see both of my favourite bands in one night (I know, too much awesome. The world is going to explode!!). It shall be a magnificent way to ring in the New Year, next to the beautiful falls, with the BARENAKED LADIES, and GREAT BIG SEA

+

What are your New Years plans? Do they possibly contain that much awesome? Is it even possible?

The Bad Boy: An Analysis

In my group of friends I am the only one who likes romance. I'm the only one who cares that Chuck and Blair maybe/kind of got together on Gossip Girl. I'm the only one who cares if Brennan seems jealous of Booth and Hannah, or if Jules and Grayson will stay together until the end of the season. Personally, I could discuss any of these issues at length (you guys hear my Chair rants often enough to know that).

So, this week, when one of my friends came over, I decided it was the perfect time to educate her with my favourite romantic movies. First, we watched the absolute classic, Love, Actually. Oh the romance. I mean, first of all, we have these two:

He's so sweet, with the cards! They may not have had a happy ending, but I still like them

And, of course, I had to show her these two:

There love story was bittersweet, but I loved it too.

And we can't forget these love birds, even if I'm not the Biggest Hugh Grant fan in the world:

She's so adorable! And he's so sweet!

And, the porn stars, who I love, love, love, love:

Such a strange set up, but such a sweet ending

And last, but not least, one of the most beautiful love stories I've ever witnessed:

He speaks English; she speaks Portuguese. And yet, they understand each other. True love.

We were going to watch The Notebook next, since, you know, it's the greatest romantic film of all time (if anyone just protested that I direct them to this video. Wasn't I right?). But, my friend wanted to watch One Week, one of her favourite movies, so I agreed. But only with one caveat. We had to watch the Pacey-Joey sex episode of Dawson's Creek. That might of seemed kind of random. So, let me explain.

You see, my friend here is a HUGE Fringe fan. She claims to be in love with Joshua Jackson, who, coincidentally, is the star of One Week:

He also, coincidentally starred in a little series called Dawson's Creek, where he played bad boy Pacey to James Van Der Beek's mopey loser Dawson and Katie Holmes's innocent little Joey Potter. Now, my friend here had never seen Dawson's Creek (I know! Can you believe it? No Love, Actually, no Notebook, no Dawson's Creek? What kind of life has she been leading?!?!?) How could my friend claim that she was in love with Mr. Joshua Jackson if she had never seen Dawson's Creek? Everyone knows that's the show that made him awesome. Everyone knows that Pacey Witter is the best bad boy of all time.

So, of course I had to make her watch an episode. I selected the one where they go on the ski trip (aka the one where Joey loses her virginity to Pacey instead of Dawson, in the scandal of the century), for a few reasons. First, it featured Pacey and Joey, meaning that Joshua Jackson would get a lot of screen time. Second, it showed Pacey being really sweet and romantic, which I always enjoy. And, third, it showed JJ without his shirt on. I thought I'd throw my friend a bone.

Because I had already seen the episode I had a lot of time to think. I started considering the whole bad boy archetype (and I know what you're thinking right now: all of that, up until now, and she's finally getting to the main point she introduced in the title? Bear with me, please. I'm sorry). It's usually not my thing. I don't generally like bad boys. And I know what you're thinking again (I'm a mind reader!): what? Katherine spends practically every waking hour obsessing over Chuck Bass, and she claims she doesn't like bad boys? Is she insane?

Well, I don't really have an answer to that. So, just go with me. I'll give you some examples. Mostly from Simone Elkeles books, because all she writes about are bad boys, most of which I don't like (which is why I should stop reading her books! But they're so addictive! Help me!). For instance, there's the whole Leaving Paradise/Returning to Paradise thing:

I don't remember the guys name, but I do remember that he's a complete jerk to Maggie (I'm not sure of her name, either, but I'll go with it). He embarrasses her in front of the whole counseling group. He says really, really mean stuff to her. He kisses her just to mess with her. He's distant. He's cruel. He's a bad boy, with no good side. Why, oh why, would she go out with him?

And then there's Alex from Perfect Chemistry, who's a little bit better, and Carlos from Rules of Attraction who's a little bit worse. All bad boys, that, god help me, I hope I never have to date. I don't really see the allure of a bad boy anyway. Who wants to date a guy who smokes or drinks or gets arrested all the time? Even Jess Mariano, my favourite Gilmorian boy was a terrible boyfriend to Rory. Yeah, his kisses were hot (though, again, with the smoking!):

But he was always so irresponsible, always so stupid. And, in the end, he just abandoned Rory. Just left town. Complete jerk. I've never been Team Dean, but I am in that respect. Jess may have been smarter and more interesting and fun (not to mention attractive and a better actor), but none of it mattered since he was such a bad boy that he couldn't even say goodbye to his girlfriend that he claimed to love!

And there's always Ryan Atwood from the OC, who had his own problems. Now, I like Ryan and Marissa in the first season. But then all that Chino crap started to happen and I just couldn't watch anymore. I liked Ryan the reformed bad boy, but I didn't like Ryan reverting to his old ways.

Which brings us back to the beginning: Pacey Witter and Chuck Bass. Since I claim to hate bad boys so much how could I adore them both? Well, you see, these aren't just any bad boys. They're special bad boys. They have a bad side, but they also have a good side, that makes me love them . To the outside world they may seem bad, but to their special little ladies (Joey Potter and Blair Waldorf respectively), they are as sweet as pie. Let me explain.

Let's start with Pacey. He tries to be a bad boy, but he's good at heart. He can't escape it. He may talk the talk:

And maybe, sometimes, he may walk the walk:

For any non-Dawson's Creek fans, this photo is representing that whole arc where Pacey was screwing his teacher, dear Ms. Jacobs

Pacey tried so hard to be bad. He slept with anyone and everyone (including that icky Jen Linley, who later died, and, I have to tell you, I wasn't sad about it). He totally failed out of school. He didn't go to university. But even with all that rebellious behaviour he couldn't betray his heart of gold. It was that shining heart that won him Miss Joey Potter:

For her, he couldn't hide his true nature. I mean, he bought her a wall, for heaven's sakes:

And he watched her sleep. And he took her onto his boat. And he always looked out for her, long after they were broken up, because he is just such a nice boy (and because he was still in love with her, but that's another story for another day) (Note: skip to 5:00):

Pacey may want you to think he's a badass. And most of the characters on the show may believe him. But you, me, and Joey Potter know the truth. We know that Pacey Witter is the sweetest badass that ever lived.

In comparison, we have the King of Badasses, the one, the only, CHUCK BASS (isn't his last name just so fitting?). But I'll let him introduce himself:

Now, much like Pacey, Mr. Badass likes to sleep around:

And he's no stranger to illegal, in sundry affairs (namely drugs, drinking, gambling, and prostitution). And he acts like a jerk to most everyone most of the time. But every bad boy has a weak spot, and his is one Blair Waldorf:

Now, of course, Blair is no innocent Joey Potter. Blair lies and steals and cheats. But, when she wants to be, she's still little miss perfect. And Chuck loves all parts of her, even the evil parts (especially the evil parts, when they're scheming together to take someone down. And, I imagine, other times, if you know what I mean). Chuck's love is selfless. He knows that if he admits his love, he'll just hurt her, so instead he just does nice things for her, just because he can, with no concern for himself. And then, when they get together, he's a sweetie pie boyfriend, showering her with gifts,

Basically, Chuck becomes the best boyfriend ever, at least until he sleeps with Raccoon Face Slut (click to see and be scared!), but again, another story, another day (we all forgive him for it, don't worry. On a sidenote in Chuck Bass-Badassary, this the Jenny that he tried to rape in season 1, lest we forget).

So, what do we learn from this girls? BEWARE OF THE BAD BOY. Because, chances are, he'll be like guy-who's-name-I-forget from those stupid Paradise books. Or he'll be like Jess, and then you'll have to sleep with Dean, even if he's married to that stupid Lindsay, who doesn't even want him to go to university. Of course, there's a chance he could be like Pacey or Chuck. But beware. Be careful. Make sure your bad boy has a good side.

And, make sure your friends watch the cheesy 90's shows that their favourite Hollywood hunks used to star in. They contain valuable life lessons. And valid reasons to keep his poster on your wall and kiss it before you go to bed (not that I do that!).

Goodnight kisses for all (and two for Pacey and Chuck fans)

The Importance of Food

I never really think about food. I mean, I eat a small breakfast in the morning before school, usually a green apple. I eat my lunch amongst the constant chatter of my friends, always distracted, never really paying attention to what's going into my mouth. During dinner I'm usually watching tv or something, barely aware that food is going into my body. I eat, but I rarely enjoy food. I rarely think about it in any significant way. I don't really have a favourite food. I like lots of things:

mmmm, warm, hot, tasty meatballs

Potato perogies! Potato perogies!

A nice, light, healthy treat

And a less healthy treat ;)

But I don't really care about food. I am an insanely picky eater, so I spend a lot of time strategizing about food. But I never really think about how important it is. I think of it as a necessity, but not necessarily a need.

I am currently in hour sixteen of the Thirty Hour Famine we are doing at school. And man, am I aware of food. This awareness of food, this most basic need, this godawful hunger, is fascinating. The fast started at 2:00 am (when I was fast asleep). I didn't really feel hungry until about 11:15. Lunch was hard, as everyone was eating around me, and my body was demanding food, so used to eating at that time. Class time wasn't too bad, because I was distracted, talking to my teachers, playing drama games, whatever. But then I came home, and, oh lord, is it bad. I thought I was doing okay, but I guess I was just distracted all day. Now that I'm just relaxing I am soooooo hungry. It's hurts. And it's majorly distracting. Every few seconds this little part of my brain alerts me. It's hard to watch tv, do homework, do anything, when I'm constantly thinking about food.

The hardest moments I've had so far are the moments of real temptation, like when I saw a bowl of jello on the counter, or, worse, when someone offers me some food off-guard. I forget for a second that I can't eat, and then I remember and it hurts so bad. I'm going crazy.

Through all of this I'm noticing how big part food plays in my life. When I come home I usually grab a snack out of the fridge. Today I opened the fridge out of habit, and then realized that I couldn't eat. It's interesting to examine how my habits, my time, my whole life is controlled by food. How humans structure our whole days around food. We often forget about our basic needs when worrying about our bigger needs--acceptance, achievement, love. But today is really reminding me that life are really about the bare necessities:



Then I think about all the people in the world who go without food everyday not out of choice, like me, but out of desperation. It makes me feel so bad. Usually, world hunger is an abstract concept--something I understand, but nothing I ever really experience. I've been feeling one tenth of what these people feel everyday and I hate it. I feel so awful. I mean, how does anyone ever getting anything done, being this hungry? It's so distracting, so annoying, so painful. It makes me grateful, that's for sure.

With all this worry about food I also wonder what life would be like if we didn't need food. World hunger wouldn't been an issue. People would be more productive. Our lives would no longer revolve around food--how would we structure our days? There would be no lunch breaks or long hours cooking dinner for the family. We would have so much more time. There's a giant food industry out there that would cease to exist. Life as know would be different. A very, very interesting idea (also, for your consideration: what if we didn't need water? what if we didn't need sleep?).

It's also intriguing to look at the effects that the hunger has on my body. On top of hijacking my every third thought, the lack of food also makes me feel very tired and weak. It'll interesting to see how bad things get by tomorrow morning. I'm looking forward to that first bite, I have to tell you.

All of this is the long way of saying I'M HUNGRY. I would eat ANYTHING right now. I mean, I would prefer this:

But I'd settle for almost anything. Even a piece of this, which isn't even really food (but still banned in our famine!):

So, as you sit down for dinner tonight, think of me and my friends, in Toronto, starving ourselves, salivating at the idea of a single morsel of whatever you are eating. And think of all those kids and adults who go to bed hungry everyday, not to raise money, but because they don't have money. I know I'll be thinking of them. They're my strength through all this pain. If they can survive it everyday, I can survive fifteen and a half more hours.

Wish me luck, just in case.

The Five People I Want to Meet Most in the World

My friend and I both have this insane amount of knowledge about celebrities stored up in our heads. Because this information is so useless, we make up games so we can feel smart and actually put all these mindless knowledge to use. We play the six degrees of separation game (otherwise known as the Kevin Bacon Game) during biology everyday while our teacher drones on and on about different biological processes (and today was fetal pig dissection day, but that's a whole other story). Here's the quick test we've developed to see how good people are with celebrities: How can you connect Anne Hathaway to Brad Pitt, in the least steps possible? (see answer at end of post)

We also like to play this game where we flip through the new issue of People. One person has to name all the celebrities on every pair of pages. Each one they miss is a point off. Whoever loses the least points wins. And we play tough. We don't include totally random people, but any celebrities kids are fair game. Do you know Usher's sons name? Cause that screwed me in a game once. It also sucks when you get an entire cast of a show or a giant band or something, and you don't know it at all, and you lose 15 points on one page.

Anyways, the point is, I know my celebrities well. And there's lots of celebrities I like, for one reason or another. Examples: Reese Witherspoon (I'll always love Elle Woods! And Melanie Smooter!), Rachel McAdams (ALLIE + NOAH=FOREVER), James Marsden (27 Dresses, Enchanted, basically anything where he smiles), Paul Rudd (he married Phoebe! And he was in love with Cher! And he's just so adorable!), Joshua Jackson (He was Pacey Witter. Need I say more?), Natalie Portman (WHERE. THE. HEART. IS.). But I wouldn't ever care to meet any of these people. I mean, I wouldn't mind it, per say, but I wouldn't seek it out. I imagine they'd all be pretty boring. However, there are a few celebrities (and kind of-celebrities) that I would LOVE to meet. Which brings me to today's list: The Five People I Want to Meet Most in the World

Number 1: Meg Cabot

You all know I love Meg. I wrote a very, very long post detailing why I like each and every one of her books. A few honorable mentions: All American Girl, How to Be Popular, Teen Idol. And, of course, the winner: The Princess Diaries Series. I have been reading Meg Cabot books for nearly ten years now. I grew up reading her books. All American Girl was the first book I ever finished that was over 300 pages. Michael and Mia were one of the first couples I became obsessed with (starting my life long obsession with romance). And I've been reading Meg's blog weekly for at least five years. Meg has brought so much joy to my life, and I would just love to meet her and thank her for that. Thank her for all the late nights I stayed up rereading the ending to Teen Idol. Thank her all the Boxing Days I got so excited for (yes, that's right, the day after Christmas), because a new Princess Diaries would come out. And thank her for all the fun I've had with my friends, as they've all made their way through her books. And, of course, it would be awesome if I could get her to sign my tattered copies of Princess Diaries and Forever Princess. Meg has not once come to Canada since I started reading her books. She's been all over the US. Europe. Brazil. But never Canada. But one day, I will meet her, no matter how far I have to travel. It's one of the goals of my life.

Number 2: Steven Page

Ah. The international man of mystery. There are just so many reasons I want to meet Steven Page. Reason one: He is one of my favourite singers of all time. He sang Call and Answer, Old Apartment, Brian Wilson, Break Your Heart, When You Dream, Too Little Too Late, and a totally awesome version of Jingle Bells. His voice is so comforting to me, so familiar. Reason two: He founded my one of my favourite bands of all time. He co-founded the Barenaked Ladies. I will always love him for that. He may not be a lady anymore, but he will always be the one who co-wrote If I Had A Million Dollars, and Be My Yoko Ono, and What a Good Boy, and countless other songs that filled my childhood and still fill my playlists to this day. Reason three: He's from Toronto! This one may seem silly, but it should not be underestimated. Not only is he Canadian (wahooo!), he's actually from my city! No one is ever from Toronto! It's so exciting. And, he embraces his Torontoness. Just think of the line in Old Apartment--"We bought a house on the Danforth". Only Torontonians know where that is, and I love that. Reason Four: I could try to figure out why he left the band. There have been so many questions and secrets. So much mystery. I would just love to meet him and get the real story. I just want to talk to this man who's voice is so soothing to me, who's lyrics are so meaningful to me, who's life is mysterious to me. I want to meet Steven Page!

Number 3: Sarah Dessen

I'll keep this one (relatively) short and sweet. Macy and Wes. Auden and Eli. Owen and Annabel. Basically all of the Truth About Forever, actually. Basically, every page she's ever written. I just love her writing. I love her characters. I love her romances! I've been reading her books since the seventh grade when we were all doing silent reading in class and we all had to share the name of the book we were reading and someone said they were reading Dreamland, and I decided I should check it out. Since then I've read and loved every one of her books. They're comforting to me. Kind, and familiar, nice and well written. I love Sarah, and I would just love to meet her. Sadly, much like Meg she NEVER comes anywhere near Toronto, so I don't know when this will happen. But it will.

Number 4: Jim Parsons

As you've probably noticed, Jim is the only real celebrity (read: actor/tv star) to appear on this list. That is because he is really, truly the only actor I would ever want to meet. I'm trying to think of way to say this without sounding creepy, but I can't: I just love him. He's so adorable and talented and smart and funny. He stars in one of my favourite tv shows of all time (my favourite current tv show by far). I've watched so many Big Bang episodes so many times. And I've seen so many interviews with him. He just seems like such a nice, genuine guy. I think it'd just be nice to talk to him. Really, I think I would hate meeting any celebrities because it would make me feel so awkward. But I would make an exception for Jim Parsons. He is quite possibly my favourite actor of all time. I just have to meet him (though, sadly, I probably never will. Boohoo).

Number 5: Sean McCann

Sean McCann, shanty man. He plays the drum as well. And I just love him for it. I love his voice--England, Safe Upon the Shore, General Taylor, Love. When I was traveling in the summer I would listen to his songs whenever I felt lonely or sad or homesick, and they made me feel better. His voice is the voice of my childhood. And his songs (with Great Big Sea, of course) were the songs of my childhood. Ordinary Day. When I Am King. Lukey's Boat. Donkey Riding. Scolding Wife. All songs that hold such memories for me, because of Mr. Sean McCann (and Alan Doyle of course. And Bob Hallett. Can't forget Bob). I'd love to meet the man behind the voice.

There are two so-called honorable mentions to this list: Ed Robertson and Alan Doyle. I honoured their counterparts, but I left them out. I love them both, but they aren't my favourite parts of their respective bands.

Anyways, there's the list. If I meet even one of these people before I die, I'll be very happy. You never know. It could happen.

So, what's your list?

P.S. Here's the answer to the Six Degrees question: Anne Hathaway was in Valentine's Day with Julia Roberts. Julia Roberts was in Ocean's Eleven with Brad Pitt. Easy one step connection. Ta da! Congrats to any of you who could do it. If you leave your name in the comments I'll give you a special prize. And if you come up with an alternate route, a double special (?) prize. And if anyone wants anymore six degree questions, just ask. I can play this game forever.

High School Ain't No Musical

As I'm researching universities (my list right now: McGill, Bishop's, Winnipeg, Wilfrid Laurier), getting all scared to make the transition from the safe, familiar hallways of high school to the scary, new classrooms (and dorm rooms!) of university, I've been thinking back to the time when high school did not seem so safe. I remember the first day, when I only talked to one person, a friend had gone to my middle school, and we ate outside because we were too afraid that the cafeteria would be like the one in Mean Girls. Once upon a time, high school was really scary to me. Now, it's just boring, and familiar, and almost bittersweet, as this place I once feared so much becomes a place I know I will miss so much. To that end, I wanted to write a little piece for all the future high school students. This is for all the kids who are in eighth grade right now, starting to tour high schools, feeling all intimidated by the the older kids, the scary teachers, and the foreign hallways. This is for people like me, who imagined high school would be a scene out of a teen movie. 'Cause trust me kids, it's not. High school is nothing like you think it will be and nothing like you'll want to be. Specifically, here are the top five lies that pop culture teaches you about high school, that are totally not true (at least at my school):

1) The Cafeteria is the Scariest Place in the world

Example: Mean Girls

Let me tell you, at my school, if you eat in the cafeteria, you are pretty weird. Sure, yeah, kids buy food from the cafeteria, but they always bring it to the locker banks upstairs to eat with their friends. There are certainly no "popular tables" or "jock tables" or anything like that. For that matter, there aren't even really cliques. People follow from friend group to friend group. Nothing is really rigidly defined, and people aren't grouped by hobby or race or popularity, like they are in Mean Girls. So trust me, the cafeteria is nothing to be worried about.

2) Football players and cheerleaders rule the school

Example: Bring It On

Yeah, okay. My school doesn't even have cheerleaders. And we don't really even have a football team. We have half a football team, that we share we another school. And no one cares about them. The two kids in my class that are on the team are not particularly popular. So you don't have to try out for the football team to impress people, and you don't have to be a cheerleader to get guys to notice you. None of it matters.

3) The SAT will rule your life

Example: Gossip Girl

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G-6zqSSj1r8 (sorry, no embedding!)

In Canada no one writes the SAT. It isn't required (or even desired) by Canadian universities, so most people don't bother. A friend of mine is writing it, because she wants to apply to American universities, but she's the only one I know. So don't be scared that you'll have to be studying like crazy for the SAT. Quite simply, it does not exist in Canada.

4) If you mess up you'll have to go to detention. On a saturday.

Example: The Breakfast Club

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dkX8J-FKndE (what is with people and embedding?!?)

Teachers don't want to waste their time outside of class! Trust me! They want to school to end just as much as you do! They don't want to give up their time to come in on a saturday! Also on that note, teachers don't want to waste their time marking extra credit assignments! They'll mark the real work, so you better do well on that. Because there's no extra credit to make up for it. Teachers don't have the time to mark extra stuff on top of all the other marking they have to do. Basically, teachers are serious about their time. They won't waste it on stupid stuff.

5) School dances are the best/worst moments of your life

Example: Life, Unexpected

At my school we don't even have dances. Apparently some kid brought a knife to a dance like ten years ago and tried to hurt someone, and ever since dances have been outlawed. So no, school dances have not been an important part of my high school experience. I've never even been to one!

So don't worry, all you young ones. High school is not nearly as scary as you think it's going to be. It's not like on Glee where you get slushied in the face all the time or get randomly pushed into lockers. High school is not nearly that exciting. You go to class. You come home. You do homework. Maybe you go to some parties on the weekend. Big deal. Trust me when I say this, high school is not the great time that some people say it is, nor is it the Worst Time of Your Life, as many tv shows and movies would have you believe. Your high school years will be hard. There will be highs and lows. Lots of drama. Lots of tears. Lots of hard works. Lots of rewards. Lots of friends. And tons of great memories. It will go by quickly, so treasure it, no matter how scary or challenging it may seem.

So good luck young ones. And good luck to me, as I prepare to leave the place I have come to love (and hate!) over the last four years.

My Top 5 TV Moments

Here's a little sunday night treat for you: My Top 5 TV Moments this week!

1) CHUCK AND BLAIR GET BACK TOGETHER...maybe

A full hour of sex and sex and then some more sex. I didn't think they were going to get back together. I thought it'd be one of those lame endings...much like the ending we almost got, with the whole "friends" things. Then all my wishes came true. God answered by prayers. Life worked out. The clouds parted to the beautiful, beautiful sunshine. Chuck just couldn't resist her. Chuck loves her. And she loves him. I don't know how long this is going to stick. Could be one episode, could be a whole season. I mean they have to break up soon, so they can get together in the season finale, or they have together now, so they can break up in the finale. There has to be a Chair cliffhanger at the end of the season, so that's really the only way it can work. Personally, I'd like a different kind of cliffhanger...like an engagement...or a surprise pregnancy. Fingers crossed.

2) Vanessa gets put in her place, by the Dean of Columbia

I hate Vanessa. I would say she is my least favourite character on Gossip Girl, except she has so much competition (Serena, Jenny, Juliet, Georgina, Nate's hair). So, I was SO HAPPY when the Dean called her out for her ridiculousness. She was trying to get Serena kicked out of school because she stole Dan (or whatever. I stopped paying attention to that story line a loooong time ago). She goes up to the Dean not at Columbia, but at the freaking ballet. And, understandably, the Dean is like wtf? Because you know, she doesn't want to deal with idiots who can't act to save their lives bothering her about stupid teenage problems with their boyfriends when she goes to see some pretty girls twirl so high on their tippy toes that their feet bleed. It's just not her idea of a good time. I understand, Deanie. I wouldn't like if Vanessa did that to me either. So I LOVED LOVED LOVED it when the Dean asked Vanessa "who are you?". I laughed so hard. I mean, it's totally true. WHO is Vanessa? She doesn't go to Columbia and she isn't friends with the Upper East Side crew. She isn't even dating Dan. Which begs the question...WHY IS SHE ON THE FREAKING SHOW?

3) Erica and Kai sleep together on Being Erica

What more can I say? It was epic. I love Kai. For most of the episode I really didn't think she'd go through with it. I thought Adam would interfere, sending Erica all his mixed signals (which he did...that guy is messed up). But Erica totally didn't care that the Irish guy was (maybe/kinda) jealous. She wanted to sleep with Kai, so she did. She didn't even let Dr. Tom's freak out faze her. GO ERICA! BOOYAH!

4) Scotty and Kevin get back together

The whole affair thing was a pretty bad contrivance, since it only lasted three episodes. The whole thing just felt like the show was spinning its wheels, running out of story lines. I mean, think about it. The affair had no lasting effects, at all. I'm sure, by next week, it'll be forgotten. The only part I enjoyed about the whole arc was the idea that when you cheat on someone, you not only (potentially) lose them, but their family. And in Scotty's case, that's a pretty big deal because: 1) His family sucks and 2) They're the WALKERS! Who doesn't love them? However, it was basically all a big waste of time. But I was still sad to see them apart. I am very, very happy to have them back. I don't love Kevin, but I adore Scotty so much, that I don't want to see him unhappy for one nanosecond. So I'm very glad they're back together.

5) The power of four conquer Juliet, and then go on to take over the world (well, that last part didn't happen. But one day...)

They're like a gang of superheroes, out to save (and/or destory) the Upper East Side (and then the world! Muah ha ha!). They all have a different superpower. Blair can scheme and manipulate people into doing whatever she wants. Serena can use her sex appeal to bed pretty much anyone, and make them fall in love with her, even though she's the most annoying human ever. Chuck can screw everyone's brains out. And Nate can...show everyone how to dye their hair really badly and act like a complete douche. All very useful superpowers. All they need is wicked costumes (anyone else see Blair as Wonder Woman? Huh? Huh?). They're like an incestuous version of the Fantastic Four! And this week they used their combined superpower to take down Juliet. Serena made her look like a fool. Chuck is sexing up Blair, so he stuck up for her, continuing the ruse. Nate slept with her. And Blair finished her off, with a banishment from Columbia. A perfect roast. Superman couldn't have done it better! Three cheers for the power of four!

5) Sam, Finn, and Tina imagine Bieste while making out

No, just kidding. That was the most disturbing story line of my life.

A good week of TV (and a great episode of Gossip Girl!). Very excited for next week.

Good night all. Sweetest dreams.

MEG CABOT ROCKS

So, still sick. Did I mention how much it SUCKS?!? I am soooo bored. I have watched so much TV that I don't even want to watch TV. I've done homework. I've felt guilty about not doing homework. I've felt guilty about not going to school.

So, seeing as I'm in such desperate need of entertainment, who better to turn to then the good old blog. Oh, bloggie, I love you. I also love calling you bloggie. And, I love to talk about books. AND, I love to make lists. So I was thinking...how about a book list? Ohhhhh....Exciting I know. As you'll remember from this post (my top rated blog post ever!!!!), I started a little adventure through my bookshelf, doing little minature reviews of all my books. Today I'm going to continue that little journey, with my second shelf. Here's the first half:

20) The Princess Diaries, Book 4: Princess in Waiting by Meg Cabot (2 copies, one hardcover, one softcover)

So we're back at the Princess Diaries. Well, all the other things I said about the series still apply. I LOVE THE PRINCESS DIARIES. This book is a little boring, in the beginning, when she is still in Genovia. But then, she comes back to New York and sees Michael, and all is well. The Princess Leia underwear. The limo door kiss. The homeroom visit. And, of course, the ending, with the Screening Room and the "of course I'm in love with you" thing. So all in all, a good book. When I was younger, this book used to annoy me because Mia spends so much time worrying if Michael is going to break up with her, when clearly, he's in love with her. He told her so in the last book. Duh! Now that I've grown up a little (or a lot. 8 years is a longtime), I understand Mia more. I understand the insecurity and the self-doubt and the idea that it is all too good to be true. Of course, I've never had a boyfriend, but, you know, I can imagine where she's coming from now. So this book has actually grown on me, if that was possible.

21) The Princess Diaries, Book 5: Princess in Pink by Meg Cabot 

This one is good too. Again, when I was younger I was little confused by this book. What's the big deal about prom? And why won't Michael go, to make Mia happy? Well, I still don't know the answers to those questions. I'm a senior in high school now, and my prom is coming up in May. I have no desire to go to it. Not because I won't have a date (which I won't, but that's okay) but because, quite frankly, I just don't care. I don't like dressing up. And I don't like dances. I mean, I'll probably end up going, because my friends want to. But it won't be my choice. So why is Mia so crazy about it? Does anyone feel that crazy about prom? WHY? Okay, enough with the tangent. Point is, it's a good book, even if I don't understand the prom thing. There's the seven minutes in heaven thing. And the actual prom. Both good moments. All in all, a good book. 

22) The Princess Diaries, Book 5.5: Princess Present by Meg Cabot

Ugh. This sucks. But it's only a novella, so I don't count it in the Princess Diaries lore, so it's alright. The whole ebay thing is so stupid. The whole book is pretty stupid. Just don't read it. 

23) The Princess Diaries, Book 6: Princess in Training by Meg Cabot

This one is about sex (or the lack therefore of). Michael is very different in this book than in previous books. But I understand him. And I don't really blame him for it. And it all ends well with the whole "one day, you will be mine thing". Good book, but not great. 

24) The Princess Diaries, Book 7: Party Princess by Meg Cabot

I didn't love this one. I hate JP. And Michael was weird. I really don't have much more to say about it. 

25) The Princess Diaries, Book 7.5: Valentine Princess by Meg Cabot

Another novella. Ugh. This one's better than the last one, but not by much. The whole present thing is cute. And the "I've never had a girlfriend thing" is a nice moment. But really, not worth the $10.

26) The Princess Diaries, Book 8: Princess on the Brink by Meg Cabot

NOOOOOO! MICHAEL AND MIA _ _ _ _ _  _ _. I won't spoil it for you. But it's big. A good book, but a hard book. You'll see what I mean once you read it. It has nice moments--the thing on the swings, part of the stuff in the hotel room. But brace yourself. You've been warned. 

27) The Princess Diaries, Book 9: Princess Mia by Meg Cabot

This one is hard to evaluate. I don't like anything that happens in this book, but I still don't think that is necessarily a reason to hate the book. The pacing is a little annoying and JP is the worst character ever. It's not a fun book to read. But I don't know if I'd call it a bad book. I'm still conflicted. 

28) The Princess Diaries, Book 10: Forever Princess by Meg Cabot

BEST BOOK EVER!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

The interview thing. The "And I'll wait" thing. The Central Park thing. The after prom thing. The book's not perfect. JP is a complete idiot (or, as the kids in my class would say, "JP is a complete douche") and Mia was an idiot for staying with him. And she really copped out on the racier scenes, with those awful excerpts from "Mia's novel". But who cares about any of that? Michael and Mia end up together! Nothing else matters. For ten years, I loved Michael and Mia. 10 books. Millions of rereadings. Lots of lending and discussing with friends. So much waiting, always wanting the next book. And it was worth it. I've never enjoyed a book more. The entire time I was reading I kept not wanting to read, because I didn't want the book to end. I would pick it up, to read a page or two, and suddenly I'd read 50 pages. It was like water, pure liquid, flowing through my fingers. No book has ever matched that feeling for me. And that's why Forever Princess is one of my two favourite books of all time. 

29) She Went All the Way by Meg Cabot

Basically porn. But good porn. Satisfying porn. God, grandma, please don't read that. 

30) The Mediator Series, Books 1-6, by Meg Cabot

Ghosts, ghosts, and more ghosts. Not really my thing. But, you know, it was summer. And it was Meg Cabot. And I wouldn't exactly say they were bad. Just not my taste. Oh, except for hot ghost Jesse. He was my taste (I love the ending to the sixth book!).

Wow, well, that was weird. All Meg Cabot books. And there's still more to come. I pretty much own her whole collection. So if you don't let Meg, tune out for the next post. Or forever. Because someone who isn't a friend of Meg's isn't a friend of mine (oh, I kid you. Mostly).

I love you Meg Cabot. 

I don't fell well

I'm feeling very sick (oh body, why must you betray me so?!?!?) and my head feels all stuffed up, and coherent thought is more than I am capable of at the moment, so I'm going to let it all dribble out, randomly...hopefully you can follow my train of thought (thought I highly doubt it).

I spent the weekend in the Big Apple (ha, god, no, I don't actually call it that. I'm not that much of a dork). Amendment (a word I learned from my Model UN days): I spent my weekend in NYC. I was there to cheer my father on as he ran his 21st marathon (shout out to dad! woohoo!), which is always fun, if not a little tiring on the legs (standing for hours on end) and the arms (trying to shove my way to the front of the crowd and then defending my spot against Grandma lady and annoying blond chick and ain't I so cute cause I'm a child and my dad calls me pickle kid). But it's all worth it for dad. Look at the giant-ass metal he got:

I got to go to some of my favourite food spots, such as Au Bon Pain (which, for the life of them, my parents cannot pronounce the name of) and Whole Foods (where my dad got an awful toothache). Yum, yum, yum. And I got to go to the Outlet Mall and buy a pretty North Face top and a nice Gap sweater, which also offered me the opportunity to fight with yet another Gap employee about the fact that their employer won't manufacture jeans in my size, even though I'm average height. And I got to Central Park, which I always love. And, I went to the Park with my dad and he managed to keep his mouth shut about how beautiful the park is, which was amazing, since he usually spouts on and on and on about how it is the greatest place on earth and how he has to move to New York just so he can come and walk his dog here everyday (actually, on second thought, he did do a little of that. But it was so much less than usual, so credit to dad. Yay dad! Good weekend for you. You ran a marathon and managed to keep quiet about the wonder that is Central Park. I'm not sure which is a greater achievement). Oh, and I also got to see My Big Friggin' Wedding (The Best Show. EVER.) on friday night in my hotel room. Laughed my head off at that one (a case where rofl and lol and whatever other stupid acronym that people type all the time without meaning it, is actually applicable).

Sadly, I didn't get to go the CBS store, which was my main goal on the trip. Apparently, it closed down do to some rent issue, which means I wasn't able to buy this t-shirt, which I have coveted for SOOOO LONG:

But, you know, that's okay. Because this week's episode wasn't very good. I love Sheldon and company, but last thursdays episode was just...bad. Terribly unfunny. Ack. Ack. Ack. I did not lol or rofl or lmfao once. Leonard was just awkward. Raj was stupid. Howard was annoying. And Sheldon, my dear Sheldon, was boring and out of character. Why would he give Howard a high five? He hates physical contact (though I did love that he used hand sanitizer right afterwords. That was very Sheldon).

Speaking of TV....where do I start? As I gushed on and on about in my last post, CHUCK AND BLAIR GOT BACK TOGETHER (We'll see tonight if it sticks). And Kai and Adam are going to come together to make the best episode of TV ever. And Hellcats was very nice too (Dan and Marty! Dan and Marty!). Cougar Town was a letdown this week (man, was it a bad week for comedy). As for the rest of the shows, well....I haven't watched them. But it's not my fault. They all aired on thursday night (plus sunday night, for Brothers & Sisters), when I was at a cheap hotel somewhere in upstate New York. And then my favourite online TV site crashed. Oh, the horror. Does anyone have any suggestions? Because if I can't watch TV illegally online, what will I do? Watch it when it actually airs? ARE YOU INSANE?!?

I did get to watch one thing on TV this weekend though, as I was packing up my hotel room. I'm not sure what it was called. BRB, I need to go IMDB it (I love how that has become a verb!). Here it is. Apparently was called The Ringer and it starred Johnny Knoxville (who is that exactly? The name sounds familiar..) and Katherine Heigl (who I recognized, of course, since I've watched Grey's Anatomy, seasons 1-3). Here's the poster, to give you an idea:

It was about this guy who pretended he was mentally challenged so he could win the Special Olympics, and pay back some guy named Stavi because he cut off his fingers (or something along those lines. I missed certain parts of the movie, playing hide and seek with all my belonging in the hotel). He had a crush on Katherine Heigl, a volunteer at the Olympics, but she only saw him as a sweet disabled guy. Stuff happens, not much of which I remember because it didn't involve romance. All I know is that they kissed at the end of the movie, which means that I must give this movie my kiss (ah!) of approval.

After all this fun, I came home last night at 2:00 in the morning and woke up at 8:00 feeling awful. Sick as a dog. Fast forward 10 hours (during which I read, tried to find Hellcats/Bones/Big Bang on the internet, felt sick, and then felt sick some more and then did a little drama homework), and here we are. It's the sweet life, I tell you.

Well, that's it. Have a good night. Hope you're feeling better than I am right now.