The Inauguration of Barack Hussein Obama II from the Perspective of Someone Who Knows Nothing About Politics (and some other stuff)

What a proper setting. History class. 

The screen at the front of the room displays the scene at Washington DC during a cold morning on January 20, 2009. The camera zooms out to reveal the massive crowd that have gathered together to view this quadrennial event. Thunderous applause reverberates throughout not just the nation's capital, but through every body sitting in that room. Through our chests, our ribs, and into our hearts. 

Our eyes were glued to the screen as the face of the new leader of our country came into view. The applause got even louder, if that was possible. Our ears tuned into his voice as the first words spilled from his mouth: "My fellow citizens". What rolls from his tongue this day is not boastful about how with his hand, we will rise from the rubble we have created. Quite the contrary, he speaks of how we as a country, can work together to right the wrongs that have befallen us. 

More applause. And this time, it was from the room around me, including my own hands.

When the National Anthem was sung, I felt my body rise along with my fellow classmates. Our hands floated over our hearts and we sung along under our breaths. On this day, we all feel proud to be called Americans once again.

****************************

I feel amazed at how so much history has happened during my lifetime. The beginning of the new millennium. September 11, 2001, a day that we will never forget. The creation of the world's most advanced technology. The introduction of cars that no longer need precious natural resources to run. And now, today, the inauguration of the 44th president of the United States. I feel so blessed to live in this country today. Usually I don't give a crap about politics, but today I actually felt something. Maybe it was hope. I'm not sure. But I know I was excited today. I still find it remarkable that when Obama was actually elected, I jumped up and down and squealed with delight. May God bless him and this country.

~~~~

Anyway, on to the daily life of Stefanie. Yesterday was the 10th anniversary marathon for the Powerpuff Girls! (wow, what a transition from the tear-jerking story above!) I feel so old! Has it really been 10 years? It was so much fun to sit there and hear all of those voices that have been gone for so long. And I smiled when I remembered each episode. There was even a new episode! It was really funny and cute, but the animation was so different! It was strange. And they actually made a dramatic chipmunk joke. Really, guys? Really? I REALLY want the DVD now....

Guess what, guys? I might have a job this summer! Hooray! I've been looking for a job for a while. I've wanted a job that I would like. Not just being a bag girl at Publix. Yucky. I tried Books-A-Million, my favorite store EVER, but you have to be 18 to work the register. Bummer. And I tried to find out if there were any anime stores nearby, but the closest one is half an hour away. And then I found the perfect job at the mall! The Sanrio store! That store is so cute, I'd love to work there! Even if I had to stand there for hours! I asked the guy at the counter if he had any job openings. Because of the economy, there aren't any at the moment. But he said they hire for seasonal jobs, and the next one is during summer! So when school gets out, I'll go back and ask for the job! I really need this job too. My mom has to pay for all of my wants and needs, and I want to ease the burden for her. :D

Speaking of money, it's amazing how ungrateful, selfish, and spoiled people can be sometimes. Just be grateful for what you have, ya know? If you're in the lower class, be thankful for what you have! If you're in the middle class, you have a little wiggle room. You could be worse off, and you should be thankful for the things you DO have and not what you don't. If you're in the upper class, realize that there are people that have it worse off than you. If you don't get that new toy or whatever that you've wanted, don't be spoiled and complain about it! Look around! You're on top of the world!

I would say that I'm in the lower middle class. My parents are separated and I live with my mom, who is a preschool teacher. My dad helps out with the bills and stuff, but mostly we're on our own, my mother and I. So we live from pay check to pay check. I'm not trying to be all "woe as me"; I'm grateful for what I have, which is a lot. I have a roof over my head and there's food in the kitchen. I have a lot of nice things and I'm happy that I do. It just makes me sad (and kind of sick) when rich people are snooty and spoiled. Like celebrities or something. They don't NEED 548037683946748962 mansions and 5473689 summer homes. In a way, I wish that we could throw all of our money in one pile and split it up evenly with everyone else. Then everyone would be the same, and you'd be free to do with it as you wish. Like a new start! If you have a good job, then you'll get back the money that you lost. If you don't, you'll have more money to provide for yourself! I hate money. It's the cause of so many problems in today's society.

One more thing! Lots of people put forth effort and do well with their lives. I hate it when other people don't and get the same benefits. It's not very fair.

Well that's it for my rants today! 

~Sayonara

Quote: "I thought this was Rock of Love, not Rock of F**k" ~One of the contestants on Rock of Love (HAHAHAHAHA oh, you poor child. He's not looking for love.)

Song: "Sorry" ~ Jonas Brothers (I haven't heard all of this song, but I heard the beginning of it on the bus this morning. I love when they go "I'M SOOOOORRRRYYY" together! It's the perfect song to sing to a boy/girlfriend when you've screwed up)

The Educational System and Obsession

Hello everyone!  I haven't blogged in a while. I'm still alive, don't worry. 

So school starts tomorrow after two weeks of nothing but sleeping, eating, and....more sleeping. I'm really bored of the break, but I'm not ready to go back to school yet. I dread going to Krazy Kanu's class and have her complain because no one read the books that she told us to read because when she told us no one could hear her and she didn't post it on Edline :D I dread going to Spanish and being humiliated for the millionth time this year. I dread going to school for 8 hours and then coming home and doing homework until I go to bed. I dread having no life for months. I dread having to pretend to be happy when I'm not. I dread being ignored. Bleh, I'm ranting now. I'll shut up. 

In short, I hate school this year. Well, not hate. Just extremely dislike.

Anyway, on to happier subjects. I MAY be going to MegaCon this year. I have the money to go, I just need transportation. I'm not making/letting my mother take me this year. That was a disaster two years ago. So hopefully someone who's going Saturday and Sunday will be able to take me. Eh, we'll see.

I REALLY want to cosplay as Ichigo from Tokyo Mew Mew this year. I just read the manga and I LOVE it! Ichigo is my favorite character and I love her costume. I found it online for about $80 at the cheapest. Or I could make it like I usually do: snoop around Goodwill until I find something similar and then alter it a bit using my amazing I-can't-sew skills. But where am I going to find the perfect top and skirt?! I'll try to make it and if that fails, I'll order it. I just hate ordering costumes. They're too expensive for poor people like me. Ha. What do you guys think? Should I buy it?

If that fails, I want to be Miku, the Vocaloid. But I don't have a wig for that, which means I'd have to buy one *cry* I'd be able to make the costume no problem, though :D~ Maybe I'll make both :O

Oh yeah, and I promised Lela that we'd go as Fruits Basket characters one day. I still need to find the perfect shirt for Kagura. >8| Hmmmm....or Kyo. If I'm Kyo, I'd need another wig....*CRY* But his costume is super easy. I dunno, we'll figure out something.

Getting off the topic of MegaCon...I'm a nerd. Not just an anime nerd. I made a notebook filled with all of the Twilight articles that I've collected over the past few months...which is a lot. So now I have a nerd notebook of Twilght....sweeeeeeeet...

That's all for now!

~Sayonara!~

Quote: "The top of the pudding cup was solid green" ~Travis Willingham (from his pudding story. Look it up; it's hilarious.)

Song: "The Suite Life on Deck theme song" (I can't get it out of my head!)

Judgement

There are some things in this world that I don't understand. Some of those things I could care less about. Like politics and theatre and whatnot. But other things, I can't help but wonder about. Where did we come from? Why are we here? Can you really buy pizza over eBay?

But what I'm most curious about in this world is why people feel the need to ridicule and judge people because of their beliefs or their personality or how they function or their likes and dislikes. I makes no sense to me whatsoever.

I've addressed this topic in my blog before, and I just had a conversation with my good friend Alexis over Facebook (and Vicki earlier today), I think it's appropriate to dedicate a blog entry to it. It's a pretty serious topic, in my mind.

But before I continue, I'm not talking about anyone specifically. I'm talking about people in general. So please don't take offense to what I'm about to say. I hope you all read this and learn something.

But I digress. Judging people. Prejudice, if you will. The concept never ceases to amaze me.

I'd like to first talk about the victims of judgement. Why the hell should you care what other people think? Why should you hide a part of you because of the fear of how society will look at you? If you feel a certain way, or believe in something, or like something, or hate something, you should share it with the world! What's the point in hiding it? You're only lying to yourself and those around you.

I like Twilight. I like Harry Potter. I like Hannah Montana. I like kids shows. I like Dora the Explorer and Blue Clues. I only watch cartoons. I hate politics and think politicians are a bunch of liars. If I had to chose a side, I suppose that I'd be a Democrat. I'm a Christian. I believe in God and Jesus and that there's a heaven and a hell. I believe that love should be for everyone, and that everyone has the right to love whoever they want to. I believe that America is not as free as everyone thinks. 

These are just some of the things that I feel and express on a daily basis. And I find it shocking that people take the time and energy to say mean things and treat me differently just because of that. People all think differently. We behave differently. We like different things. If we were all the same and conformed to what society wants us to be, we'd all be like Barbie and Ken dolls stashed away in a drawer *totally didn't steal that from Tyler*

If you like something, awesome! Tell people! If they judge you because of that, maybe you should go hang out with different people. Friends and people of the human race should like each other for who they are. Being mean to someone because of that is just wrong. You strip away their independence and what makes them human.

So the next time you see someone cheering for McCain, gushing over the latest Twilight movie update, singing a Miley Cyrus song, telling someone how much they love Brittany Spears, sharing their love of Christ, or even wearing a Barney T-shirt, think twice about what's going on inside of your brain. Everyone has their own opinion, that's fine. Sharing that opinion is fine. But ridiculing someone else for having and sharing their opinion is not.

Shame on you.

Sayonara~

Quote: "It's like a funky mohawk disaster!" ~ me in film production (we were looking at old Dreyfoos yearbook and this kid had the most epic fail mohawk I've ever seen)

Song: "Dream" by DHT (this song talks about everything that's wrong in the world and how humans are screwing it up little by little. Thought it was appropriate)

The Quest for Ouran

She leaped out of the car, grabbing her mom's hand and bounding across the street: looking both ways before crossing, of course. Her mother lagged behind, not sharing in the excitement. The anticipation. She waited outside of the automatic doors, waiting for them to whoosh open and allow her into paradise. Every movement was just too slow.

Finally they opened. Everything was a blur. She raced down the aisles to her destination. It was so close. She could feel it. Success! She skimmed through the titles of the movies in front of her. Alphabetical order. A, B, C, D.....O! Wait. Where was it? It wasn't there. There had to be a mistake.

In the corner of her eye was an angel wearing a blue polo shirt. She raced down the aisle towards him. Hope flooded through her veins. 

And then he was gone. Another desperate soul had taken him away. 

Waiting.

Waiting.

Waiting. 

Too much waiting. She ran throughout paradise, searching for the angel in blue. In the tiniest corner, she found him. She told him her quest and he happily agreed to assist her. He went to the back to speak to the god of that realm. 

Waiting. 

Waiting. 

MORE WAITING.

Here he comes! He's holding something! Could it be? Could it really be?!

YES! The Holy Grail! The fruits of her labor! The object of her being. She raised it above her head in triumph and dragged her mother to the front so that her treasure could be rightfully hers.

~~~~~

So that was the quest for Ouran, ladies and gents. My epic battle through Best Buy to acquire the DVD that I've been waiting 2 years to be released. 

Ouran High School Host Club

ITS MIIIIINE! ALLLL MMIIIIIIINNNEEE MWAHAHAHAHA!

But alas, I cannot watch it. At least not tonight. But I will! I WWWWWIIIIILLLLLL HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!

~~~~

IN OTHER NEWS, Calculus hates me. Optimization? Wtf is that? I don't get it. 

Oh! Halloween is coming up! I'm going to be GIR from Invader Zim, for those of you who don't already know. If you don't know who that is, you're a poopnose. Go die. 

My costume is almost ready. I just need to add some teeny adjustments. I love Halloween! It's my 2nd favorite holiday! My 1st is Christmas, of course. I want to go trick-or-treating, but the friend I usually go with is going to be out of town. Epic fail. Oh well, I was invited to two parties. I dunno which I can go to though...epic fail.

Everyone get your costumes together! If you don't wear a costume, you shall be shunned.

I mean, come on, who DOESN'T dress up on Halloween? That's the whole point. To be someone , or something, that you aren't for one day :D IT'S FUN~

SAYONARA~

Quote: "Girls should never refer to themselves as a dude! MAMA!!!! Haruhi's using those dirty boy words again!" ~Tamaki from Ouran High School Host Club (can you tell that I love this series?)

Song: Bokura no Love Style ~Hikaru and Kaoru Hitachiin from Ouran High School Host Club (lol fail, but this is a really cute song. The lyrics are kinda mean though, but it's the twins, come on!)

Epic Failure

So I got inducted into the National Honor Society today.

EPIC

FAAAAAAIIIIILLLLL

The inductees were supposed to be called to come to wherever the heck we were supposed to meet over the intercom. Right?

Wrong.

If I hadn't called my mom and asked her what was going on, I would have missed it. I got there just in time. I have no idea how everyone else knew to just go without the announcement...

But before I left, my friend Al was upset because he was told exisiting members couldn't come.

Another epic fail.

They were. Apparently they were told not to come, which was false. None of the existing members (or very few) came so it screwed up the order of peoplez.

The actual auditorium had like, what, two people in it? An exaggeration, but still. It was pretty empty in there. And random kids were there that weren't being inducted;;; Not that that wasn't nice; lots of my friends were there. But it was kinda epic fail

I thought the guest speaker was kinda cool. Until he insulted my art area by saying that films like Spiderman, etc. that are "popular" isn't art. Okay, so people spend YEARS creating scripts, storyboards, and countless hours slaving over editing on those things because it's not ART. Film is art, no matter what label you put on it.

AFTERWARDS, there was a giant mob of people trying to get food at this teeny tiny little table. Fail.

And apparently my mother was the first one there, and they hadn't even marked where the students being inducted were supposed to sit. Fail.

It was a pretty nice ceremony, but loaded with epic failures left and right. I blame poor planning.

But then I went to Books-A-Million afterwards and got a manga and a magazine, so it's all good >:3

EDIT: The people who put the pictures in Anime Insider don't know how to crop/cut a picture properly in Photoshop. It's really not that difficult.

Sayonara~ 

Quote: "Your prince is out there somewhere, waiting for his princess" ~my mommy (this was such an adorable thing that my mom told me after I was crying over a certain something)

Song: "Hare Hare Yukai" ~from the Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya (I lurve this song. And the dance is pretty pwnage too! Check it out!)

Broken Heart, the Beach, and Random Hippie Dudes

So I only got 2 people's feedback from my last post. And nothing has changed....thanks guys. Appreciate it.

It's come to my attention that some people are...frustrated that I spend so much time with a certain person. I don't think you have to worry about that anymore, my friend. He's screwed up so many times, there's no way he could feel the same way about me that I feel about him.

So I had a semi-sucky day on Friday. I was supposed to go to Cityplace with said person, but he cancelled on me for like the 5th time. Epic fail.

Not so much though. I stayed after school with Lela, the most awesome person in the world. I went to Cheeburger Cheeburger with her and Tyler. They have this amazing quest to try every milkshake flavor in the store. So I helped. I'm gonna get mono or something, but w/e. You guys know that I'm a germ freak. But I didn't really care at the time :3 We were having super happy fun time.

So then we went back to school and hung out for a a while. Then Tyler left. So Lela suggested going to the beach. Little did I know that the beach was like 5904375483963 miles away. It was a nice walk though, even though my feet were killing me by the time we got back. 

So while we were on our little adventure, we bumped into the most amazing man I have ever met. He was this hippie dude who stopped Lela because she's just that amazing. He told us how he's met all of these awesome people and done so much cool stuff with his life. It was really inspiring how someone like that really exists. He's just one of those weird, artistic weirdos that the world doesn't understand. He really spoke to me :D You never know who you're going to see on the sidewalk! I wish I'd taken a picture of him...oh well...

So we got to the beach and it was GORGEOUS. We saw a cruise ship and it was all lit up and it was sooo pretty! We could even see the city lights from there! I never realized how beautiful the beach looks at night. The water looks so dark and pretty! Lela played around in the waves and I did too near the end. We couldn't stay for very long, but it was nice. So we ran back as fast as we could, cuz our mothers were waiting all the way back at Cityplace. The bridge was like a painting at night. All of the colors blended in with each other and the lights were so brilliant. Wow.

So I got in the car, drenched with sweat, and got some crap from my mother. Which wasn't so bad cuz I cried about my suckish morning and she was all oh nooooes it's okay. So it's all good. Cept not really.

Hope you enjoyed my epic story of epic proportions! :D

Quote: "In essence, it's as though I am the one protecting her. Not you." ~ Kaname Kuran (OMG WHY KANAME?! WHY DID YOU HAVE TO SAY "IN ESSENCE"?!)

Song: "Vampire Club" ~Voltaire (Best. Song. EVAR.)

Things that I Need to Get Off My Chest (very important post)

Hello everyone! First off let me say that my birthday was Sept. 7th! I'm officially 17! I keep thinking I'm 16; I don't feel any different! It's strange. Now I can get into R-rated movies and stuff and I'm older than everyone else in my grade. Kinda scary. But cool.

Anyway, down to more important things. I've been meaning to talk about this stuff for a long time, but I haven't known how to express it. So thank you Shayna, again, for providing me with something to steal. She listed things that make her 'sad' in her last blog post, so I'm going to use that and build off of it. This is very important to those of you who I hang out with often, because a lot of it pertains to you. I've mentioned some of the things listed here in real life, but no one takes me seriously and I'm sick of being pushed around and stepped on. The pen (keyboard) is mightier than the sword. Hopefully, that will prove true here.

~Stefanie's Super Dee Dooper Important List of Concerns and Nunus~

1. Cursing and foul language in general

Everyone thinks I'm cute and adorable and innocent because I don't curse, but I have a reason for it. I believe that using language like that is unnecessary and completely disrespectful. I see no reason to use words like that. There are plenty of other words that you can use that mean the same thing and are more appropriate. I don't curse in public at all because I don't think it's very nice to say words like that in front of people. Don't get me wrong, I do curse when I'm alone and by myself. Not often, but I do. And I do understand that things slip out every once and a while, it happens to everyone. But to use words like that in everyday conversation and not even think about it...I don't see how people do it. 

I hate cursing and I bring it to the attention of people so that they don't use language that offends me around me. I can't stop the world from cursing, it just can't be done. But I can bring it to the attention of the people who care about me. But strangely...

I had a friend say to me once that she doesn't curse in front of adults and authority figures because it's disrespectful.

....what?

Do I not deserve this same respect? Am I not worthy of it or something? Do friends not deserve the respect that adults get? I don't get it.

I've also heard people tell me that they can't help it when they curse like this around their friends. Everyone can control their speech. It's not that hard. When you get into the real world, language like that is not acceptable and it's not acceptable in my ears.

I just don't understand...is it really that hard to respect someone?

2. When people call other people "hot"

It sounds trashy. I hate it. There's other words you can use to describe someone.

3. Hypocrites

I'll refer to a specific example for this one. One day someone came over to our little lunch group and said that someone was hot (refer to number 2). I voiced my opinion that I didn't like the use of that word and I had someone next to me say something about freedom of speech and things like that, visibly frustrated with what I had to say.

Now...I had said a word around that same friend many months prior to this. And she had a problem with, because she thought it wasn't very nice. She listed alternative words for it and I honored her feelings and stored that word into my memory banks so that I would never say it around her again.

.....is there something wrong with this picture? I'm expected to change what I say, but people won't do the same for me? Hm...

4. People who leave one or more people out of a conversation

This is another specific example. This might offend some of the people who read this, but I really need to talk about this. I've brought it up at school several times, but no one seems to listen to me or take me seriously. It's been bothering me for a very long time and I want people to listen to my side of the story.

Here goes...

So I go to an art school, right? And there's lots of different art areas, like theatre, music, visual arts, communications, vocal, dance, la dee da da. I'm a communications major and probably 95% of my friends are theatre majors. Why? I have no idea. That's just how it is. So going to an art school, you'd except that people talk about their art areas, right? Especially when they share the same art area. It's nice to talk about what you're interested in. 

So naturally, my theatre major friends are all friends and they talk about their art area. Their teachers, their classes, performances, homework, etc. etc. They talk about that kinda stuff.

....a lot.

So when you're eating lunch with about 5 other people who are all talking about something that you're not knowledgeable or interested in, you start to feel really left out. With 2, going on 3, years of that kinda stuff, you start to feel REALLY left out. 

Don't get me wrong, I'm so happy that my friends love their major that much. I don't have that much dedication and love for mine. I'd never be able to do half the stuff that they do. 

But it's just that even if I'm surrounded by people, I still feel like I'm alone. I remember one time I was at a sleepover and all of the people there were theatre majors except for me. They started talking about theatre stuff and I just sat there smiling, waiting for the topic to change. After a while, I almost fell asleep. I was finally acknowledged and they tried to change the subject so that I could participate. Tried.

Stuff like that seems to happen a lot, with all of my friends and with different topics. I always try to include people in my conversation if I'm in a group. If I see someone is left out, I usually try to change the subject so that they're included too. I just wish people would notice me too and include me too, so I'm not always stuck behind a barrier.

That was the hardest thing that I needed to say, and I hope something in their stuck.

5. People who don't know when to keep their mouth shut

Ever heard of the phrase "If you don't have anything nice to say, don't say anything at all"? Pretty simple concept, right? Apparently not.

Some people that I know don't realize that what comes out of their mouths affects other people around them, either negatively or positively. It just doesn't make sense to me. Some of the stuff that these people say make me think "Why would you even say that?". I'll give an example. One time my friend was pretty upset and was kinda snapping at people. People get upset, it's a natural emotion. Just leave that person alone and don't get on their bad side and they'll calm down. My other friend finds it appropriate to say "Are you PMSing?". 

What the heck, man. That's not what you say to someone who's upset. Think about what you say before you say it. 

6. People who say "I'm not being mean. I'm just brutally honest".

Most likely, what you just said/did was mean to the person you're talking to. It relates to number 5. Think about what you say before you say it. You can be nice and still be honest.

7. People that tuck their shirts in

It looks dumb. Take your shirt out.

8. Purses for backpacks

Use a backpack or a bag. Not a purse. This isn't a fashion contest.

9. "OMG EWWW YOU LIKE HANNAH MONTANA/JONAS BROTHERS/DISNEY CHANNEL/*INSERT OTHER THING HERE THAT'S NOT POPULARLY ACCEPTABLE FOR A 17-YEAR-OLD*?!?!!"

Yes, shut up. Lots of people do, actually.

10. People that feel the need to stop/slow down right in the middle of the hallway for no apparent reason

You might not have somewhere to go, but I do. Move.

11. Skeletons

They scare me. Yes, I know I have one inside of me. Stop reminding me.

12. Preps

Ew. Get a life.

13. Improper usage or cellphones

Driving, texting during class, obnoxiously talking in a store, during a movie, in the hallway (slows down traffic), etc. etc. Why do you need to talk that badly? Shut up and finish whatever you're doing or wait until after class/the movie. Or take it outside. I don't need to hear your conversation.

14. "I gotta go pee"

I don't need to know what you're gonna do in there. Just go.

15. Mispronunciation of the word "often"

The t is silent. It's in the dictionary.

16. Repetition

I heard you the first time.

17. Disliking something when you've never watched/seen/etc. it before

You have no right to dislike it. Give it a chance before you make an opinion.

I can't think of anything else and I'm sick of putting this off. Please read this and understand where I come from. I love you all :D

Quote: "Sexual harassment?" from my English book, talking about two six-year-olds that kissed.

Song: "Shissou" by Vic Mignogna. Okay, he didn't write he, but he translated it into English and he did an amazing job with it. Check it out!