Almost Christmas

It's almost Christmas break. I am so excited. So excited. You have no idea how excited I am. I get to sleep, and eat, and take naps, and relax, and watch movies, and sleep in, and go to bed early, and open presents, and eat cookies, and take after dinner naps, and sleep.

Have I mentioned that I get to sleep?

I'm pretty excited about sleeping.

In case you couldn't tell.

Sweet Seventeen, Baby

This pretty much sums up my birthday. Pretty awesome.

17 Times Around The Sun

Almost my birthday.

Yeah?

Thanksgiving

Turkey. Stuffing. Pumpkin pie.
Family. Friends. Fire places. 
Poker. Stories. Fond memories. 
Live. Laugh. Love.

The Right Color

It was easier in the days when all you watched was Disney movies and your only worry was whether or not you had the right color crayon to finish your picture. You didn't worry about money. You didn't worry about being liked. You didn't know about all the crap in the world. Everything back then was easier. Easier to say sorry. Easy to believe. Easier to smile. Because to a 5 year old kid, the world is perfect. Unless you couldn't find the right crayon. 

Some Ventilation

I hate when I find something about myself that I actually like, and someone has to go and bash it and make me feel like crap. I mean really, leave me alone. What did I ever do to you? I still think turtles are cute. So screw you.

I also hate that people assume I don't know anything because I was homeschooled, and they think I'm "so innocent." Give me a break people. I'm not that stupid. I know what weed is, thank you very much. I just chose not to smoke it, 'cause I'd end up like you.

Sorry I'm quiet too. You probably think I'm socially awkward. I'm not, I just don't like you. I've seen everything you do behind everyone's backs, including my own, and I really don't care to call you my friend.

I hate people.

so called 'friends'

I've decided that some friends are fake friends. They just meander from once person to another, and never take the blame for anything. And in the end, you wonder why the heck you put up with them for so long, and you're happy to see them go. Then again, you feel left out of their life and kind of miss the useless conversations you once had.

You feel kind of empty inside, because even though the person you fought with most is gone, the person you had the best conversations with is gone, too. The person with all the inside jokes. The person who knows all the crap in the dark alleys of your past, yet still loved you like a sister they never had. You feel shot in the heart, but instead of bleeding all over the place, it just leaves a tiny hole. Like a paper cut, it's small and almost invisible, but it hurts like hell.

At The Top

Popularity is overrated. People push and shove to be at the top. And for what? After high school, who cares? Are you really going to keep contact with even half the people you meet there? Yea, I didn’t think so.

I swear high school is a little world of its own. And it’s a scary place, I can tell you that much. No wonder so many dramas and movies are bases off high school – there’s so much to feed off of.

People say “high school isn’t like it is in the movies.” No, it’s a lot worse. The hall ways are a battle field, lunch tables have rankings, and half the school has slept together. Talk about drama.

And they wonder why we aren’t getting a good education.

And parents wonder why kids want to grow up so bad.

And people worry about our generation. 

Give Me Truth

"Rather than love, than money, than faith, than fame, than fairness, give me truth."

Truth is often forgotten these days. People fudge their way around it. People hate telling the truth, people hate hearing the truth.

But tell  me, would you wnat to be loved if it was a lie?

When you say "instead of blank, give me truth," aren't you more likely to end up with that very thing? And if not, aren't you better off than having a lie?

In the end, words are empty unless they are true. If you say "I love you," but don't mean  it, you aren't giving (or getting) love or truth. An honest word is bound to get you farther than lies. Liars are always caught.

Truth is such a simple thing to ask for. So why is it so far to give sometimes?

I think it is because people are scared. Scared of themeselves. So they hide who they are, sometimes with money or fame, sometimes with love.

People are "You only live life once," so woulnd't you rather live it to the fullest, as yourself, than to live a lie?

Nothing is wrong with love, or money, or faith, or fame, or fairness, but in the end, they're all worthelss if they don't have truth.

Things are built on words, and truth has a much stronger foundation than lies. Things built on lies crumble and leave you nothing but broken remains of what could have been. Even a small lie in a strong foundation and leave a crack, making you wonder how many more cracks there really are.

Witout truth, there is no trust. How can you love without trust.

Without truth, does money mean anything?

Without truth, what do you base your faith on?

Without truth, is the fame worth it?

Without truth, is anything really fair?

Without truth, there is nothing.

Nothing but a broken foundation.

ten days is a little much

I'm starting to think that ten days on the beach with nothing to do is too much. Normally vacations zoom by and before you know it, it's over and you're heading home, wishing you had one more day to lie on the beach and do nothing.

Not this girl. I'm ready to do something. Not that I don't love lying on the beach and doing nothing, but I've run out of books to read and it's been rainy the past few days, so I can't even work on my tan. I do have a nice collection of sea shells going, though.

Look, I even bought aviators to read books (that I don't have) in the sun (that isn't shining).

Book Reading Craze

It's vacation. That means I've been reading. I was going to write book reviews, and after writing 2 and 1/2 so called 'reviews,' I realized it just wasn't my thing. At all. But I will say "Say The Word" by Jeannine Garsee is a really, really good book. And that's about as good as that book review is going to get.

Anyway, vacation has been good. Dance went well. I'm currently watching The Rachel Zoe Project and wasting my life away, and l'm loving every minute of it.

No, really, I'm going to go lie on the beach with my newly acquired aviators and read a book. Hopefully a good book.

Reading all these books makes me want to write my own, but getting a story going ... that's a challenge.

Anyway, my best friend just asked me to go swimming, so I'm going to soak up the sun and hit the waves.

More to come later.

Here's a sexy picture 

I Less Than Three You

'I less than three you' seems to be the thing to say now adays. (i <3 u)  But whatever happened to I love you? 

What happened to spelling out a word completely and ending you sentence with a period? 

 What happened to honesty?

 What happened to picniks in the park, long walks on the beach, and a simple kiss to say 'see you later?'

 What happened to only falling in love once, and not falling out of it? 

 Now the thing is to have a new 'lover' every other weekend, have 7 'soul mates,' and saying 'I love you' after the first date. Excuse me, 'i <3 u.' 

 What happened to dating? Because these days, it just seems like a game.

Vacation

Finally. A week to do nothing. We're currently at cabins on the beach (I will not tell you where, for safety reasons) and loving every minute of it. I would post more if my iPod actually liked to work and we had good enough wifi for it to stay connected. But this will have to do. 


It's been nice. Not a lot of sleep, though 


"Kate, can I lie with you?" 
"No William."
"Kate, what's the noise?" 
"I don't know William, go back to sleep."
"Kate, are you awake?"
"I am now." 


William has been having a blast. Here are a few quotes from the day.

"What are you doing" - William
"Getting wifi." - Kate
"That sucks. It takes forever to get wifi. I mean, these flip flops are comfy." - William


"Warm beachy day. I mean, sunny beach day. Warm beachy day sounds like warm peach. Yuck." - William


I had a dream about giant gummy bears." - Clay
"Intersting, and do you suppose that dream means?" - Dad
"I should avoive giant gummy bears." - Clay
"Good plan." - Dad
"I had a dream about giant woodpeckers!" - William
"I'll avoid those too." -Clay
"Giant woodpeckers aren't real!" - William
"Neither are giant gummy bears, so that makes my job easy." - Clay


"The lake is really sparkly cause the sun is shining. Let's go to the sparkly beach!" - William

"Vacation is like you go to someone else's house and stay there for tend days." - William


To say the least, it's been enjoyable this far. 


If you would like to continue reading these amazing quotes and updates on our days here on the beach, you can follow me on twitter. Just click the cute little 'follow' button at the top right hand on the sidebar of this blog. (Or you can click --> here <-- and that'll work too., but the follow button is cooler.)


Hope you are all enjoying your last bits of summer (assuming yours hasn't ended already). I'm off to enjoy the sparkly beach. 

Late Night Blogging

Don't be surprised if I start blogging more. I aquired an iPod touch yesterday from my boyfriend's little sister. She bought a new one and gave me her old one free of charge. Granted, it has a huge crack in it, and currently needs a "software update," but I'm quite find of it. It allows for portable Internet access without needing a laptop.

So hopefully you will see more blogging. Hopefully being the key word here...

So, the youth group I attend is currntly at a week long event called CIY. And I'm not there with them. I feel like I should be. This is my first year since 6th grade not being there. I text my friends who are there, asking how things are going and requesting picutres so I can feel a little closer to the action. It's weird not being there singing and talking and laughing and crying (there are always tears at the end).

I know they will all have a great time though, and learn lots. Hopefully next year I'll be joining in on the fun and all that jazz.

But for now, I'll finish driver ed, continue cleaning, mow, stay up late,and keep in touch with them as much as I can. I miss you guys. Have fun for me.

Much love,
Kate

Recital Recap

Rehearsal Week:

Rehearsal week was ... bad, to say the least. The first 4 days the AC at the college was 'broken,' so they said, and it was just as warm in the building as it was outside. On stage, with the lights and people, it was 10 degrees warmer, and while you are dancing, you don't exactly cool down. It was terrible terrible terrible. Thankfully, by Thursday it had cooled down a bit, and by Friday the AC seemed to be working just fine.


Saturday 1pm:

Before our big recital on Saturday, we have a Mini Recital, which includes all of the younger dancers. This show only lasts for about an hour, so the young ones don't have to sit around back stage for 3 to 4 hours waiting to go on for bows. And ever since adding the Mini Show, we've had enough tickets for the larger shows.

The Mini Show went fantastically for the younger dancers. I assist classes, and I stood behind the curtains making sure they knew what they were doing. I had been worries about them all week, but during the performance was the best time they had ever done it. I was so proud of them. Kathy, our director, mixes in a few other pieces into the mini show, to give the kids a break and to allow the families of the younger dancers to see a bit of the other show.

I was in a piece with the companies (I'm in company 1) and we did a piece from Westside Story. It wasn't our best time, that's for sure, but it was alright and all the little kids loved it (though I think we could go out and do the hokey pokey and they'd still love it).


Saturday 3pm:

The real deal. To be honest, I don't remember much of the Saturday show. My family, bestfriend, boyfriend, and family friends did come to watch, so that was nice. The ballet, which was Alice in Wonderland, went without a hitch. And the second act went well too. A few mess ups from a few dancers, but overall, it was good.


Sunday 3pm:

Sunday, Sunday, Sunday. It was indeed a crazy day. The ballet went well, but I almost face planted as the Mad Hatter while running across stage for bows. Not pretty. On to act two. Westside Story is the opening number, and it went well until the end, when, as we were walking towards the front for the ending, I see my friend Courtney hobble off stage and fall behind the curtain, crying her eyes out. I had to continue focusing, and the dance finished in a few seconds. As soon as the black out hit, I ran back stage to find her crying, and adults all around, asking "Ice or Heat?" and "Where does it hurt?" I see enough to realize she hurt her knee really bad, and wouldn't be able to dance for the rest of the show. I had to go back and change though, because we were on in a few songs. Everyone is kind of frantic, hoping she was alright. Our teacher comes in, and has to make last minute adjustments to the dance, has Courtney was a main lifter in each one she was in. Thankfully we get it worked out, and things workout alright. Everyone was hurt though, that she couldn't dance. Her family had come to watch, too.

Then, during the second to last song, a girl fell during the black out, and wasn't in her place when the lights came on. She wiped her tears away, and went into the dance, though you could tell she was upset that she fell.

Then at the end, Kathy always gives out awards to those who are most improved and gifts to the seniors. This year, we also had to say goodbye to Tara, a long time student, assistant, and teacher. She's moving to Cali to pursue a career in dance. Everyone was crying, including myself, and there were so so so many hugs afterward. It was so bittersweet. I get teary eyed thinking about it.


So that concludes dance 2010-2011. It was a great year, a great recital, and there were a lot of great memories made. Now time for summer break. Well, after 3 more days of school, that is.

Recital 2011 - Complete

Let's just say, it was a crazy, insane, exhausting, week.

And the performances went great.

We did have injuries, costume problems, tears, and falls, but I'll explain those on a later date.

Now, off to bed to get some sleep before my English exam.

visit hayleyhamlin.com to view pictures of the performances. (Go to client proofing and click APA~DANCE2011, and enter your name and email address to view the [outstanding] pictures.)

Sophmore Year is Coming to a Close

Can you believe that it's already time for school to be out? After today, I will have 3 more days of sophomore year. It went by so fast.

It's been a crazy year, too. But I made it. Things are wrapping up with recital and exams, and the beginning of drivers training (finally).

This year was a good one. An adventure, for sure.

But I'm ready for summer.

It's so close I can taste it. 

Recital in 3, 2, 1 ...

And it's here again. Recital.

And I'm just as scared as ever.

It's not even until Saturday.

Freak.ing.out.

The lovely Hayley Hamlin of Hayley Hamlin Photography is taking pictures. They are amazing, as always.

full dress rehearsal tonight.

I can't wait, yet I'm nervous.

Wish me luck, but please, don't say "Break a leg." That's theatre. Say "Merde." Dancer for "good luck!"

Coffee Date

Sunday morning. 7am. What's better than a coffee date with the most amazing dad in the world? I couldn't think of anything else either.

Starbucks vs. Big B's. Hard to chose, but we went with Starbucks.

A White Chocolate Mocha and a Caramel Macchiato, both with extra shots of espresso.

And a missing wallet.

Kate to the rescue! No worries, we still got our coffee.

Thank you, summer lawn mowing for saving my coffee date.
Thanks Dad, for being a cool guy and taking me to get coffee.

Red

Red is bam
In your face
Red is anger
All your hate

Red is harsh
Truth found out
Red is blood
Filled with doubt

Red is sunsets
Sinking low
Red is death
By over dose

Red is love

Warm and sweet

Red is the person

We wish to meet

Red is a rose

Given to a friend

Red is a feeling

That should never end

Red is comfort

Holding you close

Red is two

Dancing slow

Red is two faced

A mystery

Red is life

A fine story

Memorial Day Weekend

Memorial Weekend is over, sad to say. But it was fun while it lasted.

Terrible weather though, let me tell you. Tipsy people and tornado warnings ... you can image the chaos.

Finally on Monday the weather was good. No rain. No tornados. Just sunshine and 80 degrees.

So I hung out with my boyfriend. Tanning, swimming, car washing, ice cream eating, tennis watching. It was nice.

Caleb is kind of a tennis fanatic, so we were watching the French Open. I think I actually understand how it all works ...

Sort of.

But anyway, only 2 and a half more weeks of school, then we're free. Can. Not. Wait.

Oh yes, I was doing a 365 on Facebook. Let's just say: I fail. I'm not sure if I should continue despite missing this whole weekend, or just stop now and consider it done. Or possibly do a version of it in the summer instead of trying to work around my crazy schedule. "The Days of Summer." Sounds nice, yes? I'll think about it. Perhaps I need to post extra pictures to make up for it? We'll see.

Exciting news: Drivers Ed for Kate this June! Finally. Everyone says it will feel like I'm still in school, but I don't care at this point. I just want to be able to drive.

I'm going to keep babbling on. Alright? Cool.

Dance recital is in June. The 11th and 12th, to be exact. It's coming up soon, and I'm getting nervous. But also excited. Tech week is the week before the show, and we all practically live on stage. Tech week is when we get lights, music, and costumes all situated. I remember last year, and how much I loved it. The lights, the music, the make up, the dancing. Working hard all day, everyday, to finally show on Saturday what we've all worked so hard for. It feels good. I like tech week just as much as I like the actual performance.

But I'm done babbling now. I hope you all had a nice weekend.

Girls Who Love Blindly

They are young
And unknowing
The don't know what they deserve
In the night they cry
But they call it love

They repeat the pain every day
As if their life depended on it
Depended on the hurt
Their hearts are crushed
But they call it love

They are broken
Into a thousand pieces
Stuck in the pattern
Used to the pain
But they call it love

My Summer Time

Shorts and tank tops
Swimming and flip flops
Tan lines and late nights
This would be my summer time

Fresh air
Mowed grass
Cool breeze
Please last

White sand
Beach hair
Lots of laughs
Not a care

Ice cream
Movie dates
Star gazing
Soul mate

June to September
Family and friends
Loving every minute
From beginning to end

I'm just Kate

I've come to realize that I will never be the crazy, outgoing, make-everyone-laugh kind of girl.

I'm more of the quiet, reserved type. I don't talk a lot, and sometimes people think I'm weird because of that.

I've always been shy and quiet, and I never used to like that about myself.

But I've come to realize - This is me. This is Kate.

Kate is simple and quiet.

Kate is down to earth.

Kate isn't loud, or crazy, or "Hey, look at me!"

Kate is just Kate.

Plain and simple.

Thursday

70 degrees

Dance

Sunshine

Pictures

It's going to be a good day

Running

I went for a run the other day.

Bad idea.

First off, I hate running. A lot. I don't even know what possessed me to run, but I did. I should tell you though, it was walk, run, walk, run, walk, repeat, with more walking than running...

But still.

My feet? In pain.

My legs? Sore.

Me? Not running ever again.

Nope. Not running again.

Bike ride? We'll see.

Cloudy Days

The past week has been a cloudy one. Literally and figuratively. It seems as though it's been raining non stop, and there's this gloom in the air.

Everyone is dying for the sun to finally show itself, so we can all be warm again, and get out of this winter gloom.

Even though I'm sick of the rain, I love the fresh smell it leaves, and how it makes the grass a vivid green. And really, I can't complain. We could be getting tornadoes and snow storms. I'll take fresh rain any day.

A lot of people are having bad days though. A friend from school learned Sunday that her older brother, who was in the military, passed away. Everyone's heart is broken for her and her family. It's amazing how many people are there for her, too. Facebook is flooded with inspirational posts and prays. It reminds you that there are people there in the dark times, and this world isn't as horrible a place as it may seem. Even during the cloudy days.

I just hope the sun shines soon. We all need a break and a fresh take.

But I've realized something. Even if it's cloudy, the sun is always shining, even if we can't see it's light or feel it's warmth. And when the clouds part, even for a moment, the sun  never fails to shine and cheer everyone up a little bit. It's made me think about how we should try to be the sun, even if the clouds of life are too thick and dark for us to shine through. You never know when the clouds will part and someone will feel your warmth or see your light. The sun is contagious.

Be the sun in a cloudy world.

Nothing Ever Lasts Forever

April showers better bring May flowers

It's been raining like crazy during the past week. On the way to school, the bus had to turn around and go a different route because the road was flooded over. The kids all freaked out. It was kind of funny.

Today has been a pretty easy day, school wise. After school, I'm heading to the dance studio once again. I practically live there.

So not a lot is happening. Just the same ol' same ol'. Hopefully I'll get some good pictures this weekend.

If it's not raining.

Poets Block

I'm stuck.

I can't think of what to put next in my latest poem. (See this post).

Any ideas?

A Work in Progress

The stars shine bright
In the sky
And in your eyes

The clock ticks by
But with you
The moment stops

Frozen, so perfectly
If only for eternity.

That's all I have so far. To me, it almost sounds like a song.

English 10 B

For English 10 B we are required to do two extra assignments on top of our in class assignments in order to get an A in the class. Of course, I'd like an A, so I've decided to do 1) A personal journal and 2) a photography journal. But I'm adding a twist.

I'm not hand writing it. I'm blogging it. For reasons including
A) It's easier to upload pictures than to print them and stick them in a notebook
B) I'm often near a computer, as pathetic as that may be
C) I need to work on my blogs more anyway
D) It's something different

So you can expect to see me back here more often. I'm actually excited.

And now the beginning of my first official post.

Happy Thursday! Tomorrow is Good Friday, and thankfully we don't have any school.I've been sick all week, but I've toughed it out. It's mostly a sinus infection/head cold kind of deal. Plus a cough, as added bonus. Thankfully, it's fading away quickly, though I'm still hit with random cough attacks.

I'm getting new pointe (yes, pointe, not point. It's french, people) shoes this weekend. I killed my other ones. They're mush.

Maple Syrup Festival is next weekend. It's the annual festival of Shepherd, Michigan. It's kind of a big deal. They're a queen and court, a parade, a pancake breakfast, and a handful of fair rides and deep-fried-food venders. I'm excited, to say the least.

The weather here in the good ole mitten has been ... kind of crappy, to put it nicely. It's been grey (grey is cooler than gray) and gloomy, with lots of rain and random snow/hail/crap.

But I'm rambling, and I have things to do. So until next time.

Dear Summer

I am anxiously awaiting your return. I have missed you so much during these dark winter months. You stopped by to say hello on Sunday, and it was such a nice surprise. I wish you could have stayed longer, but hopefully you'll be back soon. All my friends miss you as well, and I'm sure when you finally arrive there will be much celebrating. 

Please visit soon. With lots of love.

Happy Birthday Dad

Today is my Dad's birthday, and I figured I'd make a blog post in tribute to him.

My father is amazing. Just saying. He's kind, and smart, and loving. Plus he's hilarious. He's a nerd. He's short. He wears boy's jeans cause he's so little.

Buy hey, he's pretty cool, and I love the guy.

Happy Birthday Dad!

The Big One Hundred

I went to go write a post and realized that this is my 100th post. I consider this a great achievement.

It only took me ... 27 months to get here.

Spring break update: It's been good.

I spent yesterday running around town. First Walmart, to realize that they don't have any openings for eye appointments, then Sam's Club to realize they're way more expensive, then Kohl's to find a bathing suit, then the dentist to have my teeth cleaned, then Wendy's for some lunch, then JCPenney's with no luck of finding anything worth purchasing, then home.

(Word Count: 100)

Spring Break : 2011

Well, we got the 'final snow storm' that normally hits around the end of March, and Shepherd's spring break has arrived early. No complaints.

Yesterday was cancelled, although no one in the house knew this until after my sister and I waited 10 minutes for the bus.

Today was cancelled early yesterday, so we were forewarned. Though I almost got up and got ready, forgetting it was a snow day. Today would have been a half day anyway, and we don't have school tomorrow due to parent/teacher conferences. So hello Spring Break 2011.

My plans are: work on my six-pack, go to the mall with Lauren, hang out with Caleb in celebration of his birthday, possibly play tennis if the weather allows, keep my room sparkling clean (I spent all of last friday night working on it, and I have to say, it looks pretty darn amazing), and sleep in.

Sounds pretty good to me.

It's a New Year

2011 is here. Faster than we all expected. Even though we all knew it was coming. For some reason, as I get older, each year goes by faster than the last. Someone what to explain why that is? I mean, I'm 16 already. It's fantastic, ya. But at the same time, I can't decide if I want to be a little kid again, or if I want to grow up and just finish high school already.

I want to make 2011 great. I was going to have a resolution. I have a few.

-Get a 6 pack
-Not eat wheat (starting tomorrow)
-Blog more
-Take more pictures
-Get all A's (so far so good)

But I want to do something worth while. I mean yes, taking care of myself is good and all, and doing things I enjoy. But those aren't things that I've been dying to do. Just things I should do.

I'm just babbling, but it's my blog, so I'm allowed to do that. Tomorrow school starts again. I have to admit I'm not too thrilled. I was just starting to enjoy my break. But I guess school will give me something to do, huh? I don't have hard classes this trimester, either. US History B, art, child development, business tech, and Chemistry B. All A's ... expect Chemistry. It's an A-. But that'll change, you wait.

Bed time now. Enjoy your Monday! I'll be back in touch soon.

2011

Happy New Years everyone! Make  it the best yet.

Best wishes.

Kate