Being sick isn't something I find enjoyable. Besides the consistent napping and hours of free time reading and doing whatever comes to my mind, everything else is a blur that I want to clear up as fast as possible. Trust me. Sitting at home all week with my ears infected, my head throbbing and my throat clogged up is not something I look forward to.
When I'm sick, I usually read most of the time that I'm not asleep. However, since my mom got an iPad this October, it gives me something else to do. I usually play on an app, watch YouTube or FaceTime with my friend from Germany with it. (TV in the morning isn't very interesting, so it isn't something I do normally on weekdays that I'm sick.)
Something else that makes being sick even worse than it sounds when I get back to school and have to make up for all the work that I missed.
UGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGG.
Friday, February 10, 2012
Saturday, January 28, 2012
Post-Aladdin Reflection
If you don't want to read something dramatically depressing to the point where it seems desperate, don't read ahead of this. I am a writer, so I express my feelings in a way that seems seriously dramatic to the point where it doesn't seem real. This is what is going to happen to me after after every theatrical performance, you see; I will go into some sort of long-lasting depression where I wish to go back in time and experience what I experienced before it was gone. Since I'm unfortunate enough to have a heart made of glass that shattered the moment I stepped offstage today, I needed to post something that could express my dramatically exaggerated feelings that are something I don't want to experience, unlike my experience with Team Aladdin. If you want to dwell with my messed up emotions that never give me a break, read ahead. And because I am a writer, this is the kind of post that happens when I am depressed. :|
The past three months have been three months I can never possibly forget. They're those kind of memories that you never really appreciate as they happen, and only start to realize how precious and wonderful and beautiful they are when they are just. About. Gone. They're those kind of memories where you know that it's going to happen again soon, but that soon just seems so far away and out of your grip.
"Aladdin Jr." was my first theatrical performance. I never thought that theatrical performances would take more effort than you put into something you're doing for your own benefit, or because your best friend pleaded for you to, or for the sake of saying I did this and I am proud. Although I did first audition for this play for all three reasons I've just listed, the effort it took for this beautiful memory to happen was more than you'd think.
I've met amazing people through this, gotten closer to people I thought I was close enough to, and learned from my experience. Although I know there will be another play for me to audition for and meet more people and reunite with everyone I've gotten to know and love for the past three months, today was the last time the same exact cast would perform altogether
Long giggling fits, awkward silences, catchy tunes, familiar voices and standing ovations ring in my head. It's been four hours since we all split up. I've invented a name for my depression. "Post-Aladdin Depression", I call it. I wonder how long it's going to last. I hope it's not too long. My emotions really never give me a break. >:(
The past three months have been three months I can never possibly forget. They're those kind of memories that you never really appreciate as they happen, and only start to realize how precious and wonderful and beautiful they are when they are just. About. Gone. They're those kind of memories where you know that it's going to happen again soon, but that soon just seems so far away and out of your grip.
"Aladdin Jr." was my first theatrical performance. I never thought that theatrical performances would take more effort than you put into something you're doing for your own benefit, or because your best friend pleaded for you to, or for the sake of saying I did this and I am proud. Although I did first audition for this play for all three reasons I've just listed, the effort it took for this beautiful memory to happen was more than you'd think.
I've met amazing people through this, gotten closer to people I thought I was close enough to, and learned from my experience. Although I know there will be another play for me to audition for and meet more people and reunite with everyone I've gotten to know and love for the past three months, today was the last time the same exact cast would perform altogether
Long giggling fits, awkward silences, catchy tunes, familiar voices and standing ovations ring in my head. It's been four hours since we all split up. I've invented a name for my depression. "Post-Aladdin Depression", I call it. I wonder how long it's going to last. I hope it's not too long. My emotions really never give me a break. >:(
Friday, January 13, 2012
An experience I will NEVER get used to
This year, I had another amazing opportunity to participate in my school's spelling bee. Last year, I had participated and won. I was overwhelmed by all the words I had to commit to memory, the long time I had to study that seemed so short, and the competition that worried me greatly.
If anyone tells you that the pre-bee jitters only last the first few rounds, that's a lie. That's a big fib. A prevarication. A nasty, no good, filthy, dirty, rotten lie. This was the fourth spelling bee I had participated in and my knees were wobbling until my last word. The big audience, small chance and mind-blowing words take over and your brain doesn't work right. Your knees shake, you start to twiddle with your thumbs and sweat is trickling down your back. Unless you can shove off the hardest of emotions, there is no way to avoid the feelings you are going to feel. Unless, of course, you've got some hardcore confidence in you. That's a different story. Just don't let the emotions overpower you. Be careful with what you say, because before you know it, the dreaded bell might ring in your ears and you'll be sitting right back down.
Never let yourself be too confident during a spelling bee, though. You'll start to spell the words that shoot at you too fast and skip a letter or two. You'll think you've got all the brains, but in reality, your brain is busted. Your confidence will take control. You might even spell the easiest of words with an extra letter.
There is also no such thing as "enough studying". The more words you have committed to memory, the better chance you have. There'll be long, confusing words stuck in your study list here and there. You need to get them in your head as quickly as you can. In my case, the hardest words are usually the easiest to spell because I start studying them first.
By the way, the advice I'm giving you? That was my key to winning again this year.
If anyone tells you that the pre-bee jitters only last the first few rounds, that's a lie. That's a big fib. A prevarication. A nasty, no good, filthy, dirty, rotten lie. This was the fourth spelling bee I had participated in and my knees were wobbling until my last word. The big audience, small chance and mind-blowing words take over and your brain doesn't work right. Your knees shake, you start to twiddle with your thumbs and sweat is trickling down your back. Unless you can shove off the hardest of emotions, there is no way to avoid the feelings you are going to feel. Unless, of course, you've got some hardcore confidence in you. That's a different story. Just don't let the emotions overpower you. Be careful with what you say, because before you know it, the dreaded bell might ring in your ears and you'll be sitting right back down.
Never let yourself be too confident during a spelling bee, though. You'll start to spell the words that shoot at you too fast and skip a letter or two. You'll think you've got all the brains, but in reality, your brain is busted. Your confidence will take control. You might even spell the easiest of words with an extra letter.
There is also no such thing as "enough studying". The more words you have committed to memory, the better chance you have. There'll be long, confusing words stuck in your study list here and there. You need to get them in your head as quickly as you can. In my case, the hardest words are usually the easiest to spell because I start studying them first.
By the way, the advice I'm giving you? That was my key to winning again this year.
Friday, January 6, 2012
The Little Things
Since 2011 has come to a close, I wanted to make a list of the really little things that I never stopped to appreciate.
I thank 2011 for
I thank 2011 for
- the little hugs I got from my best friends every morning
- the kiss I got from my parents before bedtime every night
- the small things that I tripped over that made me look like a real klutz
- the thick books I read at school that made me look like a nerd
- the strange outfits that I picked out that made me look like I was color blind
- my first guitar that everyone raised their eyebrow at because it was so small
- the inches that never grew to make myself look taller than Thea
- the soft ear of my stuffed animal rubbing against my nose before I go to bed
- the friends I took for granted that made a great impact later on
- the long talks I had with my mom after dinner that went on for hours
- the short conversations I had with my dad that consisted of nonexistent words and jibber-jabber
- the glasses I put on every morning that helped me see the world clearer
- the books that were there when no one else was
- the tears that I cried that were worth it after all
- the laughs that I held in so I wouldn't look like a freak
- the laughs that came out anyway
- and the years that I have ahead of me that are yet to come.
Friday, December 2, 2011
I am a WRITER
The past month has been a blast. I've written on my computer until my fingers gave in, stayed up late at night trying to reach the final stretch, and spent all the spare time I had, anywhere in any place, writing in a sketchpad and occasionally going back to count how many words I had down.
And I won.
It was late at night on November 30th when I was about to finish. My friend Tyler wouldn't quit sending me messages on my cellphone. He told me to keep him updated, so I did. When I hit 49,000 words, I was freaking out and my fingers were shaking. I could barely hit the "send" button on my phone.
It was late in November when I made the decision to do NaNoWriMo this year. November 11th, to be exact. I had heard about it in 2008, right before it had begun, but I skipped it and decided to try it when I was a little older. Looking back at it, I'm pretty glad that I didn't attempt at the age of eight; it was hard for me to keep up with my word count, even three years later. I didn't even get to ten thousand words until the week after I had started to write.
So, as I was saying, I had sent the message to him and immediately put my phone down to continue writing. I was so close, yet so far. Only a thousand words to go. I could do this. I knew I could do this. I didn't even bother to take any breaks that night; my eyes were ready to droop shut and take a long nap, but I forced them to stay open. I had to write. I couldn't stop writing. If I stopped now, I'd never reach 50,000 words!
Let me go back farther and help you understand.
The morning of that day, I was doubting that I could make it. My friends at school reassured me that I could. I was only at 41,000 before I had come home from school. I didn't have any time to spare to write at school that day; I couldn't go up to open library (pretty much, it's study hall, if you want to call it that) and write because we didn't have it on Wednesdays. I was ready to quit and try again next year. I even had a cold, and I had to go home early anyway that day because I was ready to throw up at my desk.
When I got home, I laid in bed for a while and let my eyes rest. I took around twenty minutes to get myself together before getting out of bed and picking up my laptop. I turned it on and immediately opened up my story. I started to write like there was no tomorrow; I used Write or Die, MyTomatoes, and NaNoWordSprints from Twitter. Sometimes, I didn't use anything at all and just typed without anything to motivate me except for the thrill of getting it all done.
At some point, I fell asleep next to my computer. Could you blame me? I was tired, I felt like I was going to throw up, and I had barely gotten any sleep the night before because I stayed up writing again. The only reason I had woken up was because I heard my dad arriving home and coming up the staircase to say hello to me. I sat up and rubbed my eyes before looking at the clock. I had four hours left, and I still had to eat dinner!
Until dinner and after dinner, I typed and typed and typed. That's all I did. Besides Tyler occasionally texting me and asking for my word count, I had no distractions and had no reason to procrastinate. This was the last day. This was the day that I had to get it all over with; it would all be worth it. I would be done and I would get five free copies of my book once I finished editing it after November, a winner's t-shirt, a certificate, and the pride of being an eleven year old writer.
I was not a "want-to-be-a-writer". I was a writer.
I became a writer when I powered to 50,000 words at 10:45pm on a Wednesday night. I became a writer when I pushed myself to reach my goal late at night, when everyone thought that all hope was lost. I became a writer when I forced myself to face my fear of not reaching my limit after all the time that I had.
I am a writer.
-Zoe
And I won.
It was late at night on November 30th when I was about to finish. My friend Tyler wouldn't quit sending me messages on my cellphone. He told me to keep him updated, so I did. When I hit 49,000 words, I was freaking out and my fingers were shaking. I could barely hit the "send" button on my phone.
It was late in November when I made the decision to do NaNoWriMo this year. November 11th, to be exact. I had heard about it in 2008, right before it had begun, but I skipped it and decided to try it when I was a little older. Looking back at it, I'm pretty glad that I didn't attempt at the age of eight; it was hard for me to keep up with my word count, even three years later. I didn't even get to ten thousand words until the week after I had started to write.
So, as I was saying, I had sent the message to him and immediately put my phone down to continue writing. I was so close, yet so far. Only a thousand words to go. I could do this. I knew I could do this. I didn't even bother to take any breaks that night; my eyes were ready to droop shut and take a long nap, but I forced them to stay open. I had to write. I couldn't stop writing. If I stopped now, I'd never reach 50,000 words!
Let me go back farther and help you understand.
The morning of that day, I was doubting that I could make it. My friends at school reassured me that I could. I was only at 41,000 before I had come home from school. I didn't have any time to spare to write at school that day; I couldn't go up to open library (pretty much, it's study hall, if you want to call it that) and write because we didn't have it on Wednesdays. I was ready to quit and try again next year. I even had a cold, and I had to go home early anyway that day because I was ready to throw up at my desk.
When I got home, I laid in bed for a while and let my eyes rest. I took around twenty minutes to get myself together before getting out of bed and picking up my laptop. I turned it on and immediately opened up my story. I started to write like there was no tomorrow; I used Write or Die, MyTomatoes, and NaNoWordSprints from Twitter. Sometimes, I didn't use anything at all and just typed without anything to motivate me except for the thrill of getting it all done.
At some point, I fell asleep next to my computer. Could you blame me? I was tired, I felt like I was going to throw up, and I had barely gotten any sleep the night before because I stayed up writing again. The only reason I had woken up was because I heard my dad arriving home and coming up the staircase to say hello to me. I sat up and rubbed my eyes before looking at the clock. I had four hours left, and I still had to eat dinner!
Until dinner and after dinner, I typed and typed and typed. That's all I did. Besides Tyler occasionally texting me and asking for my word count, I had no distractions and had no reason to procrastinate. This was the last day. This was the day that I had to get it all over with; it would all be worth it. I would be done and I would get five free copies of my book once I finished editing it after November, a winner's t-shirt, a certificate, and the pride of being an eleven year old writer.
I was not a "want-to-be-a-writer". I was a writer.
I became a writer when I powered to 50,000 words at 10:45pm on a Wednesday night. I became a writer when I pushed myself to reach my goal late at night, when everyone thought that all hope was lost. I became a writer when I forced myself to face my fear of not reaching my limit after all the time that I had.
I am a writer.
-Zoe
Monday, November 28, 2011
Just a quick post to assure you all that I am not dead.
I'm doing NaNoWriMo. I have two days left. I promise I'll post after I'm done my novel. :)
AND I GOT TO 30,000 WORDS TODAY
OH MY GOOOOOOOOOOOOOOSH
Saturday, November 12, 2011
Halloween, Aladdin and NaNoWriMo
Sorry for the really late post! I haven't been keeping up with my blog. I haven't been posting because I've been procrastinating with Minecraft and Hogwarts Extreme school has been really busy lately.
For Halloween, I went as Luna Lovegood. I copied her entire outfit and even bought radish earrings! I went with two of my friends, my brother and my sister. Here's a picture we took after we went trick-or-treating:
While I was gone, I tried out for an Aladdin play. It was for middle school only; sixth to eighth grade. We had to sing (we learned Arabic Nights and A Whole New World), dance (we learned a combination), and act (they gave us a few lines and we had to recite it). I went with a few of my friends and had a great time. I was really nervous. I now know who I am playing, however, and I'm relieved. I'm playing a thief! I'm actually very excited to play this part because for one, I've never acted in a play before, and two, Aladdin thieves are cool. :P
This year, I'm participating in YWP: NaNoWriMo (Young Writer's Program: National Novel Writing Month). NaNoWriMo is a contest that starts on November 1st every year. The goal is to write 50,000 words in 30 days. since I'm participating in the YWP, I can change the goal. I've decided not to and push myself to the limit. At the moment, I'm on word 3,216/50,000. I need lots of enthusiasm and discipline to get this done. :) You can find my NaNo profile here.
I better get back to writing. I promise to blog more frequently and post about the Aladdin rehearsals as well as my NaNo progress! Bye!
-Dominique
For Halloween, I went as Luna Lovegood. I copied her entire outfit and even bought radish earrings! I went with two of my friends, my brother and my sister. Here's a picture we took after we went trick-or-treating:
 |
| Me being a nerd and making my "candy shop" as we get ready to trade our goodies :) (Under my jacket was a Harry Potter t-shirt...go figure) |
While I was gone, I tried out for an Aladdin play. It was for middle school only; sixth to eighth grade. We had to sing (we learned Arabic Nights and A Whole New World), dance (we learned a combination), and act (they gave us a few lines and we had to recite it). I went with a few of my friends and had a great time. I was really nervous. I now know who I am playing, however, and I'm relieved. I'm playing a thief! I'm actually very excited to play this part because for one, I've never acted in a play before, and two, Aladdin thieves are cool. :P
This year, I'm participating in YWP: NaNoWriMo (Young Writer's Program: National Novel Writing Month). NaNoWriMo is a contest that starts on November 1st every year. The goal is to write 50,000 words in 30 days. since I'm participating in the YWP, I can change the goal. I've decided not to and push myself to the limit. At the moment, I'm on word 3,216/50,000. I need lots of enthusiasm and discipline to get this done. :) You can find my NaNo profile here.
I better get back to writing. I promise to blog more frequently and post about the Aladdin rehearsals as well as my NaNo progress! Bye!
-Dominique
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