Watching Movies, Getting Paid

                As I mentioned in my last Monday blog post, I recently got a job. Yesterday was my first day as an usher at a movie theatre, and I think it went well! For five hours I did one of four things:

1.       I sweep up all the popcorn and crap our moviegoers dropped everywhere. This includes the popcorn in the lobby, the leftover pieces of paper towel off the bathroom floor, and every single thing anyone left on the floor of the theatre itself. I’ll be the first to admit that when I go to the movies, I always leave something behind- a napkin, popcorn kernels, whatever it may be. I will never do that again. I now know what it’s like for the workers to clean up after slobs like me. Pick up your trash people- common courtesy.

2.       I work the ticket…table? I’m not really sure how to describe this but I’ll do my best. There is someone who takes your money and prints off your tickets (which is not me) and then there is the person who rips the nice perforated edges of the tickets for you (that’s what I did). The first time I did the whole ticket-ripping thing was during the rush. Saturday afternoons are always the busiest (I’ve been told- I wouldn’t know, I’ve only worked one day) and the wave of people almost astonishing. But don’t worry guys, I did a good job.

3.       I take out the trash. Sounds lovely doesn’t it? After we (the ushers) go through and clean up the mess all you moviegoers left behind, we have to take out the garbage. I think the boys I work with were more than happy to make me take out the trash… It’s not the highlight of my job. But hey, I’m making money right?

4.       Watching movies. Yupp. I get paid to sit in the theatre and watch movies. After the wave of people come in and settle down in their respected theatres, it’s the ushers’ job to make sure they aren’t using their cellular devices and things like that. We only stay in the theatre for ten to fifteen minutes, but come on I’m basically getting paid to hop from movie to movie.

That’s basically my job! It sounds pretty easy doesn’t it? Well guess what. It is. I also get to see movies for free- whenever I want, there’s no limit to how many movies I get in free to see! Discounted concessions come with this amazing package deal, and I can bring two or three other friends in for free as well! Next time you go the movies, remember to pick up your napkins and popcorn tubs- it makes our jobs a lot easier. If you don’t want to pick up after yourself, try becoming an usher and see how you feel after that- trust me, your whole perspective on movies changes…actually it really doesn’t but I thought that would add a nice touch to the end of this story. If you love movies as much as I do, working in the movie theatre business is right for you.

 

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Wand Like Harry Potter

                This morning as I was getting ready for school, I was searching in a drawer for some bobby pins when I came across something new. It was a device, a hair device, which is supposed to create luscious, bouncy curls that everyone will be jealous of. So I thought I’d give it a go and see what happened- and you know what? It worked!

                Having naturally curly hair, I never do anything with my hair. It pretty much just stays curly all day, every day. I’m very original you see, and obviously love spending time on something as petty as hair. I thought maybe this morning could be different, and I could try to make myself look somewhat presentable. I suppose I should tell you what this device is…but I’m not really sure what it’s called. It’s this wand thing that you wrap pieces of hair around… I honestly don’t know what to call it, but it kind of looks like a Harry Potter wand. Except instead of casting spells against He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named, this wand burns your hands and singes your hair at a fantastic four hundred degrees. Yes, I did manage to burn myself. No, I didn’t think the magical wand would be that hot.

                I didn’t burn myself too bad though, I only have a small red blister on my ear. This small little burn though reminded me of when I was little, and was severely burned by a curling iron. Let me paint the picture for you: It was Easter morning, and the whole family was getting ready for church. My mom insisted that my hair be curled properly, as going to Easter mass has always been a big deal. My little six year old self disagreed, saying that forcing a tom boy into a dress was more than enough already. As she was curling my hair, I tried to escape her clutches. The curling iron was yanked from her hand and fell smack dab on my left foot. Needless to say, I brought an ice pack with me to church that Easter.

                Here’s the lesson for y’all: be careful when using hair devices. They can (and will) hurt you, even after all a whole decade’s experience. Oh, and if you want perfect curls, use the hair wand thing- it really works! For once your hair can look as beautiful and perfect as the woman on the box- I mean let’s be honest; no one’s hair looks that good… Especially not after you burn yourself. When the label next to the pretty hair on the front of the box says that the wand will be hot, they really do mean hot. Be careful, my friends.

 

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Decent Monday?

                Dear Monday,

                Though we haven’t been very nice to each other, today you weren’t so bad. You didn’t throw any pop quizzes at me, you didn’t force me to eat bad food, and you didn’t make me not get a job. I want to thank you, for giving me an almost kind of nice Monday.

                I think one of the reasons you were so nice today, Monday, was the fact that it is my dad’s birthday and my parent’s anniversary. (Yes, I am aware they got married on his birthday). Or maybe you just wanted to ease off on this Monday because you have something truly awful planned for me later tonight… Knock on wood…

                Usually on Mondays there is nasty food in the cafeteria, but today was different- Dr. W’s bought us Cougar Advisory people good pizza and cookies- yum! Dinner was hamburgers, which were also very delicious. Nicely done, Monday; you finally got something right.

                School wasn’t too terrible either; I mean school is school, don’t get me wrong, but there weren’t any pop quizzes or tests today. So thanks for that one, Monday.

                I also had a job interview today, and I was actually surprised that I looked decent for it. My Monday attire is usually casual, but today I stepped it up a notch for the interview- and it paid off! I got the job! I think I’m more impressed with myself now, because I was able to get a job on a Monday- I mean really, how often do good things happen to me on Mondays? I’ll answer that one for you- the answer is never. Except for today, which was really refreshing.

                The last few Mondays I have mentioned that my alarm clock was broken, but I finally got a new one. This one is very different from the old one, however, and makes trying to find the snooze button difficult. Little did I know I hit the wrong button this morning, so once again I had to rush through my morning routine. Monday, you really need to learn how to wake me up in the morning, because what you’re doing now isn’t working.

                Monday. I want to thank you for giving me an almost pleasant day. You haven’t done anything truly horrible to me yet…then again I haven’t really started my homework yet. I think you’ve made a record for yourself- congratulations. Also, if you wouldn’t mind telling your friend Tuesday to figure out the whole alarm situation, it would be much appreciated.

                Until Next Monday,

ShelbsC.

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Lava Monster

                Everyone has those weekends, the ones where you sit around in sweatpants, hair in a ponytail, chillin’ with no make-up on. It’s so nice! Today however, I decided I would try to combine the Lazy Saturday with the Productive Saturday, and things didn’t turn out quite as I was hoping.

                For one, I had to get up and go take the PSAT (don’t ask me what it stands for, because I have no idea). As I was about to go to bed last night, I was thinking how great it was that I could finally sleep in in the morning…and then I remembered the test. So I didn’t get to sleep in this morning, as I otherwise would have on a lazy weekend.

                So far combining these two types of weekends hasn’t gone well. Let’s continue shall we? The next item on my list was eating lunch, which on a lazy day means leftovers or whatever Mom makes me. Mom decided today that she didn’t feel like making me lunch, and there weren’t any leftovers in the fridge, so I actually had to make my own food. Bummer.

                After my lunch (which was a delicious ham sandwich on whole wheat bread), I retreated to my room to try and do something productive while still rockin’ my sweatpants. I decided I would try to work on my Halloween costume; if you don’t know what it is, one of my previous posts (Preparing Effie) describes it. Anyway I ended up jamming the sewing machine, scraping my first attempt at a shirt, and cutting my right thumb on a fabric cutter.

                Here’s some interesting news for y’all: if the fabric cutter isn’t cutting through the fabric, there is probably something wrong with the fabric, not the cutter. Whatever you do, don’t slice your thumb on the blade to check if it’s dull or not…It probably is still razor sharp and will end up making your finger bleed. Heed this warning- it’s a good one.

                I finished my day babysitting two eight year olds, who did NOT want to lie down and fall asleep. The only way that worked was tricking them into thinking they were playing a game: their blankets were a safe zone, and everywhere that wasn’t a blanket was lava. If they touched the lava, they were out. If they laughed, giggled, talked, or made any other sound, the Lava Monster (aka me) would eat them. So they had to lie down on the blankets and be quiet; and BOOM. Out like a light.

                Trying to be productive on a lazy day was not one of my better ideas, I’ll admit it. If you take anything away from reading this, just know that fabric cutters are super sharp, lunch is always better when Mom makes it, and Lava Monsters are the coolest thing ever.

 

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The Cup Beat

                Last week I blogged about the movie Pitch Perfect and how amazing it was. The movie is filled with musical numbers, but there was one in particular that caught my eye. It was a song performed by Anna Kendrick, as her audition song for an all-female a cappella group- Cups. She sings the song by herself, but instead of having instrumentals to sing along and keep the beat with, she used a plastic cup for music. All she needed was her two hands, her beautiful singing voice, and a cup. I went home after the movie and started up my computer, determined to learn the Cup Beat. Thank God for YouTube.

                After watching a tutorial, I had mastered the Cup Beat…or so I thought. The guy in the tutorial I watched couldn’t figure out the entire Cup Beat, so he simplified it. Now that’s just wrong. I then found a tutorial that would teach me the right way, and spent an extra ten minutes revising what my brain had previously learned. Now I have the entire (one hundred percent correct) Cup Beat down, which is good! My parents weren’t as enthusiastic, as I now steal their cups when they are empty and randomly start doing the Cup Beat. It’s too much fun not to! To be honest, at dinner last night I finished my cup of milk, turned the cup upside down, and proceeded to recite what I had learned. My family looked at me weird, but that’s okay because I can do the Cup Beat…and they can’t.

                I also feel pretty awesome when I show my friends. Today at lunch one of my friends sat down with her bottle of water and started doing the Cup Beat- totally out of the blue! I’m not the only one who knows it! After she finished a couple repetitions of the beat, I pulled out my water bottle, and we put on our own little Cup Beat show. We have next class period together- I’m sure we will be putting on a show for the class as well.

                If you would like to learn the Cup Beat, go to YouTube and search “Cup Beat Tutorial.” Make sure it’s the right one though, so that you don’t learn the wrong way like I did. There is also a link at the end of this post- so try it out! I thought it was fairly easy to learn, and it’s a great way to entertain yourself when you are bored. Try it out, and have fun with it!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qa4BUtsATsg

 

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So We Meet Again, Monday

                Ah Monday, we meet again. I’m still not fond of you, just in case you were wondering. You have yet to prove to me that you can be perfect. Today was obviously not that Monday. Thanks a lot- I really appreciate it. Truly, I do…not.

                Though I’ve told you in previous blog posts that my alarm clock was broken, it was still usable. I thought the alarm clock situation couldn’t get any worse; I spoke too soon. The dang thing was just a pain in the butt to use, and this morning (or last night) it officially broke- beyond the point of being a pain in my butt. Usually if you hit the buttons hard enough they would work, but apparently now they just stick together and don’t work at all. My mom had to wake me up this morning, and she woke me up at the exact time I usually leave my house to go to school. Yeah. Lovely, right? In case you were curious, I was not late to school- I made it with thirty two seconds to spare. Take that Monday.

                As this fine Monday morning progressed, I had two pop quizzes. I guess one of them really wasn’t a pop quiz because she told us about it on Friday…but I didn’t study for it, and forgot all about it. Oops. To be sure this never happens to you, write down when you are going to have quizzes, and study just in case they randomly pop up- you don’t want to be like me and forget about them.

                I thought at least this Monday would get better at lunch, but no. Lunch was gross today; it was walking cheeseburgers. They had good intentions with that one- with the Frito chips, meat, nacho cheese, and lettuce- but it fell flat. The meat really didn’t look like meat- it kind of looked like dog chow meets baby food. All in all, I didn’t eat lunch today; stupid Monday.

                Last but not least, I came home after school thinking I didn’t have a ton of homework to do, and sat my depressed butt on the couch only to realize I had to help make dinner. (This depression was temporary, as it was Monday-induced). I managed to miss a good chunk of the Ellen DeGeneres show, which happens to be my personal favorite talk show.

                Monday, Monday, Monday. I strongly dislike you, and I hope you know it. My alarm clock only breaks on Mondays, pop quizzes frequently fall on Mondays, I didn’t eat lunch on this Monday, and I missed part of Ellen on this Monday. Thank you Monday, for all these divine events; no really, I appreciate it. I can’t wait to see what you’ve got planned for next week.

 

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Hogwarts

The other day, I caught my mom looking through old photo albums. I mean, they weren’t that old…but they still exist, which kind of makes them old. Anyways, as I was looking over her shoulder, I saw that she was looking at pictures from when we went to Universal Studios in Florida. My favorite memory from Universal Studios was the Harry Potter theme park. Everything was so realistic- it felt like you were literally walking around Hogwarts and Hogsmeade.

One of the things I remember was the buildings. They were almost identical to the buildings in the movies- I was amazed. The houses towered high, and the roofs were sometimes slanted. The chimneys were crooked, and the windows were oddly shaped. Oh, and there was a fresh coat of snow all over the place, even though it was ninety degrees outside.

Walking around the park, there were all sorts of landmarks from the movie- from Hogsmeade to Hagrid’s house, and everything in between. Everything looked exactly as they had in the movies. The people who worked there referred to themselves as wizards, and took on British accents as they sneered at us and called us “muggles.” That was one of my favorite things, the people. Those that worked in the Harry Potter Park took their job seriously, and really made you feel like you were a part of the magical world of Harry Potter.

Think back to the Harry Potter movies. Do you remember any of the times Harry and his friends were drinking Butter Beer? Well, they had butter beer at the park, and it was by far the best flavored drink I’ve ever had. It tasted like cream soda and butterscotch, and had a light layer of foamy white cream. I don’t know how else to describe it- but it was absolutely delicious.

                Inside of Hogwarts was a roller coaster. You walked into the castle (after waiting in line for over an hour) and hopped into one of the seats. The ride then took you into what I think was like an Imax room, and flashed images to you. Sometimes you felt as though you were following Harry in a Quiditch game, other times you were in the forest and giant spiders were crawling all over you. It blew my mind how amazing this ride was.

                The Harry Potter theme park was my favorite part of our stay in Florida. There were so many different aspects that made the experience so realistic- from the lopsided buildings, to the authentic food, to the inside of Hogwarts, this is one of my all time favorite places to visit.

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Pitch Perfect is Aca-Amazing

                Birthdays are always my favorite to celebrate, because you can do just about anything for them. Yesterday was one of my friend’s birthdays, and to celebrate a group of us went to the movie theater. We didn’t want to watch some amazing movie that would end up making us cry, I mean it’s a happy occasion we were celebrating. So instead, we picked a movie quite a few of our other friends recommended. This movie had an okay review, but turned out to be spectacular and hilarious. This movie was Pitch Perfect.

                Pitch Perfect follows the life of one girl through her freshman year of college. She is very musical, and ends up joining an all girl A Capella group. I had no idea what an a capella group was, so when I watched this movie I learned that it is a group of people who use their voices for music; there are no instruments involved in the performance. I personally loved the songs that were performed throughout the movie, as they were catchy and I already knew them.

                After the movie I went home, and I sat down thinking to myself, “man I wish I could sing.” For real though, if I could sing like the people in Pitch Perfect I would never shut up! I would never get tired of my own voice. Those people have amazing voices, and I am super jealous of them.

                Pitch Perfect wasn’t just about singing though, it was also comedic. There were so many parts where I laughed so hard. So now I’m not only jealous of these famous peoples’ singing voices, but also of their comedic abilities. Insert dramatic sigh here.

                If you want a good laugh and like to sing (or if you’re like me, listening to other people sing), I recommend you go and see this movie. Pitch Perfect is Aca-Awesome, (note: only those who have seen the movie will understand this). Not only did I get to celebrate one of my closest friends’ birthdays, I was able to see a great movie at the same time. The reviews Pitch Perfect received weren't fair, as this was probably the best movie I have seen in a long while. Pitch Perfect is fantastic- every single one of you should go see it.

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Especially For You, Monday

                Well hey there Monday, it’s great to see you again. (Please note: that last sentence was to be read with heavy sarcasm). As you all know by now, I am not very fond of this particular day of the week. Nothing ever seems to work out well for me on Mondays, and I’m just waiting for the Monday when something amazing happens to me. It hasn’t happened yet, but you wait. I have hope that it will happen.

                Today wasn’t too terrible- it was actually kind of nice. Just kidding it was a Monday, which still isn’t my thing. Nothing incredibly bad happened to me today; I mean I wasn’t stuck with needles today, my alarm worked (sort of), I didn’t fall down the stairs, and there was cereal in the cupboard. Already you can tell this Monday has been better than most of my past Monday experiences.

                I think I’m going to change it up a little. Instead of writing about how awful my Monday was, I think I’ll tell you how amazing my Sunday (as in yesterday) was. Though I had to get up early on one of the two days I actually get to sleep in, it was worth it. Yesterday morning at seven thirty, my mom and I left to go downtown and walk in the Especially For You Walk. This walk is in support of breast cancer awareness, and it was absolutely amazing. They said over fourteen thousand people were participating this year- and I am so glad I got to be a part of it. This was my third year at the annual event, and I love doing it. It’s for a great cause, and helps a lot of women.

                It was so cold out though. Seven thirty on an October morning in Iowa… Not the warmest, my friends. Thank goodness for these magical things called hand warmers and gloves. I don’t know what I would’ve done without them.

                Speaking of cold that reminds me of this fine Monday morning, while I was getting into my car to go to school. I was all bundled up in a sweatshirt and gloves, the heat was on, life was good. I was toasty warm driving to school, but as soon as I parked and got out of the car- it hit me. Just that rush of cold air; I really just wanted to get back in my car, drive home, put on some pajamas, and go back to sleep. But of course that couldn’t happen because it’s Monday, and Mondays are school days. Yay.

                No Monday is good, but some are better than others. Today wasn’t all that bad- they even had bow tie pasta for lunch today. Yesterday’s Especially For You walk was phenomenal, and I am so glad I got to be a part of it. It was a really early morning for me yesterday, which is probably why I’m so tired now. Or maybe I’m just tired because it’s Monday. Yeah, that’s probably it. I’ll just blame it on the Monday.

 

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Through Baby Eyes

                As I have mentioned in previous blog posts, I babysit a lot. And by a lot I mean like five or six days a week. The last couple of weeks however, I haven’t babysat as much. The kids I watch have had a rough week, their parents even more so.

                The mom was pregnant with her third child, and was about four months along when she lost the baby. This wasn’t her first miscarriage, but this one hit her the hardest. I believe it was because she was so far along when she lost the baby. I felt terrible babysitting her kids; every time I went over to their house there was a new bouquet of flowers on the counter, another plate of cookies by the stove, a stack of sympathy cards by the phone.

Yesterday while babysitting the kids wanted a snack, so we went to the pantry to pick something out for them to eat. At the bottom of the pantry were brand new baby bottles, baby formula, a couple of onesies, and a few other baby necessities. They were far enough along with the baby to start preparing to have him (or her).

I asked the oldest child how she felt about losing the baby, and she said she was very sad. She was hoping for a baby brother, as she already has a sister. Her side of the story was different than everyone else’s though, as it was through the eyes of a sibling losing another sibling. When she found out, she had just gotten off the bus after school and had seen her dad’s car in the driveway. Seeing her dad home early, she thought she was going to get a surprise; and boy did she ever get one. Her mom was sitting on the couch crying and her dad was pacing around the living room. I mean, imagine if you came home with a smile on your face, and that’s what you saw.

I’ve never lost a child before (I’m only sixteen), but seeing what they are going through is tough. They are some of the most amazing people I have ever met, and they didn’t deserve for this to happen to them. My heart goes out to them as they try to move past the truly awful thing that happened to them.

 

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The Essence of Procrastination

                Procrastination. Defined by dictionary.com as “the act or habit of putting off or delaying” something that needs to be done. This is an ironic topic for me to have chosen, as I definitely procrastinated writing this blog post.

                Everyone says junior year of high school is the hardest. I never believed it, as each year had progressively gotten worse, but junior year has by far been my hardest year yet. Procrastinating isn’t an action that works well anymore; in the past you would procrastinate something, and it would take a half hour to an hour to finish. This year however, projects are deep; they take a lot of thought and reasoning to create a finished project worth an excellent grade. The sheer amount of work junior year has to offer is insane, and I for one realize that I need to change my procrastination habits.

                Take Wednesday for instance. While we were in class we were given the choice to start writing a rough draft, or write a blog post. I decided to try and write my rough draft, and after about twenty minutes of staring at the three sentences I had managed to come up with, I decided to call it quits and try to write for my blog. That however did not last long, as I became preoccupied reading others’ blogs. Therefore, given the opportunity to work on or even finish two projects, I did not finish either; and I’m paying for my previous procrastination now, on a Friday night, doing homework.

                The more I think about it, the more frustrated I become. I mean, I wasn’t really doing anything Wednesday evening, I easily could’ve written something during the commercial breaks of Grey’s Anatomy on Thursday, so why did I wait until the last minute? I just didn’t feel like doing it. That’s all. I didn’t feel like writing a whole bunch, I didn’t feel like taking the time to do it, I just didn’t want to; so I didn’t. And I really wish I would have just gotten it over with.

Learn from my mistakes: do not procrastinate until the last minute. Time is of the essence, and waiting until the last minute isn't going to help anything. Trying to make up for lost time is hard enough as it is, and trying to cram an entire week’s worth of thoughts into one night isn’t easy. If you’re like me, and have serious trouble with writers block, try writing a little chunk at a time. It may make it easier for you. Whatever you do, though, procrastination is NOT the answer- no matter how great it sounds at the time.

 

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Monday Bruise

                I have decided to blog every Monday, about whatever horrible thing has happened that day. As a couple of my other blog posts have mentioned in the past, Monday’s aren’t really my thing. Today for instance, I thought I would start the day with a positive attitude and try to look presentable wearing nice clothes and make-up, rather than my usual Monday attire (clothes worn for comfort, not style). And guess what? My Monday still turned out terrible. Surprise, surprise.

                It all started this morning when I got up. Though my alarm clock is still broken, I have discovered that the harder I slam the buttons, the more likely they are to turn on or off (depending on which I need them to do). So at five thirty this morning my hand somehow connected with the snooze button for an extra five minutes of peaceful sleep. I got out of bed, made myself look presentable (not an easy feat, my friends), and marched my way into the kitchen. Actually I had to make it downstairs first, and what better way to do it than to just miss the last two steps and sprawl on the ground? Excellent way to start a Monday morning, if I do say so myself. So after that I marched into the kitchen, where I found a bowl and a spoon for cereal; and guess what. All the cereal was gone.

                Let’s move on to the end of this Monday, shall we? Today my mom and I had appointments to donate blood. As this was my first time, I was a tad bit nervous. They took some sample blood, made sure I was a real person, and then felt around for a good vein to stick a needle into. They started with my left arm, which didn’t have any veins good enough for sticking. My right arm however had an okay vein, and in the needle went. Except instead of drawing blood, nothing happened. Turns out I hadn’t drank enough water before I donated, so my vein was clotting up. I now have a beautiful black and blue bruise as a memory of this glorious Monday.

                I seriously think I have a Monday problem. Monday’s really should just cease to exist, as it would make my life so much easier. Though I didn’t get to donate blood today, the nurse set up another appointment for me to come in and try again. This time I will be sure to drink lots of water before I go. And the best part: the new appointment is on another Monday.

 

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