Aren't I just so kind to my characters?

Aren't I just so kind to my characters? At the moment almost all of the characters in my biggest story are about to die (their ship is bout to burst into a bunch of splinters). And what do I do? I decide to take a break from writing that story and post on my blog instead, leaving my poor characters in bodily peril for who knows how long. Of course, I know that they will survive, but they don't know that. All they know is that I've left decide to take breaks from my stories at the most tense parts. Take Tara, for example, she was about to go on a mission she couldn't possibly complete and what do I do? I take a break. And I'm afraid that this break has lasted for several months. Poor Tara. Then we have my main story--the one that's currently left hanging--I have left it so many times just when everyone (or someone) is about to die, is going through emotional trauma, or is about to find out some deep dark secret about someone else. And I leave them. Just like that. Of course, I go back to the story eventually and get them out of whatever mess I left them in. What would they do without me? But still, my poor characters get left at the most awkward moments. My poor prophets in He Who Cometh Forth have been left in absolute chaos for several months, at least. I really should go and get them out of that chaos, but I've been working on other stories. Silvanen and A New Earth were left in such a mess that I'm honestly not sure how to get those poor planets out of it.
But back to my main story that I just left. Why do I always do this? I rarely stop when everything is happy (which it is quite often, surprisingly). Instead I choose to leave when so and so is threatening to throw someone else overboard. Or when everyone is about to drown. Or when they are surrounded by giant snakes. No, I don't leave when they are spending a happy month in the Myst, I leave when they are all in jail. Just imagine if you were left for days, weeks, or even months with your ship about to sink. I don't think you would appreciate it. I wouldn't. My characters don't.
I can just envision my characters suddenly hopping out of the pages of their story. What horrible things would they do to me?
"You left me hanging for three days not knowing whether or not they would grant my wish!" Alvina would declare.
"So you are the one who threw Amaryllis into chaos and left it like that for years!" Kazan would tell me.
"I am finally about to have my dream come true and you decide that before that happens you have to leave me about to die!"
"You brought these strangers into my land, how dare you!"
"You would not allow me to complete my tale--what gives you the right to do this??"
Yes, this is what only some of my characters would say...
I don't even want to think about how angry Ariadnë would get.
So yes, I leave my poor, pitiful characters in terrible situations for days on end. My poor characters...

Frustrated

I am frustrated. You don't want the details. I don't feel like giving you the details. I'll probably come back and give you a three-page rant about all the little minute details later. But not now. Now I only have a few minor things to say: One, I am frustrated. Two, I'm starting to wonder if I should even do this jumping competetion at all. Three, I am really starting to wonder if I should drop out of this competition. Four, I'm just not ready for the whole thing...no one is. Five, I am very, very frustrated.

Oh yes, and I finished my English mid-terms . Whoohoo. That was a very unenthusiastic whoohoo. But I really am happy to have finished them. Hmm...um...well...

*wanders off singing a song called Frustrated (or was it Complicated?)*

Birthday!! Birthday!! Birthday!!! Yes, I am hyper. I'm also 15. 15. I'm getting old....OLD!!!

Sorry about that title, but I'm in an odd mood--oh wait, I'm always in an odd mood. But yes, my friends, I have now had a full day of being fifteen. So I suppose you want to know about my birthday party....

But before I tell you about that, let me tell you that on Friday we had Sarah's birthday party! HAPPY BIRTHDAY SARAH!! We went to youthgroup where Mr Davies spoke (his story is so amazing and inspiring), and where we played some games that can only be described as "interesting". Of course, we did other stuff at youthgroup too, but those were the most memorable things. After youthgroup we went to Sarah's house where we discovered that Amazing Grace did not work, watched Ella Enchanted, ate loads of yummy food, and had fun fun fun. Yep, that was Friday.

Now, on to Saturday... I took a nap before the guests arrived. But when the guests did arrive--oh, I suppose you want to know who the guests were. Well, let me think, Kristine came, Sarah came, Meow came, Hannah came, Abby came, and Christi came. And yes, I jammed 7 people into my little room. Talk about sardines....

Well anyway, when the guests came we all talked in really loud voices and scared my fish half to death, then we headed to Parkway for...bumper cars!!!!! I love those bumper cars. Now, let me describe them to you, these bumper cars aren't anything like those bumper cars in the US. These bumper cars are so much better. And unsafer. No, that's not a word. But wait!! I just decided that it is. Unsafer is now a word. Sorry, back to bumper cars... Alright, these cars are small, my knee is exactly level with the steering wheel, the room is dark, you can barely see, loud music blasts from loudspeakers, and the cars go waayyy faster than cars in the US. My dad described them as "dangerously faster". We crashed and banged into eachother until our ears were ringing and our knees were bashed into jelly. I was almost limping as I got out of my car, but oh, it was so completely worth it.

After that we all squeezed back in the car and headed home where we watched the cartoon Robin Hood (or parts of it, anyway), busted my internet by watching trailers and listening to music from The Lord of the Rings On Stage--which I absolutely must see--and then we ate dinner. Mom made us an absolutely delicious barbeque chicken and scalloped potatoes...yum yum. After dinner we finished up looking at the LoTR On Stage website and then...opened presents! I got lots of lovely stuff...here's a list:

1. A bar of chocolate, a box of fruit-rollups, and a set of beautiful earrings and a necklace (thank you Kristine!)
2. A stunning personalized notebook/diary, all green and gold and positively Elvish (thank you Abby!)
3. A box of yummy yummy chocolate from Chocolate By The Shop (Thank you Hannah!)
4. A bag of chips, a bar of chocolate, and apple-flavored chapstick (thank you Sarah!)
5. Two pairs of gorgeous earrings (thank you Kati!)
6. My stunning Elf-gown--pictures will be posted later (Thank you soooo much Mom and Dad!)
7. A new memory card for my camera (thank you Mom and Dad!)

Oh, and you know what? That's not quite it...Meow actually gave me my present at Christmastime (thank you Meow), and Christi has told me that my present is on the way (thank you in advance Christi!), I also have heard a rumor from my wonderful G.G. and Pop-O that they are sending a package (thank you in advance!!). So my birthday isn't quite over yet, is it?

Well, after opening the last present, my wonderful Elf-gown, my wonderful friends wanted to see me wearing my wonderful Elf-dress. I wore the beautiful dress (it really makes me feel like an Elf) as we sung Happy Birthday and then as I blew out the candles in the cheesecake.... mmm... So then we ate cheesecake and ice cream. Mom said that the cheesecake was one of the worst she's ever made. I think it was the best she's ever made. It was delicious. Yummm.... We ate and ate until finally we were full. And oh, it was good.

So...we headed upstairs to my room to find that my dad had lugged the tv and the dvd player all the way upstairs (thank you!). So...we watched One Night With the King! Yes, you already got my opinion of the movie on that rambly post a couple posts back, and it hasn't changed. After watching One Night With the King, eating way too many cheetos and pretzels, and talking way too much about who-knows-what, we argued for a bit about what to do next. And finally it was decided, we were going to watch Pride and Prejudice. Now, it may shock most of you to learn that I had never seen Pride and Prejudice. It sure shocked Abby. So we popped it in, popped some pop-tarts in the toaster oven, and started to watch. I love that movie. Love love love. It was a great movie! I cannot believe that I have never seen it before. So now I'm trying to get hold of the old one as well as the book. Heh, good movie.... Go watch it.

Considering that Hannah fell asleep halfway through the movie, we decided that afterwards it would probably be a good thing to get some sleep, considering that it was about 1:30. So we turned off the lights and proceeded to talk and talk and talk and talk until our mouths fell off. And the next morning we awoke to....DONUTS! USA donuts, to be precise. Those things are wonderful...

So we ate donuts and then went to church where the party dispersed into thousands of little pieces--er, nevermind the pieces thing. All in all it was a wonderful party. But wait! There's more. Sunday, being my actual birthday, was also wonderful. Everyone kept saying "Happy Birthday!" to me, which made me feel all nice and bubbly inside. We went out to Fresco where my family had some terrible sandwiches and I had a wonderful sandwich, and then we went home where Kristine and I watched Finding Neverland. Another great movie that I had never seen. And that concludes my birthday. And now I am 15. Old old old. Heh. And guess what mom said? I'm going to start driving soon!!! *dances around happily* Yep, old. Yay for being old. 15, old, that is.

Oh yes, pictures of the Elf dress and other things coming soon.

I have always loved to trot...

I have always loved to trot. Horseback riding is always amazing, whether walking, trotting, or cantering, but out of all three I love to trot the most. The graceful rising and falling, rising and falling, you can leave the entire world behind you in that peaceful rising and falling. The beat is so perfect. And the wind blows on your face--not the cutting, whip-like wind of a canter, nor the erratic wind of the trot. It is steady, beautiful wind. And then there is the rhythm. So pure, so perfect. You can use that rhythm to write the perfect iambic poetry that one never remembers afterwards except that it was perfect. That rising and falling, steady, beautiful, elegant. Not slow and loping, nor fast and unpredictable. It is perfect. Rising and falling, rising and falling... Out of all the things that you can do while horseback riding I think that I love to trot the most.

I think Alvina wrote that. Then again, it might have been Ariadnë might have wrote it--although she wouldn't have told anyone if she did. But you know, whoever wrote it, I agree with them.

I like to ramble. Have you noticed?

*deep breath*

Be prepared to read the never-ending-rambling-writing of a rambler.

Well, hello my friends. I ramble. Have you noticed? I love love love to ramble. And the best thing about rambling is that you just go on and on and on and on and never ever ever end. Rambling is the best. Ramble ramble ramble. Yay for rambling and yay for ramblers.

Well, I suppose you're all wondering what the point to this is. There is no point really. So let me get to the point...

What is the point again? Oh well, I forgot. Please allow me to continue rambling.

Well, I had a sleepover with Meow last Friday. Youthgroup and then a sleepover. We were up really late (Sarah and Kristine too), watching Stargate Atlantis. Great tv show, that. Meow and Sarah are almost done with season 2, so they need to catch up to Kris, Han, and me--we're all in season 3 already. Anyway, we watched my favorite episode ever, Critical Mass. There are two episodes (Sateda and Common Ground) that are close behind it, but Critical Mass remains my favorite. When Rachel Luttrell (who plays Teyla) sings it's just sooo gorgeous. Plus her dress is beautiful. It has awesome sleeves. Oh yes, and I'm fascinated by the Goa'uld. I really really need to get Stargate SG-1...lots of Goa'uld. And I really want to catch up to the rest of the world with Atlantis (they're in season 4 already), but alas, I will have to wait...Oh yes, half of you are probably wondering just what this tv show that has captured Manwathiel's imagination is. Well... I would simply tell you to go research it, but I'll be nice instead. It's a science-fiction (of course, what else do I watch when it comes to tv shows?), and it is kind of based on the original tv series, Stargate SG-1, which was based on the movie "Stargate". Basically...oh, too much to tell you all, but it's awesome. Uh, I guess I'll have to be mean and tell you to just go research it. Sorry =(. *looks at picture* Why does my favorite character have to be stuck all the way in the back?

Now, back to rambling. Ramble ramble--ok, I'll try to be sensible...

Um...One Night With The King!! Has anyone seen this movie? Well, I watched it yesterday with Kristine and Han. It is a relatively new movie, and it's the story of Esther. It was really good. I was worried that it would be rather tacky, but it was actually a wonderful movie. It really told the story of Esther well, the costumes were great, the acting was great (ok, some was rather pathetic, but most of it was good. And yes, the accents were all over the place, but oh well), and...well, yeah, it was really good. There were some rather awkward moments...but I guess they were historically correct...and the mute button is there for a reason, right? I really liked it. Of course, a lot of it was just Hollywood rather than it all being Biblical--I reread the story of Esther last night and yes, a lot of it was Hollywood in the movie. Oh well, it was still good and I think it captured the most important parts of the story of Esther. And it had John Rhys-Davies and John Noble in it. Hehe. LoTR actors... Yes I am a geek. And proud of it. One Night With The King is currently the top of the list for my birthday party...Abby, what say you?

*rambles on and on*

Oh yes, I decided on cheesecake. Very sorry Abby...but you can have extra ice cream, k? =)

Er, yeah. Have I ever mentioned how frustrating planning a birthday party can be? Well now I have.

Hmm...well...I can't wait for The Hobbit to come out. And I have to wait til 2010. Too long to wait!!! Oooh, you know...I decided who should play Thranduil!!! I have been thinking this over for ages, and I think I decided. Who did I decide on? Well, I'm not *quite* positive if he's right for the part, so...I'm not going to tell you =).

Um...am I rambling again? Well, I probably am...

Ah well, my wrists are starting to hurt. Farewell, my friends. I probably started this post with something very important to tell you all and now have forgotten it. Ah well, that's the way that things happen when you ramble.

Politics...Fish...Writing...Life.

Alright people, let's begin at the beginning. In other words, politics. Take a look at this link:
http://www.vajoe.com/candidate_calculator.html
Rather interesting, eh? More interesting are the results that I got... Duncan Hunter was my first result. My first thought was "who?", my second thought was "oh, that guy", and my third thought was "oh no, I finally find someone who I might agree with and he's pretty much unelectable". So I started reading his stance on various issues and I found that yes, I do agree with him quite a bit. So now I'm reading his biography and digging up a list of his voting record on various economic issues... My second result was Huckabee. Odd. I disagree with him on a whole lot of issues....and I had decided that I most definitely did not like him. Hmm... Obviously the calculator doesn't get everything just right, but nonetheless, I'm a little surprised. Romney came up third, I was also a bit surprised at how the others lined up too. Clinton before Obama?? Hm. Enough politics for today I think.... Oh wait! Let's visit Huckabee's website. Gah, this is what happens when I start clicking links involving politics. I'll be on the computer searching various candidates websites for the next few hours....

*starts looking at Huckabee's website*

Oh wait, before I spend the next few hours on various sites...Fish. Well, as you all know, my dear little Smaug died several days ago. So today I got another fighting fish. His body is black and it gradually changes color until it is dark blue, and then a beautiful slate gray. He also has a bit of red on him. His tail is all long and flowy and he is absolutely gorgeous. And did I mention that he eats a lot? Well, he does. And he swallows the fishfood whole. That cannot be healthy. But anyway, what did I name him? Ancalagon! Where did I get that name? If you don't know, which you probably don't, then I suggest reading The Silmarillion (great, great, amazing book. And anyway, Ancalagon is in it!). Anyway, my new little fishy is wonderful and I love him. Here's a very-blurry-terrible pic.

Heh, I love the pictures on Huckabee's site.... Oh wait, you don't want me to go back to that, do you?

Ah yes, onto writing. Mind if I rant a bit? Well, even if you don't mind, I'm going to rant anyway :D. Have you ever been writing a story and you decided that you had too many characters? Well, that happened to me, so I took the logical route and got rid of a character. And then what happened? Out of nowhere another character pops in! So not only am I back where I started, but I have an entirely new character to develope. Alas for me. And I don't recommend bringing in new characters just where you least need them. It's not a good idea.
Ah yes, and I started another story ("another???" you're probably all thinking). This story is a science-fiction. I haven't the slightest clue what's happening or where it's going. But anyway, I think Earth was destroyed. Now I just have to figure out how and why and how to get everyone back again....

Hey! Look at this-- *shuts up* No more politics, my apologies.

Well anyway...life. I missed horseback riding and now am wondering just *how* I'm going to do the jumping competetion with only two weeks of practice. This cannot be a good thing. Oh yes, and I'm also...what am I also doing? Life is boring, what more can I say? Oh! I remember! My birthday is coming up! Now...cheesecake or pumpkin pie?? I'm leaning towards cheesecake....

Alright, I *need* to read this thing on Huckabee's site, and afterwards I want to go se Ron Paul's site, so...well, you don't want to see me ranting about politics for the next few hours, so farewell!

~Manwathiel

p.s. You know, I really could like Ron Paul..

When Science and Art Meet--and also When they Collide

Science. Art. Those two words used to seldom go together. However, in recent years the words "science" and "art" are becoming more and more frequently blended. Take a look at science fiction. What is that? It is an art--writing, cinematography, etc--filled with science! And an amazing one at that. Just look at how all the little scientific details make science fiction what it is--"science" fiction. Without the science and the art we have no science fiction. This is an example of when art and science blend to make an amazing piece of work.
Then we have modern art. Many forms of modern day artwork, indeed, even some artwork dating far back into our past, uses science in it's creation. Perfectly symmetrical drawings, buildings crafted to look like octagons and hectagons, a face made entirely out of triangles--science and art put together to make something both fascinating and beautiful.
Only two small examples of science and art blended beautifully together, but there are many more. But then we come to when science and art collide.

When do science and art collide? When people attempt to make a science out of art.

Diagramming, grammar, be verbs, all these things fill the average English class... Punctuation. Capitalization. Sentence fragments (which I am purposefully using). These things are necessary to know in order to be a good writer. But are they occasionally taken too far?
Diagramming--learning how to dissect a sentence. I have never understood the reason that we diagram. Will it help us to become better writers? I have yet to find someone who can answer that question--and I have asked it numerous times. I do not believe that diagramming helps us become better writers. On the contrary, I believe that diagramming is a method of shredding apart a sentence in order to "study" the way in which it was constructed. But this actually ruins the sentence. Let me show you a little example. Take this sentence "The day dawned with a clear blue sky." Look at that sentence. There is beauty in that sentence. But then let us diagram it, stick each labeled word on little squiggling lines. Then what do you see when you look at that sentence? Do you see a bright sun, a clear blue sky, a fresh morning? Or do you see words, parts of speech, something that was constructed? How is this a good thing? Diagramming, to my knowledge, does not help a writer become a better one in any way. It only takes words and sentences--once soft and malleable in a writer's fingertips--and turns them into a thing that can be constructed. Words no longer flow. They are built. And I ask you again, how is this a good thing?
Of course a writer needs to know the fundamentals of grammar, punctuation, capitalization, all those things. But is it necessary to learn how to destroy every single "be verb" in an essay? Is passive voice really that bad? It used to not be bad. In fact, it was perfectly acceptable to use be verbs in writing. And the strangest thing? It was not boring. Not one bit. And yet now, today, people--in an attempt to make a science out of the art of writing--say that be verbs make writing "boring", they "slow it down", and "bog it up". This used to not be true. And yet it has become true. Why? Perhaps it is because, in an attempt to give writing a science of itss own, someone, somewhere, and sometime, decided that passive voice was bad. I have yet to figure out why. So what happened then? Words such as "been" and "were" and "was", which were (ha! note the be verb?) once perfectly acceptable, have been banned from many communities. And not only that. Students who have it drilled into them that "be verbs are bad" start picking them out in writing. A sentence, once beautiful, becomes filled with obtrusive words that never would have been noticed had a teacher not pointed them out as bad. Take this sentence: "Over the past few days my life has been filled with pain and sorrow". At one time in my life I would have read the sentence and realized that the writer had felt pain and sorrow--now I realize, instead, that the writer used a be verb. How is this a good thing?

Yes, my friends, in an attempt to make a science out of art, art is being ruined. Alas, that I should live to see such times...

~Manwathiel

p.s. Yes, I have been studying be verbs and diagramming in English. Yes, I needed to rant. Thank you for listening. If you happen to just *love* diagramming then...well, we're all entitled to our own opinions. And what did the first bit about science and art have to do with anything? I'm not sure....

Politics and More Fish

Hello, why are you reading my blog? Is it because I have anything to say at all? Is it because I am interesting? Is it because I am related to you? I wonder...

Alright, asides from that question, let's talk politics. Why talk politics? Because I have discovered that I really don't like politics and yet am strangely addicted to it. Not a good combination. But at any rate, who can avoid thinking about politics with the upcoming presidential elections? I believe that I have come to a conclusion about the candidates: There is something big wrong with all of them. *sigh* Anyway, I am now supposed to be doing an American Government thingy. It looks rather fun, but I decided to come on here and rant before actualy starting. So yes, my friends, the main point of this post is that I don't like politics, I don't like anyone who is running for president, and I find the whole process fascinating. Well...farewell, my friends. And I know that wasn't really talking politics, but then, I haven't fully formed an opinion about the whole thing yet, so I can't really talk politics...yet.

Oh yes...I suppose you want to know about the fish... Smaug, my dear little fishy, died this morning. I am really sad... *sigh*

~Manwathiel

A Single Voice

A Single Voice
By Manwathiel

How powerful is a word,
That it may sway the thousands.
How powerful is one voice,
When sent out across the earth.

How powerful is a thought,
When spoken to the world.
How powerful is one man,
That he may change the course of time.

Cosmetics and Fish

Hello one and all, what is my tale (or tales) that I have to tell you today? Well, I have two stories for you. One is about cosmetics and one is about fish. Let us begin at the beginning, shall we?

I take you back, my dear reader, to yesterday afternoon. It was a dark and stormy afternoon and--ok, so it was neither dark, nor stormy, but as I was saying... It was a day like no other when three friends made a discovery that would change the world--alright, maybe I have to admit that this discovery probably won't change the world, but it was interesting nonetheless. Now, where was I? Ah yes, the discovery. Or shall I say discoveries? Katherine (aka, me), Kristine, and Hannah were in the kitchen experimenting with the world of cosmetics. We began with perfume. Who knew that vodka was an essential ingredient in homemade perfume? Well, it is. We learned that several days ago while researching homemade perfume. Well, as we were making perfume we also discovered that ground up mint makes a nice addition to perfume, and that I am allergic to essential oils. Alas, I learned that the hard way. I looked like I had a nice sunburn for the rest of the day. We also created a new type of lipgloss. Interesting enough, the lipgloss leaves the outside of your lip purple, and the inside bright pink. Hmm... You don't even want to know what we put into it. We also discovered that oatmeal, liquid-bath, and brown sugar makes a lovely--if disgusting-looking--body scrub. Another interesting experiment was the designer lipgloss... Each of us made our own personalized lipgloss. Mine was chocolate-flavored and colored--and I discovered that it can also be used for eyeshadow. Hannah's took a few tries, but ended up a beautiful pinky-red lipgloss. Kristine's, however, was the most interesting. It started out green. Yes, green. A pale pea-green. And it smelled bad. Very bad. We found a very adequate description of it--but I don't think you would want to know about it. So after laughing hysterically for about half an hour she threw it away and started over. This lipgloss ended up a nice pale pink and smelled a whole lot better. After the lipglosses we attempted to make eyeshadow (that was interesting) and then we made bodyscrubs out of oatmeal, brown sugar, and liquid-bath. The bodyscrubs were wonderful, although they looked a little strange. Alright, they looked very strange. But they were still nice.

At any rate, making our own cosmetics was an interesting experience--not to mention humorous. And we ended up with some nice perfume (although I'm afraid that I can't wear it without getting a rash), rather strange lipgloss, really nice lipgloss, some interesting eyeshadow, and some nice bodyscrub. And now I know how to make my own cosmetics.

Now, onto the fish. We got thirteen new members of the family today. Dad got 10 guppy-like fish, Kristine got a--well, I'm not sure what it is, but it's a fish. And Caleb and I each got fighting fish. Dad stuck his tiny, multi-colored fish out in the big fishbowl, alongside his other guppies and goldfish. He decided to name then Bukma-moi, Bukma-bi, Bukma-bie, Bukma-bien--and so on. A translation would be: Friend-one, Friend-two, Friend-three, Friend-four--I'm sure you get the point. Kristine's fish is black with silvery spots. She named it Metallica and has it in a little fish bowl that she plans to put in her room. Caleb's fighting fish is blue, red, green, and purple. It has a long flowy tail. Caleb decided to name his fish Frederick. Why Frederick? After Frederick the Great! Proof that Caleb was paying attention to my history readers. My fighting fish is a beautiful red color and has a really long stringy tail. His scales have a slight green tint in places, as well. What did I name my fish? Smaug! You should know where I got that from... And if you don't...please, please, read The Hobbit and find out.

Well, we all love our beautiful new fish. I've stuck some pics in this post, but I'm afraid that you can't really see the fish--I didn't want to use the flash and they kept moving.