Changes

Dear Friend,
How do you like the new banner? I got it from "crazy_in_lost" at livejournal. Nice, eh? I've got something of a James McAvoy interest lately, if you can't tell.
Tomorrow is my first day with students at my new job. I'm half looking forward to it, and half dreading it. I need to learn a lot, more than I actually have learned already to be honest. I'm glad I'm only the assistant and not the teacher.
Now, in an attempt to dissuade the nerves I'm writing a silly, silly blog entry. Boys who don't want to read my raving about guys I find cute need not read any further. I suppose that could apply to girls who have no interest in my opinion on guys don't need to read anymore, either. *shrug*

List of my current "Media Boyfriends"
The great part about media boyfriends is that since none of them know you, they don't care that they're not the only one.
James McAvoy
No surprise there, eh? He's only all over this blog at the moment. I loved him as Mr. Tumnus, fake ears and nose and goat legs aside. Frankly while watching Becoming Jane I didn't care much. But now I'm rather smitten.

Richard Armitage
North and South did me in. John Thornton is almost better than Mr. Darcy. As Guy of Gisbourne he isn't likable, but interesting, besides he's still attractive. Search YouTube for his bedtime stories on CeeBeeBies, they're awesome and adorable. That and his 2 episodes of Vicar Of Dibley could potentially "smite" anybody.

James Roday and Dule Hill
Psych is just awesome and I wound up thinking both these guys were cute mainly because they make me laugh. Honorary mention to, even I can't believe it, Tim Omundsun. Humor is quite attractive.

And now the weirdest one of all: ca. 1983 Peter Davison
He's Tristan on All Creatures Great and Small. He's Campion. He was Dr. Who (though I've never seen that). He's not at all my type and old enough to be my father (actually, he's 5 years older than my father, but like I said, I like him in the 80's)! Yet, once again, I'm smitten.

That's enough for now, maybe I'll do another of these in a few months. Or not.

Becoming Jane, and yet not

Dear Friend,
Despite the graphic ("pilfered" from a very talented livejournal user, netherfield_x) displayed at the top of my blog for the past month, I had not seen Becoming Jane until this afternoon. My final verdict, it was OK.
The film had an OK cast, OK story, OK costumes, OK scenery, OK music, and was just OK. I didn't dislike the movie, mind you, I simply won't be running out to buy it the moment it hits DVD.
As the movie began and we met "Jane" I realized that, yes, I am officially sick of Anne Hathaway. There are other actresses in this world, especially ones with real British accents. She did fine as Jane, but I never forgot that I was watching Anne Hathaway. I can watch other actresses and forget them and focus on the character, but in this case I couldn't.
Then we meet "Tom LeFroy". I was reminded of Jess from Gilmore Girls more than I was reminded of any Austen heroes. I wasn't immediately smitten, which somehow I felt I ought to be. Maybe I'm wrong, thinking of the plot line and his later actions, maybe I was supposed to dislike him along with Jane. The only problem with that is that while the movie was trying to tell me that Jane was falling for him, I still felt mild annoyance with him. I honestly didn't like him until they met in the woods after they each were engaged to someone else. I didn't begin to think of "loving" (as in the sort of way I love my fictional heroes such as Darcy, Thornton, Tilney, etc.) the poor man until Jane left him for good.
This film really felt like a period drama by the numbers. I think the filmmakers wanted us to say, "Look, it's like Pride and Prejudice, and Sense and Sensibility and the other Austen novels!" when I was actually thinking, "Haven't they an original idea in their heads?" I probably would like this movie more the second time, but that won't come until the DVD.
Besides the wild speculation about an author's life, which is understandable since little is actually known about her, and the blatant "mistakes," writing Pride and Prejudice (at least they called it First Impressions) before anything else for example, it was a pleasant diversion.
I'll tell you the moment I started to really like this film. It proves that I'm somewhat shallow and slightly sentimental and possibly "mental" but I'll confess anyway. I actually liked Tom and therefore the rest of this movie afterwards when at home I found out James McAvoy played Mr. Tumnus. Dude! I love Mr. Tumnus! Yeah, my friend, Mr. Tumnus makes Becoming Jane better. At least for me he does.

"Go to the mattresses"

Dear friend,
"What is it with men and 'The Godfather'?" Ah, my friend, "You've Got Mail" is on HBO right now. As always I saw it on the guide and had to watch it. I always do, even if it's only the final few minutes of the film, I turn it on. "I was eloquent! S**t!"
Guess what, my friend, I had a job interview today. The only school at which I dropped a resume last Friday called me back this morning and invited me down to interview. It's remarkably likely that I shall be shaping the minds of three year olds this school year. If you had asked me even last week if I thought this would happen I'd have been doubtful. It seems God is bringing things along very nicely and very quickly. Praise God, and please, God, give me strength. I adore little kids, but dang if they aren't a handful. They're sweet, but this will be a challenge. Pray for me, friend, I'll need it.
The Mr. Opportunity ads are on TV again. The random occurrences of Rob Paulsen's voice are pleasant.
Have a great day, my friend. I'll talk to you soon.

Memory

Dear Friend,
Have you been especially nostalgic lately, like I have? Do you also begin to remember the ends of old summers come "back to school time?" Or have you grown and matured to the point that you don't really notice anymore?
For some reason seeing notebooks and pencils take prominent store space each August still fills me with the same sadness and uncertainty that it gave me when I was small. I enjoyed school very much, I just didn't want to go back. Summer had been too short, surely it had been longer last year! I still wanted to wake up late, play in the sunshine, go swimming or running through sprinklers and watch Price is Right if I wanted to.
Now, they only part of that list that I still do is wake up late. At 24 my summers are not what my summer was at 12. But I still feel disappointment at seeing back to school sales.
I recently put up my cork board for small, temporary things that I like to hang on the wall. I put a few photos up and realized a sad thing: I have pictures of people I used to know, not friends that I have. Occasionally I'll send or receive e-mail from these people but they are decidedly in my past. I don't have anyone outside of my immediate family in my present. This fact troubles me, especially now that I must admit I don't know how to change that.
I read someone's account of making a new friend recently. One thing that struck in in the story was the author's claim that they "recognized" this stranger as a friend immediately. I remember being able to feel that way, the last time I felt it was in elementary school. Back then I could walk up to a person, say "Hi, my name is ______, what's yours?" and suddenly I had a best friend. I realized sometime in my teens that it doesn't work anymore. I don't know if I lost some ability to spot a "kindred spirit" from across the room or if children just have simpler needs from companions. I'd like to think it's the latter, but I fear it's the former. I've stumbled or been pushed into some friendships since then, and I've loved each of my friends no matter how awkward or long our acquaintance-ship (I don't think that's a word, but who cares) was. I just wish I had an "insta-friend," though. I hope when I get a job, or something, I find one.
There's always hope.

Out goes July, in comes August

Dear Friend,
How was your month of July? Mine was mostly sacrificial, what with the fast, but ended in a lovely way. Our family got great news from my brother, who is currently living in evidence that hard work and prayer put together really pay off.
I hope your August began better off than ours, though, as we had, withing 24 hours rather frustrating news from him, but not his fault. People can truly be selfish jerks, you know. He will get through this, I know, and we won't let it get us down, now will we? After all, it doesn't change the good news from yesterday.
Today seemed to be the day of the unwanted creatures. This morning the first thing my mom saw outside her window was a snake on the patio. She, unfortunately, doesn't have a very high opinion of snakes. You could almost say she's afraid of them. It only got worse when, as we drove up the driveway returning from errand running, we look over to see my dad flinging a snake out of his workshop, which mom and I enter frequently. It was a case of very bad timing, as Dad didn't want mom to see it, since we all know she'll be wary of entering said shop from now on, and we really need to get things done in there. Only a short time after that, as Mom went to the backyard to feed the birds she let in a butterfly. I've often mentioned (or ranted on if you prefer) my fear of moths, but my hatred of butterflies is equal to it. I may have also mentioned that our cat, Zoe, likes to catch and eat moths. I scurried upstairs to grab the cat, bring her down and point her in the direction of the loathsome insect. She performed her job just as I'd like, including a cute performance of running around the room, looking straight up at the butterfly flapping against the ceiling. The instant it dipped low enough for her to grab, Zoe had it, and as it was too big to eat in one big gulp, she chewed it into pieces. If I didn't love that cat so much I'd think she was disgusting.
Well, friend, I hope the change of the month was as fun and interesting for you as it was for me.