Allow Me A Few Moments To Be Myself

*This blog post is pretty much just my rambling on about Relient K. It's part of who I am, so please just excuse it if you find it odd. But, seriously, it is what this blog is named for after all.*

I just spent the last 20 minutes watching a "mini-mentary" of one girl's adventure following Relient K on their west coast tour. She got to go to 9 shows, hear snippets from their unreleased album early, and best of all hang out with each band member pretty much every day. Awesomest kind of adventure ever, if you ask me.

Today was a Relient K day for me. I've spent the afternoon following all the members' twitter posts and blogs, reorganized my picture album of them into seperate little folders for each member, and listened through the playlist of their concert nearly 4 times. The next item on the agenda is to draw a chibi-fied version of Matthew Hoopes with my tablet.

Obsessed? I figured you knew that by now...

I'm not sure if I've told you yet or not, but I'm going to see them again this summer. July 19th. I'm counting down days. The first concert of theirs I went to, I was unprepared. I wore normal clothes, took no CD for signing (I purchased a hard copy of FiveScore while there), and didn't go up to the mosh pit when only 10 pre-teen girls were standing up there. I also didn't have the forethought to wait by their bus for them to sign autographs. I'd heard they weren't signing but another person said they were and now I'll never know. It was the first time they ever played "Deathbed" at a concert, and I was the first person to have the video of it up on YouTube, but that's the only proof I was even there.

For this one, I'll be ready. My 'Life After Death And Taxes' jeans are in the wash to prepare for the use of a bleach-pen to make the words more readable since Sharpie seems to wash out of denim. I also have an official T-shirt of the band to wear, and a hat and messenger bag bearing their logo to finish out the ensemble. I plan to take my copy of FiveScore And Seven Years Ago and my drawing of the band for them to sign (and a Sharpie!) and even if it means missing part of another show (never been to a band festival, so I'm not sure how it works) I'm going to find them for pictures this time.

I wonder what they'll play? I wonder if their CD will have a release date by then? I wonder if Hoopes will have the flu again and not be able to sing very well?

And for the next few hours, you are very lucky to not be within earshot of me.

Here's to Peace, Love & Being A Fangirl Every Once In A While
~Lola

Intermission

Every ballet performance has more than one act. Between two such acts, there is a pause given for the dancers to take a break and prepare for the rest of the show. This pause is called intermission.
Here's a little "did you know" about intermissions. The only children's movie with intermission in it is 'Chitty Chitty Bang Bang'. With good reason, too, since a straight 2 1/2 hours of confusing fairy tales and whiny children could grate on one's nerves.

But intermissions occur in more than performances and movies. Sometimes it can be a blissful pause in life between chaotic days. For me, my intermission begins today. I no longer have to prepare for our showcase which was pulled off with several backstage hitches that the audience never saw. I no longer must worry about due-dates for multi-page papers or study hereditary gene traits of pea plants.

The only thing on my mind anymore is the trip to Wyoming in July, Ignite Chicago, beginning work on my ballgown, perming my hair, and keeping up with the band members as Relient K works on a new CD...so maybe that is alot, but to me it's all very enjoyable and I'm quite pleased to have some structure to the endless days of summer.

I got my cast off on Tuesday, and the pain is all but gone. I can't play my guitar yet, but I will soon enough. <3

Here's to Peace, Love & Summer,
~Lola

A Moment For Quiet Memory

Today I received news that my Spanish teacher's daughter was killed in a car accident. A storm the previous night made the road slick and she lost control, running into a cement wall. I never personally had the chance to know her, but she was one of my brother's closest friends. He tells me she was a bright, cheery person who could bring a smile to anyone's face. She was planning to be a missionary to South America in the near future.

It's times like these that we want to ask why. Why does God call home those of us who seem to be on a path for His glory? It's also times like these that we need to simply follow without any questions. Sometimes it's to show us just how small each of our lives are. Sometimes it's to remind us of God's infinite power. Sometimes there is no apparent answer just yet. We must simply accept His plan and trust that those that are no longer present here, are present with Him.

She may no longer be here with us, but she won't be forgotten by those who knew her.

Here's to Peace, Love & Malarie
~ Lola

Here is the link to the news article for more information involving the accident:
http://www.pnj.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=200990526009

It Is NOT Called Running Away

I hate YouTube. I hope to be on American Idol someday. It's a dream. I think it's possible, I mean, people have said I sing nicely. So I thought, hey, maybe it'd be nice to get some constructive criticism. Unfortunately, the people on said site are either 1] naturally rude, 2] immature and annoying in real life as well, 3] took stupid pills, or maybe all three. They say comments like "ur ugly and i can sing wayyyy bettr than you. in fact my sister can sing better and shes 4".

I'm a bit quick-tempered, so my first response would be the following.

"Firstly, learn to type. Secondly, I'd love to see you actually be brave enough to put a video of yourself up for open comment. Thirdly, read the other comments. And lastly, use a bit of tact next time, jerk."

I'm sure there are alot of others out there who would say that too, or possibly even worse than that. But it's then that one must consider the consequences of said action. It would not affect the other person in the least, I'm positive. It would also bring you to their level. Tossing insult for insult accomplishes little. Most importantly, what kind of witness would that be?

The alternate route is much less rewarding at the moment, but will definitely make you feel better overall, and the best part is it leaves the other person totally confused. When someone says something totally rude and tactless, the proper response is as follows.

"No need to be quite so blunt, but thank you for your input. You might wish to be more careful how you word things. I enjoy singing, and still intend to pursue it, regardless of whether or not your four year old sister can sing better. God bless you, have a nice day. :)"

Trust me, they'll sit there trying to figure out why you're being nice to them for at least a good few minutes before writing you off as strange, and quite often leaving you alone. Plus, it'll make you sound far more mature, and at the end of the day, you will feel far better about what you said.

So even if it's hard to get the words out, get them out there and just walk away. Note that it's not running away -it's slow, deliberate walking.

In other news, I'm getting blond highlights in my hair today. Fun, fun!

Here's to Peace, Love, & Using Tact
~ Lola

P.S. I got inspiration for this post from recent comments on my YouTube videos and KJ-52's song "I Won't Ever Stop" Just in case you wanted to know that.

Long Days, Longer Nights, Waiting Makes the Time Go By...

In other words, I've been bored as of late. I'm waiting for the next 22 days to pass. Then I get my cast removed and can play my guitar again. In the unwanted break, I have been able to write two new songs so I can have something new to play at least.

I'm sorry I haven't written for a while. Our ballet showcase is next weekend and the dances are still being changed and two of the other dancers haven't been to class for a few weeks. We've been extending rehearsals and scheduling last minute run-throughs of our four dances. We took out the fifth one because we weren't prepared for it.

In my personal life, I've been doing quite a bit of drawing lately, both with my tablet and also with my drawing notebook. It's enjoyable, and I'm finding several new techniques, but I'm afraid I'm no good at drawing in the first place, so the techniques aren't going to do any good.

In even less related news, Relient K's new CD will be called "Forget And Not Slow Down", or at least that's what seems to be official. I'm slightly worried that I may not like it, simply because everybody seems to be changing their sound lately and they're the one band who definitely didn't need to change anything. If I in fact, don't like it, I'm in a strange predicament, because I just framed a 24x36 poster of them and put it up in my bedroom. Oh the things I spend birthday money on.

In yet less-on-topic news, I'm very close to finishing Phantom Hourglass. I almost got to the 5th level of the Ocean King's Temple before I got killed by a phantom. It's relatively hard to play with only one hand.

Now that I took you on a whirlwind trip through the last nine days of my life, I'll leave you to unscramble the randomness.

Here's To Peace, Love, & Catching Up
~Lola

I Refuse To Do The Limbo

I'm in pain. Not the deep emotional hurt that sometimes clouds my view, but the literal ache in my left wrist. So forgive any typos.

We defied the rules yesterday and went roller skating. The people who run the place are so far out of touch with reality that they didn't know what the swine flu was. It was a blast except for a few things. Firstly, one of my friends ditched me for playing a board game with her boyfriend. Secondly, of my song mix, the DJ played a total of 6 songs, preferring instead to play the chicken dance and the cha-cha slide. And thirdly, the limbo. I was determined to not do it. Who in their right mind would? Nobody in attendance could skate worth a gumdrop. But the DJ literally grabbed my arm and dragged me to the limbo bar and made me go under it. I let my weight slip back a bit and my feet started sliding out in front. To break my fall, I put out my left hand. Wrong move. I didn't cry, but it hurt like heck. Thank goodness it was at the end of the party. For the remainder of the night, I just put ice on it and moved on. I even slept on it, on the floor mind you, and put up with it. This morning my hand went numb when I moved my wrist. It jerked strangely when I moved it and it was impossible to turn it palm-up. I asked my father to look at it since he's a nurse, and he drove me to the hospital where an x-ray revealed a fracture on one side and a buckled bone on the other. In short: I have a broken wrist. I'm in a sling with a splint at the moment. Once it stops swelling, I'll have to get a cast on it.

So, guess what? I don't get to do recital. Crushed is an understatement. I wanted to do this so bad...I've never missed a recital yet. I cried on the way home from the hospital. There were alot of people coming or wanting to see it via DVD. And now I've let them all down. If it weren't for the Skittles I'm currently eating, I'd say I hate my life right now. To anybody reading this that I let down, I'm sorry.

Here's To Peace, Love, & Not Doing The Limbo On Roller Skates,
~Lola

Flying Pigs Have Been Spotted Across The US

If you misspell “swine flu”, it comes out “swine flew” and that, dear readers, is how rumors spread.

But this is not about ungulates defying gravity.

This is about learning to deal with whatever comes your way. In this case, it’s dealing with our entire state being forced to cancel public gatherings for the next 5 days due to a certain flu. No church, no public parties, no ballet… The church I can do without this week, seeing as how I’m in the process of finding a new church anyway. The ballet…well…can’t really do without that since there are only two weeks until showcase. Not that I care. I know my parts well enough for now, so let’s just say I can go without that too. That leaves the parties. And that poses a problem. Remember when my friends wanted to take me to The Rainbo Palace for a birthday surprise? That’s tomorrow. And the lockdown lasts 5 days. So, of course, my mother is relatively crushed since she planned it all and I’m wondering what I’m going to do with 9 copies of a mix CD that were supposed to be given out to all the guests. I can’t say I’m not disappointed too. It’s rare that any friends I have ever get to know me, and I won’t have these ones for much longer, so this was going to be the way to end it all with a bang. And now here is where the “learning to deal with whatever comes your way” comes in. I have two options in this situation. 1] Sit in my room staring at the wall tomorrow wishing it worked out. Or 2] Pick up a few of the ex-guests and play the 9 copies of the mix CD while we all stare at the wall together. They might both sound boring, but at least with Option 2, there’ll still be a chance of something fun. Who knows, maybe we can make our own Rainbo Palace. … Okay, no, on second thought, I don’t want unicorns painted on my wall.

ANYWAY, for those who don’t really want to hear about my life and just want to get to the moral of the story here: when things don’t turn out right, you always have two options. The first is always to let the bad times get the best of you and mope all alone. The second is to do what you can to make it work a different way. To quote Miley Cyrus (which is a one-time thing that I will later swear I never did) “life’s what you make it, so let’s make it rock!”

Here’s to Peace, Love, & Not Letting The Turkeys Swine Flu Get You Down
~Lola