Friday

Today was pretty amazing. Didn’t have to go to school because of Regionals for Cross Country. Left at 8 and came back at 1:20, but we were called out of school so I arrived late and left early. Had lunch at Chick-Fil-A with brother and dad. Love their milkshakes. Went to great memorial service. And finished off with Homecoming football game where I got to see a bunch of graduates, mostly from band. Got to see Kendra after so long even though we are often within 800m as she drives to and fro. Said bye to Kendra and others and left to home. =D

Bold what you've read, more than 6 you're good according to the BBC

mackenzieyourfriendzie:

teawithhoneydear:

onceuponathought:kerrieharlow:paulavaleria:littlejosephine:open-up-some-happiness:
lifeinfastmotion: hermajestyxx:sixtyfour: rockandroses:
longlivethequeen: littlenoirgirl: mylifeinabox: sunflowerbasler:
milochronicles: n8kelly:

1 Pride and Prejudice - Jane Austen
2 The Lord of the Rings - JRR Tolkien
3 Jane Eyre - Charlotte Bronte
4 Harry Potter series - JK Rowling
5 To Kill a Mockingbird - Harper Lee
6 The Bible
7 Wuthering Heights - Emily Bronte
8 Nineteen Eighty Four - George Orwell
9 His Dark Materials - Philip Pullman
10 Great Expectations - Charles Dickens
11 Little Women - Louisa M Alcott
12 Tess of the D’Urbervilles - Thomas Hardy
13 Catch 22 - Joseph Heller
14 Complete Works of Shakespeare
15 Rebecca - Daphne Du Maurier
16 The Hobbit - JRR Tolkien
17 Birdsong - Sebastian Faulk
18 Catcher in the Rye - JD Salinger
19 The Time Traveler’s Wife - Audrey Niffenegger
20 Middlemarch - George Eliot
21 Gone With The Wind - Margaret Mitchell.
22 The Great Gatsby - F Scott Fitzgerald
23 Bleak House - Charles Dickens
24 War and Peace - Leo Tolstoy
25 The Hitch Hiker’s Guide to the Galaxy - Douglas Adams
26 Brideshead Revisited - Evelyn Waugh
27 Crime and Punishment - Fyodor Dostoyevsky
28 Grapes of Wrath - John Steinbeck.
29 Alice in Wonderland - Lewis Carroll
30 The Wind in the Willows - Kenneth Grahame
31 Anna Karenina - Leo Tolstoy
32 David Copperfield - Charles Dickens
33 Chronicles of Narnia - CS Lewis
34 Emma - Jane Austen
35 Persuasion - Jane Austen
36 The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe - CS Lewis
37 The Kite Runner - Khaled Hosseini
38 Captain Corelli’s Mandolin - Louis De Bernieres
39 Memoirs of a Geisha - Arthur Golden
40 Winnie the Pooh - AA Milne
41 Animal Farm - George Orwell
42 The Da Vinci Code - Dan Brown
43 One Hundred Years of Solitude - Gabriel Garcia Marquez
44 A Prayer for Owen Meaney - John Irving
45 The Woman in White - Wilkie Collins
46 Anne of Green Gables - LM Montgomery
47 Far From The Madding Crowd - Thomas Hardy.
48 The Handmaiden’s Tale - Margaret Atwood
49 Lord of the Flies - William Golding
50 Atonement - Ian McEwan
51 Life of Pi - Yann Martel
52 Dune - Frank Herbert
53 Cold Comfort Farm - Stella Gibbons
54 Sense and Sensibility - Jane Austen.
55 A Suitable Boy - Vikram Seth.
56 The Shadow of the Wind - Carlos Ruiz Zafon
57 A Tale Of Two Cities - Charles Dickens
58 Brave New World - Aldous Huxley
59 The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-time - Mark Haddon
60 Love In The Time Of Cholera - Gabriel Garcia Marquez
61 Of Mice and Men - John Steinbeck
62 Lolita - Vladimir Nabokov
63 The Secret History - Donna Tartt
64 The Lovely Bones - Alice Sebold
65 Count of Monte Cristo - Alexandre Dumas
66 On The Road - Jack Kerouac
67 Jude the Obscure - Thomas Hardy
68 Bridget Jones’s Diary - Helen Fielding
69 Midnight’s Children - Salman Rushdie
70 Moby Dick - Herman Melville
71 Oliver Twist - Charles Dickens
72 Dracula - Bram Stoker
73 The Secret Garden - Frances Hodgson Burnett
74 Notes From A Small Island - Bill Bryson
75 Ulysses - James Joyce
76 The Bell Jar - Sylvia Plath
77 Swallows and Amazons - Arthur Ransome
78 Germinal - Emile Zola
79 Vanity Fair - William Makepeace Thackeray
80 Possession - AS Byatt.
81 A Christmas Carol - Charles Dickens
82 Cloud Atlas - David Mitchell
83 The Color Purple - Alice Walker
84 The Remains of the Day - Kazuo Ishiguro
85 Madame Bovary - Gustave Flaubert
86 A Fine Balance - Rohinton Mistry
87 Charlotte’s Web - EB White
88 The Five People You Meet In Heaven - Mitch Albom
89 Adventures of Sherlock Holmes - Sir Arthur Conan Doyle
90 The Faraway Tree Collection - Enid Blyton
91 Heart of Darkness - Joseph Conrad
92 The Little Prince - Antoine De Saint-Exupery
93 The Wasp Factory - Iain Banks
94 Watership Down - Richard Adams
95 A Confederacy of Dunces - John Kennedy Toole
96 A Town Like Alice - Nevil Shute
97 The Three Musketeers - Alexandre Dumas
98 Hamlet - William Shakespeare
99 Charlie and the Chocolate Factory - Roald Dahl
100 Les Miserables - Victor Hugo

I like this whole list idea. Now I know which books to pick up at the bookstore!
By the way, the italicized books are the ones I’m currently working on.

Oh and I don’t know why the heck The Scarlet Letter by Nathaniel Hawthorne isn’t on here because it’s one of the greatest novels in the whole world.

I thought this was fitting because I finished The Life of Pi today, which is on the list. It was a really good book. I also realized how much I have read today. Really? We should have read 6? Out of 100?

yeah, I thought 6 was quite a small number. A few of these books I started and never finished, but not due to lack of interest, so now I want to go back and read them.

Responsibility

Well I found out today that I apparently have some very high expectations set of me. I hope I don’t come off pompous here, but a few people mentioned that I was ‘the smartest person they’ve met in high school’ and they expected me to go to a high prestige college or something like that. Though the people who know me a bit better know how much I slack and how stupid I can be. But I almost felt like I would be letting people down if I didn’t go to some crazy smart school and didn’t land a big job. I have never had high expectations from parents or family and a few teachers may have had them, but I crushed them quite quickly sophomore and junior year. On the other hand, I know that I don’t measure my success by going to a prestigious school or having a high paying job, but by how close I follow the Lord. Regardless, it was a good reminder that I have talents and gifts God has given me and I shouldn’t waste them. “So whether you eat or drink or whatever you do, do it all for the glory of God.” -1 Corinthians 10:31 (NIV)

ACT

At least it is over. I am confident on the math section. I almost forgot what to do with sin(x)>.5cos(x). I just sat there for a minute until I realized, duh, divide! Finished with 11 minutes left and went back and changed 1 answer. I signed up for the extra writing component, but it went terrible. It went basically like this: “Adding the extra class would be bad for the students and it wouldn’t be good for them.” Yeah, it was ridiculous. But I’ll see the results in a few weeks. I am ready to do some mindless activities, especially eating since I haven’t eaten since before the test. I was even shaking a little during one of the parts.

mackenzieyourfriendzie:

(via greaterthings)

I sent this exact image around at school. When I tried showing it to the calc, the teacher thought it may offend some so she wouldn’t let me put it on the board.

Breathe

I have really been empowered and also humbled this week just remembering that God is just one breath away. “If God is for us, who can be against us?” (Romans 8:31) It is much harder to be discouraged or stressed when knowing that God is always there for me, with a plan for me; I’m just trying to figure it out as I go. In Hebrew, the word for spirit is the same as breath. It makes verses like Job 33:4 very interesting. “The Spirit of God has made me; the breath of the Almighty gives me life.” Spirit and breath are so linked. Often I will just stop, take a deep breath, and talk to God or just remember who is in control.

I just got called

and have been informed of my acceptance into Northwestern College in St. Paul, MN. It wasn’t unexpected, but I just got home from the district meet and it was a very nice call to hear that after a long day. What I will actually be excited to hear is in late January/early February is if I am accepted into the Eagle Scholars Program which is equal to mucho dinero; it is the highest scholarship available at the school. That will require some time to apply to that, but luckily it is due in January, so I have time, but I should not procrastinate too much.

A Full Plate

I need to learn how to go for seconds instead of overfilling my plate thus being unable to eat all the food, allowing it to get stale and cold.

I have to run a race tomorrow, complete two videos, get a video’s audio into an MP3,(oxford comma) and order t-shirts through the school(something I do not know how to do). And then lets not forget the other video project I need to start and the 7 sections of math homework that I need to get done, though I can put that off until the weekend. And then I need to find and upload two sermons(preferably yesterday) while attempting to not get behind in Psych again(which cost me a B) or Academic Decathlon. Which reminds me, I need to type my speech up right now.

Great Weekend

I went to bed at 5 or 5 30 on Friday night and got about 13 hours of much needed sleep. Wonderful. Unfortunately that means I slept through supper and didn’t get the food or water that I needed for my race the next morning. It was ridiculously hot and I almost died. Took a nap then spent the afternoon with Rhod and went to his church’s youth night which was good. There is a video competition between the youth so that’ll be interesting. Visited Calvary this morning with Kaitlin. Its such a shock going to such a big church. There were so many kids!! More high schoolers than there are people in my Church. Then ate at Garcia’s with Kaitlin’s family. Garcia’s is amazing!! Food was delicious and I stuffed myself.

I loved having my siblings here this past weekend!! It was so great!!

XC practice

was bad today. I am still tired from yesterday’s meet which was so uphill plus a lot of loose ground. Pysch test tomorrow on the brain parts and neural systems. So many vocab words!!

kenleigh:

It is amazing how quickly I can go from calm to stressed.  I am super tired right now and I feel like I can’t focus on anything at the moment. It is my friend’s birthday tonight and I was going to go over to Tempe with a big group to eat at Chili’s and now I am stressing over getting homework done and I want to take a nap. AGH! I hate being one of those people who need a very large quantity of sleep to function. If only I could run on 6 or 7 hours like some people.

I know exactly how you feel. I will get away with some friends and then come back and be overloaded with work and the desire to sleep. I cannot keep myself from falling asleep in Psych when I get only 7 hours of sleep two nights in a row. It is ridiculous.

Do I

vote for what I think will be the better for the majority, or do I vote for giving people the full extent of their free will when it doesn’t directly harm others?

Dear speed radar cameras,

kenleigh:

I’m sorry if you are feeling some loss. Our relationship was short-lived, I know.  But seriously, you need to let it go.  Please stop scaring me with your bright, unexpected red flash.

The camera flashed at what appeared to be me again today.  It better have been directed towards someone else.  The speed limit was 65. I was going 63. Are you kidding me?!?! I think they have it out for me.

I feel like they set me up for ruin. On my way to the airport I was driving at 63 when the camera would flash at 65, but because I don’t have cruise control I just kept my foot at a steady angle. But the highway had a downhill that I didn’t pay notice too and caused me to go oh so slightly over. So silly. It was set up to catch people with older cars!!

Well I think

I use ‘haha’ too much. I add it in a little too much which may lessen the emphasis and meaning of it (kinda like swearing, or with any other word). I blame Kaitlin for the overuse.

Haha, I made an HD video by putting together consecutive photos of when my family had a photoshoot in MN. Fun day, but painstaking hours to get this video in HD. My excuse in TV Productions was that I was learning how Final Cut handled big pictures and how to properly get the HD format. =D

PS. Clicking HD will make it load slower, and if you do want to want to watch it in full quality and size (which is pretty awesomely big) you will need to go to youtube.

Night?

Apparently you can't be a Christian if you swear.

mackenzieyourfriendzie:

greaterthings:

mackenzieyourfriendzie:

Welcome to Azusa Pacific University, Mackenzie

i don’t think i will be accepted then?

haha well you can, there’s just people who don’t understand that Christianity isn’t about the words you use as much as the meaning of the words you use.

Not that they hate me. They just don’t necessarily see me becoming a youth pastor.

I know right? Like the high schoolers don’t freaking know what those words are? Seriously.

I sometimes have a problem with swearing and such. I am not condemning anybody, but there are a few reasons why I see swearing as unnecessary or innapropriate.

First, Stupidity. When it is excessive and used as adjectives in most sentences and then verbs in others, it just plain makes you look less intelligent. People are less likely to listen to or care what others are saying if they constantly repeat the same words, especially swear words. This is especially pertinent in business and school settings I think.

Second, Overuse. Swear words are meant to show intense feelings, right? But if used often, not necessarily every sentence, but often, then the effect of the word is lost. So simply, using swear words can have the opposite effect then may be intended. If I were to angrily swear around people I knew, then they would know that something is wrong cause I don’t really swear. Other times if you want to place emphasis with a word like ‘damn’, like, “That was a damn good movie!,” then it would lose its power over time if you described most things with “damn.”

Third, Anger. If you do use swear words for emphasis, particularly in anger, then there are a few things that Christians should keep an eye out for. If we are yelling at people “Damn you!” “Go to hell!” or “Shut the fuck up!” then we are obviously being angry at a person which is usually not appropriate. When we are angry we shouldn’t let it spew out in deconstructive words that can potentially tear down others. That doesn’t really fit in with the whole loving each other thing. I don’t remember Jesus cussing people out in his anger.  On the other hand, swear words are often used as expressions of pain or resentment and such, and those are often out of habit, but that also can fall under overuse. ^{Matthew 15: 18}”But those things which proceed out of the mouth come forth from the heart; and they defile the man." If we often use swear words it can be seen as a reflection of what is in our hearts. Christians should be filled with Love, Joy, Peace, Patience, Self-Control, etc. By spewing  out swear words, first of all it isn’t very self-controlling if we seem to just always let them slip, and second, they don’t reflect those qualities of Jesus. The fruit of the spirit are shown through are actions and words. We need to be careful how we use them as they may not really help us move towards the image of Christ.

^{Colossians 3: 8} “But now is the time to get rid of anger, rage, malicious behavior, slander, and dirty language. ⁹ Don’t lie to each other, for you have stripped off your old sinful nature and all its wicked deeds. ¹⁰ Put on your new nature, and be renewed as you learn to know your Creator and become like him”

Again, I am not saying swearers go to hell, obviously, and I am definitely not supporting going up to people and telling them swearing is wrong. But I want to proposition that it can be a stumbling block in our path, and if you are not angrily using ‘bad words’ you can also consider the desires of your Christian brothers and siblings. If you find that it bothers them, then it wouldn’t kill to have some self-control, and on the flip-side, it wouldn’t hurt to have some loving patience and understanding and to not focus on appearances.

Mi tarea fue divertido

Yes, I admit it, I actually did some homework at home and was enjoying it. I forgot what a joy it is to actually complete stuff. I even randomly woke up at 4 40, 10 minutes before my alarm that is supposed to be snoozed for an hour before I actually wake up, so I decided to get up otherwise I would be too tired later. So I drank half a jug off apple juice and outlined some academic decathlon econ stuff. My Tuesday morning Bible study fell through because sleep overcame everybody else. Ironic, that I who likes sleep the most was the only one to get up, and super early at that. But it worked out, I got in some good Bible reading. A very good morning. Oh, and I got a 92 on the Psych test with doing minimal effort. I love that class and the brain God has given me!!

Arg...

I love to sleep and such, but I the necessity to keep up with my school work and other dedications need to come first. Unfortunately if you have read my posts, there is a theme, though not intentional. So that would be awesome if you could pray for me to keep focused. I am so glad I didn’t have this laziness in elementary and middle school, otherwise I don’t know where I would be.

He who is most slow in making a promise is the most faithful in performance of it.

Jean-Jacques Rousseau

Insults are the arguments employed by those who are in the wrong.

Jean-Jacques Rousseau

ARGG!!!! New Year's Resolutions

I feel like every week and sometimes even every few days I am making resolutions to do better, but then, like common New Year’s Resolutions, I utterly fail and keep remaking these resolutions to do better. I am not angry at myself trying to improve, but at my inability to change. In fact I find that many people are very resistant to change. They believe and act like they think they are perfect or are unable to change or improve. They have the mentality that ‘I am who I am, and that is that. Nothing needs to be different’. But part of the human experience is learning and growing every day.

I need to seriously contemplate every moment what I am doing, and then what I should be doing. Going with the flow is simply not acceptable.

mackenzieyourfriendzie:

teawithhoneydear:

whomshallifear:

walkingwithmyfather:

beauty-from-ashes:

itssummertime:

lovejustice:

(via will-r)

Love vs. Lust

i wish so many could see this!

We had a similar shorter list like this in Psychology class. It is so true and is very visible in many high school relationships.

Crazy

Today is crazy. Not crazy like crazy things happened, so hectic is the word I should have used. I stayed up way late re scanning in photos for a senior ad/collage for Mrs. Wilson and then woke up early to go to a NHS meeting, then spent 1st and 2nd hour finishing that collage for Mrs. Wilson’s daughter’s yearbook, slept through half of 3rd.  Took tests during 5th. Key Club meeting. 20 minutes of math. XC. Eat. Blog.

Now I will leave to church to do PPT for worship practice. Then it’ll be at least 9 o’clock and I’ll be pooped and ready to sleep but I will have to finish the take home Calc test I barely started and the review assignment and then write my Aca Dec speech, pretty much from scratch.

So the real question is, why am I blogging? Shouldn’t I be taking this spare time to do something more important? Well I could say that I am showing this problem of procrastination to whatever viewers may read this so they could encourage me to be a better worker and such, but that is very counterproductive. It would be like beating up people randomly to show everybody how bad violence is. So, I say I am doing this partially to procrastinate as it is in my nature, but also to step back and take a quick break so I can go fully invigorated into the rest of my night. Though, now that I have taken this step back and can see everything a bit clearer, I see I should actually be doing my Calc test. Right?