Wickedly Written

Fashionspiration

2010-08-24T04:44:00.000-04:00

http://fashionspirationbyfashionista.blogspot.com/

My new, faboosh blog. I hope you like it! :)

A Whirl of a Time

2009-02-22T11:11:00.002-05:00

Hey guys,

Sorry I totally bailed for *checks* 11 days :( My holiday was crazy...fun, though. My friend and I saw 4 out of the 5 Oscar-nominated Best Picture movies. We missed Benjamin Button, but I'm kind of over it since I didn't think I'd like the cheese-fest happiness that much.

Slumdog Millionaire was definitely the best because it had the most complete storyline and was the easiest to connect with. It was a movie, while I felt like the rest were more documentaries or moments in time.

Milk was my next favorite because of the cuteness between Sean Penn's character and James Franco's. That was just such a sweet relationship and storyline, and I think this was a really good time to have an inspirational movie about the first gay elected official in the U.S....especially with Prop 8 and whatnot going on.

Frost/Nixon was next on my list. Now, I didn't have time to really research the Watergate scandal, but I knew a decent amount and was able to follow the movie. Frank whatever-his-name-his did a really good job making us feel bad for Nixon, even though he is so villainized in our culture today. The movie was also pretty funny.

The Reader comes in last in my book, even though I love Kate Winslet and want her to win 'Best Actress' for this. (Or is it best supporting actress?) It was just a really strange movie that was hard to get into.

All of the above were rated R, and in three out of the four, we get to see someone commit suicide (twice it's by hanging.) Benjamin Button was the only family-friendly film nominated, which makes you wonder, you know?

I can't wait to see who wins tonight!!!

Wickedly Yours,
wicKeDwitch1316

Mood Swing

2009-02-11T21:13:00.002-05:00

Hey guys,

Up until like a few seconds ago, I was in the worst mood. I'm a second semester senior, yet I'm running around like a chicken with its head cut off. I hate being away from TDM for so long :( So when I checked in today, I just got really annoyed that I couldn't be there to help because I have a thousand other RL things to do. Luckily, I bolted before talking to anyone or I would've caused a major scene XD

But what, you ask, brought me out of this mood? [GOSSIP GIRL SPOILER ALERT!] According to SpoilerFix, Blair and Nate are getting back together!!! Even though I do believe that Chuck and Blair are destined for each other in a down-and-dirty, grimy way, Blair and Nate were the uber-couple. They've been together forever and they were just so picturesque together. They'd have beautiful babies XD Plus, Chuck has some issues to work out after Bart's death and Blair's boring when she plays dutiful wife...

So now I'm really excited :) :) :)

I should probably go take a shower, then work on bio work, but since when have I ever done what I should? More hours pointlessly searching the internet? Sounds good...

Wickedly Yours,
wicKeDwitch1316

I have a life?!?!

2009-02-06T21:10:00.002-05:00

Hey guys,

So I know I haven't really kept my promise, but I kind of have! I'm usually on TDM ALL the time--literally--but these past few days have been pretty crazy and I don't think this weekend is gonna get much better. It's so weird when times like this come around because I miss so much online!

But I've added a new song to my playlist: "Case of the Ex" by Mya. It's kinda old (it's from the 90s), but I love it and I was listening to it in my friend's car earlier, so I decided to listen to it.

I'm actually home alone for the first time in a long time tonight. My mom's at movie with a friend and my sister's at a school dance. It's really peaceful and I love it, but it's one of those things where instead of truly enjoying what you have, you're constantly watching the clock, counting down to when you won't have it any more. I need to stop doing that, lol.

I still haven't worked on "Keeping the Chase" :( I have a big science competition tomorrow, which totally ruins my read/write Saturday plan (where I spend Saturdays doing nothing but reading and/or writing fanfiction.) It's been really great with helping me find time, but lately unavoidable things have been coming up.

I'm also really annoyed with the dramatic people in my life. This douche-bag, pansy-ass idiot has been spreading rumors about me, saying I called this half-friend a slut. Now, I definitely think she's a home-wrecker and all-over fake person (she's trying to break up this couple even though she's "best friends" with the girl), but I certainly didn't say that to the person who the rumor-spreader got the info from (who, coincidentally is the girl part of the above-mentioned couple), especially since I don't ever talk to her! Except in the 'what'd you think of the bio test' sort of way. Now, this is the same douche-bag who broke into my Facebook earlier in the year, so I'm currently in a rage where I want to squish him like the stupid bug he is, but alas, I cannot XD

Oh, and have you all heard about Michael Phelps? Basically, he got caught at a party taking a hit from a bong and now he's been suspended from the U.S. swimming team and has lost his Kellogg sponsorship. People need to chill the fuck out. It's not like he was drunk driving or taking steroids. He was 23 and just relaxing at a party. I honestly don't see what all this nonsense is about, but welcome to America!

Don't even get me started on the mother who gave birth to octuplets. She is the prime reason why we should sterilize half the world's populationl, don't you agree?

Wickedly Yours,
wicKeDwitch1316

P.S. I've decided that when I grow up, I want to be Blair Waldorf. If that doesn't work out, I'll settle for being Leighton Meester instead.

P.P.S. Best wishes go out to U.S. Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsberg who was diagnosed the other day with pancreatic cancer. Fortunately, it was caught in the earlier stages, but it's still one of the deadliest types of cancer and I wish Ruth all the best. She's such a role model for young women and I hope that she manages to fight off this terrible disease.

Blech

2009-02-02T18:23:00.002-05:00

Hey guys,

So I finished off my midterms today! Bio was pretty easy except for a few questions that had been on previous take-home tests that I never learned the answers to. That's what I get for barely studying XD Spanish was actually better than I thought it would be (it was a practice AP.) One of the readings and one of the listenings were hard, but we were allowed to use Spanish-English dictionaries, so I hope I did well. That's the only class (besides Civic) that I'm really worried about...

But I'm a second semester senior! I should be thrilled, but I have this bio project due tomorrow that we got a few weeks ago and, of course, I'm just starting it now. Typical me. I reeeeeeally don't want to do it, but I don't think my teacher would take kindly to me slacking off as soon as humanly possible. Plus, I'm not into college yet, so I really don't feel entitled to slack off (any more than I already am.)

I've issued a new graphics challenge on TDM--yay! If you're a TDM artist and you're reading this, get off your behind! Promotions are coming soon and a bunch of artists have a ton of potential to get promoted, but they'll have to meet the quota and I don't see a lot of action on their front for that.

Oh, and I'm putting the Oliver/Audrey/Percy aside for now (yeah, yeah, I know that was fast...) to work on my Katie/Oliver anthology for the Ultimate Shipping Challenge, which will be called "Keeping the Chase." I have no idea what any of the oneshots will be about, but hopefully they'll spring into my head XD

Lately, I've also been thinking about this James/OC story that I've been pondering for a while. It's AU where James and Lily don't get married, but I dunno if Kelly (my OC) is a Mary Sue. I think she might be :(

Gah, I really need to start my bio project...especially if Gossip Girl is on tonight...anyone know about that? I shall check XD

Wickedly Yours,
wicKeDwitch1316

Bette Davis Eyes

2009-02-01T13:09:00.003-05:00

Hey guys,

So, if you don't know, I'm a huuuuuuuge fan of Leighton Meester (I jumped up and down squealing when I saw that she was on the cover of the latest Seventeen issue) and I was looking her up on PerezHilton today when I saw (heard?) her cover of the song "Bette Davis Eyes."

I loves it! :)

Of course, I tried to add it to my playlist, but unfortunately the site didn't have Leighton's version, so I got the original version from the 80s by Kim Carnes. It's slightly chill-er, but take a listen anyways...and definitely look up Leighton's version!

Wickedly Yours,
wicKeDwitch1316

New Resolution!

2009-02-01T00:23:00.002-05:00

Hey guys,

I really need to post here more often, so I'm making a resolution to do just that by posting shorter and more nonsense-y blurbs.

I just got back from seeing Slumdog Millionaire. It's absolutely amazing! The beginning is a bit violent, but it gets really sweet (despite the cheesy, "it's fate"-ness.) I really hope that it wins an Oscar. However, in order to be proper critics, my friend and I are planning to watch all of the Best Picture nominations (and maybe even the movies with the Best Actors/Actresses) during our February break. I'm excited :)

I've also gone through and updated the site. This month's recommended story is "Butterfly Carnival" by llyralen. It's this great story of a group of siblings that remind you of the Pevensies/Baudelaires. The link I provided is to TDM, but Rita's a writer on HPFF as well (under the same penname), so you can find the story on there if you want. Oh, here's a summary if you're interested:

So this month's project for me is to a) Get at least 50 reviews to become an Elite Reviewer again and b) Get decent headway into a novel. What novel you ask? I've thought of this really interesting Percy/Audrey/Oliver plotline and I'd love to get a decent part of it written this month, even if it isn't posted. I was going to pick Percy/Audrey as my ship for TDM's Ultimate Shipping Challenge, but the ever-lovely Sae beat me to it, so now I'm at a loss for a ship. Any suggestions?

Oh, and sorry for the overload of Lady Gaga on my playlist XD My friend and I are (were?) thinking of getting tickets to one of her concerts (because she's awesome and going on tour), snd so we decided that we actually needed to hear some of her songs besides "Just Dance" and "Poker Face." At first, I was like o.O, but after a few listens, I'm pretty fond of "Starstruck" and "Love Games." Give 'em a listen and let me know what you think :)

Wickedly Yours,
wicKeDwitch1316

New Story and Poll Results!

2008-12-07T20:56:00.002-05:00

Hey guys,

This is gonna be short!

1) I have a new story up on TDM! It's called Dark Flame (YA15+). It's a Tom Riddle/Minerva McGonagall piece that I wrote for Saere for TDM's Letters to Santa '08. It was surprising how easy their relationship came, so once Letters to Santa is over and I've caught up on my reviews and finished writing "Lost at Sea," I'd really like to write a longer story about them. They're like the darker, unexplored Dramione...darker because Tom Riddle could kick Draco's ass in evilness any day.

2) The poll results for favorite book in the Twilight series are in, and the winner is...*drum roll*...Twilight itself! I haven't decided what the next poll is gonna be, but I will...soon!

3) The December story of the month is The Anatomy of Eve by thelovinspoonful. Celeste wrote it for NaNoShip '08 (which I failed dismally) and it's an absolutely wonderful read. She has a real talent for both fanfiction and original fiction!

And that's all for now, folks!

Wickedly Yours,
wicKeDwitch1316

P.S. I've been asked about when I'm going to update "Lost at Sea." My response: as soon as I can, haha. I wanted to do it in December once NaNoShip ended, but with the "First to 100" challenge that Kate's holding, I've been inspired to write a oneshot for every member who asked for one in their Letter to Santa. That's six oneshots in 25 days, which leaves very little time for LaS. Sorry guys! Your time will come...

Twilight: The Movie [Spoiler Warning]

2008-11-22T01:52:00.003-05:00

Hey guys,

So I gave into the hysteria and actually went to see it on opening weekend. I would have preferred to wait, but then my friend invited me and it turned into this whole big thing. So...here is my analysis...

The Fangirls: When we arrived at the theater, a good 45 minutes before the movie was scheduled to start, there was already a line for the theater that extended throughout the windy-ropey-lines that the movie theater had. Apparently, the previous showing was still going, so we were not allowed in until like 10 minutes beforehand. But the line was intense. Not only did I see a few pre-teens (given, it was the 10 pm showing), but there were plenty of 20-year-olds and...most surprising: there were GUYS! I mean, they were probably dragged by their girlfriends, but still...During the movie, they were generally alright, although apparently one of them turned around to yell at my friends and I (there were 10 of us and we took up a whole row) for laughing, etc. Plus, they clapped and squealed the first time Rob Pat cam on...given, I did as well, although it was sickening that they clapped at the end. Overall, we only saw one "Team ____" shirt, and it was Team Jacob, which was so entirely inappropriate for this movie so I do not think it really counts since the girl was obviously just a mindless drone who did not actually read the books.

Rob Pat: Yes, I have a cute nickname for him, but only because I had a dream that I dated him a la "Win a Date with Tad Hamilton," so I feel as if we have a really close connection. So, while I went into the movie thinking that he would be amazingly wonderful while Kristen Whats-her-face was a wooden board, I was sadly disappointed. During the first half of the movie, he was creepy and sketchy and talked really really slowly as if he had some sort of mental condition. Plus, he just did not look that good, which was kind of a requirement. However, after the two of them got together, Rob Pat totally came out of his shell and started speaking at a normal pace...plus he just looked hotter. Does anyone know what order they shot in? Because I have a theory that as the movie went on, he gained confidence which made him sexy as hell, but since movies do not usually shoot in chronological order...

Kristen Whats-her-name: As previously mentioned, I thought that she would be terrible based on all the promos and commercials. I was pleasantly surprised to see that she was not too bad. Whenever she had a voice-over (yes, there are voice-overs...) or tried to be emotional (e.g., the "Say it!" "Vampire." part), it was ridiculous, but otherwise, she was much more natural than Rob Pat, which made me sad. Throughout the movie, though, I was constantly bothered by how SKINNY she was! I mean, I know Bella is supposed to be pretty, but if the camera puts on 10 pounds, then the girl must be a living skeleton. I cannot decide if I am jealous or disgusted...probably depends on how much I eat for my post-midnight snack later.

The Cullens: I LOVE. Without a doubt. Jasper is incredibly creepy and constantly looks "pained," but the two couples are just adorable, and the family scenes make you wish you had such an awesome family. Rosalie tends to be a little awkward when delivering her lines, but that is probably due to the fact that the actress is an absolute sweetheart...how can she be expected to be a bitch??? Emmett is cute, but seems to have an annoying penchant for riding on top of cars, which is rather conspicuous. Oh, and most of them look ridiculous in their pale makeup because it so obviously looks fake and just bad. I think it was the worst in Carlisle, who I did not find all that attractive...probably because I was trying to figure out how much albino foundation or whatever the makeup artists used on him. Esme, who I thought I would hate since she will always be Ava to me, was rather endearing in the whole two lines she had.

Minors (including the weird karate kid): I loved the casting for the high school kids. Jess was made a little more desperate and obvious than in the books, but what did you expect? She was made out to be a little slutty as well, but again, character simplification is kind of expected when you move a book to a movie. Eric was not as "gross" as he should have been and he worked for the paper, which made him less nerdy. Mike was absolutely adorable and absolutely perfect. It makes me so glad that he sticks around during all four books because I am dying to see that actor some more...he did wonders for the character. Oh!--I forgot how much I hated Angela. She became some sort of Asian with glasses who liked Eric. Ew! The Ben storyline was cut out, which makes me sad since their getting together was done by Edward, as we find out in Midnight Sun. Charlie was not at all what I expected, but I really liked what they did with his character. He is funnier but also more emotion, and him and Kristen Whats-her-name work well together. Billy was fun, and his relationship with Charlie was more explored in the movie...they have a fake-boxing fight with Billy in the wheelchair and Charlie jumping around the road. As for the weird karate kid: terrible wig, creepy...I actually do not even want to talk about him. Go beat people up in Hawaii, weirdo.

The Good: I have two favorite scenes. One was the first time Bella goes to meet the Cullens. They are all preparing an Italian meal for her (since her name is "Bella"=Italian), but Edward accidentally lets it slip that she ate already. Rosalie gets pissy and breaks the salad bowl before going off on all of them about the danger she poses. Then Alice and Jasper walk in FROM A TREE BRANCH OUTSIDE and Alice walks up to hug Bella saying that fun "and we will be BEST friends" line while Jasper looks like a deer-in-headlights (a.k.a. "pained"). However, Rob Pats expression is priceless. He looks so mortified and awkward as he leads Bella away, and it is all magnified in its amazingness by Carlisles last comment "I think it went well." It was just amazingly cute, and my entire group of friends agreed that it would be worth buying the movie just to watch that. The other good part is this scene after Bella and Edward get together when Edward pulls up and gets out of his car wearing sunglasses and looking GORGEOUS. Then he helps Bella out, and as they walk out, throws his arm around her and says "Well, I am breaking ALL the rules now." It is just the epitome of hotness...in the DVD they should call that scene insta-orgasm.

The Bad: Erm, everything else? The beginning is terrible, and you find yourself laughing at parts that are not meant to be funny. Many times, the interaction between characters is simply awkward, but not in an endearing way. The dazzling part with Edward was terribly done (they cut class to walk in the woods right next to the school during a rainy day...but Edward magically finds a patch of sunlight). Plus, I felt like they were ALWAYS in the woods. Geez, you live in civilization! Go to a building or something! My friends were telling me that they changed around a lot in the storyline as well (so that their first kiss is like two days after they meet), but since I have not read Twilight in a while, I was able to accept the new plotline better than they were, although I was pissed about the botched meadow scene.

Overall: If you are a diehard fan, go, you need to. If you have never read the books and love romances, go see it, you might like it. If you are bitter and cynical, OR are a canonfreak, do not go. It will eat your soul and you will want to kill yourself for almost all of it. There are some redeeming moments, which made it better than my expectations (because they were like rock-bottom low), but not good.

Apologies: I am sorry this is so long, I am just loquacious. I also want to apologize, but apparently when I press the slash or apostrophe keys, this "quick find" toolbar keeps popping up, and I cannot actually use those symbols. I have tried to write out all contractions, but there is nothing I can do about the possessional "apostrophe s." I apologize sincerely for all you grammar people (it kills me, too), but while you are refraining from pulling your hair out at all those possessional words that need an apostrophe, remember that I tried. :(

Wickedly Yours,
wicKeDwitch1316

Why I Love Firefox

2008-11-18T22:13:00.002-05:00

Hey guys,

It's really amazing how spoiled you get sometimes without realizing it. A few months ago, I originally began using Mozilla Firefox over Internet Explorer as a way of disguising the fact that I had now made a Facebook (because I have parental issues, but that's another story). Eventually, I became so enamored of the multiple tabs that I began using it for everything. Well, everything internet-related anyways. I have little easy-buttons littered across the top of my toolbar, taking me to TDM along with my AP Bio teacher's website and various scholarship information pages.

Then, a few days ago, my laptop told me that there was an update for Firefox and that it would automatically install the next time I opened Firefox. I was like "Ok, whatev," although, of course, I didn't actually say that. So, I opened Firefox again the next day, completely forgetting about the installation, etc., and just getting annoyed that it was taking longer than usual to open.

But then, to my horror, when Firefox DID open, my homepage (Facebook) COULD NOT LOAD. That's right, I got that dreaded "This page could not load for a bunch of a shit reasons" page. First, annoyed, I checked my internet connection and to my utter surprise, it was fine. Then I thought that the new version of it (yeah, yeah, I suddenly remembered that too) wouldn't be allowed through my firewall, so I added the application to the list of exceptions in my control panel.

BUT IT STILL WASN'T WORKING!

In utter despair, I opened IE and was pissed off to see that the internet WAS working there. So, for the past few days, I've been working on there, growing increasingly hostile to the world as I had to open a bazillion windows to do my normal multi-tasking. It was then that I realized how spoiled FF has made me. If I want to reference something else on the same site, I'm not longer prudent, utilizing the backspace key. I insist on opening another tab so that I don't have to go alllll the way up to the toolbar to click the back arrow.

Anyways, I finally remembered this morning that the installation thingy had said something about restarting my system (duoy!) So I restarted my computer and to my complete delight, FF came back to me! *huggles her FF and never ever wants to let it go*

I'm already taking advantage of it my having *counts* 5 tabs open. One with the info about a scholarship essay I got inspiration for while using the toilet an hour ago, one with the Wikipedia page on a book I was supposed to read for my Civic class, one on the Google search results about "DNA replication error rate" (I was looking for a statistic to use in that scholarship essay), one open to my NaNo entry, The Throne of Arácely, on TDM's archive (because I've just added it to my list of stories on the sidebar), and the last one is the tab on which I'm writing this completely pointless post.

So, yeah, that's what I'm doing on this lovely night. Yay for suburbia! Although, I should start that paper about that book...unfortunately, Wikipedia has failed me here. I've read about 60 pages of the 456-page book, and was hoping for an in-depth summary of the rest of it, but alas, I shall have to read the first and last paragraph of the rest of the chapters.

Oh, and I should work on ToA since I'm massively behind. At least I'm going for 30K in one weekend! (For more info...erm...message me on a forum...or check back in a few days when I shall post my diabolical plan to somehow win NaNo this year)

Off to procrastinate some more!

Wickedly Yours,
wicKeDwitch1316

P.S. I've changed the c-box around so that the newest messages are at the bottom, because the way it was before always confused me. We're trained to read top to bottom...why should a c-box be any different?

November Recommendation of the Month

2008-11-01T00:47:00.001-04:00

Title: Each of Us Are Secrets
Author: ShyUnicorn
Link: Click!
Rating: RR-18+
Warnings: Fairly Described Sex Scenes, Minimal Offensive Language
Black List Items: Drug and Alcohol Use/Abuse
Ships: Lucius/Narcissa, Lucius/OC
Era: Pre-Hogwarts/Other
Genre: Drama, Romance
Current Wordcount: 37906
Completed: Yes
Summary: “We all love to keep secrets, it has the appeal of making one feel infinitely important,” Lucius Malfoy said turning to look at Anais Voisin, his eyes cool and ruthless. In one summer secrets will be revealed and new ones will be kept hidden.
Why you liked it?: Um, because it's AMAZING?!? Seriously, this story had so much potential to be horrible: a pureblood OC with an abusive brother who doesn't really believe in the pureblood mania and is so beautiful that the rich and emotionally distraught Lucius can't avoid her? It could have been the Pre-Hogwarts version of a terrible Draco/OC. However, ShyUnicorn manages to write the story beautifully. Anais may have an abusive brother, but she's no angel and despite not truly hating Muggles, she's biased as well. Her relationship with Lucius is amazing to read because it's heated without being cheap. You're drawn in from the beginning and I know for a fact--because I read it on another site--that the sequel is just as amazing (she hasn't posted it on here yet).

Be sure to leave ShyUnicorn a review if you read it, and let me know what you think by leaving a comment!

Don't Read If Easily Offended...

2008-10-02T14:51:00.004-04:00

Hey guys,

I'm so sorry I haven't updated in so long (for those of you who actually read this), but in my defense, school has been CRAZY. It turns out that those "oh-my-goodness-are-you-crazy?" looks everybody gave me when I said I was going to be taking 6 AP classes actually had some merit. I'm constantly kept busy by those, my extracurriculars (I have an internship with a Congressman...how cool is that?!?), and the constant, looming threat of college.

Since I'm doing this during my caffeine nap time (a new concept I read about this morning where you drink coffee--or take Midol, which has a lot of caffeine in it in my case--and then take a 20 minute nap after which the caffeine should have kicked in), I'm just going to ramble about whatever I want.

So the vice-presidential debate is on tonight. I'm kind of looking forward to watching Palin embarrass herself, but my dad says it'll probably be better for her than we think. According to him, Biden won't know what to do with her. Plus, she did really well in the Alaskan gubernatorial debates, but one of my friends claims that that's only because she's good at twisting questions around--something that doesn't work on the national spectrum where everybody is scrutinizing your every gesture and syllable. I feel kind of bad for her because she must be really nervous...I mean from Alaska to national in so short a time? Culture shock! It turns out that in the rest of the states not everybody moose hunts and plays hocket...shocker!

But as I was talking to the previously mentioned politically active friend, we somehow came to the conclusion that John McCain must hate our country. I mean, he's in his 70s and has had cancer 4 times and he thinks he wants to be President (and that his healthy will survive it) during one of the most stressful times our country has had?!? And if, god forbid, anything happens to him, we'll have the ditzy hockey-mom as our President. You know all those jokes people made about moving to Canada if XXX won? Well, if she wins, we'll all move to Mexico because Canada is waaaaaay to close to Alaska for us to be safe. Or maybe Mongolia's far enough away....erm....maybe Mars? Anyways, there was this joke that he's probably pissed about the PoW thing in Vietnam and that he was trying to get back at the country for it and I'm realizing that it's really not as funny in writing so I'm gonna stop...now.

Writing-wise...go despair because nothing remotely creative is comin' out of this mind and these fingers any time soon. Well, I'm gonna attempt NaNoWriMo, but I'm still torn whether it should be fanfiction (to go with TDM-related stuff) or one of the few originals I've got floating around my head. I'd love to writing some biting satire on American high school life right now, but somehow I think I'd turn it into a teen-drama-fest because I'd suddenly decide somebody needed to screw their best friend's girlfriend. It's popular culture...don't blame me!

So...erm...I'm running out of things to say except that my uterus/right ovary/fallopian tubes hurt along with my back so I'm gonna stop writing before every other word is a swear or an 'ow.'

Ow.

Fuck.

Ow.

Oops, too late. :P

Wickedly Yours,
wicKeDwitch1316

Ditzy

2008-08-29T00:50:00.002-04:00

Hey guys!

When I say the word 'ditzy,' what do you think of? No offense to anyone, but you probably think of a blonde cheerleader chewing pink bubblegum and claiming that she doesn't like Barack Obama because his last name sounds like 'Osama.' What you wouldn't envision is an Indian girl, poised to be salutatorian of her class and hoping to go to Princeton to study either medicine or law (hey, she's "exploring her choices," which is code for having no idea what she wants to do). Yet, many of my "peers" who take the psycho honors/AP classes that I do, seem to think that I am too ditzy, and don't like me for it.

I don't really know how to respond to this. I mean, one of my closest friends told me that I should try to be more serious, and I literally laughed at her. Hell, I'm one of the most self-conscious, follower-y people in existence, but the idea that I should be more serious to get people to like me is absurd. We're in high school! We're supposed to be having fun! Yes, grades are important, but it startles me how seriously some people take themselves. We're only young once...do you really want to spend your high school years pretending to care about world peace? Save that for your socially-conscious college years and campaign speeches. It's very difficult for me to comprehend why kids seem unable to laugh at themselves. It's fun to have fun! Don't spend all your time talking about grades and the like!

And the ironic part is that two of these people are first off, notoriously ugly (sorry dears!) and obsessed with their band. Now, while the instrumental for their band might be good, the singer is horrendous. It's sort of like a running joke for everyone else how horrible their band is, but for them it's their life. They blow ridiculous amounts of money on speakers and the like, and claim they're "too poor" to visit colleges. Ok, you live in this county and you can't pay to drive a few miles? Bull shit. College may decide their entire futures; their band will take them nowhere except for perhaps youtube and myspace...and maybe America's Funniest Home Videos if their audiences decide to respond appropriately and chuck tomatoes at their faces. And they say I need to be more serious?

I used to feel that honors kids were unjustly portrayed in the media. We're not all that crazy!...haha, maybe the normal honors kids ARE in the minority...the major minority. High school is important, as are grades, I know that...but I refuse to sacrifice fun and boy-talk to appear more serious/smart to people. I know how smart I am, I don't need to display it to them. I am insecure as hell, but at least I'm confident about one thing. I may not work the hardest, but I am naturally smarter than almost all of them (I know, modest, right?) and I think they need to stop judging me for being myself...well, for pretending to be myself. Well, at least, they need to stop disliking me because I don't think I'm the shit. I don't think I'm perfect and I am not above laughing at myself and cooing over pretty boys.

And I can live with that.

I won't regret it a few years from now, but I think they will.

Anyone in college? Tell me what you think about high school...

Wickedly Yours,
wicKeDwitch1316

A Change in the Wind

2008-08-24T22:46:00.003-04:00

Hey guys!

As you probably all can see, there've been some changes around WW! First, a HUGE thanks goes to the lovely Desi, who made my header and the little picture you see on my right. The words below it--since you probably can't read them--say 'But words will never hurt me.' The graphic was meant to be bigger, since I requested it with the intent of putting it on the old layout, which had more room on the side, but since I changed layouts, it had to be resized.

Why did I change my layout?

Well, the GORGEOUS header that Desi made for me looked weird with the rounded rectangle header block on the old layout, so I went hunting for a new one. I found another pink one, but I really didn't like it, and I didn't want a white background like every other layout had, so I ended up with this one. I've messed with the c-box colors a bit to make it match better, but I'm still not incredibly fond of it. If anyone thinks of a better color combination, let me know, ok?

A few more things before I go and dawdle....

1) Promos are coming up on MM, so make sure you're super-active across the board and that you update your galleries...I want to be able to vote in a Member's Choice thing this time, so make the job hard for Kate, Kylie, and Sara!

2) I've chosen the Mayor of Hogsmeade for this next round of area awards. I can't say who it is, but I will say that that person was active across the request boards. Don't neglect the UFG area or request areas besides the banners one! And try to reach out a hand to newer members who are requesting graphics, we want them to see how awesome we are, right?

3) There MAY be some staffing opportunities opening up on the site. If you've been on the site for at least a few months, are a strict follower of the rules, have plenty of extra time to spend on the site, and get along well with the current staff, contact either Nagini (Kate), Elysium (Kylie), or Insomniac (Sara).

4) School's starting for me pretty soon (AHHH!) So I may be a little busy doing all the work I should have done weeks ago. Hehe...whoops!

As always...

Wickedly Yours,
wicKeDwitch1316

Hehe....

2008-08-23T13:07:00.002-04:00

Hey guys!

Sorry about that last post...I'm not suicidal or anything. I was just really frustrated with some things that were going on in my life and I took it out on my pretty little blog. So I apologize to anyone *cough*Shruti*cough* who thought I'd gone over the deep end. I'm still here, terrible humor and all, so don't worry.

So....big new.....I FINALLY UPDATED LOST AT SEA!!!!!! I know! *gasp* *shock* *die* *come back to life* It's a big deal considering I left my readers at HPFF ten months without an update. Yes, you read right TEN MONTHS. That's practically a year, so I suck on numerous levels, but I found new inspiration for it thanks to the lovely Kate/Nagini, so hopefully I'll be updating every month, which is still a long time, I know, but I can't even think of fathoming that I'll update any sooner than that. I'm just not that motivated to do anything.

On other news, I still haven't progressed on my reviewing. I've had a recent spark with writing, so I think I'm gonna ride that wave until it dies because I haven't had the inspiration to write in a very long time. Something I really want to do is revive "You Just Have to Believe" with a new storyline and possibly start a Sirius/OC. I'm also messing with the idea of a Post-Hogwarts mystery that'll involve the American Prime Minister...I'm still developing the main character now, so if that works out, I'll move towards the story. "Her Wintry Chill" has been put on indefinite hold because I don't wanna work on it and it's not very popular, so it's not like I have people hounding me to update it. Inspiration will come when it will. Plus, it's kind of hard to write a depressing Christmas fic when it's mid-August.

OH! I need to credit my savior! Timothy Hallinan has a fabulous website with a section called 'Finishing Your Novel.' It's what inspired me to rework "Lost at Sea," so if you're a fan of that story, you should go thank him. HERE is a link to the site if you're interested. He covers nearly every aspect of writing a novel from developing your characters to the 'dread middle.' He's kind of funny, which makes it interesting, and every time I read a section, I get inspired to go write, so I suppose it's good, although it may not work for everyone.

And no, I'm not getting paid to advertise him. :P

Wickedly Yours,
wicKeDwitch1316

...

2008-08-21T00:25:00.000-04:00

I can't do anything today. I'm just done.

I Suck

2008-08-20T01:22:00.003-04:00

Hey guys,

I know, I'm terrible, but I just COULD NOT review today. I came back to the hotel with a splitting headache and after taking copious amounts of Excedrin Migraine, all I wanted to do was work on this new story I've been brewing instead of working on "Lost at Sea" or any of the other million things I need to do in fanfiction and real life. The project is called "Such Great Heights" after the song by the Postal Service. I don't want to give away the whole plot, especially since I don't really know what it's going to be yet, but I'm fleshing out the characters and brainstorming the plot now. I've written a possible beginning, although I'm not going to post it yet since I don't want to jinx it or give away the surprise.

Eh, never mind....I'll post it anyways!

I remember that summer, the reporters were merciless.

Summer 1977

‘Gringotts evaluation indicates gold loss’

‘Lord Prewett speaks out about his mismanagement of funds’

‘Numerous families withdraw savings from Gringotts’

‘Lord Prewett fired and disgraced; goblins put in charge of bank’

‘Prewett to be tried for fraud among other charges’

My worst nightmare had come true.

September 1, 1977

“Hurry up, or you’ll miss the train,” scolded my mother as she briskly followed the trolley she had enchanted to roll in front of her. The International Statute of Secrecy had never mattered to her, and the Ministry’s slap on the wrist would pale in comparison to the embroilment in which the family was now in.

I walked warily behind her, trying my best to keep my chin up and my eyes forward because I knew that if I turned, if I acknowledged the curious and resentful stares that I felt on me, I would simply burst into tears. The air of resentment was so thick at King’s Cross Station that it was like a layer of smog coating my skin and clothes and clouding my eyes. Even though we were still within view of Muggles, fellow witches and wizards could spot my mother and I from a mile away; we had spent most of the summer in The Daily Prophet.

It had been a strange sensation to open the morning paper (I had the entire paper to myself since my father would leave the house before the post arrived and my mother had always refrained from reading it, citing that she didn’t need to know about the troubles of others) and see myself being ushered away by either my mother or a pair of burly bodyguards. It was incredibly invasive, and some photographs, like one of my family embracing, were oddly intimate. Despite my aversion and growing hatred, I could not stop myself from reading every single page from top to bottom, absorbing and committing to memory every insulting line about my family. At first, I would feel a sharp pain in my navel whenever my father’s name came up, but as the summer waned, I simply experienced a slight lurch upon reading my own name.

“Mother, are you sure I need to go back?” I asked for what seemed like the hundredth time this morning. “I don’t really need my N.E.W.T.s and I don’t know if it’ll even be worth—”

“Yes, I am sure,” she said. She never failed to astound me with her impeccable talent of speaking without moving her lips. It was a skill she had honed to perfection to outwit the bloodthirsty reporters who hounded her every move. It was also a skill I had yet to pick up much to her exasperation.

I could not hide my anguish; this had been my final appeal. It seemed like my parents really were sending me back to that dreaded school to face the children of the people my father had lied to and stolen from.

Seeing my face contorted in pain, my mother softened. She wrapped a slim arm around my waist and spoke in soothing voice, “You cannot hide from them. You must go out there and pretend like nothing is wrong. You have committed no crime. You must be strong for the family. You must show your face. You can do it,” she encouraged.

I twisted out of her grasp, clenching my fists. All summer, a volcanic pressure had been building inside of me, waiting to erupt as I played the dutiful pureblood daughter. This was a prime opportunity to take out my rage on my unsuspecting mother, “Right,” I hissed, “Like how you showed your face at Lady Parkinson’s tea? Or Mrs. Crouch’s luncheon?”

I saw her face blanched and she instinctively reached up to brush a nonexistent strand of dark hair back into place. “We must keep up appearances,” she said steadily. “You will not be deprived of an education because of your father’s disgr—mistake.”

Despite her quick recovery, I had caught the slip—the first she had made in front of me—which betrayed the incomparable strain on her. She had stubbornly retained that my father was innocent and that the goblins had set him up in a conspiracy to control the bank. I might have believed it the first time she said it, but her protective lies were instantly shattered by the concrete proof in the papers. Yet, she continued to tell her story; she held to it so firmly that I believe there were times when she actually believed it.

We passed through the barrier, my mother carelessly placing well-manicured fingers lightly on the handle for appearances. I slipped in after her, but not without contemplating an escape. However, the bubbling guilt in my stomach forced me forward onto the platform.

If I had thought the Muggle station was bad, Platform Nine-and-Three-Quarters was my own personal hell. Now, there were no Muggles to neutralizing the glares of loathing. As my mother and I walked towards the train, the crowd parted before us as if we were the plague itself come to destroy the race. There were no whispers of curiosity; that had been satiated by The Prophet. The inquisitiveness had been evaporated out of them, leaving only anger. I only now appreciated the shelter my parents had provided for me; I now understood the harsh restrictions I had tried so hard to have repealed. They had saved me from the hatred of the rest of Britain, but they could not protect me from their cruelty at school.

They could not save me from what they had wrought.

Feedback is desperately asked for. Please be brutally honest; if I don't see a bit of concrit in it, I'm gonna delete it. Ok, no I won't, but seriously, I need you to tear this apart.

Wickedly Yours,
wicKeDwitch1316

Working Backwards and Time to Make-up

2008-08-19T00:12:00.004-04:00

Hey guys,

Wow, that's a random title...I seem to be on a roll with those lately, huh? Well, first things first: MAY-WALSH WON THEIR SEMI-FINAL GAME AGAINST BRAZIL 21-12 AND 21-14, MEANING THAT THEY ARE PLAYING ONE OF THE CHINESE TEAMS FOR THE FINAL!!! If you don't know what I'm talking about, Misty May-Trainor and Kerry Walsh are the U.S.'s best women's beach volleyball team (their the number 2 seed and reigning Olympic champions). Now, before you starting judging me for watching girls in little bikins, for me it's actually the sport. I promise.

Diving and swimming are the sports I use to stare at guys and their hot bodies. Oh, and I like to stare at guys' legs/abs when they lift their shirts up in soccer. But May-Walsh is one of my favorite teams because they are just so damn good. They haven't lost a game in about a year (it'll be a year on the day of the final, I believe), which means they're on a 100 and something game winning streak. They are the Michael Phelps of beach volleyball....if they win the final, they'll be the first beach volleyball team EVER (men or women) to defend an Olympic gold in the sport. Can you tell I'm a fan? :)

On the reviewing front, I did a sizeable chunk today, although I'm still behind. I haven't done 'Made to Be Broken' because, as the title says, I kind of worked my way backwards through today's stories and 11,000 words was far too much for me to concentrate on after going through the others. Tomorrow's goal is to get through all of 'The Same Mistake' which will put me back on track. It'll be hard, especially since reviewing the same story is harder than reviewing lots of them because you don't get the breaks and the satisfaction of knowing you finished a story. Oh, and I had to had on one more because stupid Ty updated "Rebel Yell" (love ya, hun!) And in my credit, Jess updated "Hopes and Fears..." so I read one more chapter there.

Oh, and I finally reached triple digits! Yay! I currently have 104 reviews. I notice that everybody else has been reviewing as well, which kind of ruins my sneak-up-on-them plan, but I can live with that. With any luck, tomorrow I'll be in that number 4 spot on TDM's top ten. Boo-ya! (A bit of Kim Possible leaking through there...)

Here's the current list:

21-22. "Hello Darkness..." Chapter 1-2
54-75. "The Same Mistake" Chapter 1-23
77-78. "Obviously" Chapter 1-2
79. "Reality - A Monologue"
80. "Succumbing to fate" Chapter 2
81. "High and Low"
82. "The Contract"
83. "Dissolved Girl"
84. "Euphoria" Chapter 2
85. "Arcanum"
86. "Bad World"
87-91. "Fear and Jealousy" Chapter 4-8
92-95. "Collateral Damager" Chapter 1-4
96-99. "Fatal Mistakes" Chapter 1-4
100. "Curiosity"
101. "Room for One"
102. "Alice"
103. "Accidents Happen" Chapter 9
104. "Six Ribbons"
105. "Rebel Yell" Chapter 2
106. "Hurt..."

Wickedly Yours,
wicKeDwitch1316

And the Road Goes Ever On

2008-08-17T23:26:00.002-04:00

Hey guys,

First off, no idea where that title came from....well, I do know it's from Bilbo's song in LOTR, but I don't why I chose it and I'm too lazy to change it now. I've finished some of my list, but I've had to had on more in my duties to the AA...I swear, people have got to stop updating things until I've caught up!

21-22. "Hello Darkness..." Chapter 1-2
23. "True Love?"
24. "The Viper's Kiss"
40-45. "Deadly Sins" Chapter 1-6
46-49. "Breathe out..." Chapter 1-4
50. "Each Tear"
51-52. "Hopes and Fears" Chapter 1-2
53. "One Night"
54-75. "The Same Mistake" Chapter 1-23
77-78. "Obviously" Chapter 1-2
79. "Reality - A Monologue"
80. "Succumbing to fate" Chapter 2
81. "High and Low"
82. "The Contract"
83. "Dissolved Girl"
84. "Euphoria" Chapter 2
85. "Arcanum"
86. "Bad World"
87-91. "Fear and Jealousy" Chapter 4-8
92-95. "Collateral Damager" Chapter 1-4
96-99. "Fatal Mistakes" Chapter 1-4
100. "Curiosity"
101. "Room for One"
102. "Alice"
103. "Accidents Happen" Chapter 9
104. "Six Ribbons"

Seriously, guys, there are some great stories on TDM hidden away...take the time to look for them and you'll be rewarded. I've found some stuff for future recs of the month.

Wickedly Yours,
wicKeDwitch1316

Queen of Procrastination

2008-08-16T18:49:00.003-04:00

Hey guys,

I know I suck, but I'm gonna have to put off the 100 reviews in 10 days thing because I'm going to Washington DC on a college-visiting trip. This means I won't have all day to laze around and review at my leisure. I'm going to try to get 10 done today, which would only put me a day behind, but packing is a right nuisance and I want to watch Michael Phelps win his 8th Olympic gold (because he will win it).

I hope you all enjoy the two anthologies the moderators put together for you, I know I think they came out great. Be sure to check out the new story submission rules on TDM's archive. There's been a whole lot of opening up, allowing somethings that probably shouldn't be allowed, but all in the name of giving writer's more creative license. Please don't abuse this, guys! I don't want TDM to turn into another FF.net with incest and pedophilia at every turn, although given, pedophilia still isn't allowed at TDM.

Here's the current review list:

21-22. "Hello Darkness..." Chapter 1-2
23. "True Love?"
24. "The Viper's Kiss"
25-26. "Made to be Broken" Chapter 1-2
27. "Paint my World in shades of Grey"
28. "I Held Your Hand..."
29. "Desperado"
30. "Their Dance"
31. "First Sin"
32. "Small Crimes"
33. "Pansy's Lament"
34-36. "Bain of My Existence..." chapter 6-8
37. "Love Conquers"
38-39. "Renaissance" Chapter 1-2
40-45. "Deadly Sins" Chapter 1-6
46-49. "Breathe out..." Chapter 1-4
50. "Each Tear"
51-52. "Hopes and Fears" Chapter 1-2
53. "One Night"
54-75. "The Same Mistake" Chapter 1-22
76-77. "Obviously" Chapter 1-2
78. "Reality - A Monologue"
79. "Succumbing to fate" Chapter 2
80. "High and Low"
81. "The Contract"
82. "Dissolved Girl"
83. "Euphoria" Chapter 2
84. "Arcanum"
85. "Bad World"
86-90. "Fear and Jealousy" Chapter 4-8
91-94. "Collateral Damager" Chapter 1-4
95-98. "Fatal Mistakes" Chapter 1-4
99. "Curiosity"
100. "Room for One"

Wickedly Yours,
wicKeDwitch1316

Leather and Libraries and the Government Stole My Toad

2008-08-16T03:14:00.004-04:00

Hey guys,

No, contrary to popular belief, I am NOT losing my mind.

As many of you know, August marks the one year anniversary of TDM. That's right, it was one year ago when Drew PM-d me on HPFF and invited me over to be the first mod on his new HP site. I should've said no, but I was too young and naive, so I got roped into his crazy idea. So, it's basically all Drew's fault that I don't get enough sleep (haha, just kidding...sorta).

Anyways, in that one year, the site has grown tremendously all due to two girls: Sara and Kate. These two people are super-human. Their awesome writers, incredibly talented artists, as well as being the two most efficient administrators you could ask for. They've made my experience here amazing and I couldn't imagine my life without them.

So to honor their awesomeness, a bunch of TDM mods and I got together to write them anthologies based on their favorite ships. Nags' is Neville/Luna (or so she said when we sneakily and inconspicuously asked her), so we wrote her The Government Stole My Toad (YA15+). Sara's is obviously Dramione, so we wrote her Leather and Libraries (YA15+). Please head on over and read through the stories...some of them are really amazing and all of them are the result of much time and effort on our parts. Reviews are humongously appreciated.

That's all for today. I couldn't review due to the anthologies, but I'll get back on track tomorrow. So far, I've finished the first twenty chapters.

Wickedly Yours,
wicKeDwitch1316

Panic Attack, Review Update, and Olympic Upset

2008-08-14T22:09:00.003-04:00

Hey guys!

So today I had my first college interview! I was a nervous wreck last night. I tried to distract myself with a Gilmore Girls marathon (it turns out the 4th season wasn't as terrible as I thought it was!), and the second I got up to do my laundry, my panic overtook. I ended up sobbing on the floor about how I wasn't good enough. Melodramatic, much? You bet your ass I am.

I finished my first 10 chapters, so I'm right on track. Planning on doing the next 10 tonight, hopefully getting a few more done since I'm going on a college visiting trip starting Sunday.

Watching the Olympics right now. First, saw May-Walsh kick some Belgian butt in Beach Volleyball. Well, the Belgians were really good in the first set, but May-Walsh had this amazing comeback and fought off 5 set points to win that first set. They went on to kill in the second one, and they won the game. It was really nice since it was Kerry Walsh's 30th birthday...yay! It's nice to see that there's at least one sport that doesn't consider 30 to be old age.

OMG, watching the women's 200 breastroke and Rebecca Soni just kicked TOTAL ass. She pulled this big upset over Liesel Jones from Australia, who I guess was expected to win (she was the world record holder). The two of them pulled away at the beginning and Jones was slightly ahead. Suddenly, on the last turn Soni pulled ahead. I wonder how old she is, but that was slightly AWESOME!

Off to watch Aaron Peirsol vs. Ryan Lochte in the backstroke....yay hot American guys! :)

Wickedly Yours,
wicKeDwitch1316

Review-a-Bananza

2008-08-13T15:51:00.000-04:00

Hey guys,

Since I feel terrible for not pulling my weight last month for the AA's I've decided: I'm going to review 100 chapters on TDM in 10 days. I'm not sure how it's gonna work since I'm gonna be away and swamped with last minute summer work, but I'm really excited about it and except each and every one of you to urge me on and not let me give up. I'll, of course, keep you all updated on my progress.

Here's the current list:

1-10. "And the Sky Becomes Mortal" Chapter 7-16
11-12. "Welcome to VoldeMart..." Chpater 1-2
13. "Hell on Earth: Apocalypse"
14-16. "Oblivious" Chapter 3-5
17-19. "Accidents Happen" Chapter 6-8
20. "The Art of Insomnia"
21-22. "Hello Darkness..." Chapter 1-2
23. "True Love?"
24. "The Viper's Kiss"
25-26. "Made to be Broken" Chapter 1-2
27. "Paint my World in shades of Grey"
28. "I Held Your Hand..."
29. "Desperado"
30. "Their Dance"
31. "First Sin"
32. "Small Crimes"
33. "Pansy's Lament"
34-36. "Bain of My Existence..." chapter 6-8
37. "Love Conquers"
38-39. "Renaissance" Chapter 1-2
40-45. "Deadly Sins" Chapter 1-6
46-49. "Breathe out..." Chapter 1-4
50. "Each Tear"
51-52. "Hopes and Fears" Chapter 1-2
53. "One Night"
54-75. "The Same Mistake" Chapter 1-22
76-77. "Obviously" Chapter 1-2
78. "Reality - A Monologue"
79. "Succumbing to fate" Chapter 2
80. "High and Low"
81. "The Contract"
82. "Dissolved Girl"
83. "Euphoria" Chapter 2
84. "Arcanum"
85. "Bad World"
86-90. "Fear and Jealousy" Chapter 4-8
91-94. "Collateral Damager" Chapter 1-4
95-98. "Fatal Mistakes" Chapter 1-4
99. "Curiosity"
100. "Room for One"

Sorry to everybody who wanted to be on it, but isn't, and yay for everyone who's surprised and happy to be on the list. It was created using various methods of selection including, but not limited to: review requests, Beedle the Bard recommendations, favorite stories/authors, loyal reviewers, and new stories/authors. If you would like me to review one of your stories and it's not on the list, once I've finished these, I'll open up my review thread on TDM for any requests (but I only do stories on TDM, so you'll have to post there).

Off to review!

Wickedly Yours,
wicKeDwitch1316

Don't Step on a Crack or You'll Fall and Break Your Back

2008-08-12T22:27:00.000-04:00

Last summer, in a brief moment of inflexibility and twisting, I sprain a part of my upper back. That was the start of all my back troubles, which tend to flair up when I get stressed. I attributed them to my old (I've had it since I started sleeping in big girl beds) mattress, so my mom finally bought me a new one. It's big and comfy and posturepedic. But, one year later, my back still has a tendency to flair up at the weirdest times, and today was one of those times.

True, I'm kinda stressed out about being a senior and all, but today was the easiest day in the history of days. I woke up, watched Olympic soccer, ate some Easy Mac, watched Olympic tennis, and took a nap. Somehow, between all that strenuous lounging around, my back got tight. So I put a hot water bottle on it--logical, no?

BAD IDEA! Now, over the tight muscle, my skin feels raw and weird. I don't think the water bottle was too hot; besides, I put a towel between it and my skin, so it can't be that. I tried icing it, but the area is in an awkward position for holding an ice pack. It numbed the area for a while, but it's still very raw with NO MARKS. If anyone knows anything about this--is this how it's supposed to feel?--let me know because I'm in misery right now. I want to massage the knot away, but it just hurts! :(

On the up side, I'm a lot less bitter and angry than I was yesterday, but give it some time...

I think I'll do some reviewing tonight on TDM...I've been severely slacking and the AA's need a bit of a boost. Our goal for the month is to get into the triple digits. Given that I'm barely at 50 reviews, I should probably get cracking, but it's far too much fun just typing random shit on this lovely thing.

Ooh, speaking of my lovely blog, I just recently requested a new site header and little side graphic on Morsemordre from two of my favorite artists (also, the only of my favorite artists who were willing to make anything other than banners...sheesh guys, banner fetishes, much?). I can't wait to see how they turn out, and all two (if that) of my readers will be awed at their brilliance.

Right...reviewing...or ranting...review...rant...I'll continue to rant. So my lovely AFountainPen promised an update on Settling the Score for "around tomorrow"...since that went up Sunday night at the latest, I've been obsessively refreshing my favorite's page/her author's page, waiting for an update so I can get my Andy/Oliver fix, but to no avail. I think I might go crazy soon if she doesn't post chapter 16...if you haven't read the story, check out my link to her author's page on the right somewhere. Maybe I'll start a list of my favorite fanfics and ditch the rec of the month. Opinions? Haha, that was a good joke seeing as how nobody reads this.

Whatev. :P

Wickedly Yours,
wicKeDwitch1316

Ugh...The Rant of a Die-Hard Hillary Fan

2008-08-12T03:17:00.000-04:00

Hey guys,

Yeah, I know I haven't updated in over a month, but it's not like anyone reads this, right? And I needed to rant right now, so y'all are gonna suck it up and read this because you have nothing better to do with your lives. Wow, that was harsh, but guess what, it's probably true. And there's no point in pretending otherwise--hey, I just spent the last hour of my life stalking this guy on Facebook and hell, he barely knows who I am. Don't I sound pathetic?

But on to the ranting. First up on the agenda: Barack Obama. A close friend of mine was recently telling me that he signed up to get the little text alert once Obama chose his running mate. This is complete bullshit. Like it won't be all over the TV, radio, and internet the moment he does choose. But the real thing that rankles me is the way everyone my age seems to worship Obama. Ok, so he's young--what does that really mean? He's not gonna be a better President just because he knows who Kanye is guys! To me, he comes off as an arrogant person who's full of great ideals, but can't really deliver. I mean, gosh, look at his credentials. This is his first term in the Senate and he doesn't even seem to have the tenacity to finish it out. That's always bugged me: politicians who run for things while still holding another office. I mean, it's not fair to abandon your state just because you want to be President. If you do, finish out your term and then run. It's just disrespectful.

Anyways, Obama couldn't even deal with his state--what is it, Illinois?--for a single Senate term, and I mean, Illinois isn't exactly the worst state in the country. There are no massively devastating earth quakes or bazillion-people cities there. If he got tired of that, how can we expect him to be President of all 50 states (plus those other little things like Costa Rica). Who's to say that he won't get bored and try to go for President of the World next? Yes, I know that's not a real position, but that's besides the point.

Unfortunately, the old geyser isn't any better. I have a soft spot for John McCain because he's always reminded me of Steve Martin...and I love Steve Martin. He's cute as the dad in Cheaper by the Dozen, although he tends to be slightly stereotyped in his parts. Digressing, I can't hate McCain as much as I do other conservatives because of that. Plus, I think he's kinda funny. I mean, the Paris Hilton ads and the tire inflators mocking Obama--it's funny! Obama's so self-righteous that he needs a little pulling back to Earth. McCain's only problem is that he's a Republican. Um...more war in Iraq? No thank you! I want all the stupid drama to end so that all the damned hippies in my school can stop preaching about stopping the war, end the genocide, wah wah wah.

Oh my god, I am just realizing how...terrible I sound, but I guess this is more of the real me. I'm bitter and sarcastic and extremely narcissistic. And seeing as how this is my blog...I'm gonna blog my thoughts. So look for less on the sweet and cuddly and look how precocious I am! posts and more angry, people suck ones.

Oh, and I'm working on a few oneshots for something. Then I'll probably get a chapter of "It's Just Life" out. I'm playing with this idea of a Romilda/Harry short story for amarthaine's Cliched Love Story challenge, but I'm still trying to figure out the finer details. My brain's just not creative these days.

Wickedly Yours,
wicKeDwitch1316

P.S. I know there's not a rec of the month for August...just read some shit and come back in September because I haven't been reading much lately and I can't remember which stories have already been up there. I'll be overly reviewing this month for the AA's (not Alcoholics Anonymous, as I first thought, but the Appleby Arrows), so I'll find something good for September.

How Do You Know When You're Doing it Sporadically?

2008-06-25T21:40:00.000-04:00

Hey guys,

So I just realized how sporadically I post here...yeesh, I just suck at updating everything, don't I? So what's happened since I last posted?

Well, the archive now has over 100 members who have written over 300,000 words. Whoo-hoo! I am, of course one of those members, and to do my part in contributing, I've posted 3 new stories up on TDM. Yes, you heard correctly, 3! Of course, they're all short, one-shots, but I'm still proud!

The first one is called, "She Would Come." I love and you absolutely must read it if you're comfortable reading R18+ rated sexual content. It's really not bad, but it's not something for the little kiddies. This might be my favorite fic that I've written because it is a Kylie-fic. Kylie-fic (noun): A relatively short oneshot in which a Gryffindor and a Slytherin share a romance that is tingly and emotional, but not all that sexual.

The next oneshot is called "Torn in Time." It's actually a slightly extended edition of the blurb I posted last time. Now there's a little romance, although it's basically the same. However, you should head over to TDM to check it out, anyway, because the lovely Ind of MM fame made a beautiful banner for me that everybody must ooh and ahh at.

The last oneshot that I have posted at TDM since my last post is called "Voulez-Vous." It's a kinda racy oneshot that's Lucius/OC, but really James/OC. It was meant to be a longer fic, but I lost inspiration, but loved that chapter and decided to make it a oneshot.

Oh, I almost forgot, I've been made a moderator of the request section on Morsemordre! I am super-excited and have included a link to the site on the left. I am very happy to be working with all the great staff there and I cannot wait to get things rockin' and rollin'. I promise you it will be even more amazing once I get through with it!

Finally, TDM has created a new forum called "Occlumency Lessons." It's a place you can go to get help with rating your story before you send it into the validators. I'm the head of it, so please please please use it because I'm rather good at rating things! Is there any way I can do that for a living?

Wickedly Yours,
wicKeDwitch1316

P.S. Cookies to whoever can guess where the title of this post comes from!

Random Snippet

2008-06-14T22:33:00.000-04:00

Hey guys,

So I was having severe writer's block, but I really wanted to write, so I went on HPFF and found this challenge called The Butterfly Effect...or something to that nature. Now, I'm pretty sure that it was based on Ashton Kutcher's movie of the same title, which was pretty freaky, and was the last "scary" movie I've ever seen. Yeah, yeah, that's why I'm a Ravenclaw, not a Gryffindor. I listen to Mufasa...I don't go looking for danger. But I digress....here it is (oh yeah, there's a bit of language, so be mindful if you don't like that sort of thing).

“Shit, shit, shit!” muttered Albus Potter under his breath.

“Albus, language!” hissed his cousin, Victoire.

“Seriously? That’s what you’re concerned about right now?” his other cousin, Rose, asked incredulously.

Teddy interrupted, “Guys, there’s no point in losing our heads now.”

“Yeah,” said James, heaving the door to the headmaster’s office shut, “It’s not like there’s an army of Inferi after us or anything.” The other four glared at him, but James seemed not to notice.

Rose rolled her eyes, “What are we going to do?” She looked at Teddy, confident that he would have a plan. When he hesitated,she blanched, turning to her cousin.

“This is all your fault!” she shouted at Albus, who stumbled backwards in his haste to get away from the furious redhead. Her head only reached his shoulder, but she had a dangerous glint in her eyes, and as a Slytherin, Albus’ sense of self-preservation was quite well-honed.

“Not necessarily,” he mumbled, his hand urgently searching in his robe pockets for his wand. He must have dropped it during their frantic retreat.

She snarled,“Really? Tell me how this isn’t entirely your fault, you bloody psychotic
Slytherin?”

“Do we really have to bring his House into it?” asked James mildly. He threw his hands up in surrender the moment Rose spun around to face him. Even as a Gryffindor, he wasn’t going to face her while she was in a mood.

“Err...” Albus cast around for words as Rose advanced on him. He looked beseechingly at Victoire, who merely crossed her arms and pursed her lips at him. Her usually flawless blonde hair was falling down from its perch atop her head and there was a line of dried blood above her right eyebrow. All of their robes were scorched and dirty, but the difference was most notable on her. He winced.

“Rose.” She stopped at the sound of her name on Teddy’s lips. She turned around to look at him, but everybody could see her body relax significantly. Victoire’s eyes narrowed dangerously, but she said nothing.

“There’s no point in killing him, although I am severely tempted.” He sent a stern look over at the boy in question, who cowered under his harsh gaze. Teddy was rarely ever angry or reproving. “Our only chance for survival is to go back again.”

“No!” Victoire scowled. “If we go back, we’ll just mess everything up again. Between your obsession with your parents and Albus’ with the Hallows, we’ll never be able to do what we’re supposed to.”

“My obsession?”

“Yes.” Her blue eyes were unnaturally hard as they bore into Teddy’s brown ones.

Teddy snorted. “Once again, you win an award as an all-star brat.”

Victoire looked ruffled, but she didn’t say anything. Her eyes shifted from Rose to Teddy and back again, before she turned to the other two boys. “I propose that James and I go back—”

Before she could get her sentence out, there was a wave of protest.

“I want to go—”

“I am not obsessed with the Hallows—”

“Over my dead body!”

“If one of us goes,” said Rose seriously, “Then we all go. It’s only fair.”

“This isn’t about being fair,” said James slowly. “I think Victoire is right. Albus is too easily distracted and Teddy has too much baggage.”

“And what about me?” Rose demanded.

“You’re too young.”

“I am not! Albus is the same age as me!”

“And he’s not going,” snapped Victoire. “The two of you aren’t even of age yet!”

“Neither was my dad when he faced You-Know-Who the first dozen times!”

“Yeah, and look how that turned out for him!”

There was a terrible silence as James and Albus took in Victoire’s harsh words. “I am sorry—” she started, but she faltered at their hurt looks.

Teddy stepped in, placing a hand on her shoulders. “We all go,” he said quietly. She nodded. He turned to Albus urgently, “Where’s the timeturner?”

“Uh…” He looked guilty.

Rose rolled her eyes again, pushing her sleeves up to her elbows. Drawing her wand out with a flourish, she muttered, “Accio timeturner!” She closed her eyes in concentration and the others listened closely for the sound of an approaching object. In the still silence, the thud of marching feet reach all of their ears.

They all exchanged looks. “The Inferi,” Victoire whispered.

“Shit,” said Albus.

So, what'd you think? All feedback/comments are appreciated! And don't forget to check out my author's pages to see more of my writing! (I know, I'm subtle, but it's my blog, isn't it?)

Wickedly Yours,
wicKeDwitch1316

Stuff A-Happenin' at TDM

2008-04-30T21:26:00.000-04:00

Hey guys,

For any of you who don't know about TDM's Gaming Month....we had a month of games that was fabulous and you missed it. Shame on you! Anyways, I wanted to congratulate a few people:

alphalpha, who's from my house (woot! woot!), was the highest individual scorer. She was also the highest scorer in the Black House and has earned the honor of being its house moderator.

Field of Innocence, Juliet, and SBSL have also earned the highest in their respective houses and are now their house moderators. Excellent job you guys....I know how hard you worked for it (I scored your endless submissions!)

Sexy Little Fishy, who's also from my house, was the second highest individual scorer. Even though she didn't technically win anything, she is responsible for the Blacks' original surge, and I want to congratulate her on her wonderful achievements.

As do I for all of the Blacks. 2080 points is nothing to sniff at; we will destroy the Lestranges next year, never fear!

I also want to offer another congratulations to brittanystacey for being Member of the Month of April. You certainly deserve it, hun!

And I want to celebrate for being Staffer of the Month *does a dance*. But seriously, I'm really honored....thanks Sara and Nags!

Finally, I would like to announce BATTLESHIP '08

Oh no!

Love has infiltrated the Death Eater ranks and has caused discord among the four houses. The Blacks, Malfoys, Lestranges, and Zabinis cannot agree on which Harry Potter ship is the best.

The Blacks believe that Snape/Lily, Ron/Hermione and Seamus/Luna are the best ships to sail!

The Malfoys believe that Harry/Ginny, Remus/Tonks and Bill/Fluer are the best ships to sail!

The Lestranges believe that James/Lily, Hermione/Blaise and Harry/Draco are the best ships to sail!

The Zabinis believe that Draco/Astoria, Teddy/Victoire and Sirius/Lily are the best ships to sail!

In order to support your house, you must write a story consisting of at least 20,000 words about one of the three ships that your house moderator has chosen.

At the end of the month, an award will be granted to the house with the highest accumulated wordcount, and the individual with the best story.

BUT, the official winner will be the house that best features its ship in an entertaining and unique way.

So, as you can see, it's totally fabulous. All of you should run over to TDM (or your word processors, I guess) and WRITE WRITE WRITE!

Wickedly Yours,
wicKeDwitch1316

P.S. What do you think of the new layout? I think the pink is cheerful and springy...

P.S.S. I have a new recommendation up for the month of May! It's a Dramione, but written so well that even the stubbornly James/Lily me enjoys it.

New Story

2008-04-28T18:25:00.000-04:00

Hey guys,

I think I'm starting a new story. It's a Peter/OC and Sirius/OC (it's the same OC). I'm trying to write it using something called the Snowflake method. Step three of this involves writing character outlines for all of your characters. Here's my character outline for my main character:

The character's name
Abi Nitya Reynolds

A one-sentence summary of the character's storyline
After hearing a prophecy, Abi forsakes her brain and becomes obsessed with beauty.

The character's motivation (what does he/she want abstractly?)
She wants to be happy. She thinks that she will be happy if she becomes popular, meaning that everybody likes her. She thinks the way to achieve that is to become pretty. Basically, she just wants to be comfortable in her own skin, but she takes it too far.

The character's goal (what does he/she want concretely?)
She wants to get into the Healer Training program at St. Mungo’s because her mother has always wanted her to become a doctor. She wants to become Sirius’ girlfriend because she’s attracted to his popularity, confidence, and all-over sexiness.

The character's conflict (what prevents him/her from reaching this goal?)
She’s prevented from becoming a Healer because she doesn’t believe that she can do it (thanks to the prophecy). She’s not Sirius’ girlfriend because he thinks he’s in love with Emily, and while he thinks Abi is nice, she’s not outgoing enough to intrigue him into wanting her in a different way.

The character's epiphany (what will he/she learn, how will he/she change?)
After Sirius calls her out on being a cheat, Abi hits rock bottom. She has no close friends left, she has a nearly zip chance at getting into St. Mungo’s (except as a ward), and Sirius thinks she’s a whore. So, she breaks things off with Pollack, makes up with Jasper, and begins to study for exams.

A one-paragraph summary of the character's storyline
When her Muggle, Indian mother forces Abi to take her little sister to a carnival, she makes the most of it by visiting a fortune-teller. Much to her surprise, the woman is a real witch who warns her not to rely too much on her brains. Slightly disturbed, Abi goes back to Hogwarts a little shaken up. So when the caustic, new Defense against the Dark Arts teacher criticizes her and her new crush, Sirius Black, couldn’t be less interested in her mind, Abi decides to forgo the intellectual route. Floundering, she begins to spiral down into a haze depression, bulimia, and OCD. However, on the outside, she finally believes that she is attractive since boys begin to show an interest in her. She begins a dalliance with an exchange student despite her existing relationship with Peter Pettigrew, and loses her virginity to her promiscuous best friend. But when Sirius finds out, their budding friendship comes to a screeching halt as he harshly denounces her as a whore and a cheat. At rock bottom, Abi realizes that only she can salvage the wreck of a year. Returning to familiar ground, she throws herself into her academics and realizes that her mind is more solid than she thought.

I know it's random and stuff, but I thought I'd show you guys some of what I've been working on. :)

Wickedly Yours,
wicKeDwitch1316

Behind the Scenes at TDM

2008-04-20T18:52:00.000-04:00

Hey guys,

I know I haven't been around much, but the Gaming Month at TDM has been so crazy! We really didn't expect everyone to get so into it, but we're so thrilled you did. So I thought I'd give you guys an idea of what the staff does in order to make sure the games go as planned.

Felix Felicis - Every five days, Nagini has to PM icons to every member of the site. She has to keep track of who's given which icon so that we know who the true winners are, as well as making sure that nobody wins twice in a row (because that wouldn't be fair!)

Cool Logic in the Face of Fire - Well, first the staff has to find logic puzzles that are difficult enough for TDM members. Then we need to either a) Find the answers or b) Solve the puzzle ourselves to figure out the answer. In addition, while looking for puzzles, we have to change up our sources in order to make sure nobody's cheating. Then, the person who posted the puzzle needs to remember to post in the answer in the staff area so that we can all check member submissions.

OWL's Examinations/Sugar Quill/The Wireless Wizarding Network - First, Nagini needs to post the new topics at the right time. Then, when we check answers, we always have to remember to double-check the wordcount as well as make sure that nobody submitted something twice. Once a round ends, we then create a poll in the staff area that contains each and every submission (anonymous). Every member of the staff has to read through every submission and vote for their 3 favorite ones. Voting is closed once every staffer has voted, and the submissions are matched up to their poster.

Dean Thomas' Art Class - After every submission, the staff has to make sure that the banner follows all of the rules (including size). In addition, we need to make sure that no one else used the same quote/saying and that the artistic work is new (a.k.a. nobody used the same background but used different quotes).

Quick Quotes Quill Malfunction - This is probably one of the most involved games. It takes a LOT of time to create each one of the rounds. The staffer who creates a round has to go through each one of the HP books (including Fantastic Beasts and Quidditch Through the Ages) looking for quotes that are ambiguous, but still recognizable. If we made it too easy, members would solve the round too quickly, but we can't made the quotes completely random! Then, for each submission, we have to reference the answer key to check each and every character name AND book.

The Scavenger Hunt - For every answer, staffers have to make sure that the member hasn't used the answer before, that they filled out the form completely, that the link works, that nobody submitted the answer before, and that the answer fits with the clue.

So hopefully, that's given you a bit of an idea of how interactive this Month of Games really is. But I also hope that it's given you more incentive to get involved. Right now, the House of Lestrange is dominating, but that could change in an instant.

Oh, I finally updated my Recommendation of the Week. It's now an amazing James/Lily, but it has some rather mature sex scenes, so watch out.

Wickedly Yours,
wicKeDwitch1316

The Other Boleyn Girl Review (Movie vs. Book)

2008-03-28T00:16:00.001-04:00

I’m a history nerd. I’m especially a sucker for anything related to Tudor England. So I was overjoyed when I found out that one of my favorite novels about Tudor England, “The Other Boleyn Girl,” by British author Philippa Gregory, was being turned into a movie. I was even more excited at the star-studded cast, which meant that it would actually be shown in local theaters, unlike similar predecessors. However, despite my high expectations for the movie, I was rather disappointed at the actual thing.

Both the book and the movie center around the sixteenth century aristocrat, Mary Boleyn, sister of the future Queen of England, Anne Boleyn. The story chronicles Mary’s life in the court of a young King Henry VIII. Although the king has been married to Katherine of Aragon for about thirteen years, the queen has failed to produce a male heir; their only surviving child is a girl, Mary. The lack of a son to inherit the kingdom has made the king unfaithful, seeking out mistresses right under the queen’s nose. Of course, his eyes fall on the two lovely Boleyn sisters.

From the beginning, however, the movie diverges from the book. In the novel, Mary is the sister who her father and uncle push the king towards, despite her recent marriage to a noblemen. But in the movie, in order to create some viewer-friendly drama, Anne is originally chosen to divert the king. Unfortunately, his roving eye then lands on Mary before Anne can seal the deal. The movie further goes on to vilify Mary by having her report Anne’s secret betrothal to their uncle, which leads to Anne’s exile. All of this is done in order to provide the viewer with a motive for Anne’s future actions.

After Mary becomes Henry’s mistress, they enjoy a few months of bliss until she becomes pregnant. Yet again, the movie changes the events of the book (and of history) slightly in order to make the movie more commercially appealing (in this case, to make the movie shorter). Mary is supposed to have two bastard children with Henry, a girl and then a boy, much to his delight. However, in the movie Mary’s first child is a boy. The birth is made all the more significant in the movie since at that exact moment, Anne forces Henry, who has fallen for her since her return from exile and has forgotten about Mary, to never speak to her sister again. It’s a harsh move on Anne’s part, to separate her sister from the father of her child, a man she has come to love. While it did make the story more profound, the change also made Anne out to be a heartless woman, while the book molded her into a more complex individual.

Eventually, Anne convinces Henry to break from the Catholic Church so he can annul his marriage to Queen Katherine. Again, the cinematic version sped up the process so that the viewer felt it was only a few months, as opposed to the eight years that Henry spent pursuing Anne in reality. In addition, the screenwriters felt the need to include a rather disturbing scene where Henry practically rapes Anne since she refuses to sleep with him until they’re married (she’s deathly afraid of being tossed aside like her sister was after she gave into the king). It was completely unnecessary, in my opinion, and it’s only purpose was to make the king look like an aggressive, violent man, when, in the novel, he’s portrayed as a spoiled child in charge of a large country.

However it’s done, in both versions (and in reality), Anne becomes Queen of England while pregnant. Three months after her coronation, Anne gives birth to a baby girl, Elizabeth. As Henry begins to tire of her, she desperately tries to get pregnant again in order to provide the heir that Katherine could not. In the book and in reality, she goes on to have numerous miscarriages over the next three years. However, in the movie she has one miscarriage afterwards. The horror of the miscarriage convinces her that she must give birth to a son at all costs, and in her fear, she turns to her brother, George Boleyn. Nobody knows for sure whether they actually committed incest, the book certainly suggests that they do, but the movie absolves them, showing their brief flirtation with the idea before throwing it aside as impossible. Unfortunately, George’s jealous wife, Jane Parker, sees their initial attempt and runs off to their conniving uncle.

In the novel, it is the king’s annoyance with Anne that prompts the trial accusing her of incest, adultery, and high treason. But in the movie, Jane Parker’s chatty mouth and jealous nature are Anne’s undoing. Both she and George are thrown into the Tower of London, and she is put on trial. While Anne has been suffering through her tumultuous relationship with Henry, Mary has run off into the country to marry a lowly William Stafford. In the book, she is condemned for it, and banished from Anne’s court, only to return when Anne’s in trouble. However, the movie version has her spurning Stafford’s advances until after Anne’s death. Nevertheless, Anne and George are executed in the movie, the novel, and in real life, although in the two latter, they are convicted along with two other men. The movie provides a brief glimmering hope for Anne, but in the end, Henry chooses to have her killed.

Most of the differences between the book and the movie were subtle, and were not important, except for their historical inaccuracy. However, one huge missing chunk in the movie was George’s homosexuality. It’s made a moot point in the novel, between Mary and George, and the author skillfully weaves George’s affairs into the story. It was not at all mentioned in the movie, which removed an important dimension of his character. Another changed character was the trio’s mother, Lady Boleyn. In the book, she’s a useless noblewoman, but in the movie she’s a voice for feminism and love, since she sacrificed her family’s wealth to be with her husband. Finally, the biggest problem for me, was the choppiness of the movie. The storyline takes place over a period of eleven years, an ambitious amount of time for a movie to cover. In order to compensate, the film had to jump around a lot, abruptly ending scenes and the like.

Of course, all of these criticisms were nearly overshadowed by the sheer attractiveness of the cast. Playing King Henry was the alluring Eric Bana, who previously starred in “Troy” and “Munich.” Natalie Portman, of “Star Wars” and “V for Vendetta” fame, played the feisty Anne Boleyn. Her sister, the fair Mary, was played by Scarlett Johansson, who recently starred in “The Nanny Diaries,” as well as “The Prestige,” and “The Black Dahlia.” However, my favorite cast member had to be the charming and dashing English actor, Jim Sturgess as George Boleyn. The actor, who played Jude in “Across the Universe,” and will star in the new film, “21,” brought life to the screen, as well as a smile to my face. He makes the movie worth seeing for any girls looking for some eye-candy.

Final verdict: If you read the book, go see it because you know you want to. Otherwise, don’t bother.

Wickedly Yours,
wicKeDwitch1316

The Post In Which I Rant and Give Excuses

2008-03-26T22:42:00.000-04:00

Wow, I haven't posted on here in FOREVER. Mainly, the reason is because I couldn't find the time or energy to write something long and deeply thought out, and I didn't want to write something stupid and ditzy. But then I realized that hardly any people read this, so it didn't matter how silly or short my post was. Plus, like you know, I love talking about myself.

So, I haven't written in a long time either. That could be for multiple reasons. One, I'm at this stage in life when I'm really discovering literature. The English teacher I have this year is excellent at teaching me how to really analyze stories and the like, which has really changed the way I view writing. As a result, I'm starting to view writing as an art form, one that I really want to work on and develop. Which takes time...something I don't have.

Two, it's my junior year. If you live in the U.S., you know that's enough said. This year has been very stressful, especially since I'm looking at colleges and starting to realize that I'm not going to get into schools that I thought I would last year. Mainly because I've caught senioritis a year early and teachers aren't very forgiving of early-onset senioritis.

Three, the annoying part about being in high school is that you have friends who want to spend time with you actually doing stuff. Which means that I can't spend time just sitting and writing, which is what I love to do. It's funny how I used to wish I was this age and could go out with my friends every night, when now I'm always faking sickness or tiredness to get out of spending time with them. For example, we had off from school today (Wednesday), so I was thinking that I could stay up late last night playing online and maybe write Chapter 6 of Lost at Sea today.

Ha ha, as if!

I had a concert last night that went until 9:30 pm, then went to the local pizzeria to hang out with my fellow musicians (*snicker*, that makes us sound so lame!), then ended up going over my friends house for a sleepover in which I slept through both movies that we were going to watch. When I finally got home in the afternoon, I got a phone call from another friend inviting me out to the movies. Now, I haven't talked to this friend in ages, so I had to accept, which meant that I didn't get home until at least 6:30 pm. But then I had to eat dinner and so on. *Sigh*

And finally, fourth, I like TDM. I really love doing all that staff-ish work and helping run a site that other people enjoy. We're actually planning something rather special for the month of April, so things have been pretty hectic over there. That, in addition to some staff drama that's really sucked, has really eaten up a vast majority of my time. You have no idea how quickly time flies when you're trying to figure out certain rules and the like.

Wow, I wrote a lot about nothing. The bottom line is that Lost at Sea is going to take a while, not only because of the recent queue closure and the missing status of the USB drive on which LaS is saved, but also because the story is written in a style that I no longer possess. I feel enormous pressure to get out a fabulous final (or penultimate) chapter for my readers and I have very little creativity going on right now. The pressures of fanfiction writing! :P

Wickedly Yours,
wicKeDwitch1316

My Life is Due

2008-02-26T02:42:00.000-05:00

Hey guys (all two of you who read this),

I know I haven't posted in nearly a week, which is normal for normal people, but for me is a scary long time. I love talking about myself so for me to give it up for that long a period is definitely a shocker. In order to shed light on matters, I should probably mention that I was away college-visiting for four of the six days since I last posted. It was only supposed to be three days, but thanks to a lovely snowstorm (which I had to endure while touring Dartmouth with a little masochistic tourguide) we were stuck up in Hanover for an extra day. It was good: I got some quality time in with Animal Planet. Who knew that animals could be so exciting? We, meaning my friend and I, watched a show about a weird lionness that adopted an antelope (who was later eaten by a male lion), a panther named Eddie that was hand raised by a family with a hot son named Casey, and a "class" of orangatans whose lives were as exciting as the best soap operas. And there was actually no sarcasm meant anywhere in that last sentence.

Of course, after I got back I was in no mood to do the mountain of homework that I needed to. It didn't help that my mom and I were constantly fighting the entire weekend. Then, of course, I renewed my House addiction and had to watch half of season 2 on DVD. The poor guy's done so many drugs that it simply astounds me that he hasn't just combusted. It's amazing that he still functions. Forget about solving medical mysteries, he's a medical marvel all in himself!

So, I returned to school with almost nothing done and realized that almost everything is due within the next few days. I'm seriously not kidding. I have a history essay, two history assignments, a bunch of English assignments, a Spanish quiz, two Calculus tests, a Physics homework assignment, and a whole bunch of outside of school stuff like working papers. Not to mention the fact that I said I would get chapter 6 of LaS out this weekend. The word count is 1241 at the moment and I wouldn't count on it jumping up any time soon. I know you all hate me for stretching this out, but it's practically the last chapter and I'm getting sentimental. That, or I've gotten tired of writing it. Either or.

My way of dealing with all of this stress is by singing Liz Phair's song Extraordinary at the top of my lungs and dancing around my house, napping, and procrastinating on TDM, MM, HPFF, and even ff.net (that's how desperate I'm getting). Unfortunately, the stress and procrastination are wreaking havoc on my sleeping patterns and complexion. So I'm having major makeup and self-esteem issues, which will only exacerbate the whole stress and procrastination problem. Hopefully, it'll all resolve itself!

Wickedly Yours,
wicKeDwitch1316

Accomplishments

2008-02-19T20:56:00.000-05:00

Ok, so today I'm feeling pretty good about myself. I've managed to get a bunch of stuff done in the past few days, hence the title of this post.

First off, I did the laundry, which for most of you probably isn't that big of a deal. However, my laundry-doing is very time consuming, so I always end up doing it approximately once a month. How are you surviving, you ask? Well, see I usually wear my jeans multiple times before washing them, otherwise they wear away far too fast and buying jeans is a very wearying task for me. And I seem to have collected an intense variety of shirts...enough to last me a month apparently. So I did the laundry and put away most of it in my closet. The socks and undergarments are still sitting in the little basket because I'm not afraid of them wrinkling.

Secondly, I've decided to embark on the wonderful journey known as Gone With the Wind by Margaret Mitchell. It's a very famous movie, one that I've never seen, and supposedly an excellent read. I've gotten as far as the preface (written by Pat Conroy--no idea who he is) and the first two pages. So far, I've ascertained that the book is exactly the kind of novel I want to write, or at least Conroy's exulting foreword is the kind of praise I want people to give my novel, should I ever write one. In addition, I've learned that Scarlett O'Hara is going to be one nasty bitch, but loveable nonetheless. Therefore, I'm very excited to read about a heroine who actually has some personality and isn't always "good of heart." What does that even mean, anyway?

Thirdly, I've bucked up and posted some of my graphics on Morsemordre, the sister site of the Dark Mark, which is the site that you should all join. I previously had a gallery up, when I first started making graphics, on TDM...this was back when it had a graphics section previous to Christmas of '07. That gallery was home to some of my first graphics, most of which I never want people to ever see again. My new gallery is slightly better, though mark my usages of the word "slightly." There's a link to your right if you wish to see it, but please be forewarned that it's nothing compared to artists like Nagini, Elysium, MajiKat, and MirrorMask (oh look at that, I just named all my favorite graphic artists!)

Lastly, I've finally found the courage and persistance to continue onward in the saga that is Lost at Sea. The current wordcount for Chapter 6 is 1100 words, all of which I am very proud of. With any luck, the wordcount will be higher within a few hours when I can finally tear myself away from this blog, HPFF, TDM, and MM. I posted a little preview on the HPFF forums, but as a little treat for anyone whose reading this, I'm gonna post it here as well.

Lily simply glared at James, raising her chin in defiance. He stalked away towards his ship while Moony lingered, giving her the once over as well. It didn't induce the same torrent of ice and fire on her body.
"I don't know who you are," he began slowly, "But I would advise you to stay away from the ship…or any pirates for that matter. We're not known for our decency."
"I lived among you for six months," Lily said. "You aren't the monsters you're made out to be."
He smiled mirthlessly at her, "Some of us are. More likely than not, a pirate's on the sea because he's running away from demons on land."
"We all have troubles," said Lily, not quite understanding what the man was getting at.
"But some are more perilous than others," he said. "Take care of yourself Ev—whoever you are." He nodded at her before hurrying off after James. Lily watched them go, her mind intrigued by Moony's parting words. With a wry grin, she made her decision.

So tell me what you think so far, and be sure to keep an eye out for an update!

Wickedly Yours,
wicKeDwitch1316

America's Next Top Slacker

2008-02-18T00:05:00.000-05:00

Whoo-hoo! I definitely love being on break since it means I can spend my weekend watching America's Next Top Model and not doing my homework, without feeling guilty. Today I watched almost an entire cycle on channel 53, since they always have these all-day marathons. It's weird that I really like the show since I'm definitely not a model-type. I'm too short and I love food way too much. However, it's fun watching Tyra Banks trying to make modeling look less shallow and all that jazz. It annoys me that most of the girls are really incredibly dumb. It's really not that hard to memorize lines and they just seem to not get it. But I always find my favorite few and they make the show worth it.

I also took the time to catch up on a few fanfics that I loved. I've definitely (re)found some great ones that will be featured in the Weekly Recommended Story at the bottom of the site. I seem to be having a real writing block lately because I've sorta reached an epiphany point in my writing. I want my writing to mean something, to be deeper than a simple "omg" story that you find a lot in fanfiction archives. I've been rereading the Twilight series and some of my favorite authors for inspiration. But I just can't seem to find the patience and steadiness to sit down and write something. I tend to get a ton of ideas, but I can't get them into words or into an angle that will interest people other than me. Sometimes I wonder if it's worth it, since I'll never be that great of a writer anyways. Then I get angry at myself for being a quitter, giving birth to an awful vicious cycle.

I'm also starting to panic a little school-wise because everything is happening. It's my junior year and I feel like everything's relying on what I do now. I wish life could just slow down, or even halt, and give me a chance to recooperate. I don't have the energy or the drive for anything anymore and it's incredibly irritating. I feel like I'm watching myself throw everything away and I hate hate hate it.

I'm sorry, I really didn't mean to get so serious, but that's just where my mind went. On a brighter note, I tried watching Across the Galaxy, which is a movie that my boyfriend got me for my birthday. Honestly, it was like a whacked-out acid trip. I had to stop since I was getting a headache from all the "pyschadelic" colors. I could see a love story in there, trying to come out, but I was way too distracted by the random music and swirlies. My mom kept complaining that all the characters were on drugs, and I tried to explain to her that it was the sixties.

Ok, I think this is enough rambling for now....if you have anything interesting to say or comment, please leave a comment on here or in the c-box. I'll probably respond really quickly, so, you know, keep checking back. :)

Wickedly Yours,
wicKeDwitch1316

I Protest College

2008-02-15T23:31:00.001-05:00

Wow, so today was definitely an interesting day...one for the books. There was a protest at my school, which ended up being a lot bigger than anyone thought it was; plus there's a whole scandal behind it, which will definitely prove interesting in the weeks to come.

Sadly, I could not take part since I had my college/guidance meeting. My guidance counselor told me I was gonna get into college! Yay!

I'm so glad that I now have a week off for Febuary break. I'm not gonna promise my readers anything, but my goal is to get Chapter 6 of "Lost at Sea" out this week. It will either be the final chapter or the penultimate chapter, depending on how long I take to describe certain events. Don't worry, I haven't cut anything out. Everything that was supposed to happen will, I just eliminated some filler buildup stuff that you guys wouldn't have liked to read anyways. Making plans for the future, I then plan on finishing "Her Wintry Chill" before moving onto the dormant "It's Just Life."

Throughout this process, I will definitely be spitting out various oneshots, which I have to write in order to keep me sane. I know that they take away from normal writing time, but it's better for me to be writing random pieces than to not be writing. Because if I'm writing in any form, that means I'm at least thinking about, and feeling guilty over, my unfinished stories.

Oh! Before I forget, back on the college issue, I just found out that I got a 800 out of 800 on the Math Level 2 SAT Subject Test, which I am very excited about (I've used the word "which" a lot in this post, haven't I? I'll try not to use it again...) My mom thought she'd be mean and tell me I got a 500 before throwing in a "just kidding"! I think I literally almost had a heart attack.

Plus, my friend is visiting colleges over break and she invited me to go with her. I know the idea of visiting colleges doesn't sound fun at all, but it's my first trip with a friend's family without my parents, so I'm really excited. My friend and I have a very similar sense of humor and we'll probably be pervving on guys the entire time, even though I have the world's sweetest boyfriend. Her mom will probably join up with us, since her parents are about the coolest parents I've ever met. We tell them about my problems and they give actual advice...it's an amazing concept.

One more thing before I end this novel of a post, Nagini on TDM introduced me to some of the funniest comics I have ever read. They're Harry Potter related:

Voldemort
Ron
Hermione
Oliver
Dumbledore
Cedric

Cedric and Dumbledore are my favorites, but you'll have to choose for yourself. If you have a livejournal account, you should definitely leave a message for the creator, as it's only fair.

Wickedly Yours,
wicKeDwitch1316

My Inaugural Address

2008-02-14T02:13:00.000-05:00

Hi Everyone!

In honor of my sixteenth birthday (which is--was--today) and to indulge my growing curiousity, I've decided to start a blog. Yay!

Today, we had a lovely day off from school because of icy rain and all that jazz. My cable went out for a while, which sucked because I couldn't get online for hours and hours and hours...but I whiled away the time by rereading New Moon by Stephenie Meyer. My mom got it for me for my birthday and Stephenie had recommended that everybody read it at least twice since the first time you're too busy waiting for Edward to come back. So I've started reading it, and I must say that Jacob is much more likeable when you're not madly flipping through the pages in search of darling Edward. In fact, I think I might like Jacob better. Somehow, every time I read about Edward's "stone hard body," I get a little creeped out at the thought of snuggling up to him. Maybe there is something incredibly wrong with Bella.

Anyways, so I was rereading that and watching the first part of The Sound of Music, which I got on DVD for my birthday as well. Now, this is one of my all-time favorite movies, but I've always had to watch a version that my dad taped one day when it was on TV. Now, when movies are on TV, they are usually edited so that they'll fit in the time slots. So there are random chunks missing from that version, but now that is all fixed. I think my favorite line is that bit in the beginning when Maria talks about the nun who makes her kiss the ground every time they get into an argument.

"I've taken to kissing the floor every time I see her coming"

Of course, the entire time a little, nagging voice was echoing in my head, telling me I should probably do the homework that would've been due today that I didn't do because I was praying for a snow day. I'm at least 3 chapters behind where I should be in The Great Gatsby, and I don't even want to talk about the state of my AP Calculus homework. I really shouldn't be giving Mr. L another reason to hate me, but there you go. I think if I had a Calc teacher I actually liked, I might actually put effort into my homework. As it is, I'm counting down the days 'til June when I can finally rejoice in not taking a math class.

For most of the day, I was also feeling terribly guilty about not being able to get onto The Dark Mark, the fabulous forum where I am a moderator. If any of you are reading this and are not members of TDM, I command you to join right now. It's a rather fun place to hang out and talk about writing/Harry Potter/really anything. We're opening an archive soon, so you know you want to sign up now! You'll find the link to your right.

Wickedly Yours,
wicKeDwitch1316