the end of the world

You guys! I'm embarrassed. I haven't posted in forever, yet y'all have pushed me over the 10k views mark!

NaNo, you ask? Yeah, that didn't happen. It wasn't that I was too busy even. My muse didn't show up to work and left me with no inspiration or ideas. I like the idea of my story, but fantasy is much too deep for my writing skills as of now.

Speaking of writing skills, I got my PSAT scores back. I was super worried, feeling that I had done better than last year, but still not good enough. Without saying numbers, I did really well. It was all God. I won't know if I am a National Merit Semi-Finalist until September, so until then I guess I'll just work on my ACT prep. Gosh, so much college prep. I literally asked my mother whether everyone is this young when dealing with all this junk. I don't feel old enough to need to care, but I really do feel the importance of my grades and scholarships and such.

I have gained weight and grown half an inch in the last 5 weeks, so that's encouraging. I'm strong enough that I'm going to work next semester and be in the Spring musical with Cast N Crew! I'm so glad.

So, we have 9 days 'til the end of the world. What are you going to do? I personally don't think that anything out of the usual will occur on that "fateful" day, as evidenced by all the importance I was giving the things I wrote about up ^ there. I'm going to continue to buy Christmas presents and look forward to the day when my big sister returns from India, with more than the usual amount of crazy dancing, just in case.

I've never been afraid of the end of the world or death. Because I am a Christ-follower, I believe in His promise of Heaven and the Revelation of the End found in Scripture. I have nothing of which to worry.

I'm just glad that The Hobbit is coming out first.

See you on the other side,
bBj

nano '12

Really? Am I nuts? Yes, I'm doing NaNoWriMo again this year. I try to tell myself that I won't aim for 50,000 words or that I don't care very much, but I know how competitive I am. I was originally going to just write every day, not actually shoot for a novel, but that wouldn't have ended well, and an idea happened to hit me, so I'm gonna run with it.

The gist is souls and their relationships to those that control them. If that is vague enough, then I have succeeded.

Anyway, I'm going to do that, while trying to get healthy and eat better and sleep more and complete my Jr year of school. HAHA! I have my inspiration, now only for a plot and some characters... Oh well, a bunch of you bloggers know how it is. I would apologize for my future absence from the blog, but I should probably start with apologizing for my past absence! I may or may not be around. Heck, maybe I'll be posting every day in order to procrastinate! It wouldn't be the first time.

If you feel led to send me encouraging messeges and notes this month, I wouldn't be offended.

Well, the Guilt Monkey is telling me to run! tah tah! ~billyBobjoe

PS My whole writing group promised to put one character named Billy Bob Joe in each of their novels! So fun!

[cool post title]

I can't decide whether or not there are enough hours in the day. Most likely, I just don't use time very wisely, as evidenced by the fact that I haven't posted a real post in forever. Anyway, I'm pretty well kept busy with homework, rehearsals, and work. I'm so sick of Comm. that I've worked my tail end off trying to get everything done with time to spare. In face, I'm about to head to the library to finish up this week's work.

I just finished reading A Tale of Two Cities, and liked it very much. That is, I liked how it ended, but not how long it took to get there! I'm also reading The Pilgrim's Regress by C. S. Lewis, which is good, but I'm afraid that 1/4 of it is going over my head, and 1984 by Orwell, which I also am greatly enjoying. That and The Giver both go to show you that Dystopian is not a new genre.

Why is it that I wake up ready to tackle the day on those days, few and far between, when I have absolutely no homework? My internal clock is in the Lazy Time Zone...

I took the Fandom Quiz! The first one represents the results from the 20 question quiz. The second is the other! I don't know all of these fandoms, so those don't really mean anything to me, but I'm generally happy with it! If you know me IRL, which one do you think best describes me?

The ones that really matter to me are Hunger Games, LOTR, Star Wars, Narnia, and Star Trek! Notice how much evil-er I am in the first one!

I seem to have run out of inspiration. My posts are few and far between, and they are all very similar. I don't write this blog just for you my readers, but I do want to keep y'all happy! What do you want me to discuss/review/talk about/bring up? Lemme know and I'll get around to it! Promise!

-billyBobjoe the... I was about to list all of those things and races, but decided against it because, well, because you can just read them up there!

grey skies

It's pouring at my place. The sheets of water make white waves in my culdesac.

I've been mentioning rain these last few posts, so I figured that I should devote a whole post to it.

I love rain. Maybe not more than sunshine, but definitely equally.

Well, not when the wind sounds scary, or family members are out driving, or you're stuck at school (which I have been because of flooding), or sirens are going off, or your roof is in danger of being whipped off...

...but when the rain hits the windows and makes that sound...

...when the sky is just a low wall of darkness, and makes the world feel small, but not crushing...

...when lightning flashes and shows you the glory of God Almighty...

...when thunder makes you look up in apprehension...

...when your soul can feel itself being washed clean as you think of nothing at all...

...when you swear that the electricity in the clouds affects your blood...

...when soup, chili, and hot cocoa is called for...

...when friends are stranded at your house for long periods of time...

...when you run outside in old clothes and dance...

...when it's not too cold and not too hot, but just right...

...when you stare at the water hitting the pavement for so long that you can actually see the faeries...

...that's when I like rain more than sunshine.

-billyBobjoe



in which the book lover in me squeals with delight

I got on Goodreads! I love it. Not just like, love.

Pages and (internet) pages of books await me!

I rated all the books that I have read (no, not all of them), and am currently in the process of moving my to-read spreadsheet over to teh interwebz!

Of course, I'm billyBobjoe on there, but I think it messed up and shows me as "Billybobjoe", which you should all know, is NOT how I spell my name. I just wanted to clear that up before I get bombarded with, "That's not how you said to spell your name!"

Abanyhoo, if you like to read in the slightest, you should get on there! If you don't....start liking to. It'll change your life. If you are on there, make me one of your friends!

I just finished The Hunger Games, which are amazing! I honestly don't like the writing style, but the story is great. The way that the author describes those characters that you need to know is interesting. I love the way that symbolism is used. If you are planning to read them soon, look for fire, and the mockingjay symbols. Those should seem obvious, because of the titles, but they come in the story in different types of ways. Full reviews on each to come....hopefully.

I'm off to study!

bBj

chutes and ladders and summers

So, yes I was reading a book instead of doing history the other day. Ride the slide back down to square number four.

And, yes I was listening to Michael Buble while doing logic homework. Wait, that good! Go up to square number ninety-seven. Yes, go up that far!

All this to say that I'm back in school and liking MB a lot! In other news:

I met two girls who are twins and really cool the other day, so I've been texting them to get to know them! I have a lot in common with both of them and hope they join our church!

So, you see? The world is out to get me, and get me not to do my homework! Dastardly plan, no? Oh wait, now I'm writing a post....never mind, I need to!

Does that happen to you? Of course it does! Now I feel better!

I really want summer to come! I'm sick of winter already. I'm glad that I didn't have to live in Narnia when the White Witch was ruling, because "all winter and no Christmas" would have sucked. People are made to desire change, especially for the different seasons, but I have it BAD! (I intentionally used an adverb and left off the -ly!) Spring is the best time of year, followed closely by summer, and I can't wait.

We moved a year ago, and our new house has this great tree in the front that I read under ALL THE TIME in summer. Actually, I read, write, and think under it, but only when the creeper neighbors aren't out. o_0 Literally, in summer, I am outside more than inside. The Great Outdoors becomes my home, and I walk out the front door and onto the lawn like I was walking out of my room and into the hall.

I don't have any big plans, but that's the joy of summer, no? I just want to watch the few clouds on my back with my aviators on. *sigh* Classic.

I hope I didn't make you too discontented! If you go do the homework that you are avoiding, I'll do mine. Deal? Okay, fine.

bBj

I'm a little late...

....to be cluttering your Dashboard up with 2012/New Year's Eve stuff, but I am anyway!

I am, for some reason, super excited about this year. 2004 and 2008 were good years for me, so I wishing on a comet that this one will be too!

I didn't make any resolutions, except to drink more water. I don't like water at all, and often get headaches from dehydration. Oh well, I'm working on it.

I have a bunch of things that I'm excited about too! Here are a few:

001. I freaked you out with the double zeros didn't I? you thought I had a hundred!

002. Turning 16

003. Finishing Sophomore year

004. Starting Junior year

005. Getting a job

006. Getting a driver's license (working on this one!)

007. Going to CA to finally visit my friend

008. The Dark Knight Rises

009. Star Wars in 3D (because I wasn't old enough to see them in theater)

010. The Hobbit Part 1: An Unexpected Journey

011. The Hunger Games (not totally sure because I haven't read the books)

012. The Avengers

013. White Collar Season 3

014. Being in Bye Bye Birdie

015. Learning to play guitar

016. Growing (it's a serious hope!)

017. Traveling

018. Being in a food fight (I think the best food fights are spontaneous, but I seriously am looking forward to it, whenever it may take place)

019. Dying my hair (only part of it)

020. Learning a new language

What do you think? These are only a few! What are you looking forward to?

-bBj

PS 021. Looking forward to the end of the world. Major sarcasm. :)

HappyHappyJoyJoy

Can you tell how excited I am? I am very.
Today has been one of those "Wow-I'm-so-glad-that-I'm-alive!" days! Do you get those? I hope you do.

Even though I didn't get to sleep 'til 3:30am last night, I woke up ready for the day. I must've been too excited last night from caroling. Part of my family, and another, and a few other friends met at this wonderful lady's home for dinner before caroling. I had a great time, it being my first time to go caroling, although I was afraid that my legs would be sore the next day. They weren't though, which made me happy. Anyway, I'm thankful for all the people that I can be myself around! Love you guys!

I wrapped my last two presents to give! Oh wait, except for two. Nevermind about the joy, there's always more to do. jk And then I went to a library and picked up these two movies!

Yes, one is an oldie, and one is a chick flick... again. You know me! Then I went to the other library in town to meet a friend, give her her Christmas present, which she liked, and do some homework.

And then I got Chick-Fil-A for lunch, even though it was like 2pm. I enjoy getting out of the house, because when I'm on break, I don't get out much. Yes, I am homeschooled and proud of it! Another reason I like getting out of the house is because I looked like this:

...and love to see people's reactions! You would never recognize me. Aviators and Koalas bears make me happy, especially when I'm wearing them. Hat courtesy of Boo! Thanks girl.

AND, like a child's dream, that goes on and on, until you are positive that they are making it up, I'm also excited because I bff just got in town! *happy dance*

And Christmas is coming! Yay, I'm glad that blogs are for expressing yourself...

How are you doing?

See ya in the movies,
bBj

Decisions

You know how sometimes you have that decision staring you in the face? It's a monster that could prove to be good or bad. Could be big, like going somewhere and compromising everything you say you are, or something “small”, like choosing what to say. It's a fork in the road, where the two, or maybe three or four, various roads might all lead you to the same place, or very different ones.

I am not going to tell you the “three steps to making a good decision”, but here is something most people don't think of.

Maybe it's only one way?

There's most of the time only one decision to make: Will I do what I know is right?

You know you should be kind. You know to obey your parents. You know they have way more experience and only want to help you. Why is it so hard to “decide”? It shouldn't even be a decision, it should be a way of life.

Of course, you can talk about what should be all the time and never get anything done. Not only should you do such-and-such, but you have to! Your conscience will demand it.

Now I know that sometimes you have to decide between two things that are both right, that's a lot more difficult, and there's no one easy answer. But if you start with the black and white, gray will fall into place on the color wheel.

This is something that I've been dealing with and thinking about a lot lately.
~bbj *wink*

Lately...

I've been doing a lot of school.

Much more school than a normal person of my age should be doing! But, I've never been normal have I? :)

I've been longing for Christmastime.

I've decided that Christmas time should last for three months. Well, I think the people who plan when decorations should be available for sale stole my idea. Don't you? Yeah, I'm wearing a Christmas sweater.

I've not been going to the library very often.

Which makes me sad. No extra reading for me until I get number 1 under control!

coughcoughNothappeningcough!

I've been thinking about doing NaNoWriMo.

I'll need a little more information, a few better ideas, and a double-shot of patience. I don't know why the patience, it just sounded appropriate!

I've been poundering how to make my blog better.

Obvious why!

I've been desiring to get some odd jobs because I'm broke.

Why? Because I'm still broke, and will probably still be broke formorrow. Which, in case you were wondering, (I know you were!) is "forever and tomorrow".

That's about it! No it's not. Hold on, one more!

I've been wanting to watch The Prestige, Warrior, and The Phantom of the Opera. Should I do reviews after I do? Let me know!

Forever and Tomorrow,

billyBobjoe: O she who needs to make a signature...



Thoughts on Thoughts

This was a once in a lifetime chance. I stared at the glowing, gray orb that must have been bigger on the inside than the outside. This was a hands-on experience with my soul, heart, mind, or whatever makes me Me. I pushed into it and found myself in a sphere that was about eight feet across with a flame in the middle. On all the walls, or wall, there were hundreds of drawers, shelves, and cabinets.

Inside of these were my Thoughts. Each Thought was a glowing orb of a different color. The larger the ball, the more times I had thought of that Thought. I found thoughts that shouldn't have been there, ones that were much to big, and several that should have been much larger. I soon found that the whole sphere was not my mind, but that the fire burning in the middle was. The ashes were my Thoughts, which immediately jumped to their proper place.

Directing my attention away from that, I saw a shelf with small boxes on it. One was my Knowledge. Every fact I knew was in this box, even ones I didn't remember learning. As I turned toward the next box, a Thought hit me on the head as it tried to get in the box I was about to open. When I did, right on top there was the Thought I must have just thought. Picking it up, I found it was the Thought about not remembering one of the facts I knew I'd learned. The next was of me thinking about a Thought I’d just thought of. I quickly slammed that box shut, knowing that that could go on forever and drive me insane.

Moving on to another shelf, I saw orbs that were different from the others. Within each was an embryo like that of a human. Some were formless while others had distinct features. I chuckled at the creativity of my own mind. Those were my ideas in different stages of development! The next shelf had only gold balls that could have been nothing other that goals. In a cabinet were piles of songs I have listened to and books I have read. The Phantom of the Opera and “Once in a Red Moon” crowned the piles as the most recent. On a different shelf, a tiny easel held all of my doodles and drawings. One large drawer had a divider between orbs floating on tears and orbs floating on laughs. Those must have been memories. I didn't consider myself a very special person, until I saw a laugh. I almost think it's not fair that not everyone has seen a laugh.


There was so much more in there, but there was no way I could have seen it all. After all, that is a collection I’ve been working on for over 14 years. As I thought about it - look, there goes another Thought! - I discovered that the glowing ball I was in, is my heart. The flame is my mind and the way I file my thoughts is my personality. Example: What some people might put in “Sorrows”, I might consider a “Joy”. As interesting as my own little world of Me was, I knew the odd practice of searching through my own Thoughts could prove addictive, if not eternal. I pushed my way out the same way I had come in. I was infinitely encouraged to have proof that this body isn't all I’ve got. When I die, I now know that something, the part of me that makes me Me, will live on forever.



I wrote this back in January when I was in bed sick! It's amazing what a fever will do to you! *wink*

~bbj