Halloweeeeeeeeen.

I love Halloween. It's one of my favorite seasons. I love having fun Halloween costumes and decorating with pumpkins and such. I do not, however, love being scared. No way, Jose. And if I could figure out how to put the accent over that "e" I would.

Anyways, I decorated for Halloween a little tonight while watching Nightmare before Christmas. One of my favorite movies ever. We would watch it all the time when we were kiddies.

Little Eddie likes Halloween.

Next up is trying to decide on a costume. Now that I'm out of college, I don't really have a reason to dress up other than the fact that it's fun. Sadly, I don't have any costume parties to attend. And no kids to take trick or treating. My apartment doesn't even get trick or treaters. So basically, I'm going to dress up and figure out some place to go.

My first choice was to go as Amy Pond:

But, (a) Nobody would know who the heck Amy Pond is (unless I have a Doctor with me) and (b) Sadly, I don't have red hair...

Soooooo, then I thought I would just be a fun version of The Doctor:

I even went to the thrift store and bought a bow tie and blazer (mine is blue..). I figured even if I didn't wear it on Halloween, I could always wear the blazer to work. And it was only $3 for both the bow tie and jacket. And instead of having a sonic screwdriver, I was just going to carry around a regular screwdriver and tell people it's sonic.

I just reaaaaaaally want to have this convo with someone:

Them: Who are you?
Me: I'm The Doctor.
Them: Doctor who?
Me: **giggle**

Jillian Michaels has it out for me.

Seriously. She's trying to kill me.
I started doing her 30 Day Shred workout DVD three days ago.
I did it 2 days, and then rested a day.
I think if I would have done it a third day in a row my legs would have fallen off.
It hurts to walk.
It hurts to go down stairs.
It sucks that I have to walk a lot at work.
It sucks that I live at the bottom of stairs.

We'll see how I feel in the morning to see if I make it another day.
Or if I wake up leg-less because they have given up on me.


We'll also see how many times I flip her off during the workout.
It was a good 3ish times the other day.

And no, Jillian, we are not all in the same boat here.
You're boat is like a fancy yacht.
And mine is a little wooden row boat.
I call BS.

My shining moment in softball.

Saturday was pretty baseball filled. Mom and I went to watch my little cousin play softball, and then that evening we all went to a Royals game. It was at my cousins softball game that my mom shared this little story that I am about to tell.

When I was little, my parents tried their hardest to make me athletic. I think I played about every sport that was available. Basketball; softball; soccer (I really liked that one); cheerleading; dance. Too bad for them, it was not to be. I am not cut out for sports. But I did have my one shining moment in my softball year.

Picture this: little Whitney standing up to bat, all ready for the pitch coming my way (not really). The pitch is a little high, so I do not swing. What happens? The ball hits the top of my bat behind my head, and rolls a few inches in front of me. As I stare at the ball, everyone is yelling for me to run. So I do. Run to first, then to second, and then on to third. Yes, I made a triple without even having to swing the bat.

You have to catch the other team off guard. Trick them up a little bit.

Struck out my next time up to bat. But that's besides the point.

Waiting for my potion to brew.

I finally got to enter Pottermore. I was so stinking excited to have finally received that welcome letter. I explored the whole first book in one night. Stayed up waaaaaaay too late. And now I can't wait until they unlock Chamber of Secrets!

I bet you're wondering what house I got sorted into. Well, hold your horses. I'll get to that part.

Before you get to go to Hogwarts, you have to get your wand! Every wizard needs a wand! Mine is Dogwood with unicorn core, 11 1/2 inches, slightly springy. In the description for dogwood wands, JK says, "Dogwood wands are quirky and mischievous". I feel like this fits me. Maybe not the mischievous part, but the quirky part at least.

Right now (as you can tell from the title of this post) I'm waiting for my potion to finish brewing. Yeah, you get to make potions and try to earn house points. I'm not a very good potion maker. Earlier I was trying to brew Herbicide and I blew up my cauldron. And I lost 5 house points. Which is no good, seeing as my house is slacking on the house cup standings (we're last place.....)

After reading some of the things that JK has shared, I've decided that she truly is a genius. GENIUS. I love how she has taken the time to actually give secondary characters in the books their own backstory. Like they're more than just characters, they're actual people. Except not really, although that would be cool.

Well, my Antidote to Common Poisons is almost ready. Wish me luck on not blowing up this cauldron (I feel like Seamus Finnigan).



Oh yeah, Imma Hufflepuff.




Note: I actually can touch my tongue to my nose. No big deal.

Do you remember where you were?

Today marks the 10th anniversary of the attacks on the World Trade Center.

I was in the 8th grade. I was sick that day, so I stayed home from school and Mom stayed there with me instead of going to work. I remember being asleep on the couch when Mom woke me up and told me to watch what was happening. She happened to have Good Morning America on, and we sat there and watched as the second plane hit. And then watched as the buildings collapsed. I remember wondering what could cause someone to have this much hatred to want to cause this much harm and terror to innocent people. This is something I still wonder about to this day.

I remember watching the news for days after, as they searched the rubble hoping to find survivors. I remember praying for the families that had missing loved ones.

I remember talking to my dad a few days after the attacks, and him telling me that this event was a huge event in American history. He told me to watch, because this would go down in history books. In my freshman American history class a year later, we happened to have brand new history books. At the very end was the tragedy of September 11th.

Do you remember where you were?

25 Things: #18 Catch up on Doctor Who.

Earlier in the summer, I decided I wanted a new tv show to watch. I like finding new shows. I decided I wanted to expand my nerdiness a little bit, and my love for the British, and started watching Doctor Who.

Now, Doc Who started in like the 1960s, and then took a break for a little bit in around the 80s or 90s (I don't really know the complete history, obviously), and when I decided to start watching, I had no idea whether I needed to watch from the first doctor, or whether I should just start from a certain point. After some research (aka, I sent out a poll on the twitters), I learned that I should start at the 9th doctor with the episode called "Rose".

So that is where it all began for me. After weeks of watching about 2 episodes a day (cause that's all BBC America played each day) I have caught up! And I got to actually watch the new episode on Saturday when it aired!

Let me give you a little background on the show that is Doctor Who:

Basically, it's a show about a time traveling alien that goes by The Doctor. And he has human sidekicks that come along with him on his journeys. He travels through time and space in his TARDIS (Time And Relative Dimension In Space) that looks like a blue police box and is bigger on the inside. The reason they are able to have 11 different actors play The Doctor is because whenever The Doctor dies, he just regenerates and his whole appearance changes. Handy, huh?

I'm not sure if this is true for all Whovians (That's what the fans are called. Fun.) but I tend to get attached to a certain Doctor. I really love David Tennant. A lot. And I always got nervous that I was approaching the episode that was going to be his last. And then this new guy was going to show up. And then I reached that point. And you know what, I LOVE Matt Smith as The Doctor! I think he may be my favorite!

Also, I love Amy Pond and Rory. More than Rose. Didn't think that would happen either.

"Bow ties are cool."

Just a heads up, if you do decide to watch Doctor Who (and you should), beware of the Weeping Angels. They will scare the shiz out of you.

Seriously, you will pee your pants.

That time Luna escaped.

This event happened a while ago, but I feel like it still needs to be shared.

My sister turned 21 this year. And ever since I turned 21, my friends and I like to go up to the bar after the fireworks on the 4th of July to celebrate my birthday on the 5th. This year, my sister and our family went with us to celebrate. We had our fun time, and left when the bar closed at 1:30.

Since we had been drinking and Mom hadn't, she drove Abby, her boyfriend, and I back to the house. This is where the story gets good.

Whenever we leave Luna in the house at Mom's, I always put her in the kitchen with a baby gate blocking her way out. Well, I left for 4th of July activities before everyone else did, so I left it up to them to lock Luna in the kitchen. Whoever was in charge of the baby gate needs to take some lessons......

Back to us coming home from the bar. I unlocked the front door and get it open when I feel a little brush of fur go across my ankle. Crap.

Luna gets scared and runs. It's just how it goes. My thoughts were that she was scared from all the fireworks and when the door was open, she made a break for it.

Anthony (Abby's boyfriend) dashes after her. I shout at Mom, making sure she doesn't run over Luna as she backs out of the driveway. I then run after Anthony yelling Luna's name.

Just imagine this right now: small furry dog running down the highway, being chased by two semi-drunk people, one of which is shouting the dog's name, all at 1:30 in the morning.

Up ahead of me, Anthony stops running. I take this to mean that either Luna has stopped, or he lost her. Thankfully, when I catch up, he tells me that she is on the other side of this car. When I see her, she is sitting there, reallllllllly scared. I pick her up and let out a huge sigh of relief.

Mom then drives up to where we are and gives me a lift back to the house (Anthony opted to just walk). When I got in the car, I could tell that Mom was wanting to laugh at the scene she just witnessed, but was also a bit worried. When I told her I was fine, she let it all out and started busting up laughing. "Nothing like watching 2 drunks run down the highway at 2 am."

Let's just say that now we make sure the gate isn't going anywhere when we leave Luna at home alone.

25 Things: #11 Attend a midnight movie showing.

If you've read this blog for about an hour, you know I'm a Harry Potter fan.
Heck, you really just have to look at the picture on my blog title and can see that.
So when the last Harry Potter movie came out, I knew I had to finally see one at midnight. I wanted to experience the awesomeness of intense Harry Potter fans.

Let me just say, it was awesome.















1. People!
2. I colored a picture of (badass) Neville while waiting.
3. Best costume of the night: chick dressed as Hedwig.
4. Movie partner Erin!
5. Our "legit" tshirts I made.
6. The person hanging up the cardboard characters was dumb. I really wanted to go over there and tell them to switch (badass) Neville and Draco and then everything would fit better.
7. If you look really close you can see a banana dueling a wizard. Don't ask questions.

Who has two thumbs and early access to Pottermore?

This girl.


(Sorry for the blurry picture. My camera blows.)

Letter

Dear movie Peeta,





I approve.


The End.

25 Things: The List

I debated on whether or not to post this, but then I thought "why the heck not."

I've seen on blogs where people do a "25 Things before 25" list. Where they pick 25 things they want to accomplish before turning 25. And since I just turned 24 a few weeks ago, I thought I would jump on the bandwagon and join in! Here's my list:


1. Start and finish the same book in one day.

2. Really learn French.

3. Learn how to write left-handed.

4. Start an Etsy shop. Sell some things.

5. Learn how to dance the Thriller.

6. Learn how to play the guitar.

7. Solve a Rubik's Cube.

8. Go to a movie by myself.

9. Get a manicure.

10. Get a grown-up job that uses my degree.

11. Attend a midnight movie showing. (DONE!)

12. Read the Bible.

13. Take a month off of Facebook.

14. Go two weeks vegetarian.

15. Buy a snazzy camera and take lots of pictures.

16. Beat Super Mario World on my Super Nintendo.

17. Learn how to juggle.

18. Catch up on Doctor Who. (DONE!)

19. Learn how to crochet.

20. Finish my Weasley sweater.

21. Wreck this Journal.

22. Take Luna on more walks.

23. Paint more.

24. Buy a webcam. Make a video.

25. Be awesome.


I will update on when I accomplish things. I've actually already done one of them, so hold on tight for that post.

:)

Not goodbye.

I know everybody and their dog has probably blogged something about this, but I don't care.

I met Harry Potter at my grandparents' house when I was about 13 years old. My cousin had brought the first movie out for us to watch before we went to bed that night. We laid there on the floor in front of the tv and laughed our butt off when Hagrid burst through the door. "Sorry 'bout tha'" will always make me laugh.

Fast forward some years and 4 movies later, to the day Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows came out. At this point, I had read only one of the books. In middle school, I was always intimidated by their length. And I wasn't really much of a reader. But on that day, July 21, 2007, I bought and started reading Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone. Why had I not read these sooner?! I had been an avid movie watcher up to this point, but the books are so much better. While I will never be one of those people who can read an entire book series in a week, I fell further in love with Harry. And Ron. We can't forget him.

I finally finished reading the series one early Sunday morning. We're talking around 3am. There were many tears. And one run across the hall of my dorm to Erin's to confirm a death. And the rest is history.

I feel like I have a lot to thank JK and Harry for. Thanks for providing me with an escape to this awesome land Jo has created. Thanks for spurring on my love for reading. Thanks for teaching me about love and friendship. But mostly, thank you, Jo, for showing that anything can happen if you follow your dreams.

Now that the last movie has come out, a lot of people are going on about the end of Harry Potter. I don't see it as an end. Sure, they have finished making movies and JK Rowling is probably done making books, but Harry will always live on. I will always go back and read and watch. I will pass them on to my children to read. Like Jo said:

"Hogwarts will always be there to welcome you home."

So Harry, this isn't goodbye. More like a.....see you later.

Sterling.

This is a really random, on the spot post. But I just found something out and needed to share.

I've decided that if I ever have a son, I want to name him Sterling. I think it's such a cool name!

Me thinking of this probably stemmed from the fact that I'm currently rereading The Hunger Games series (I'm getting ready to finish Catching Fire tonight) and I picture Peeta looking something like Sterling Knight.

As I was thinking of naming my currently-non-existent son Sterling, I got to wondering what Sterling Knight's full name is. I mean, I have to think of some middle name to go with this. So I head over to imdb and find out that his full name is, are you ready for this?

Sterling Sandmann Knight.

Is this for real? Is his for real middle name Sandmann? That's pretty freaking sweet. Best. Name. Ever.

I'm picturing my mother's face after I tell her that her grandson is going to be named Sterling Sandmann. HA! She would die.

Ok, his name won't be Sterling Sandmann. But it will be Sterling.

k, bye.

Happy birthday!!

Happy 21st sister!!

And happy 24th me!

New favorites.

Notice how I haven't written anything here for about a month?? Yeahhhhhh, whoops..

Anyways, in the past month I've come across some new favorite things! Let me share.

1) Edward Sharpe and the Magnetic Zeros.

This band came up on one of my Pandora stations and I fell in love. So then I created my own Edward Sharpe station. It's my favorite station. Good thing Best Buy had their cd, cause now I can listen whenever!

2) Doctor Who.

Yep, Whitney just got a little bit nerdier. For those who don't know, Doctor Who is a British tv show about a time traveling alien. Who comes across other aliens. And has a human sidekick.
I'm only on episode 10, because I have to wait to watch episode-by-episode on BBC America everyday. No Blockbuster in the Kansas City area has Doctor Who to rent. BUT, my sister bought me a season for my birthday, so there we go. Hopefully she actually bought the season I'm watching.....
(I just watched episode 9, The Empty Child, and now I'm afraid to sleep. Creepy child!!)

3) Alex Day

Not gonna lie, I found this guy's youtube channel by first watching him reading Twilight. Best. Thing. Ever. And then I watched his other videos. Sooooo you should check it out.
Also, Under the Sea: one of my favorite Disney songs. I love The Little Mermaid.



Ok, I'm going to go read some books now. Bye!!

Just had to share.

Before I go to bed, I usually read a chapter or two of the book I'm reading. Right now, I am currently rereading Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows. Here is a dream I had last night:


Harry, Ron, Hermione and I were at Dumbledore's house in Godric's Hollow. Except Godric's Hollow was in Utah. Whatever. Anyways, we were looking for something in Dumbledore's house and Death Eaters were out to get us. So we had to be really sneaky. And my wand was dying (apparently it was battery powered), but it wasn't a big deal because we had an extra one that we stole off of a Death Eater.



Anyhooooooo, Imma nerd that dreams about Harry Potter. (btw, this isn't the first time HP has been involved in a dream...) And that is awesome.

Grey.

This conversation went down Sunday.

Taylor: You have a grey hair.

Me: Yes, I know. There are actually a couple in there.

Taylor: Why do you have grey hairs?

Me: Because of all the stress.

Taylor: Why are you stressed?

Me: (laughing) I don't know, I'm like the least stressed person ever.

Taylor: (also laughing) That's kinda what I was thinking.



But seriously, I have grey hairs. I should fix that situation soon.

Happy Mother's Day!

Happy Mother's Day Mom!
Love you!

Florida Trip Part Deux

This little series may turn out to be a 3 parter. Who knows. I guess we'll see!

Anyways, this one is going to be more of a list of thoughts. Which I find fun.

1. Butterbeer. When it got to be my turn I was really thrown when she asked if I wanted "cold or frozen". I ended up getting the cold variety, because (a) it was hot and I figured my frozen kind would melt rather quickly, and (b) I figured that's how Harry drinks it. Yes, I actually thought that in my head. Don't worry. It's cool.
Anyways, Taylor didn't get any but he had a taste of mine. We've decided that it's kind of a mix between cream soda and butterscotch. They put this whipped cream stuff on top that was really good. I want to drink some right now.

2. The buildings. Dude, they put sooooo much detail into this thing. It was exactly how I pictured Hogsmeade and Hogwarts. Except for Ollivander's. I understand that it's an important shop and they wanted to include it though. And if the joint wasn't so ungodly crowded, I would have went in. I told you about how we didn't go into any of the shops right? Well, we didn't. I guess this means I have to go back!

3. You wanna know something I was kinda shocked about, the workers didn't have British accents. When we went to the Harry Potter Exhibition, all of the workers were required to have British accents. For some reason I just expected the workers at the park to have them too. Guess not.

4. When we got out of the Forbidden Journey ride, there was a little dance going on by the Beauxbatons students. I didn't really get to see it, but it was happening. I'm going to assume that the Durmstrang students did some thing too because they were all standing around there.

5. I still haven't eaten my chocolate frog. The chick at the gift shop said that she ate her's in one day. This thing is huge. HUGE. A lot of chocolate. Also, I got Helga Hufflepuff as my wizard card. Sweet. Seeing as I tend to think that I would be a Hufflepuff.

6. There are zero pictures of Taylor and I together on this trip. Seriously. There's a picture of me:


A picture of Taylor:


None of us together. Here's the story: When we got to Universal, they took our picture when we were going in, like they pretty much do at any amusement park. They even took a second picture where we put our hands out in a weird manner and told us they would put a cartoon in our hands. Our plan was to stop at the photo place on our way out. We forgot. It wasn't until we got back to the hotel room and Taylor was emptying out his pockets and he found the little piece of paper the photo dude gave us that we remembered. Whoops.


I'm hoping that after a while the area won't be as crowded all the time. And that is when I plan to go back and hit up the things that we missed. And eat at the Three Broomsticks. And buy a wand from Ollivander.

That time we went to Hogwarts.

(This will be a two part story.)

For those who have just started visiting here or those who may have forgotten, Taylor got me a trip to Florida for Christmas. And we finally went on that trip this past week. Let me just say that it was ahhhh-mazing. We spent all day Wednesday at Universal Studios and hit up Hogsmeade and Hogwarts. I could have spent that whole day just at that section of the park.

We got to the park around 10 am. We figured we would go to the Harry Potter section first, thinking that since the park had only been open for an hour it wouldn't be too busy. Wrong. We had to get a "go back" time because they wouldn't let anyone else into that section. So, we get our time (2 hours later) and go off and do other things. FINALLY we were allowed to go into Hogsmeade. It was packed. PACKED. We headed straight for Hogwarts to ride that ride. When we went in, the wait time was 90 minutes. When we left they had upped it to two hours. It was totally worth it. The ride was awesome. Taylor said it was his favorite ride. I have to agree.

And now, enjoy some pictures.
















That first picture is the view from our hotel room. I found myself looking out the window a lot.