The Hidden Gem

Have you ever had that thing happen, where you're clicking around on the internet and you find a website with your name on it? So you click on it and then BAM you remember that you once had a blog. This is one of those things.

This is actually one of three blogs that I have had throughout the years. Three that I remember, anyway. The other two are...strange. And slightly creepy. But that's just how I roll yo! As a slightly creepy dude...

So, Misty, Tom...if you ever read this, hello. How are you doing? How is...life? Consider this a little golden gem, if you may, hahaha.

Two years ago I posted a list. On this list were a number of books that I said I was going to read.

1. Jumper(it's here right now so it should be first...)
2. The Mysterious Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde
3. Frankenstein
4. Alice in Wonderland(it's supposed to be good...)
5. Through the Looking Glass (only if number four works out)
6. Wicked
7. The rest of the Drizzt books
8. Jurassic Park
To be continued...

Of these books I have read...6 of them. Which is pretty freaking good, considering I forgot that I even made this thing in the first place! I will now list the books and talk briefly about them, and also about the ones that I never ended up reading, and why.

1. Jumper-I read this. It was a fun read. Not the best, but certainly leaps and bounds above most of the other stuff out there in the world today.
2. The Mysterious Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde- Bam. Read it. It's...cool. I liked it, but it is VERY short. I do not know the exact word count, but it's only about 40 pages long. Still, I liked it.
3. Frankenstein- I read it for school my senior year and I must say...I thoroughly enjoyed it. If you take the time to really feel what the author is expressing, it becomes a very emotional book.
4. Alice in Wonderland-Read it. It sucked. First of all, this book ISN'T a classic. Well, it is, but it shouldn't be. At least not in the sense of it being actual literature. It's a freaking children's book! Don't let anyone tell you otherwise. There are no deeper, darker meanings; no sick, sadistic underlying themes. Sure, the guy who wrote it may have been high as crap the entire time, but I seriously doubt that he put enough thought into this work to give it the layers of sadistic depth that people have attributed to it throughout the years.
5. Through the Looking Glass - Did not read. The first book sucked, heirgo, this book did not deserve a read through in my mind.
6. Wicked- I loved the musical, which is why I thought that I would enjoy the book. However, after hearing that the Musical actually is NOTHING like the book, I've decided that I am all right with letting this one pass as well.
7. The rest of the Drizzt books-Truth be told, I am currently reading the last of the Drizzt books as we speak. Up till now, I've found the series to be highly enjoyable. However, due to the plot line of the most recent book, The Ghost King, I can't help but feel that the author, R. A. Salvatore, has indeed sold out. While there has always been external forces in his books (it is set in the D&D realm, after all) he has never allowed them to fully shape his story. In The Ghost King, that is exactly what he has done, and the story has suffered greatly because of it.
8. Jurassic Park-Stupid book. I loved the movie, but the characters in this book just do not make rational decisions. Almost everything that they do in the book seems like the completely wrong thing to do at the time, and the only point of most of the decisions is to progress the plot along. WEAK!

And really? If velociraptors get off the island they'll take over the world? Are you fetching kidding me? I'm sorry, can these dinosaurs fire machine guns? Fly helicopters? Can they even freaking communicate? No? Oh, well then I think mankind is probably going to be safe.

And so concludes my book list. In another note, I finally finished both Les Miserables and The Lord of the Rings trilogy. Both were incredible, and both had very moving moments all the way throughout. However, if I had to choose, I would say that LotR was a better book, if nothing else then because the author cut out a great deal of the crap that bogged down Les Mis. I mean, really? Taking an entire page just for one guy to say that he'd hook up with a random waitress?

BTW, I'm not joking. That actually happened. And these pages have loads of text on them, all of which is set in a tiny font! I guess that's what I get for reading the unabridged version...

Still, overall, a good book. Read everything and THEN take the parts that actually mean something to you.

Peanut butter blogger time...

Peanut butter blogger, peanut butter blogger, peanut butter blogger and a baseball bat. Yo. I've decided to unofficially label this blog as the Clements blog, as they are the only ones left that read it. Maybe. Congratulations! I'm very proud of you. And, concerning my last blog...I've read one of those books. Jumper. It's a good read though, not gonna lie. Right now I'm attacking Les Miserables. Surprisingly, it is actually really good. Like, Jumper was entertaining, but this book actually evokes emotion from you. When you read about the Parisians 'merry prank', you actually get pissed off. I did anyways. Stupid Parisians. Another good book that I would recommend (this is to Tom, should he find the time to do so) I Am Legend. Amazing book. The best book I have ever finished, by far. Note, I say finished, because Les Miserables may very well steal that position. But, regardless, it's either first or second, so not bad.

In other recent news...Fringe. Pretty cool show. I followed Misty's advice and I'm glad I did. It's pretty solid. Fringe, Sarach Connor Chronicles, Heroes...my life's disappearing before my eyes. That is assuming that I actually have a life. Sometimes I wonder. Like right now. I should be studying for my AP Calculus test or writing my English paper...but I'm not. I came to the profound conclusion today on the drive home from school that I am a horrible procrastinator. I know that everyone says that, but I honestly feel that this is my sacred calling in life. Not only that, but I suck at making decisions. Like, I really really suck at it. It's little things too, like, "Should I get a bagel with chedder and herb cream cheese or vanilla?" I don't know why, but these simple decisions kill me, every time. The end of the world could be occuring and I'd still be stuck in Gamestop choosing beteen buying some crappy gameboy game that I'd never play or not. This is why, for a while, I started using a coin for all of my decisions. If you hit a wall and you cannot make up your mind, go for the coin. Seriously, it works.

And...that's about it. There's more in my life than this, but not really. Nothing else to really report on...ciao.

a list...

All right, so, I know that you are all dieing to know what I have planned for myself and...her it is. The list of books that I plan to read in the near future...or at least at some point in time.

1. Jumper(it's here right now so it should be first...)
2. The Mysterious Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde
3. Frankenstein
4. Alice in Wonderland(it's supposed to be good...)
5. Through the Looking Glass (only if number four works out)
6. Wicked
7. The rest of the Drizzt books
8. Jurassic Park
To be continued...

The end of all good things...

The hero stood alone against a great army. The hero knew that he was going to die, soon. Very soon. So why fight? The hero lowered his sword to the ground, allowing the tip to graze on the soft dirt before he released his tentative grip and let the weapon fall to the earth with a soft thud. Against an army this big, what was the point? There was no way that he could fight them off. The army approached closer now. He noticed their uniforms; black and gold. On their flags flew the abominable Kodiak Grizzly Bear. The hero slowly removed his helmet, for it was heavy, and he knew that it would prove pointless in the coming fight. Nothing could protect him now. Resistance truly was futile. The army moved in slowly, closing in on all sides, suffocating him. The hero knew that he had but moments left of his freedom. As the army continued to close in on him the hero slowly fell to his knees; eyes closed. His heartbeat, although heightened before, soon slowed to a slow steady beat as the army suddenly became very still around him. He had put up a good chase, but, like always, he had still failed. He accepted his grim fate and waited patiently for his judgment.

What? No. Not cool.

You wanna know what's really not cool? Older people getting facebook accounts and then trying to add me as a friend. A couple months ago my mom got a facebook and tried to add me as a friend...and now today Dan Wells added me as well! For those of you who don't know, Dan's my bishop. It's not that I have anything to hide it's just...weird. Really weird. Ya, needless to say, I'm betting that both of those requests are going to stay on the back burner for quite a while. Maybe right before I go on my mission I'll finally confirm everyone that I've left in limbo. Maybe.

UPDATE UPDATE UPDATE!!!

I'm not sure if I'll actually finish this blog. Which means that this intro will really be for me...thus making it entirely pointless. In the rare chance that I do finish the blog, however, then it is hereby dedicated to all of YOU. Congratulations. All of YOU meaning the one, maybe two people who may happen to take a glance at this. So, to you select people, good job. A big thumbs up is coming your way. I would look up a picture of a big thumb but...that's lame. And I'm way too lazy to do something like that. This is my third attempt at this blog. It's not that I couldn't think of anything to say for the other two so much as the fact that I kept starting a blog, get sidetracked, and then come back to find...that I'd lost all interest in the subject at hand. But don't worry, the other two blogs are safe in the Draft box. Do you think people actually use the draft thing? Like, really? I mean, sure, I saved my other two before I shut the window but that doesn't mean that I ever plan on using them again. Blogs can't be used more than once. It's just bad tact.

As the title aptly states, this blogs sole purpose is to show new 'updates' of my life. And the update is...that I survived the Johnson family reunion. So many funny tales to tell, not enough energy in the world to tell them. You see, the reason my other two blogs got sent to the Draft box was because I would make the mistake of trying to tell some of the better stories from the week. I'd get started, get bored, and then kill the blog entirely. I'm a blog killa. It's what I do.

In other news...I watched The Dark Knight again last night. And the verdict is...it's still amazing. All two and a half hours of it. This marks my fourth viewing of it...the third being in Cannon Beach. That's right Tom (if you are indeed reading this), we've started a new tradition! Albeit it didn't carry the same intensity that the last movie escape did, what with this one being planned and all, but it did break up the monotony that is Cannon Beach Oregon. Just to give you a hint at how boring it can be out there, I finished the first two twilight books during the last half of the week. It's not that I'm a fast reader so much as the fact that we just didn't do anything out there. Not that there is a ton of stuff to be done anyways...besides the regular schedule, that is. And, really, that can only entertain for so long. How many rotting fish covered in crabs do I honestly need to see before I can call my life complete?

Despite how dreadfully monotonous it can be out there I did get to mix it up by going to the weapons shop again. For those of you who don't know, the weapons shop is a shop that carries...weapons. Lots of 'em. Maces, axes, broadswords, crossbows, throwing knives...etc. etc. It's basically a Cabellos for nerds. Anyways, I was having a pretty good time until it suddenly dawned on me that I was alone with the owner in a room stock full of deadly weapons. It's about that time that I started to run certain scenarios through my mind...I mean, the guy owns and sells hundreds of dangerous weapons each and every day...there's gotta be something wrong with him. Needless to say, I was much quicker in my browsing than in previous visits.

And...really, that's all I have to say. As the fat piggy says, "That's all folks!"

Gratzi.

There and back again...

Well, as the title aptly says, I'm back. There and back again. If anyone actually knows what the title comes from, major kudos. Well, maybe not major, but still some. The trip was pretty cool. I wasn't entirely sure what to expect heading out but it turned out to be all right. Given the circumstances, that is. This is still camping I'm talking about. When the whole thing was over and I looked in the mirror I could have sworn that I'd just jumped the border from Mexico and was slowly making my way up to Montana. Dirty, smelly, acne; all of this was there. Ya, that's what camping's all about.

Last night I got the opportunity to watch the Dark Knight for the second time. Albeit not as intoxicating as my first dose, that show is still pretty much amazing. The cool thing about watching a show twice is looking for all the little subtle things that you might have missed the first time through. For example, the asian guy on top of the pile of money. Can you say twisted? Ya, totally did not notice that the first time.

Wanna know what's even more entertaining than the Dark Knight though? My parents. They have some of the funniest reactions to things ever. Anyone who's related to me can verify this. Like, right now for example. We have an hour before church starts and mi padre just came and told me (in his serious voice, of course) that we needed to get to church at least ten to fifteen minutes early and that I had to be completely packed before church. As if I didn't know? They treat packing like it's this ancient time honored tradition that needs to be carefully planned out ten years in advance or something. You take some clothes, throw them in a suitcase, and you leave. What's so complicated about that?

Anyways, I leave for a week in Oregon...again. Wish me luck? I'll need it. Later!