this is awesome

clicky

I am busy as hell doing absolutely nothing, which is why i have not been able to post in the recent past.

Love always,
Clara

The Laramie Project

My school produces great thespians. 

I just saw our fall play, The Laramie Project. For those unfamiliar, it's about the murder of Matthew Shepherd, a gay college student, in Laramie, Wyoming, and the town, and the interviews of the people in the town, and the interviewers, and everything.

It is incredibly depressing, but really interesting and thought provoking at the same time. Just emotional.

It was weird at the end; on one hand I was so emotionally drained from this play, I just wanted to sit in the corner and like, contemplate, and then on the other hand, these were my friends performing it, some good friends, and I was so proud of them.

Because they were seriously amazing.

So if you guys read this... you rock. Break a leg tomorrow and saturday.

It's also making me look forward to my jolly little musical that's coming up... Once On This Island. I love the director/general theater guy, so that will be great.

Love always,
Clara

Dreaming again

I had a dream last night.

All I remember is driving in a tunnel, and then someone coming into the tunnel and passing out little grey pills that everyone was supposed to take, but I ran away because he was a terrorist. And it was a really hard merge, coming out of this tunnel.

And I was talking later to this guy at my school about the prices of various terrorist chemicals. And he showed me a picture of one of these terrorist guys and it turned out he was one of those people who preach on TV. And he was hiding uranium in the beads of rosaries. 

Of course, I have no idea what uranium looks like, so in my dream it was little silver balls.

And there was a bit when I was at a party and this other guy was like "Hey um... do you want to go get pancakes?" and I was like "I love pancakes!" although pancakes had very little to do with what was going on.

And there was a part of this dream where another kid was sitting on the table in the lunch room, and another part where it was school conference day and I had bought dried fruit-roll-up things. and the people at the lunch table were trying to steal my fruit-roll-ups.

They were probably two different dreams, on second thought. But still weird.

Love always,
Clara

New Music!

The short version of the new playlist:

Nothing Left to Lose-Mat Kearney

Falling Faster-The Love Willows

The Man Who Can't Be Moved-The Script

Before the Worst-The Script

I Owe You a Long Song-Shiny Toy Guns

Question-Rhett Miller (Old '97s cover)

Her Morning Elegance-Oren Lavie

Kelsey-Metro Station

The Ice Is Getting Thinner-Death Cab for Cutie

Let It Rock-Lil' Wayne

Seventeen Forever-Metro Station

A Beautiful Mess-Jason Mraz

Goodnight and Go-Imogen Heap

Yeah, that's the short version.

Love always,
Clara

Real Conversations in AP Chem

"I'm gonna punch Mrs. *redacted* in the gullet. I don't know what that means but she looks like a chicken and I think chickens have gullets."

^My friend was not happy with her english teacher

Friend1: You guys are all like, having incestuous relationships with each other

Friend2: We are not.

Friend1: When's your birthday?

Friend2: February thirteenth.

Friend1: Okay, I'm going to make you a big cake that says "incest" on it.

...which is why I love that class.

One day my friend (referred to as friend 2, the one in the incestuous relationship) climbed out the window and climbed back in... without the teacher saying anything.

Love always,
Clara

President

Barack Obama is going to be president.
Oh. My. God.

This is the most exciting thing that could happen. Through most of my intelligent life, George W. Bush has been the president, and the president has been George W. Bush, and the terms were practically interchangeable.
Now, the president will be someone different. President Barack Obama.

I got like, no sleep last night, up late on the phone with vivian. She's excited too.

I'm wearing red white and blue today...

Love always,
Clara

Single best moment of MSNBC Election Coverage

(Describing Alaska polling place)

"Well you'll have a lot of time to get out the vote in Anchorage tonight, polls not closing until 1AM eastern time. Here we've got a live video feed. It doesn't look too busy... they got their floor cleaned recently. It's nice and shiny"

Oh media, how I love thee.

I'm so scared I could throw up.

Love always,
Clara

ELECTION DAY

I'm dizzy and nervous and kind of having heart palpitations.
Oh. My. God.

So today, there was a mock election at school. Every class was a state or so.
McCain got 0 electoral votes.
Not even joking.
I go to a very liberal school. I love it, to be honest. We have just enough conservatives to make it interesting.
I got to speak actually. I got to say "The class of 2010, representing Texas and Ohio, gives its combined 54 electoral votes... to Barack Obama!" as if there were some suspense involved.

Honestly, i'm one of those people who doesn't understand why 'bleeding heart liberal' is an insult. Yes, I want to save the world, or figure we might as well try. Yes, I think that if you have more money, you should pay more taxes, and if you're struggling to pay the bills, you should get a break. . Yes, I'm an idealist, and maybe a little bit naive.
Deal. With. It.

My parents are in Chicago. I am jealous. But if tonight, by some twist of fate, doesn't go well, it'll be a very sad party indeed.
I don't want to act like i think we're going to win. Objectively I've looked at the polls and it's looking like that's the case, but if I say so, I'll jinx it. And then the country will be screwed and it will be my fault.
Oh God.
So that's why I'm nervous

Love always,
Clara

laughing out loud, alone, in my room

And this is why

Again. Absence due to noveling. And that website.

Love always,
Clara

Robot kids are hilarious

especially these ones.

I am lucky enough to go to school with these crazy robot kids.

Like, wow.

Love always,
Clara

2008's first notable NaNoism

"Keira shook her head and gave him an uncomfortable simile"

I hope that explains my absence yesterday.

I wrote 10,000 words yesterday. Legitimately. that's like, 20 pages. I'm up to 13K now, and want to maybe hit 15K by the end of the night. But I also have to study for history... My characters may end up talking about Jacksonian democrats and the Lowell mills.

I wonder how i could work that in...

It'll happen.

Anyway, if I'm missing for the next few weeks, it's because I'm writing somewhere else. I can only write so much at once, you know, and novel>blog. Sorry. Love youu though, whoever you are.

Love always,
Clara

i am tired

I went trick or treating with the thirteen year old. I was going to go with, you know, actual friends, but they decided to get dinner somewhere and my mom wanted me to stay in town... they said they'd call if they got back at a reasonable time, but because i'm taking the S.A.T. in the morning, a reasonable time is unreasonably early for this little flintstone.

Wish me luck tomorrow- the world of standardized testing and the world of insane novel-writing happen to share a birthday...

That'll be fun.

Good side: after this test, I'm going to a coffeehouse to meet up with other writers for NaNoWriMo. Way awesome, I anticipate.

Love always,
Clara

Halloween!

Two things I have discovered today:

I hate wearing a wig

I love halloween

Sitting in english class. Gatsby is fun

Sam is a Ceiling Fan.

As in, a fan of ceilings.

Love always,
Clara

Politicalisms

My history "homework" tonight is to read up on the election.

Hello, that's what I do to PROCRASTINATE.

So this is the first time in a while that I've actually thoroughly enjoyed doing history homework.

Yesterday John Casey came to talk to us. He wrote Spartina. He read to us from something else he wrote, The Half-life of Happiness.

He read about a little girl whose dad was running for Congress. The little girl hated it. She was 11.

My dad ran for governor when I was 5. I don't remember much of it. Parades and speeches. My parents going out all the time. My mom says that one day my dad went on a bike ride and I shouted out the door after him, "Don't forget to come back!"

She also says that I once called him "Uncle Don"

We didn't win. That was so fine by me. It meant I didn't have to move, although I wouldn't get to live in the pretty pink house (a.k.a. the governor's mansion).

The combination of the impending election and that reading made me think about that a little bit today. It's kind of weird to think that that happened. I was too little.

Another interesting political/familial thing:

Today Mr. Rich, the chorus man, made a reference to something not happening because the inauguration will be that weekend. I had an outburst of excitement, and quickly corrected it by saying "Well whatever happens, it will be exciting. It won't be Bush anymore"

I thought I'd avoided stepping on any toes (as if they don't know where my affiliations lie), until I realized that Dick Cheney's granddaughter was in the room...

Oh, freshmen.

Love always,
Clara

I hate book groups.

I do. I really truly do.

With all of the passion in my heart.

Or at least two thirds.

But I'm done with mine for this week. So I am happy.

I should do the rest of my homework, but I am basking in the glory of finishing my prompt on time.

It's funny- usually I thoroughly enjoy writing prompts. But in these 'usual' situations, it's fiction.

I like fiction more than nonfiction. I like fiction more than analysis. I like fiction more than... really anything else.

Which is why saturday will be maybe the best day of the year. The first day of National Novel Writing Month. After which point I will write fiction for a couple hours, at least, every day. I am looking forward to this like no other.

I am also basking in the glory of Team Cumulus, a.k.a. the beautiful puffy team. For the last couple days of Outdoor Ed, we split into three teams and compete. My team wins everything because we rock.

Today was a good day for balance and relative normalcy, particularly before noon. I have decided that I am now living in a Golden Era of Clara's life. As of today. 

It's nice to have a positive outlook, no?

Love always,
Clara

Real latin conversations

Mama Latin and Papa latin, two seniors in my latin class, and another kid just had this conversation:

Other kid: this is like one of those marriages where the husband and wife live together, but the mistress lives in the house too.

Mama Latin: Is there something you're not telling me?

Other kid: Oh, was i not supposed to say anything...?

Mama Latin: Wait, Papa Latin, is he your boyfriend? Is he MY boyfriend?

Love always,
Clara

today had one moment of absolute greatness

The scene: English class

[Distinctive phone beep]

Ms. D: Dori, was that.... your brain?

Dori: Um... Yeah.

Other than that one glorious moment I am not thrilled with the way this night is turning out- it is 11:17 and I am just finishing this stupid speech assignment on Robert Owen, which I didn't think I had to do but then realized that I did...

Grrrrrrrr.

And I had advisory dinner tonight, which was fun but eats time voraciously. And I learned that Chicken Out is a tough place to be a vegetarian who shouldn't eat starches. I managed to get by with spinach and green beans (and yes, I had a biscuit) (and stuffing) (Yes, I know, starches. Shut up. Don't judge me).

Love always,
Clara

It is too early

for me to be tired like this. Come on, it's 9:51 on a tuesday. I have another three days before I can really sleep. I can't be tired.

So much stuff is going on that I think I might crash soon.

I'm just trying to find something soft to crash into...

Last year that kind of worked itself out on its own, but this year I shall have to take initiative to make winter not suck.

Winters are cold and dreary, and this is a fact.

But I like the cold weather. When you can feel the air in your lungs, that's a good feeling. Reminds you that you're alive.

I don't know. I'm more inclined to like it if I'm generally in a good mood anyway.

I guess I'm usually in a good mood. I don't know.

All I know is that the procrastination monster ate my life and now it's all kind of going to hell... or so it feels. I'm sure it's not that bad; it never is. 

But I am sixteen and am therefore entitled to my dramatic moments.

Blegh I'm tired.

Love always,
Clara

driving in the morning

I drove here in the rain and the dark. 

I can't decide whether it was really scary or absolutely beautiful. 

It was like all the ghosts were out.

Breakfast club was intense today, and wicked fun. 

And then we got into a conversation about whether Obama is a communist. Socialist?

No no no, silly conservative people.

Wealth redistribution is NOT socialism.

It is every tax plan in recent american history.

Whatever. We're 9 points ahead in Virginia right now.

Love always,
Clara

I made a sticker!

It is a cool sticker.

My puppy is legitimately the cutest thing in the world. I am not even exaggerating. He just decided (as i was going to bed, of course), that he wanted to play with me. He always decides it's Clara-play-time when I'm trying to sleep, actually. So he runs upstairs and starts pacing outside my door. So I open up to see what he wants and he just sits there in front of me just, looking at me. 

So I pick him up to put him on the stairs so that he'll take the hint and let me sleep. Because as much as I want to play with him, I have to get some sleep because I'm getting up early tomorrow. But as I pick him up, he starts licking my face. All grossness is completely cancelled out by the cuteness.

This continues for a few minutes, me trying to get rid of him and then being won over by his puppyish charms.  I finally asked dad to call him down so that at least he wouldn't be sulking there alone.

Chili=Love

Tomorrow I will be at school for like, 12 hours. Breakfast club+extended outdoor ed=insanity.

Why do I do so much again?

Because I am crazy.

Love always,
Clara