I Spy a Consirvative

Today, I wanted to go book shopping. I only had a little bit of money with me but I wanted to see if I could find any cheap books that would catch my eye. I dragged Elijah, my youngest brother, to the books tore not far from our house. After about an hour or two of looking, I didn't find anything good so I decided that we would go to the Goodwill across the street to look at their selection of used books. Right away I found a copy of Ann Coulter's Treason. For those of you who do not know of Ann Coulter, she is an extremely Conservative, political, writer. She has a few other books such as Demonic, Godless, and a few others that you are free to Google.
My dad, being a big Conservative and wanting me to be one as well, has had me read one of her books and has helped me get hooked on her ideas and political views. So when I saw the book, I grabbed it. However, I wasn't too sure if I was going to buy it. I had already spent a little money earlier and I didn't have much left with me. I was asking Elijah if I should get it and we were going back and fourth in that sort of "should I get it?" "I don't know. If you want to." "I don't think I am gonna get it.""Ok then." "Wait. I don't know. Should I get it?" kind of way. I was on the verge of putting it back and waiting to get it another day when a man suddenly came up and started taking to us.
"Excuse me," he said, "would you like to get that book?"
Obviously, before he got to the words "that book", my first thought was that he wanted to sell the two kids in the middle of Goodwill some "unique merchandise". But once I heard what he asked, I was caught off guard. I just told him that I was thinking about it but I was probably gonna put it back. The next thing that he said surprised me even more.
"Well," he said again, "if you would like to get that book, I will give the lady at the counter the money and when you are ready you just tell her and you can go ahead and have that book. I will pay for it right now."
"You don't have to do that," I said.
"Well I didn't say I had to, did I?" he responded.
He promptly went to the front of the store with the money for the book in hand. Elijah immediately gave me a look and said, "don't get the book." I partly agreed with him and just decided to get the book with my own money. Just trying to play it safe. But it was only a few minuets later that the man came back with the receipt and a bag for me. Again, the further gesture surprised me.
"Now I want you to read that book good," he said, "and not get any ideas from the other side."
I couldn't help but smile and chuckle a little. The next thing I said to him I truly did mean.
"God bless you," I said.
"God bless," he said back.
This was, indeed, the interesting thing of the day. After the man had left, I saw the conversation between Elijah and I from his point of view. I wondered what he thought when he saw this teenage girl talking to her brother about whither or not to buy this book by a flaming Conservative. I am not too sure that people see that often. I wonder if he saw the next generation of voters before him and thought that he would make a contribution to our future views. I am not sure. But I know that I am thankful. I guess that Conservatives know a Conservative when they see one.

Jessica's Super Zombie Apocalypse Survival Guide

Now, I am not too sure it is gonna happen, but I like to be prepared. I like to plan ahead and have a list. For this event, I think it is a good idea to have a list because you know there will be tons of idiots out there who will think, " pshhh, I got this in the bag. Come and get me, zombies!! You want a piece of this!? I said, you you want a piece of- aaahhhhhh!!!!!" Yea. And the worst part is, you probably know one of those people. Well, unless you want to see them eaten, you should give this article a look.
# 1- Safe location:
- At first, people will be running around everywhere as well as zombies. So, for at least the first month or two, you should find a good place to hide. Some places you probably don't want to go are malls, hospitals (dude, really), airports, stadiums, and other crowded places. The reason for this is (A. it is easier for the infection to spread this way (B. food will be stretched (C. at some point, you will all begin to hate one another (if you don't understand, think about when you go shopping on black Friday or any other time right before the holidays, Forget the fact that you are all in the same boat, nobody cares. You will hate each other.) Some good places to go are schools, churches, wal-mart, or Bass Pro Shop.
# 2- Quick supplies:
- By this I mean that when you fist start to notice that people are becoming zombies, you will need to get supplies on the way to your safe location. And I mean supplies. Not TV's, iPods, computers, or other useless expensive stuff like that. The most useful thing like that that you can get is a radio to catch up on other survivors. If you are being chased while on your way to the safe place, you will want to stop by a gun or weapon store first. Those will be useful at that very moment which will help you get the needed food and medicine. And for you goody goods out there, don't worry about the ticked off store owner, if he isn't already a zombie. Just get the stuff and go.
# 3- Important People:
- There will, if they are smart, will want to go with you to be safe. With this category, I am not trying to be rude, but at this point I doubt it matters. You will want to take your family with you. This is key. Keep your family close because once there are no people left in the world, you will miss people. But you will not only need your family. Bring a priest or bishop with you. If you know one personally, you are set! Good job! Also, bring any ARMY, NAVY, or MARINE people that you can find. These will be helpful for some obvious reasons. Here are some people you should really NOT bring with you: that one crazy workaholic (male or female) that won't listen to anyone, that power hungry/ trigger happy, those teenagers who whine, that scholar who thinks he knows exactly what he is doing, or that guy who just cant seem to accept that his friend or family member is now a zombie (he most likely will, by an amazing stroke of misfortune, see that friend or family member right outside of your safe place and get turned into a zombie then come and attach you with a bunch of other zombies) Trust me. I am a professional.
# 4- Things NOT to do:
- This is very, very, very, very important. The slightest nincompoop move will kill you or partially kill you. I am just gonna give it to ya strait. Do not: turn into a zombie, split up ( this NEVER works! Remember, only the hero survives in this situation), get into too big of a group (too much people will slow you down when you are running), hug a friend with missing limbs or organs, shoot anyone without confirming they are a zombie first, play the song Thriller.
# 5- Other places to get tips:
- the 17 indisputable laws of teamwork by Johan C. Maxwell
- the movie Zombieland

Occupying the Highway to Hell

Okey, I am going to tell you a little story about a boy named Charlie. Charlies family was very poor and had a hard time putting food on the table. One day, word went out that golden tickets were being hidden around the world inside Willie Wonka chocolate bars. The tickets would allow the finder to spend a whole day in the fantastic chocolate factory. As time went on, the tickets were found all over the world until there was only one left. One day, after school, Charlie decided to buy a chocolate bar. He was elated to find a golden ticket inside the wrapping! He was just about to run home and show his family when, suddenly, a group of angry people came parading down the street. The crowd was screaming at Charlie that it was unfair that he got that ticket and that he should give it to them because they didn't have it.
"But," said Charlie, quite confused, "It's mine. I bought it."
"But we have as much right to it as you do!" said the crowd.
Hmmmmmmm. Sound familiar to anyone? Anyone at all? Lets put into context. Instead of Charlie, it's "the rich." And the golden ticket is the hard earned money. And the angry crowd is... well... pretty much the same. This is pretty much what is going on right now with Occupy Wall Street. Only, I find it quite ironic/ hypocritical that their leader is the main guy who is taking our hard earned money and flushing it down the toilet.
According to these people, "the rich" are just lucky and are people who didn't earn their money. When actually these people worked hard to get to where they are at and are still working hard while the Occupy Wall Street dorks are taking a vacation to "express their anger."
As far as these people can see, you have no right to your money because they don't have it. You should just give all your money to them. Why? Because they deserve it. Why do they deserve it? Good question. What America is built on, or at least was built on, is hard work. It is pretty sad that, in America today, people assume that they should get what you have just because they don't have it. It is absolutely despicable and just plain sad. If this is what is to be the future of our nation, we had better get into our crash positions.

The Time Away From The Munchkins

One of the traditions I have grown up with is going to California every summer to visit my grandparents. Usually, only my little brothers, Joshua and Elijah, and I take the trip while our parents stay home. The boys and I always look forward to our little vacation. However, this year, I was unable to go with the boys on out trip. I was asked by my dad if my feelings would be hurt if the boys went to California without me. My first thought was, "No way! House to myself for 3 weeks! Woot woot!" I figured it was a win-win. And it was. I did enjoy my quiet time to read and the privilege of watching whatever I wanted without brothers harping on me to change the channel. But on the last few days before their return, I am finding myself watching many of the videos we have made and realizing just how much I missed my munchkins. Even though I know I will miss my alone time when they get back, I can't help but smile at the thought of hugging them when they get home. I do know that there will be times in the future when I will want to send them back to California in an instant. But now, I am feeling a sense of longing as a sister for the exploding/ gunshot noises that they make, the random pictures they draw, and the times that they ask me how to make toast. They will be home in a few days, and I will be glad to have them home. It will be good to have my brothers back.

The Few Things I Have Learned About Movie Making

Lately, I have found out that I really enjoy making movies. Short ones for now, but I would like to make full length movies someday. Movie making is one of those things that you learn (well, it's the way I learn) by observation. You can watch movies done by great film makers, see how they did things, think about how you would have done them different, and various different things like that. I often worry that I bother my friends by getting into how the camera work was terrible when they just asked what my favorite part was. By observing how some of my favorite movies were done, I can put the ideas I get from those and put them into my own short movies. Of corse, I do not have the resources that paid directors do to make their movies. However, I have found ways to make the ideas work in my own creations.

But just like I learned what things I can put into the movies at the beginning, I learned some things I need to add to future movies that I left out of others. For example, I learned that dialogue is very important to stick to. For the few movies I have done with important dialogue, I have just improvised the lines. It is probably a better idea to write them out, but who has that time? Anyways, in one of our earlier movies, Sid vs Nurf Ninja, an important part of the story is that the master is the brother of the evil Nurf Ninja. I didn't realize I had forgotten to indicate that relationship until the movie was done. In the newer movies we have made, we have been more careful about the dialogue.

Another thing I have been more careful about is putting the main inspiration of the title into the movie. Even better yet, let the title come after the story. In another one of our movies, Friday the 13th Jason Takes Art, we didn't really indicate the reason he was an artist instead of a, evil killer. Another thing to gather from this is not to let the title define the movie. That is, in fact, backwards. The story and the plot of the movie is supposed to shape the title. The title is supposed to be something that draws the audience to the story.

I still have a lot to learn before I can be a pro director. For the time being, I am gonna stick to my little camera and my brothers as my main cast of characters.

The Job Of Being A Sister

When I was younger, I had always wanted a little sister. Today, I am not too sure why I did. Maybe I was because I wanted a girl to play with or a closer companion. Now, I realize that I wouldn't have been able to survive with a sister. This is true for a few reasons: 1) I get my own room no matter where we live 2) sharing the title "sister" just wouldn't work for me 3) I could never ask for better siblings. As time went on, I discovered that I was meant to have little brothers. My brothers helped make me who I am. I have learned so much from them and I take joy in teaching them. I have found that I really enjoy being one of the teachers in their lives. As time goes on, I know that they will become great adults and I am happy to know that I watched them grow.

The Idea Of A Birthday

When we are younger, say 5 to 10 years old, our birthday is a very special moment. We are counting down they days until the big day and we make a list of things we want. When we are a little older, lets say teen-agers, we are of corse exited about our birthday but we are also sort of neutral on the celebration. Unless of corse you are one of those people who had been planning their sweet 16 since they could write their ABC's. But for the most part, we are pretty calm about the subject. And then there is the time when you are, eh, several years older than 29. By that time, you either don't care about your birthday, forgot, or are hoping everyone else will forget. Well, atlas that is what I have scene. Of corse, this is very stereotypical. I am just asserting what interests me.

So, why is this distinction of interests so fascinating? When you are little, you cant wait until you are one year older. When you are older, you are exited but you are pretty neutral on the idea. And when you are much older, often you would rather not celebrate. Is it because you are becoming another year older? Maybe. Is it because you are spending time with friends and family? Possibly. Is it because you are usually getting stuff you want? Sure. Birthdays are a great thing, and the celebration should be spent with friends and family. No matter what the age.