Sights from the Blanton Museum of Art

La Puerto del Sol, Norman Lewis, 1958

Vivir: A los saltos, Romulo Maccio, 1964

Missao/Missoes, Cildo Meireles, 1987

Cadmium Red Above Black, Adolph Gottlieb, 1959 

Transients, Raphael Soyer, 1936

Night Before Last, Arturo Herrera, 2002

Summer Circle, Richard Long, 1991

Religious Visitor, Derek Boshier, 1985

Mom's Pet

Around Mom and Dad's household, we have never had pets larger than fish. One time I had show rabbits for the FFA, but they lived outside. Shortly after we moved to the house they live in now, a little roadrunner was sighted several times around the house. Over the years, roadrunner has become very brave or he just got used to us. 

When I was in high school, I had my sewing machine in my bedroom, and would always sew in there for hours at a time with my windows open. Almost every time roadrunner would come onto the front porch, hop up on the patio table and watch me sew until I would realize he was sitting there. He is such a treat to see so close-up. Roadrunners are really pretty birds.

Mom says that sometimes she'll hear a knock at the door, go to see who it is, and quite often see roadrunner at the door. Or she'll see him running away, having left little lizards and bugs on the door step.

I am usually never fast enough to get a picture of him, but when I was home over Spring Break, I was able to snap several of him. He's so fun! Roadrunner is one of the first animals I see while I'm home. Sisterfriend and I joke that he is Mom's favorite pet, because she doesn't have to feed or care for him. He is very low-maintenance.

When I began to head back to Austin over Spring Break, Ranger Danger wouldn't start, so I had to wait for someone to come jump start him for me. While I was waiting, roadrunner was wandering around the yard catching bugs and doing bird-type things. I've never seen him do this before, but he jumped/flew up on one of our fence posts and sat up there for a while. THEN I saw him making his roadrunner noises. Never have I heard this or seen this before! It kind of sounds like an owl hooting, but a little different. Mom recently mentioned that she has heard owls around the house during the daytime, but now we know it's roadrunner.

I also saw a little lady roadrunner. Mayhaps there will be more roadrunners in the future? I hope so!

An English Paper of Some Sort (2005)

19 May 2005

"Thoughts of People and Chocolate"

A wise movie character once said, "Life is like a box of chocolates, you never know what you're gonna get." This true statement came from the one and only Forrest Gump, in Forrest Gump. People are also like a box of chocolates. On the outside they can be pleasant and sweet, like milk chocolate. Once one bites into them there might be an unexpected flavor of jealousy, meanness, or let's say "coconut". Sometimes when one judges a chocolate from the outside, they miss out on the fluffy chocolate inside. In an excellent piece of literature To Kill A Mockingbird, the subject of not knowing why people are the way they are unwraps itself in many situations. One of the main characters, Atticus Finch, tells his daughter, "You never really understand a person until you consider things from his point of view." I agree with this deeply. I have gotten a taste of this unfair way of judging people in books I have read and in my very own life.

I once met a character, which by the end of the book became one of my favorites. Her name was Sammy Keyes, and she was the main character in a mystery book series. If she were a chocolate she would be fudge covered with dark chocolate. When people see her walking down the street, they probably think she's a grungy kid about to light something on fire. Throughout the book, I began to see what kind of girl she really was. Sammy Keyes is just a sweet kid in a bad situation. Her mother lives in Hollywood, striving to be an actress. Sammy's dad is nowhere to be found. She lives with her grandmother in a senior adult complex. Her living arrangement is why people think she's up to no good. Sammy always has to sneak around because the residents in her grandmother's building cannot have children living with them. If people would just get through their dark chocolate they would understand.

In The House of the Scorpion, there is a character who, if he were a chocolate, would be milk chocolate on the outside, but on the inside he is pure coconut. Nancy Farmer, the author, has made Tom nice and sweet towards adults, but if you find him alone he is nailing frogs down to a yard, trying to kill dogs, or maybe even trying to get someone killed. The adults in this book are oblivious to the fact that Tom is carrying out these awful actions. If his parents really knew their child, they would be horrified. He would have become a different person if his parents actually gave him their attention. If the confectioners in this story, his parents, hadn't ignorantly put the coconut in his chocolate, it might have tasted better.

I have done my own judging of people who I don't know. I have, however, proved that judging people before getting to know them is wrong. When I came to Hallsville High School, I did some major judging of girls that I thought would be sweet inside and out, were in fact coconut and dark chocolate wrapped up in one messed up person. Boys that I perceived to be idiots are actually milk chocolate through and through. My first year in high school has taught me a plethora of lessons about people, this being the most important. I have cautiously "bit" into a few people, finding them to be a delight. On the other hand, I have met people that make me want to spit them out. I have met a unique assortment of chocolates.

When I opened the box of chocolates To Kill A Mockingbird, flavors filled my mouth. The one flavor that stood out was Boo Radley. Scout, Jem and the whole community of Maycomb, where the book takes place, judges Boo unfairly. He has to stay inside all the time because he gets into trouble when he is younger, and this is his eternal punishment. The citizens of Maycomb never bite into Boo Radley. They don't want to, because they fear the orange filling. When they least expect it, Boo comes out and does a very good deed. He saves two lives, Jem and Scout. They and their father, Atticus, are the only people who get to see what kind of chocolate Boo Radley really is. Most people in Maycomb thought he was filled with a gooey orange filling, but he is in fact scrumptious with a light and creamy inside.

A box of chocolates can be deceiving, but in the end it is worth it to try every chocolate. Just a simple chocolate can be deceiving; people can be even more conniving. Throughout my reading experiences, I have met nice characters such as Sammy Keyes. Then there are those characters that are pure coconut evil like Tom in The House of the Scorpion. In my life I have met my share of sweeties and coconuts. I do somewhat agree with Atticus Finch on his views of judging people unfairly, but I also know that one can never fully get to know a person. One can never know what someone else is thinking and feeling, even if you do walk around in their shoes for a while. I will always remember to try all of the chocolates in the great chocolate box of life. I might even get a Boo Radley.

Mini Golf + Toy Camera

Shot with a Bentley BX-3 35mm film camera

A Free Strokes Concert?!

YES!!!

Levi's sponsored a free concert showcase at SXSW this year. I was overcome by joy when I heard that The Strokes were going to be performing. At first, Boyfriend and I thought we were going to take a trip to Arizona, but that didn't work out, so we got to go see one of my favorite bands!

 Some band called "Twin Shadows" played before my guys. They had kind of an 80s sound and were pretty good. Boyfriend thought that all of them were going to strip down to their tank tops by the end of their set, but they didn't. Bummer! The drummer wore his hair in a ponytail at the very top of his head. He was really into head banging, so it flew around all crazy-like while he banged away.

 Here we are having a grand ol' time. One of my classmates from ACC was at the concert with some friends, so we met up with her. We were pretty close to the stage, which was a lot closer than when we saw them at ACL.

 I felt really sneaky at this concert. At most large concerts, they won't let you bring in a DSLR camera (cameras with detachable lenses). I checked the SXSW website and it said nothing about the audience not being able to bring DSLR cameras in, like the ACL website clearly states. Alas, when we got to the entry point, there were bag checkers and I had this conversation:

Checker: Uhh, does this lens come off?

Me: Yep.

Checker: Um, you can't bring those in.

Me: What? Why?

Checker: I don't know, but you can stash it somewhere if you want.

Me: HA! Nope.

 We weren't about to ride the bus allll the way to my apartment to drop my camera off, then ride alllll the way back, so Boyfriend formulated a plan. We put half of my purse contents into my camera bag, and wedged my camera into my purse. Boyfriend carried my camera bag and I carried my camera-laden purse into a different, busier entry point. We got right in. I'm pretty sure that entry point would have let me in even if they saw my camera.

 The concert was really good and they even played a few new songs from their new album! The concert go-ers at this concert were kind of annoying though. It was a much younger crowd and there were a lot of smokers. In some of my pictures there is a very distinct cloud over the crowd. Bleh. But the music was good, so it was worth it?

The Strokes

SXSW 2011 Set List

1. What Ever Happened?

2. The Modern Age

3. You Only Live Once

4. Under Cover of Darkness

5. New York City Cops

6. You're so Right

7. Under Control

8. Someday

9. Juicebox

10. Life is Simple in the Moonlight

11. I Can't Win

12. Reptilia

13. Taken for a Fool

14. Take It or Leave It

Encore:

15. Gratisfaction

16. Hard to Explain

17. Last Night 

List Journal Entries (2003-2004)

After an awards assembly, 8th grade

Prompt: List 5 things that worry you.

1. School worries me.

2. Other people.

3. I worry if my house will burn down, because I didn't unplug the blow dryer.

4. My sister at school.

5. Getting hit in the head.


Prompt: Identify your criterion for a boyfriend/girlfriend.
1. Be nice to me and my friends.
2. Be tall.
3. Have good grades.
4. Give a care about school.
5. Like sports (softball, baseball, & football)

Prompt: Create 2 grocery lists: one for yourself and one for your parents
Mine- dill pickles, cereal, kiwi, bacon, pillsbury biscuits, vanilla coke, goldfish, salad stuff, teddy grahams, velveeta macaroni & cheese, chocolate ice cream, chocolate ice cream popsicles

My Parents- fruit, bisquick, toilet paper, barbeque sauce, vegetables, milk, bread, tortio chips, eggs, yogurt, roast, cheese, hot sauce

Prompt: List 3 favorite movies, songs, food and tv shows.
Movies- Black Beauty, Lord of the Rings, Legally Blonde
Songs- Magic Carpet Ride, Ice Ice Baby, O Come Emmanuel
Food- Tacos, Spaghetti, Spinach pockets
TV Shows- Arthur, Sponge Bob, CSI

Prompt: Time Capsule (18 November 2003)
Age- 13
Grade- 8th
School- Northwestern Middle School
Favorite Colors- dark blue, dark green and yellow
Favorite Movie- Lord of the Rings
Favorite Actress- Tyne Daily
Song- Chapped Lips, Chapstick and Things Like Chemistry
Artist- Relient K
TV Show- CSI
Book- My Bible and Just Ella
Sport- Horseback Riding
Subject in school- writing
Teacher- Mrs. Goudeau
Holiday- Christmas
Occupation When Older- Ranch Owner or whatever
Food- Spaghetti
Type of Food- good food
One goal you would like to meet this year- Get all A's
What current events are going on in the world?- War in Iraq, Arnold Schwarzenagger governor of California

Longview Trade Days

Mom and I recently ventured to the Longview Trade Days. It was... interesting.

There were several booths with some nice plants.

The locals were out in full-force. Some even brought their pink camo trailers.

Random Houston Cougars hats? 

Hot Wheels as far as the eye can see! 

Truck grills anyone? 

Random bits of crystal

Because everyone needs a rebel flag glass lamp. 

Don't forget to get a plastic Mary shrine!

Poems 2002-2003 ( Ages 12-13)

Me pictured with a middle school friend, 6th grade.

Basketball Horse
There once was a horse from Baker,
Who dreamed of being a Laker
A recruiter came by,
At the horse he did sigh
but the horse instead bought an acre

A Moose
There once was a moose
Who used mousse
One day he broke loose
But he forgot his mousse

Icees
Don't drink an icee
While sitting in a tree
Because then you'll have to pee
And fall out of the tree

The Little Wagon
Bobby had a little wagon
Its wheels were as creaky as a cricket
It followed Bobby everywhere
And then it just got creakier

Such profound words from a middle schooler!

Texas is blooming!

Hallsville, Texas

Hallsville, Texas

Longview, Texas

Longview, Texas

Longview, Texas

Hallsville, Texas

Hallsville, Texas

Hallsville, Texas 

Austin, Texas

Austin, Texas

Ps: Check me out on this Austin restaurant review! They made me look like a writer or something!