It's October!

          Happy October everyone! (This is one of my favorite months, and not just because of my birthday. I just love fall!! Hooray sweatshirt weather!) Anyway, I apologize for not being very diligent in my blog writing lately. Things have slightly hectic. Which is why, instead of doing the writing challenge today, I've decided I'd give you an update on my life.
          I finally got new strings for my cello, but one of them is too short and I have to go back and have someone fix it, because I don't know how. The good new is that I can play Hot Cross Buns, Mary Had a Little Lamb, and part of Amazing Grace. I know, not very impressive...but I'll get better! I mean, it took me twelve years to be as good as I am at piano.
          Remember that job interview I had awhile back? I got the job! I'm training this week and then I get to start on Monday. I get my own set of keys and a fancy name tag, which is exciting. But I think the part I'm most excited for is being able to work with other people. I'll finally have a job that isn't lonely! The few times I've been there, everyone has been so nice and I really am excited to start working (and learn everyone's names...)
          I have officially decided to apply for the Ireland trip. I am both nervous and excited, for the same reason. What if I'm accepted? Of course that will be very exciting, but that means I'll actually have to decide if I'm going or not. The deadline for application is November 21st. I'm not sure when I'll know if I'm accepted, but I will definitely inform you all if I go. Or if I don't. Regardless, you will know if I will be staying in Michigan or heading to the beautiful Ireland.
          Let's see, what else is new with me? My birthday is in two weeks and two days. I know, exciting stuff. Personally, I'm hoping for a cake. With frosting and candles. And money to go to Ireland. Sigh...it is so hard to do things when all I can think about is Ireland. Of course, you all are thinking, just go! You obviously want to! Yes, yes I do want to. I just need to put a lot of thought into it and obsess about it for awhile. Anyway. Things new with me...I got 100% on a Stats test, which is a new feeling for me. I've never gotten 100% on a math test ever (excluding 8th grade and down). I've actually always felt rather stupid because all of my friends are freakishly smart. But now that I'm in college, I feel like a freaking genius. And I'm not sure how I feel about that.
          Okay...something else...I'm reading a new book. It's called Death Comes to Pemberley and so far it is dreadfully boring. But it has Mr. Darcy and Elizabeth, so I have to finish it. Also, Colonel Fitzwilliam is an awful character in this variation of Pride and Prejudice, so if you like him at all, don't read it. Who knows, maybe it'll get better. I'm only about halfway through, so I'll let you know if it gets any better. I really hope it does. In the meantime, here's a quote to keep you occupied.

"Words, in my humble opinion, are the most inexhaustible source of magic we have." Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows by J.K. Rowling

Day 24

Writing Challenge Day #24: What is your truest fear? (Excluding spiders and horror films)

          I'm afraid of a lot of things. I'm afraid dark forests, pigs, being lifted by other people, and small dark places. I'm also afraid of spiders, not so much horror films though. I'm afraid of dying with my eyes closed. (If I'm going to die, I want my eyes to be open. I know, it's a weird fear, but that's what I'm afraid of.) I'm afraid that I won't take opportunities (like Ireland) because I'm too afraid. But that's not my biggest fear. Or truest, or whatever. I am mostly afraid of being entirely alone. I mean, I love having the house to myself as much as the next person. But only for so long. And when I say alone, I mean both physically being the only person, like the last person on Earth and being alone, but surrounded by people. Does that even make sense? In my head it does. Let me try again...I'm afraid of being unwanted by everyone around me, of being a complete outcast. That scares me more than being the last person on Earth. I've even had several nightmares about it. Usually they involve me waking up one day to find that no one will speak to me or even look at me, as if I didn't exist. But I know that they know that I am there, I'm just not important enough to be worth even a glance. I hate those dreams. But yeah, that's my biggest fear.

“She had blue skin,

And so did he.

He kept it hid

And so did she.

They searched for blue

Their whole life through,

Then passed right by-

And never knew.”  -Every Thing On It by Shel Silverstein 

Ireland, again.

          Alright guys...I was supposed to write about my truest fear for the writing challenge. But I can't. My mind is far too occupied elsewhere, Ireland specifically. Shall I tell you my dilemma? There is a study abroad program through my college to go to Ireland for a little less than three weeks. And what is the program, you ask? Literature. This is like MY trip. This is the trip for me. And, as far as study abroad programs go, not that costly. I really, really, reeeallly want to go. Ireland, guys! IRELAND!

          (I'm not seeing the dilemma here...)

          Sorry, I'm getting to that. I really want to go, BUT I have some cons. I've never traveled outside of the country before (Canada does not count), and that terrifies me. I would be without anyone I know, which also terrifies me. I would have to miss my brother's graduation (but hey, my older brother missed mine, so..). While the trip isn't terribly expensive, it's not terribly cheap either. And I'm only a college freshman. The trip is open to all students, but I feel like freshmen don't belong on these sorts of things. Am I right? But I want to go so bad! Guys, this is Ireland, the one place I want to go more than anywhere else (closely followed by New Zealand). I am just very torn on this. If there is anyone that reads this other than my Franco Fan, I could use some advice. (Advice from Franco Fan is more than welcome, of course. And just so you know, I will always refer to you as Franco Fan on here now. Congratulations.) I will now put on a picture from Ireland so we can take a moment to sigh wistfully. Let the sighing commence.

"All that is gold does not glitter,

Not all those who wander are lost;
The old that is strong does not wither,
Deep roots are not reached by the frost.

From the ashes a fire shall be woken,
A light from the shadows shall spring;
Renewed shall be blade that was broken,
The crownless again shall be king.”

-Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring by J.R.R. Tolkein

Day 23

Writing Challenge #23: Post Pictures of Five Guys Who Are Famous And You Find Attractive
          Well, I am going to have fun with this one. Should I do 5 as the most attractive or 1? Maybe I should start with 1...

          Guy #5: You know what? I can't even rank them! They're all so adorable and I just want to give them a hug or a high five or something.
       
          Guys 1-5 in no particular order: Everyone say hi to Brenton Thwaites, Eugene Fitzherbert, Joseph Gordon Levitt, Orlando Bloom, and Aragorn. (And yes, I can have fictional characters if I want to!)


Apparently I have a thing for brunettes. Lucky for me, so does Eugene Fitzherbert...Now this was really hard to pick five, so I hope you don't mind if I chose a few honorable mentions? Of course you don't! Here they are:
            

And lastly, even if they aren't my favorite, I have a pair that just have to be on here for my most dedicated reader. I present, the Franco brothers!

                      

I realize this wasn't really a writing challenge. All I had to do was post pictures of attractive guys. Not too hard, right? Lucky for you, my book quote today is really long, so that should keep you occupied for some time.

“Do you think I am an automaton? — a machine without feelings? and can bear to have my morsel of bread snatched from my lips, and my drop of living water dashed from my cup? Do you think, because I am poor, obscure, plain, and little, I am soulless and heartless? You think wrong! — I have as much soul as you — and full as much heart! And if God had gifted me with some beauty and much wealth, I should have made it as hard for you to leave me, as it is now for me to leave you. I am not talking to you now through the medium of custom, conventionalities, nor even of mortal flesh: it is my spirit that addresses your spirit; just as if both had passed through the grave, and we stood at God's feet, equal — as we are!” -Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte

Day 22

Writing Challenge Day #22: Something You Haven't Done That Most People Have
          We're almost there! Only eight more days of this challenge. It almost seems a bit bittersweet, doesn't it? At the very least, I think it does. And now it is time to actually do the challenge. I suppose there should be quite a number of things that I haven't done that most people have. I'm just having trouble thinking of them at the moment. So let's start with things I have never done and I'll let you decide if most people have done it or not. So...shall we begin? (Just in case you're not as big of a nerd as I am, that was me, quoted Star Trek: Into Darkness. More specifically, I was quoting Khan as he taunted Captain Kirk from his holding cell. If you haven't seen this movie, watch it. If you have seen it, watch it again. Which is what I plan on doing, possibly tomorrow if I have time. Anyway, the list...)


Things I Haven't Done That Most People May or May Not Have Done:

1. Gotten a pedicure or a manicure
2. Seen Anastasia
3. Traveled farther west than Indiana
4. Traveled farther east than Tennessee
5. Gone to a theatre to see a rated R movie
6. Lived in a city
7. Been in a relationship
8. Met an author (I want to. Some day, hopefully)
9. Had a secret crush on Channing Tatum (Sorry...I just don't find him to be all that attractive. He seems like a nice guy though)
10. Gone hunting
11. Had a smart phone
12. Listened to NSYNC
13. I'm kind of sick of this list.
14. So I think I'll stop putting things on it.
15. Fifteen is a good number to stop at.

"Dreams are like that: they go in and out of memories and scenes, but they're never real. They're never real, and I hate them because they aren't." -Across the Universe by Beth Revis

The Twenty First Day

Writing Challenge Day #21: Your Favorite TV Show

       
          I have a handful of TV shows that I watch. I watch Falling Skies, which I actually don't enjoy, but I've been watching it from the beginning and I can't stop now. And there's only one more season, so it'll be over soon. I also have 'The Big Five', which are all contest shows, for lack of a better term. 'The Big Five' includes America's Got Talent (Mat Franco won! He was my favorite of the top 6, so I'm glad he won.), American Idol, American Ninja Warrior, Survivor, and Face Off. I enjoy all of these shows, mostly, but none of them are my favorite. My favorite TV show, easily, is The Walking Dead. It was a show that I originally wouldn't have watched. And I wasn't planning on it either. My brother just happened to be watching the first episode while I was doing homework. So, of course, I watched it instead of doing homework. And at first, I couldn't stomach it. I had to close my eyes during the gory scenes (and have my brother tell me when they were over). It was a disgusting show. But for some reason, I watched the next episode. And the next one after that. It was so addicting. And I eventually built up my gore tolerance. And they just got more intense and more disturbing. It comes back on October 12! I am slightly excited for season 5. I also don't like Carl. And I think that's all I've got to say on that.

*Edit* I may have lied unintentionally. While I do love Walking Dead, I really do, I don't think it's my favorite TV show. There is one other show that I forgot about entirely, probably because it's series finale was in 2004. You know what I'm talking about? Friends. I think it is the best show ever and I'm just sad that there won't ever be new episodes (unless by some chance they do Friends: The Nursing Home Years, which, however entertaining it might be, isn't very likely to happen.) So number one favorite TV show? Friends. Number one favorite TV couple? Monica and Chandler. (Sorry Jim and Pam, I like them better) Number one favorite TV character that Jennifer Aniston has played? Rachel Green. I also really like the theme song.

"It takes ten times as long to put yourself back together as it does to fall apart." -Mockingjay

The Day of Twenty

          Quick off topic before I do the writing challenge for today...So, my dad drives me home after school every Tuesday (I commute to school, usually with a carpool, but on Tuesdays, I come home with my dad),
and every time the car 'breaks down' and we stop to eat somewhere, usually somewhere I haven't been before. Today we 'broke down' at Cancun Grill, and while I'm not usually a huge fan of Mexican food, it was pretty darn good. I don't think it's a place I would go very often, but I could definitely could see myself going there again. Although, like most restaurants, they gave me way too much food. Oh well, at least it makes for good leftovers. And I have a picture of the chips and salsa we get before our meal! Anywho. On to the challenge!

Writing Challenge Day Twenty: The Meaning Behind Your Blog Name
          Well...The person who made this blog is very different than the one I am now. At the time, you know, when I first made it, I was a silly, insipid person who was over dramatic and cried too easily. And I kind of gave my blog two names (I wasn't really sure what I was doing when I made it). So first, there is the eleganceofinspiration.blogspot.com tidbit. I remember wanting to have something about inspiration there and elegance of inspiration sounded cool and, well, elegant. I didn't really have meaning. But now, I really like it. It has definitely grown on me. There really is something elegant about finding inspiration in things. I try to find inspiration, as well as to inspire, on a daily basis. It's no secret that I love to write, and in order to be a writer, you need to find inspiration everywhere, especially in the little things that other people don't notice. And to me, there is a certain elegance to that.
          Now, the second name, Make it Good, means pretty much the same thing to me now that it did when I made the blog. It basically means that you can take any situation and make it good. You just need to look at it right. The biggest difference with this title is that, when I made it, it was just an Idea with a capital I. Something that I wanted to do, but didn't think I ever would. Now it's actually attainable. I've gotten quite a bit better at putting a positive spin on things. I'm glad I have, too. I rather like the person I am now.

"It's amazing that a man who is dead can talk to people through these pages. As long as this book survives, his ideas live." -Eragon by Christopher Paolini