So...umm this is Awkward? Would you like to play Scrabble?

Contemplating...Contemplating...Contemplating

DAMN IT! Is this really what the teenage years are all like? Always contemplating, being socially awkward, and thinking about different ways you can play scrabble. (By the way, if you can figure out what my bizzare scrabble metaphor means by the end of this post, leave a comment- you have earned super special Rhea points.) Haley, I expect you to figure this out and if for some bizzare reason you can't, call me. Immediately. If you don't know what the odd references my class makes in English mean we haven't been talking nearly enough, and this needs to be rectified. Lately though, I feel I have fallen into a teenage angst funk. I want to dispell the funk from my life, but as a teenager I am obligated to feel awkward, misunderstood, and angry AT ALL TIMES. So this feeling is not likely to go away.

BUT.....The funk is partially created by the 2:00 AM bedtime I now currently have EVERY DAY. Reducing stress reduces funkiness, but also spunkiness. (Or sassiness-you have your own word for it, I have mine.) So Haley, you have done nothing to help lift me out of my teenage angst funk by giving me these incredibly perplexing riddles. I have absolutely no idea what they mean but I gace it my best shot.

1. Nursery rhyme number one is clearly about a popular but dull girl in school. She hangs out with her boyfriend two times a week, but doesn't really enjoy him and has some mildly likeable friends. Your probably wondering how I know this. I was going to say I'm psycic, but I'm just going to tell the truth. It has to do with how Mary is so dang contrary which we all know means common (but really is a nicer term for boring). She plants a garden and tends to it because she doesn't have anything better to do with her boyfriend on weekdays. How do I know she only thinks her friends are mildy decent? Well, its the fact she calls them maids all in a row, that's not a very nice way to refer to your teenage friends who are not old maids (yet, they'll reach that point) and came over to look at flowers planted out of sexual frustration.

2. Pie is good. 'Nough said.

3. Wow Haley, I thought you were trying to challenge me here. This rhyme just reeks of the Israeli-Pallestinian settlement crisis. The symbol of Jerusalem is a Ariah, or a lion. It can then be deduced that the Pallestinians are the Unicorns. The Crown is the land they're fighting over because Jerusalem is both these respective cultures holy lands, Jerusalem is referred to as Jerusalem of gold. Thus the crown- DUH! Really, despite these governments thinking it's best to fight over this instead of share the land, some people just want the fighting to end and will do most anything to resolve this conflict like give away plum. (Except not really).

RIDDLES PONED!

So I'm going to go wallow in my teenage angstiness and get some much needed sleep...while I do that you can try to make what you may of these pictures. (Guess where they were taken), and make up plausible meanings to my obscure scrabble references. (No it's not that smart-ass, I know what your thinking-see there it goes again it comes out in bouts of teenage annoyance). SOOOO I PRESENT THE MYSTERY PHOTOS!



Numero One:

Number Two:

The Wonderful Things that Come from Memory Loss

Yay! I'm finally blogging again! So excited. It's been months, my dear friend. But i'm sure that this exciting collection of random will make up for it! So...yeah. This post is going to be 110% pointless, useless drabble. Starting with:





~ONE OF THE BIGGEST FAILS IN THE HISTORY OF RADIO~





See what I did there? I made it all caps, cuz it's REALLY big...yeah. Anyways. How can one radio station start a riot that results in six deaths and several injuries? Let's find out, shall we?

Our charming tale begins in 1938, with a relatively well known story. A man named Orson Wells re-writes "War of the Worlds" as a radio drama, and plays it on the air as a series of radio broadcasts. Although the broadcasts were introduced as fiction, many intelligent members of society were convinced that martians had indeed landed in New Jersey and were taking over. Wells apologized, and the whole thing blew over quite nicely.

That is, until 1949, when a radio station in Quito, Ecuador, decided to come out with another version of "War of the Worlds". But, being clever and conniving, the radio station decided to actually TRY to make the people of Quito believe that their city was being invaded by aliens.

It was actually an elaborate, well-thought-out plan (in a manner of speaking, that is). Weeks before the show went on, the radio station began to feed phony UFO sightings to the local newspapers. They swore the staff to secrecy and, somehow, no one ever found out. Then, one day, they interrupted daily programming to announce to the 250,000 people of Quito that a town 20 miles south of them was being attacked by extra-terrestrials.

They even had a member of their staff pretend to be the mayor, saying that, "All women and children should run into the jungle and hide. All able-bodied men should arm themselves in preparation to defend their city."

Needless to say, the situation didn't end well. The people of Quito piled into their cars, trying to flee the city. There was complete chaos in the roads, and confusion throughout. When the radio station learned of the mess they had created, they told everyone that the whole thing was a hoax.

The crowd did not take it well. Quikly turning into and angry mob, they proceeded to burn the radio station to the ground. The Equadorian army was sent in, but by that time six people had died in the fire, and several others had been injured. The station's artistic director, Leonardo Paez, was forced to change his name and flee the country.

Fin.

I just can't help but think of 'It's Nerdtastic' in a few years. Only with us, it'd be an invasion of Harry Potter, Luke Skywalker, and Frodo Baggins flying in. Except for Frodo. I think he'd have to walk. Poor Frodo.




P.S.- Thanks to the writers of 'Uncle John's Unsinkable Bathroom Reader'. (Yes, that's what it's called. And yes, I do in fact, own one.) Well, I tried to write it a bit differently...I might have failed a little. Don't sue me. :).





....NEXT RANDOM!!!!





The suspense is killing you, I know it.



Lalalalaaaaa.....hmhmmm.....


*Drum roll*


Ready?


The next random topic is....

.....NURSERY RHYMES!

Okay, so, this is how this is going to work. What I was going to do was put up three nursery rhymes, google their twisted meanings, and post those as well. But, I thought it would be more fun (and i'm just feeling lazy) if I made it a challange for you *cough cough Rhea cough* to get your brains all flowing and ready for school (if I have to suffer, you have to suffer). So, I will just post the nursery rhymes themselves, then you will think about them, then I will post what they really mean at a later date. Got it? Good. Here are the rhymes:

N.R. #1:

Mary, Mary, Quite Contrary

Mary, Mary, quite contrary, how does your garden grow?

With silver bells and cockle shells

And pretty maids all in a row.

N.R. #2:

Sing a Song of Sixpence

Sing a song of sixpence, a pocket full of rye,

Four and twenty blackbirds baked in a pie

When the pie was opened, the birds began to sing

Oh, wasn't that a dainty dish to set before the

King?

The king was in his counting house counting

out his money,

The queen was in the parlor eating bread and

Honey.

The maid was in the garden hanging out the

Clothes

When down came a black bird and pecked off

Her nose.

N.R. #3

The Lion and the Unicorn

The lion and the unicorn were fighting for the

Crown.

The lion beat the unicorn all around the town;

Some gave them white bread and some gave

Them brown,

Some gave them plum cake and drummed them

Out of town.

Okay, so there you go. Have a ball. The last one is my favorite, because it involves a unicorn. :).

We're gonna do one more thing before I hit the sack. And possibly get a snack. Before I go back....yeah. So, without further adue, I bring you:

The Fantastical Beast/ Creature of the Week/ Day/ Post!

...Wow. That wasn't nearly as epic as I'd hoped it would be.

This Week's/ Day's/ Post's Fantastical Beast/ Creature:

The Gnome.

*What IS a Gnome?

Gnomes, to be brief, are little, people-like, underground-dwelling creatures.

*What do Gnomes look like?

Most Gnomes of today are short (about 6 in./15 cm.), with white beards and brightly colored clothing.

*Do they have any special powers or abilities?

Gnomes are known to walk through earth as easily as we can walk on top of it.

*What are their weaknesses?

Sunlight turns them to stone.

*Where do Gnomes live?

All over the world! In the Alps, there is a species of Gnome called the Barbegazi. In Iceland, they are called Vaettir.

~FUN FACT~

Did you know that in Switzerland, bunkers are often called Gnomes, because they look after money like Gnomes guard gold?

Well, that's it. Until next time:

"The purest ore is produced from the hottest furnace. The brightest thunderbolt is elicited from the darkest storm."-Charles Caleb Colten

"I'm not a muggle! My letter's just late!"-Anonymous

So long, Farewell, auf Wiedersehen, Goodbye

Well Haley, it's been a pleasure blogging with you for the past three months. I hope we can continue this project/experiment of friendship when we both get back from CAMP!!!!! I simply cannot wait to see you, and talk to you face to face for once. Really, I guess I shouldn't be saying farewell to you, but rather to our barely-existent readers. I bid all of you adieu, and to Haley I say Hello. So Shalom to all of you. (Which means both hello and goodbye, and alternatively peace.) Have a great August everyone!

Being a Teenager Is Never Easy (Especially if You're the Queen)

My dear, over-heated Haley,

Like the one before it, this post comes to you in parts; specifically, three of them. Before we get to those though, I just have to say even when you’re in a heat wave and tired as hell, you still manage to make me laugh! I’m glad you had an excellent Fourth of July even if you had to walk on crunchy grass.

Part 1- The Mood Swings of Mother Earth:

I assure you, your weather isn’t the only one being weird. Mother Nature is either a really mean, vindictive entity (person?) or the US is experiencing bizarre weather patterns for some reason. People are all like, “Global warming what nonsense- that’s preposterous!” Well then geniuses, how do you explain the fact that today in my lovely home town in the Midwest we experienced 80 degree weather, followed by thunderstorms? That wasn’t the oddest bit: shortly after the thunderstorm it proceeded to hail. In July. In 80 degree weather. I’d just like to remind you all hail is made of ice. There is something slightly wrong with this. After that, it rained some more. Then these weird fog clouds appeared out of nowhere, and started rolling (traveling?) down the street. I suspect dementors; I have been feeling a bit down lately. To top it all off, it’s raining again. YAY!

Part 2- Why Teenagers Who Read (John Green Especially) Will Save America

Ignoring the weather, things have been pretty boring here. I’ve been going to volleyball camp, going to art classes, hanging out with a few select friends, reading, and then waking up the next day to do it all over again. My savior from boredom this long, hot summer comes in a loved and reread copy of Paper Towns by John Green, who's one of my favorite authors. (He would be my favorite, except JK Rowling beats him out with the seven amazing Harry Potter books. I'm sorry John, NO ONE beats Harry Potter!)

I’m really impressed with the fact that out of all the books on the list I gave you, you read my mind and bought Looking for Alaska. That book is sweet, sensitive, and challenged me to think about life, the way I live it, and my relationships with other people. In my opinion, Looking for Alaska summed up parts of the teenage experience and emotions that go along with. I appreciate the fact the book is written in a unique and truthful way; not in the way that many young adults books are, clutching at straws and, cover topics discussing they think teenagers want to hear: sex and drugs, and vampires. Sometimes, we do want to hear those things, but not all the time. Sometimes we want to talk about life, love, and loss. Sometimes we want to discuss how events can change us, and how we can change the things that need fixing in the world. This book has an realness to it that makes it a worthwhile read. Also, I may or may not have bawled like a baby at the end of the book. I propose we do a shared post about the beauty of Looking for Alaska when you’ve finished it.

****See Side note*****

Hales it makes me really happy that you’ve been watching Stephen Colbert, because now I can come out of the closet and confess my dirty secret. I’ll admit it; I won’t deny it anymore. I watch John Stewart most nights, and I laugh loudly at all his liberal Jew jokes. So now you and the world know, and I am not ashamed. (Ok, just a little bit.) What bleeding heart liberals we are. You and other Stephen Colbert watchers are what restore hope in my country’s future. (Just saying.)

Part 3- History Is a Bunch Of Stuff that Happened to Dead People:

Today, or technically yesterday (July 10th) since I am writing this at midnight, I was on Wikipedia. What you may or may not know about me Haley is that I am a Wikipedia junkie. I will admit I am slightly addicted to the "On This Day" section, and read about all the fascinating things that happen on that particular date in time. Some people eat when they’re bored, some people watch TV, I look things up on Wikipedia. Which brings us to a new segment in this blog that I’d like to call interesting crap that happened to people who are dead, or ICHPWD. That’s a bit of a mouthful so I’m just going to take a hint from Wikipedia and call it Today’s News of the Past as told by Rhea and/or Hayley. ( I realize I’ve already wrote a News of the Past segment about Frida Khalo, I must go back and retag that! For that post click here.)

This, in a very roundabout way, brings us back to today’s news of the past: my friend (okay she’s long dead) Lady Jane Grey. I will admit, when I first read her name I only clicked on her article just because I thought it was referring to the Grey Lady in Harry Potter. I was sadly mistaken but, did learn several interesting things about the dear lady.

Lady Jane Grey was the Queen of England for exactly nine days, earning her the title the Nine Days Queen (Some historians think it’s thirteen days actually; the thirteen day queen just doesn’t have the same ring to it.)

Lady Jane Grey's rule is the shortest rule of a monarch in England. Another interesting fact about her, is her life sort of sucked. You’re probably wondering why she only ruled for nine days. You're also probably wondering why her life sucked; unless you already googled her. In which case, PAY ATTENTION! You might think being Queen for nine days might not be that bad. Well, it is if you spend your entire reign trapped in the Tower of London, the old school jail in the days of the royal court, waiting for yourself to be sentenced to death. Back to that later. Lady Grey’s problem really started when she was a young child back in the 1500s. She had incredibly abusive parents even for the time period. This is saying something because flogging, whipping, and verbal abuse were completely acceptable at this time. Jane Grey was apparently quite bright for a girl, spoke three languages, and made her own choice to become a protestant. At the age of ten, she was sent to live with her relative the Queen Consort of England and some of her other cousins. For her sake I hope they were nicer to her. Fast forward 7 years, after a failed engagement Jane at the age of 16 or 17 Jane was married off to Lord Guilford Dudley. Apparently, Jane stated her preference for single life, but her mother forced her into marriage. (Wicked women, destroying the life of a perfect independent, smart, proud women! I unfortunately do know the time period called for it.) I know what your thinking Hales; feminist a bit Rhea?

Anyways, the way the lovely Lady became Queen was through the King failing to provide a heir and he picked Jane because she was the protestant heir of his younger sister. (I think that’s how it happened?) You can read about it one wikipedia here if your intrigued. This family had some seriously bad luck with male heirs. They went through three separate families’ with no male heirs, which is how the unlikely event occurred that Lady Jane took the throne. My favorite part of this story, is that Lady Jane Grey refused to make her husband the king, but offered him the position of Duke of Clarence. (GIRL POWER! and/or meaness- you decide.) Some people in the 1500s, and now believe Lady Jane Grey to not actually be Queen due to some legal issue with Parliament. Again, I don’t really undestand that so check the wikipedia article here. Anyways now we get to the fascinating part, her death. That doesn’t make me sound morbid in the slightest, nope!

Jane and her husband, Lord Guilford Dudley were both charged with high treason in trial on November 13, 1553. Jane was sentenced to be burned alive or to be beheaded “as the queen pleases.” (As the Queen pleases my ass; who the heck wants to be beheaded? See, if I was queen I would please to stay alive and I’m sure she wanted that too.) Fortunately for Jane, it was ordered by imperial ambassador, Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor, that her life was too be spared. Yay, everyone cheers Jane lives, although she isn’t queen anymore- Cousin Mary is, and then, the universe takes another dump on her. In January 1554, there was a protestant rebellion. People were calling for Jane to be reinstated as Queen, and as a precaution the monarchy had her executed to prevent future uprisings. I mean it sucks to be murdered for being a criminal, but it really sucks to be murdered for something you didn’t do. Oh yeah, the worst part of this-her cousin consented to her murder. It took a bit of convincing from Prince Phillip but, apparently they felt taking the precaution was necessary. This girl had a really nasty family; apparently Lady Jane's father knew about the beheading, but did nothing to try to stop it. So Jane was beheaded five days later in a private execution inside the Tower of London which was attended by the queen. The Queen was suposedly there to "honor" her cousin. See, if it was me (which thank the lord it wasn’t) I wouldn’t necessarily want to see the cousin who sentenced me to death.

Jane ascended the scaffold where she was to be beheaded with dignity. After reciting Psalm 51 (Have mercy upon me, O G-d) the executioner asked her forgiveness. Then she asked something of him, “I pray you dispatch me quickly.” Jane proceeded to blindfold herself, and quickly lost all composure. After not being able to find the beheading block she cried out, “What shall I do? Where is it?"

Someone helped her compose herself and guided her over to the block. Her final words were, “Lord, into thy hands I commend my spirit!" After declaring this, she was promptly executed. Today, Lady Jane Grey is apparently regarded as a Protestant martyr. Being Jewish, I have no idea if this is true. Thus ends another gruesome tale from the blood splattered pages of English history.

****Sidenote****

(In case you’re incredibly slow and missed the first two links to Lady Jane Grey’s page here’s a last one: Clickity!)

****Sidenote*****: I don’t know why, but I’ve found I like and have a deeper understanding of all John Green’s books once I read them a second time. I’ve just gotten a lot more out of them when you’re free to think more about the metaphors and less about the plot.

**** Footnote*****: I like hearing stories about prominent women who changed history, stood up for themselves and other women, and made their own choices. So I really liked this story, you know, until the dying part.

Just an observation about myself: In this short post, I manage to reference Harry Potter three times. Ahhhh the joys of being a dork! NERDFIGHTERS!!! (Sorry obscure reference, for those of you who don’t know what I’m talking about click here)

I’m very excited to see your hat pictures Haley (Seeing the real hats at camp wouldn’t be bad either!), and read your very well written next post.

P.S. I keep promising you a fashion post and I have one for next time. It’s even long for my standards. It’ll be up after you post yours. It’s been a long time coming, and Haley you should be excited about the lesson you’re going to be receiving about the dying industry of cotoure fashion ;) I’ll be showing you this season’s cotoure lines and referencing Galliano, Givenchy, and Gaultier A LOT! It’s weird that three of my favorite designers who do haute cotoure lines start with G. You can tell this is being written at night. I need to go to bed!

Much Love,
A pleasantly cool Rhea

It's hot. Like, really hot.

Hey Rhea. Its me, your partner-in-crime, your bestest buddy, and this is definitely going to one of those "Im calling to report that I have absolutely nothing to report" Situations. I hope to make up for it by putting some of those crazy hat pictures up over the weekend...but, for now, here we go.

Its hot. Like, really hot. In the words of Steven Colbert, "I would like to go some where cooler over my holiday. Like, a middle-eastern desert." I think it was Tuesday that the record high in Central Park was 106 degrees, and, about 65 miles away, the small town of Cornwall is in a state of total hibernation. I attempted to go for a walk yesterday, and ended up asleep under a tree. All of the grass is unpleasantly crunchy, and I have to wait for the sun to set before I can ride my bike without keeling over. So, I apologize for the lack of stories that do not have something to do with daytime television. I am going to get to swim in my friends pool tomorrow, though, so Ill stop my complaining.

I really enjoyed your Israel pictures; they were really beautiful. And I went to Barnes and Noble the other day and picked up Looking for Alaska, and a ton of other books to last me these hot, boring days. My Fourth of July (while, again, HOT) was fun; our town has a super-cute, village-wide, hometown celebration, with a craft fair and a parade and fireworks, so its always great.

I know, I know, this was SUPER short, but I promise to put those pics up over the weekend (my camera is being a jerk). And then we are going to Cape May for a few days, so I wont be able to post. And I cant wait to see you in just a few weeks!

Luv ya! Hope its cooler in Wisconsin! (Im sure it is!)

The Most Beautiful Unibrow I've Ever Seen

I know, I know, I KNOW! Stop it already Haley! I know I just posted but, I promise this will be quick. Besides, this is important! How many times a year does Frida Kahlo's birthday come around? Only one, and it's today. ***(See Footnote)***

Frida Kahlo 1907-1954

Frida Kahlo painted herself and the world the way she saw it. Many of her famous works were self potraits in which she did not attempt to beautify herself at all. In many of her portraits she sports a unibrow, physical injuries, and is clearly in pain. At a time when it wasn't popular, she gave the world an uncomprimising view of feminism and activism. There is a book of Kahlo's works that sit on my family's coffee table at home. When I was younger, the potraits scared and repulsed me. (Ok, they still scare me. Now it's in a more creeped out in awe way.) Several years older, I respect Ms. Kahlo for her abilitity to paint the world in vibrate colors but, still express the problems and pain she saw in it. I think that's what most artists strive to do, and it's what I hope to be able to do in the future as an artist. I will leave you with the inspiring images and words of Ms. Kahlo, because anything I say just pales in comparison to the vibrance of her art work. (Also, I'm clearly not as cool or brilliant as Frida Kahlo)

The Two Fridas (A Self Potrait)

Sandías con leyenda: Viva la vida”(Watermelons with legend: The life lives) was painted several days before her death

Probably Kahlo's most famous self-potrait

"I never painted dreams. I painted my own reality."- Frida Kahlo

***Footnote*** Frida Kahlo died in 1954. I guess that means it's technically not her birthday, but the anniversary of her birthday? Is that how that works? Could you let me know, because now I've completely confused myself. Enough of that, point is she is most unfortunately dead.

I Put the Sprinkler on the Lawn and Ran Through With My Gym Shorts On

My lovely Haley,
Today’s post comes in four distinct, but equally magnificent parts. (You should be very excited.)

Part 1:It's nerdtastic! (No I don't feel at all embarrassed using that word, so there!)

I'm so excited that we've actually started "talking" (blogging?)back and forth that I literally got off my butt, and did my happy dance. That’s right, a lot of spinning, jumping, and thrashing arm movements began and ensued for a few seconds. The crazy dancing would have gone on for a lot longer but, my dog walked over, gave me a look and walked away. So nice to know even in the comfort of your own home you can still be made fun of for being a nerd! By a pet no less?! Such is the way things our in this crazy world of ours.

Part 2: My class trip (but only 1/3rd, the rest is coming)

Hales, your trip to Boston sounds fantastic, unfortunately none of it actually happened. I’m sure the real trip was just as fabulous. Soon after you came back from your trip, I left for mine. I know we talked on the phone a little bit about our trips, but I feel I haven’t done mine justice until you’ve seen the pictures. Before your trip, we spent some time one the phone setting up this here bloggy-blog. You mentioned how annoyed you were that you had to get up to travel to Boston but, you said “I think it’ll be worth it once we get there.” Ok, I’m not sure that’s exactly what you said but it’s pretty darn close. Anyways, I don’t know if this statement is as true for you as it is for me, but the 24 hours of travel were all worth it once we landed in Ben Gurion Airport. Well you only had to travel a few hundred miles; I had to travel several thousands more. Traveling with my class to Israel was surprisingly fun and easy**** (see footnote). I sketched, took pictures with my friends, talked and indulged my tea addiction when I bought a chai at starbucks. Even though it was fun, I was still super happy when we finally reached our hostel in Tiberius. The next two weeks were a blur of amazing adventures. I will try to summarize really quickly some of the highlights. AHEM *clears throat* here we go:

Day 1: We arrive in Israel, and immediately head to a special park. (I think it was a national park) At the park they reenact biblical experiences; therefore my class got the unique opportunity to herd goats, and draw water from a well. Let’s just say if I was to be a Sheppard like many of my biblical ancestors it’s safe to say I would have been out of a job.

My class herding goats

Day 2: My class visits our partnership school in Tiberius. It was really cool to meet kids our own age in Israel, and to hang out with them. The adults had organized team building activities to help the students from both schools bond. Kids at my school definitely need to work on our team building/ logic/ taking directions skills. After that we immediately headed to the Jordan River to go rafting. My group somehow managed to get stuck on a waterfall, and sat there for five minutes until we finally managed to get our boat back on course. Just typical really, we’re the only group that happened to. Later that day we walked around the streets of Tiberius with the kids from the school and they helped us buy dinner.

A view of Tiberius from an overlook

Two of my friends and I after walking around the streets of Tiberius

Day 3: We left Tiberius very early in the morning. and winded our way up the many mountains that make up the Golan Heights. We visited a mountain, Har Bental from which you could see Syria. My class toured a bunker that had been used on that mountain in some of the past wars. Then we drove for another few hours to a park (I think?) where we went hiking. There was a waterfall there, so obviously we had a waterfight. We were not the only group there, and some unfortunate boy made the mistake of staring at one of my good friend’s behind a little too long. He brought some other friends over to look. I watched on in horror (Ok, I was laughing the entire time) as my friend proceeded to try to kick the guy in the you-know-where. She failed but managed to get him thoroughly wet, and start what my social studies teacher referred to as the next “Middle Eastern war.”

A stream where my class was hiking

Day 4: We got up at 6:00 AM to start driving down to Jerusalem. We hit the beach first, and buried one of our classmates in the sand. My friend and I had just been covering his legs with sand when some of the boys came over and decided to turn him into a mermaid. He grew quite voluptuous on top if you catch my drift. Then, we visited the Israeli tank museum, Latrun. Finally later in the evening we arrived at a lookout to catch our first glimpse of Jerusalem. What do we see when we get there: a thick smog; so much for our majestic view! Later that night we did take a tour of part of the underground city of Jerusalem. The tunnels we walked in exposed bits of the Western Wall, one of the holiest spots where Jews go to pray, that aren't ussually seen. It was a really cool experiance.

People praying at the Western Wall

My friend and I right before we went on the tour to see the underground Western Wall

**** Footnote***The exception being the one kid who lost his ticket five minutes before we boarded the plane.

IMPORTANT!!!! I almost forgot, but luckily I didn't. I owe credit where credit is due. I did not take any of these photos. I have used some that my friend gave me permission to use, and some that were on my facebook profile. I apologize if I have missed giving credit to anyone. Thanks for the photos!

Part 3: For your entertainment pleasure

Since you apparently failed to recieve my very well put together list of music and books, I will post the list for you. These should entertain you for the rest of the summer! I’m such a nice person…ok not really since I clearly have proven that I still can’t spell your last name. I can’t believe I tried to email you at the wrong address. Gosh, it’s not even that hard to spell?

Well here’s the list:
1. Amy Winehouse- Tears dry on their own
2. Amos Lee- Keep it loose, Keep it tight
3. Avett Brothers- Head full of doubt/Road full of Solace
4. Barenaked Ladies- Pinch Me
5. Belle and Sebastian- Step Into my office baby
6. Ben Folds- Still Fighting It
7. Bon Iver- Skinny Love
8. The Mountain Goats- Love Love Love
9. Gavin Degraw- Nice to Meet you Anyway
10. Guster- Hang On
11. Indigo Girls- Closer to Fine
12. Iron and Wine- Naked As We Came
13. John Mayer- No Such Thing
14. John Mclaughlin- Four Years
15. Matisyahu- One Day (If you don't look this up right away I will come eat you NOW!)
16. Phoenix- Everything is Everything
17. Rufus Wainright- Beautiful Child
18. Wilco- Hummingbird

Book Recomendations :

1. Looking for Alaska, Paper Towns- John Green
2. Da vinci Code- Dan Brown
3. The Time Travelers Wife
4. My Sister's Keeper- Jodi Picoult (It's an excellent crying book if you need one)
5. The Truth About Forever- Sarah Dessen

Part 4: Hats, gloves, shoes, and life’s other great pleasures

What to do with your extra, awesome hats? Is that even a question? You bring them to camp so a certain two campers (cough* Haley, Rhea* Cough) can wear them. I’m bringing a bunch of crazy accessories to camp. Maybe you can add little decals or appliqués to them to spice them up. I’d have to see them though. Post pictures so I can help you decide what outfits to wear them with. Or you know, we could figure that out at camp ;)

I know this was long, but I owe you that! Luv ya and better hear from you soon, Rhea


PS: I apologize to you, Hales, for the lateness of this post. In my defense it was the fourth of July and I needed to celebrate like all good Americans should. You know the drill; you sit with your family, eat too much, laugh too much, then watch as the local country clubs and park systems put on a demonstration which is actually a fake war (though it may look colorful). Then you watch in amusement as your father roots through a box of fireworks trying to find the sparklers. Then you contemplate whether the five to seven year old sparklers still work or will blow up in your face when he finds them. All this is forgotten when you are handed one of them and you get to watch the pretty colors and sparks. I had an amazing time with my family! Hope you did too.......Happy 4th

The Boston Trip and Toy Story 3

To my beloved Rhea,

First of all, you're welcome for listening (or reading. Watching?) you rant about skirts for three hours. If you came to visit me, I could take you to The Village, and we could get you some decent funky clothing. Well, anyways, today's topics: The Boston Trip, and Toy Story 3.

Topic #1: the Boston Trip
My overnight class trip to Boston was an absolute success. Really, it was incredible. You should have been there. First, on the way there, our bus driver, wheel in one hand, hot dog in the other, pulled a trigger, and sent us flying into the sky, all the while singing the 'Magic School Bus' song (that was a tad uncomfortable). Then, at the science museum, my friend Natasha was wrestled into the monkey cage by at least 50, two-foot, fuzzy primates. She fought back valiantly, and, in doing so, gained their respect. They made her one of their brothers (a very high honor). On our dinner cruise, my friend Jacky showed off her mad dancing skills. The whole school was cheering, and when she was done, the DJ got down and declared that he would like to marry her. She refused, and the poor man broke down sobbing. The next day, at the aquarium, my friend Rosie spontaneously combusted, and in her place stood none but a small penguin. Looking into the beady eyes of the little creature, I knew that this was Rosie, trapped inside the body of a penguin. My teacher Mrs. Page tried to use her magic powers to change her back, but then Rosie's spirit came to us and said that this was her true form. She then joined the other penguins. Mourning the loss of our dear friend, we returned home. The end!
Okay, none of that's true. We had fun though.

Topic #2: Toy Story 3
Well, as you already know, I recently attended a showing of "Toy Story 3" and, as Disney and Disney Pixar movies made up a very large percentile of my childhood, I had very high expectations. I took my friend Rosie. Walking into the theater, I tripped on one of the stairs and dumped popcorn everywhere. Rosie and I were amused to see that nearly everyone in the theater were parents and children. It set the mood. The Pixar short at the beginning, "Night and Day", was adorable, meaningful, and made us feel fuzzy inside. The movie was intense. During the one scene where the toys are about to be cremated, I looked over to see Rosie with both hands over her mouth, her eyes wide in terror. But the best part of the movie (although I did enjoy Buzz's 'Spanish mode'), was when all of the toys get passed on to the little girl, even Woody (my favorite) who Andy was going to take to college. I cried. No judging.

Random Notes:

*I cleaned out my closet yesterday, and realized that I have a LOT of hats. Seriously. I don't know where they all came from. I'm still trying to think of a good use for them...;)

*My mom picked up the coolest book for me yesterday; it's got all these crazy mythical monsters in it. I didn't know how many monsters there were that I didn't know about!

*I was just informed that I get to be on the HS drama club float for July 4th! Yay! It sounds dorky, I know, but I always wanted to be in the parade when I was little. I even considered joining *shudder* girl scouts! We're gonna sing "One day More" at the town hall. (By the way, I got the DVD, I might put a wee snippet on my next post).

*I didn't get your music list, it might have something to do with my last name being spelled with an 'e', not an 'i'. How did you like FWM? If you think they're kind of cool, you might want to look up Cornerstone Cues. I'm getting really into them, especially "J.B.D."; that's my favorite. Really pretty stuff. Also, do me a favor and look up High School Never Ends by Bowling For Soup, I think it'll make you smile.

*I've recently been inspired by sprinklers. I don't know, I saw some the other day and I remembered how much fun they are. Just something to think about.

*I woke up at 11:30 this morning! Hooray for laziness!

We're Rocking the Suburbs (or at Least their Malls)

Dear Haley,
You are still away on your class trip. Therefore, I am sad because I don't get to to talk to you. To occupy my time, I have taken upon myself a quest with the epic adventure and thrilling terror of Harry Potter. Haley, at this moment I am picturing you sitting in a desk chair rolling your eyes at my theatrics(cause they were o'so clever.) I have traveled far on my quest for the perfect gypsy skirt. (I'll settle for a hippie one too, I'm not picky.) Okay, it was to our suburb's local mall but it ruins the story if I say that. I had a heck of a time finding anything that fit, and everthing that did was far to short, had holes in places they should not have been, or had thread coming loose. I need a apropriate long skirt for my class trip to Israel, but I'm worried about not being able to find one. My mom suggested I sew one myself, and I may have too. What happened to our malls?

Gosh, I don't know if this is just my city, but what happened to quality sewing? As a seamstress,it's offending that some of the clothing put on the racks has fraying thread, holes, and is poorly made to the point that seams don't match up. Back in the day when everything was old school(Ergo AWESOME) no one and I MEAN NO ONE would dare display clothing with shoddy workmanship or inapropriately high hem lines. It's shocking to me that people are willing to pay up to 70 dollars for a scrap of fabric (that the store had labeled a "skirt") that is going to be destroyed in the next two months. The poor, tortured piece of fabric already had a small hole on the waistband. I am fairly old school for a fourteen year old, but I would like to go back to the days when every garmet was made well enough to last for more than one season, without the unintentional holes, and when stores actually sold different clothing. I'm getting sick of the same clothing with different store names plastered on the garment. That's why thrift shopping is so much more appealing to me, and why I'll be looking for my skirt at thrift stores with character.

Despite my ranting, I do enjoy the mall. They have a bookstore and a Froyo, and some fun, orginal clothing stores. Did I mention the Froyo? (My new favorite store in the mall!) Unfortunately, my local mall failed to provide a flowy gypsy skirt. Thus bringing us to todays collection of photos. Inspired by my want of the perfect gypsy skirt. Most of the garments are ethnically inspired clothing with long flowy gowns. This may just be me, but many of the photos give off that ethnic, gypsy vibe? Tell me what you think!

These Images hail from Style.com and are photos of the 2005 fall Jean Paul Gaultier cotour fashion show. I know this is old but the images are so beautiful. The gowns make me want to go play in the forest, but the crazy hair is slightly reminiscent of Queen Elizabeth or Marie Antoinett. Wild, elegent, crazy, and natural: that doesn't sound like a bad combination to me! Of course, I want to run off with all the gowns in the top row. I'd be okay with just a gypsy skirt so I will continue my hunt.In the meantime I may just stare at the rest of these photos. Enjoy the the photos Haley. If you haven't already stopped reading I'm impressed! This isn't the end Haley, there will be a lot more talk of long flowy skirts. I already have my next post planned around it.






AHHHHHH Why are these garments sooo gorgeous? This fashion show is such a WOW moment that instead of doing science homework, I'm still looking at it!

Sincerely,
A lonely, gypsy skirt deprived Rhea

So It Begins...

Well Haley,
We've finally started our blog. I feel like we've talked about this for months, though it's only been a matter of weeks. I'm really excited and I know you are too. How you ask? Well, the first thing you need to know about Haley and me is that we're telepathy twins (yeah, like the freaky kind you read about saving the world in children's books.) Not really, but that would be interesting. I know you're excited, just because I know you that well. It has nothing to do with the fact I talked to you a relatively few short minutes ago. Nope nothing at all!

For the rare, curious reader as to what will be in this blog, Haley and I are not quite sure. I will probably being doing a fashion post whenever I write, ussually a more "normal" topic accompanying it. As you know Haley, I ve always have been into fashion and can talk about it for hours. Now, at least you'll be able to see the dresses and collections I'm talking about in the pictures I will post. As to what you write, I'll be pleasantly suprised as always.

Here we go....I'm clicking the button to release our first post (hopefully of many) to the globabl internet community. How daunting!

I remain,
Rhea