14 Things I Want my Brother to Know at 14

Your birthday is less than a month away. Next week I'll be taking you school shopping and expect "No, that's gay" in response to everything I suggest (by the way, I don't appreciate you using 'gay' to refer to something negative. RUDE)! You're growing up and I hate it. But since it's bound to happen and I can't afford to cryogenically freeze you until I am more fit to handle the change, I thought I might give you some tips that maybe I would have liked to know at 14.

Inspired by a Facebook post:
http://maryschmidt.tumblr.com/post/58728762311/25-things-i-want-myself-to-know-at-25

1. You are NOT stupid. You are nothing LESS than SMART. In fact, you are so incredibly, outstandingly, surprisingly brilliant sometimes that it scares me. So doctors have told you that you have ADHD? WHO CARES?! Go on a run, ride your skateboard around, listen to music. Anything that works to calm your body and mind. Once you're calm, do some homework. If you have trouble, ask for help. There is nothing wrong with you except that you let other people tell you that there is something wrong with you. You are strong, you are funny, you are intelligent, you are impressive. Now convince yourself of that.

2. Don't let yourself look like a greasy trouble maker. In the long run, everyone will appreciate you more, and you will appreciate yourself, if you give yourself the care you deserve! Cut your hair, wash your pants, and disinfect your shoes/socks sometimes. Don't worry, I looked like a greasy trouble maker until high school. It wasn't pretty. :)

3. I know how much you want to grow up, fit in, feel valued, and get away. Slow down, you're only a kid once. Slow down, let Mom worry about the bills. Slow down, and do your job: do well in school, have fun, be carefree. Trust me, that luxury goes away pretty quickly and you're not helping yourself by trying to speed it up.

4. Find a hobby BESIDES skating and driving Mom crazy. Discovering things you like leads to finding a passion in life.

5. School is important. I think I've said that before? Go to school, do your work. You won't regret that later! What you will regret is NOT going to school and NOT doing your work. Especially when you have to start paying for it.

6. Video games are a good form of stress release. Play them often, but not when you have other responsibilities that you're avoiding. Das bad, bro.

7. Life is hard, money sucks, yet everyone wishes they had more of it. Don't focus on what you don't have. Instead focus on what you do have. However, don't be afraid to ask family for things you need, such as clothes, school supplies, and other such necessities.

8. Be a little nicer to Chawnie. And when she isn't being nice, be a little more patient with Chawnie. She's your sister and she's most likely to be your long-term friend, through thick and thin, when no one else is. That goes for me too. No back talking. And call me more, you poop.

9. Remember grandparents too. If I give you Papa's number, will you call him more? He's a good friend to have.

10. I'm glad you're not a Facebook fiend. Don't change that.

11. Look to the future more, and be excited about it. Think, "I'm SO going to get an A on this test!", "Hmm, where could I venture to next summer? Hopefully somewhere new!", "What classes will I be interested in high school?", "What sports do I want to play?", "What do I want to do after high school?"And if any of that is too expensive, come talk to me. I know how to work the system, plus I have extra money to spend from time to time.

12. Stay weird. It's a family trait we have to pass on.

13. Girls are icky until you're in college. Just think of girls as succubi. Run away from them, quickly.

14. I love you very much Col-luh-lin. You're pretty cool, I guess. Though not as cool as I am. 'Cause I have a pretty kitty and for that reason I am the best in the world. Observe:

The Q Word

A poem I wrote.
*WARNING* There is 1 swear word.


'Twas a quiet, peaceful night
at the hospital, there
All the nurses were working
without a care
Till I came in, triumphantly,
for a coffee I had just bought
and my name I wrote on the
volunteer's slot
"Good evening!" a tech said to me
with joy in his eyes and a jump in his feet
"Good evening.." I replied,
with a quizzical look
"There's been no crazies," he whispered
"No criminals, no crooks!"
"Ah-ha!" I laughed, realizing his aim
"So today has been quiet and tame?"
All at once, I heard gasps all around
Some nurses ran out the door in a single bound!
"What?!" I shouted
"What did I say?"
"You just ruined our wonderful, peaceful day!
We will have a sore, pitiful night, it's true!
Oh, but perhaps it was my fault for not telling you.
You see, we share a suspicion, the staff and I,
that if you say the "q" word during your shift, past five,
your peaceful night will be disrupted for sure
By criminals, druggies, and crazies galore!
All of which have no viable medical emergency
but simply want a fix or some food for free!"
I nodded my head, mildly concerned.
"You're not taking this very seriously." The tech discerned
"Unfortunately not. I mean, what's the big deal?"
"Oh, you don't even know the feel..."
Just then the ER burst with commotion and chaos!
An old man came in screaming
"I LIKE SPACE BOTS."
Another sauntered in while defecating himself.
A ragged woman yelled
"I'M GOING TO KILL MYSELF."
I jumped to work immediately, trying to keep up with the crowd
when I heard a patient in another room thinking out loud:
"I'm going to kill that son of a bitch, Jason, for what he did
I bet he's still at his buddy's house where he hid."
Just then the patient emerged from his room
as I braced myself for some kind of crazy-guy doom
"Nurse, please, may I call my wife?
I wouldn't be so persistent, but I'm afraid for her life!"
"I'm sorry, you'll have to return to your room, Mr. Giff.
It is none of our concern who your wife has sex with."
The rest of the evening lagged on and on
It was so long it felt almost dawn.
Before I left I checked the rooms one last time
and found an old asian woman, about eighty-five.
She smiled at me, though her face was pained.
Just then, the doctor said,
"Well, it obviously isn't a sprain.
What you've got here is a dislocated wrist."
"Great!" The woman replied,
"Well I'm pissed."
She laughed warmly with the doctor, simply teasing,
as the nurse filled her IV and soon, she was sleeping.
As the doctors massaged her bones back into place
they whispered, "she must have fallen off of that ladder with some grace!
What a tough woman, I must say,
and to be able to handle pain this way!"
I moved on with a smile,
but certainly felt bad for what I'd done!
Needless to say, if you ever hear the "q" word in a hospital,
just run.

Katarina the Beautiful

FINALLY, we made it out to take pictures. We may take more while we're here, so don't think this is the only post that will occur! For now, I want to share some of my favorites. I posted a lot of them on facebook but there are some I won't post there. So, here we go.

 

 These first 6 are edited. Some obviously, some not so much. I love the first picture because it was really foggy and made the picture look kind of creepy.
The picture with the quote is really scary. We looked at it and decided Katarina looked unnatural and just really creepy. Like The Grudge status. So I put a quote on the picture from the horror movie Candyman. It says "They will say that I have shed innocent blood. What's blood for if not for shedding?"
So that was something a little different to try.
The second picture with the street lamp was Katarina's idea. It's pretty because she's doing this dancer-looking pose. I tried to take the graffiti off of the street lamp, but it wouldn't let me and it doesn't ruin the picture, so whatever.

Oooh, a nature photo! This was on our way back to the apartment. It was really pretty. So I shot it. 'Nough said, yo.

I love these two pictures. I think they're really pretty. It's just her sitting on my bed. Simple and gorgeous.

This is edited and actually looks a lot cooler than the original. I tried some highlight/shadow effects and some fill light effects to get the stadium to kind of stand out behind the fog. I think it looks cool..

Lalala, pretty smile, unedited. 

Lalala, sassy face. The poster in the back is really annoying and ruins the picture...

Kat hates this one. I love this one. I think it's pretty adorable.

I didn't crop the posters out of these, just because I wasn't thinking about it, but I think they're worth including. The lighting is better in the top one. Again, not rigidly posed and there's really not a theme to these. Just natural, pretty photos.


Let me know your thoughts. If you have suggestions for themes/clothes/locations for today, I welcome them.
Peace out homies.