Quotes

So I've been running into quotes everywhere I go it seems...on Facebook, on random sites, and in different books. And everytime I find a good one, I think "Ooh, I should post this on my blog!" and then never get around to it. So here are a quite a few different quotes, which have accumulated over the course of....well, quite some time.

"You have enemies? Good. That means you've stood up for something, sometime in your life." - Winston Churchill.

"You have to be willing to write badly." - Alyson Hagy

"Cleverness is not wisdom." Euripides

"Fantasy is hardly an escape from reality. It is a way of understanding it." - Lloyd Alexander

"There is more honour in a field well-plowed than in a field steeped in blood." - Lloyd Alexander

"Quiet people have the loudest minds." Stephen Hawking

"A girl can't read that sort of thing without her lipstick." - Breakfast at Tiffany's

"If you ask me what I came to do in this world, I, an artist, will answer you: I am here to live out loud." - Emile Zola

"It is the deepest desire of every writer, the one we never admit or even dare to speak of: to write a book we can leave as a legacy. And although it is sometimes easy to forget, wanting to be a writer is not about reviews or advances or how many copies are printed or sold. It is much simpler than that, and much more passionate. If you do it right, and they publish it, you may actually leave something behind that will last forever." -Alice Hoffman

And, I've saved my very favourite for the last:

"Sometimes winning a fight isn't as important as standing in the right place, facing what needs to be faced. And sometimes standing in the right place means you end up dead. And that's better than not standing at all." - N.D. Wilson

Pictures of my Projects

I've been saying for a bit now that I would post pictures of some of my knitting projects on here....and today I'm finally getting around to it! I started knitting a few months ago, and now I'm completly hooked.
My first project was a Tea Wallet I made for my dear mater, and it was my first time actually using the purl stitch and making a 'pattern' with my stitches. Quite proud of it, even though it was a bit rough.

My sister then asked for a pair of fingerless gloves, because her hands were getting cold when we went to our horseback-riding lessons in the cold November mornings. So, I made her a really easy pair of garter stitch mitts. I called them Cloudless Skies, because of the colour of the yarn. It's so pretty. :)

I made a few more little projects which I don't have pics of, such as a pocket purse for a friend and a scarf which I'm still in the progress of making. It's for a friend of mine who is obsessed with Harry Potter, so I'm knitting her a Ravenclaw scarf.

The next project, which I'm kinda proud of, is one I made for my friend Katie Sonner. :) It was a scarf, and I needed to finish it quickly, so I knitted it on the Knifty Knitter loom, instead of on needles. It was made using a gorgeous mohair yarn that I had been itching to use, blended with a soft grey.

The other projects I haven't quite completed yet, so I'm not going to post pics until you can see the finished product. If you're on Ravelry, you can friend me and see the rest of them in my Projects! :) This Lent, I'm hoping to start working on something called the Beekeeper's Quilt, which is an absolutly beautiful quilt pattern on Ravelry. It's going to take some time, but I think the end product will be worth it. I don't know if I'm giving it away, or keeping it for myself quite yet...although it would be funny to give to my parents, seeing as they're both beekeepers as a hobby. ;)

MAUI!!!!

Well, I just got back from a completely AWESOME week in Maui. I celebrated by 16th birthday while there (WOOT!) and am now trying to adjust myself to the rather rainy California weather....I miss the sunshine....
The airplane trip there was rather uneventful...I spent it watching The Proposal with my dad (hilarious movie by the way, a must-see if you like romantic comedies!) and doing schoolwork. The rest of the week we spent snorkeling with sea turtles and millions of fish over a huge coral reef. It was one of the best weeks of my life.
For my birthday, we got Starbuck's coffee (since I love coffee so much), snorkeled, hung out by the fantastic pool, and went to Leilani's for my birthday dinner. Leilani's is a wonderful restaurant that is right on the beach, and their fish is absolutely spectacular. For dessert, we had Hula Pie, which is this gigantic slice of macadamia nut ice cream smothered in chocolate sauce on an Oreo cookie crust. It is seriously one of the best desserts EVER.
The rest of the week was spent doing the same thing...snorkeling, sunbathing, swimming, reading, and relaxing. I watched The Bourne Identity with my dad. It's a pretty good movie, and it made me want to read the book. So, for my birthday, my dad bought me the actual novel by Robert Ludlum. OMG. I can't believe I hadn't read it earlier! His writing style is very engaging, and it's a brilliant plot that keeps me turning the pages! It's now definitely on my awesome books list.
The thing I liked most about the trip was the ability to relax. We didn't rush to go anywhere....we just stayed by the hotel and did what we wanted. I got to actually write for as long as I wanted! I got several plot bunnies and scenes written out, as well as some script ideas. I also developed several characters from a two dimensional dead description to living, breathing "people". Very excited to continue writing with them. :)
The airplane trip back was a bit stressful...our flight got delayed an entire hour, so we got home about midnight. The actual flight for me was spent studying for a chemistry test. There were at least three screaming babies, if not more, and the sleeping passenger next to me kept on flipping his blanket onto my textbook and arm as I studied. After dropping off my grandparents and aunt and uncle (who came with us to Maui), we finally got home at 2:00 am. So, I'm a bit tired, but I wouldn't turn in my experience for the world. Now, back to reality. Homework awaits...